Purely Homeschooling

by Andrea Hermitt | More from this Blogger

14 Feb 2007 07:05 AM

Yesterday I wrote about the costs of homeschooling for frugal, median range, and high-end homeschoolers. Some of these options can be considered extreme by some homeschoolers as the options venture away from homeschooling in its purest form.

Homeschooling, simply put is home education. For the original homeschoolers in the 1980's and 1990's, homeschooling meant a parent teaches the children at home. As homeschooling became popular, however, online schools, and local classes began to dilute the original or purist homeschooling methods. In an effort to keep the meaning of homeschooling pure, these original homeschoolers insist that the newer and hybrid forms of homeschooling aren't really homeschooling.

In come cases, they are correct. Publicly funded school at home is public school. If your child is taking classes online and it is paid for by the public schools (like k-12), then you are not homeschooling. All other cases however, are debatable.

My purpose here is to not debate the legitimacy of one kind of homeschooling against another. Instead, I am asking for an understanding. The way I see it, the original purist homeschoolers set the groundwork for those who followed. They made something out of nothing when they taught their children themselves in their home and set an example for those to follow. They broke the mold and did something impressive by starting the homeschooling movement.

Likewise, new and hybrid homeschoolers are continuously breaking molds and doing impressive things with their children in the name of homeschooling. We, the newer, and dare I say, equally adventurous homeschoolers are not strictly following the mold set before us by the original, purist homeschoolers. We are instead, paying homage to them. As they set their own paths and followed them, we are doing the same. No matter what you call it, we are simply, and purely, homeschooling.

*Have a question about homeschooling? Just ask.

*Want to know more about homeschooling? Start here!

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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