To many, homeschooling is an odd and mysterious concept. People tend to conclude that “homeschooling” means one thing: kids being taught by their parents, all the time, never actually getting the chance to interact with the outside world.
I was homeschooled for 10 ½ out of 14 years of schooling prior to college, so I usually tell people that I’ve been homeschooled my entire life. People often ask me if freshman year was a shock, as they assume this means that I’ve never been in a classroom, or had a teacher other than my mom.
The reality is that the homeschool experience is not just one thing, nor can it be easily described in full; school at home is far more varied than people usually expect.
When a person tells you that he or she is homeschooled, here are just a few of the things they could mean:
1. Traditional Homeschooling
This is the basic school at home. Parents are the teachers, siblings are the classmates and there may or may not be a designated classroom in the home. Although this is the most familiar meaning, there is still room for variation. Some families use all-in-one curriculum packages, while others pull together their own curriculum from many different sources. There are families in which Mom is the only teacher, and others in which parents share the teaching or Dad takes the lead; in families with multiple children, high school or middle school students often take over a few subjects with the younger children.
2. Homeschool Co-ops
Homeschool co-ops are extremely common. If you’ve ever looked at homeschooling and thought, “that sounds cool, but there’s no way I could teach algebra/reading/biology/whatever,” this is the solution to that problem. A co-op is formed when a group of parents get together to share their skills and strengths. The usual requirements are dues of some sort and a commitment to teach a class. Co-ops meet 1-2 times per week and usually end up offering core classes, field trips and a variety of electives. Some families choose to do all of their classes through co-ops; this way, parents provide support and schooling throughout the week, but only have to really teach in their strongest area. Other families prefer to take just a few classes and take advantage of the sense of community, while still teaching other subjects at home.
3. Distance Learning
There are many families who want the freedom of homeschooling, but choose not to do the teaching or search out the books. Instead, they make use of a variety of video or online options. Some are freely provided by public school systems, like Florida Virtual School. Others are recorded once and sold or rented to families, like Bob Jones University Satellite School (now called BJU Press Distance School; when I used it, classes were literally broadcast via satellite and had to be recorded on videotapes). Still others have live video classes with active, real-time participation and an entire online community for students from all over the globe, such as Veritas Press.
4. Unschooling
When it’s done wrong, no one learns anything. When it is done correctly, however, unschooling allows naturally inquisitive children to learn by doing and exploring as they pursue their own interests. Unschooling abandons the traditional mindset in favor of the idea that when learners pursue interests, they naturally learn things like math, science, reading, writing and history in the process. Parents function as facilitators, augmenters and guides of this type of learning experience.
A simple search of “types of homeschooling” will return many more options than those I have listed here. The beauty of homeschooling is that it truly can be made to fit any child. Homeschooling has a place for everyone, and if you don’t fit any mold, there is a place for you too. That is the reason why, as a single girl in her early twenties with no children, I still attend homeschool conferences and expos and talk about it with anyone who will listen. It’s the reason I teach my own younger brothers and sisters when I get the opportunity. And it is the reason I dream of working and making a difference in the homeschool world, regardless of whether I have children or not.
Oh, and in case you were still wondering… If you’ve ever taken an online class or studied to test out of a class rather than take it, then congratulations! You have officially homeschooled college.
