The other night, while all five kids were tucked into bed, I put my feet up and relaxed on the couch watching YouTube videos of random homeschooling families. Sometimes it encourages me just to see what other homeschoolers out there are up to. One of the moms I watched showed a glimpse of their eccentric, simple, off-grid lifestyle living in a yurt in New Zealand. This family of four moved from England, bought a yurt from the US, and set up camp on a large plot of land in New Zealand. The mom commented that their children only “do school” for a total of two to two and half hours a day because they want their children to learn from real-life experiences. This encouraged me tremendously.

How many times do I focus on getting everything done in the books rather than focusing on raising interesting people. People who can reason. People who can think. People who can take care of themselves. Becoming dependant on the workbooks can cause us to miss the point which is to raise children to follow after the heart of God. Sometimes God calls His children to break outside of the mold but when children are raised in a rigid system it is hard for them to think that it is okay to color outside of the lines. To do something against the norm.

We are responsible for our children. God has entrusted them into our care. The question is whose rules are we going to follow? Are we going to worry about what other moms think about our homeschooling style or are we going to find freedom in schooling in a way that works for us. It is important to understand your homeschooling style. Who are you? What works for you? These are the questions you need to ask yourself. The question is not, who is your mom or who is your mother-in-law? That may sound silly but I have seen moms burn out because they were trying to be someone they weren’t. One woman I knew grew up homeschooled and her mom handled it with ease. When she married and had kids of her own and began her own homeschooling journey, her response to the decision to homeschool was, “I don’t know anything else.” All she knew her whole life was homeschooling so it seemed like the most practical option for her. But, when the rubber met the road, she was at a loss. Sure she knew how to be a homeschooler but being a homeschooling mom was a different story. Now she is a wonderful homeschooling mom and is doing a great job but for the longest time she was trying to be someone she wasn’t. And she is not the only one. I have seen many moms try to fill shoes that just didn’t fit. The key is to learn how to rock your own shoes rather than try to wear someone else’s. You do not need to be someone your not. Maybe your mother-in-law was the head of the local homeschooling co-op and it is expected that you rise to that position as well. You don’t have to. The only calling your have to fulfill is your own. It would have been pointless for Moses to have built an ark. That was Noah’s calling. And it would not have made an sense for Noah to walk around the ark seven times. That was Joshua’s deal. Find your calling and do it. If you are a classical homeschool then embrace it. Are you an unschooler? Be it. Do you find that three hours a day works for you? Go for it. Do you like to stretch the day longer with lots of breaks? That’s ok. Rather than trying to please others, choose to do what is best for your family and you will find that you will fall in love with homeschooling all over again.