Homeschooling's Hidden Pro

by Andrea Hermitt | More from this Blogger

03 Jan 2007 10:08 AM

If you search the internet, will find lists and lists of homeschooling pros, but there is one pro that many do not realize that they realize. This hidden realization, pro, plus, "good thing" is something that happens to the homeschool teacher without notice... but one day, mom, you will wakeup and find that you are SMARTER.

I am not lying. Homeschooling your children makes you smarter. Me, I have always been smart. To remind myself how smart I am, I take an IQ test every few years. Last year I realized that my IQ score was up to 141 from my usual 127 to 134 range. Wow! I thought, I wonder where I improved. Well, previously I scored near perfect in spatial visual areas, the rest was average. Well guess, what? My Math and English scores had dramatically improved. Then it dawned on me. I had been immersed in middle school math, reading comprehension, and grammar for the last year. Working with my kids on their schoolwork had made me smarter! How cool is that.

If you do not use it, you lose it; they say. So be sure to exercise your brains by getting deeply involved with your child's homeschool curriculum (or homework), especially if they are in middle and high school. One homeschooling mom in particular, who writes the It's A Small World Blog, has reading requirements for herself. She tries to read at least a book a week. This shames me as I try to read a magazine a week. I wonder how smart she is. If her reading list is too ambitious for you, then check out your child's reading list (or the reading lists for ninth through twelfth graders if your kids are young). You might learn something.

Learn more about Andrea Hermitt

Andrea Hermitt is a native New Yorker currently residing in GA. She has been married for over 16 years and has two teenage children.

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Nola Redd (7081) 03 Jan 2007 06:32 PM

Don't knock younger kids books! I've rediscovered some great ones as I've tried to find good stuff for my 5 1/2 yo DD. And you even learn things with some of them, like the Magic Tree House, or brush up on your vocab with Roald Dahl (I was startled by some of the words he smoothly stuck in there). But you're right, and that's one reason I'm especially excited about when my kids get older. Hmm, I wonder how much my IQ has gone up while working at a K-2 level? Where do you test yours?

Andrea Hermitt (5512) 03 Jan 2007 09:48 PM

I use different online IQ tests from different services and try to take them only once every few years. I don't want to get the same test twice.. I want a true score. My last test was from tickle.com