This discussion is so important and is an ongoing topic in some way, shape, or form in our house all of the time. Here are a few good questions to ponder - they may seem simple at first, but are harder to answer than one would think:
1. Why are we homeschooling?
2. What is most important to teach our dc over the years?
3. What kind of opportunities do we want for our dc to be able to have when we are done homeschooling? (i.e. military, 2 year college, 4 year college, work right out of high school, etc. - we do not completely have this figured out yet and are willing to be flexible somewhat based on the child's preference)
4. How do we want their education to be different from others' education?
5. How can we teach our dc
balance in life from a young age?
6. What will we encourage our dc to do with their free time, and can some of these things be good lifelong interests/hobbies?
7. How will we share our faith with our dc though homeschooling so it hopefully becomes a cornerstone in their lives when we are gone?
8. What do we want our homeschooling atmosphere to look like in the day to day?
9. How can we create a more relaxed, joyful experience of schooling than the average child or (homeschool) teacher experiences?
10. What are we willing to do to make homeschooling a priority in our home each day?
11. What "helps" may be necessary to live life joyfully as a homeschooling family? (i.e. a night out for mom with a friend, a date with dh once every few weeks, simpler meals for lunch, a babysitter one afternoon for mom to get groceries/run errands, handicrafts/educational computer games/outdoor play things/small home library of books etc. for dc to be able to entertain themselves happily at home, etc.)
12. How does Dad want to be involved? (my dh sees his role to be the provider and is minimally involved other than to enjoy seeing their work - but every home is different)
13. If dc have siblings, how will we encourage lifelong friendships with siblings and family?
14. How will we approach "activities"?
15. What role do we want "friends" to play, and how will we monitor that so we are in control in what happens? (we've chosen for cousins and brothers to be our dc's friends, so this is a possibility too)
16. What can we do to be able to homeschool for the "long haul" (through high school - if that is a goal for you), and avoid burnout?
I hope some of these questions can help you as you ponder this. Your answers may change over the years some, but it's so important to think of this so we don't get to the end of our homeschooling and realize we didn't do what we wished we'd done most. Blessedly, HOD prioritizes many of these things beautifully already, so just by choosing HOD some of these questions have easier answers. HTH!
In Christ,
Julie
I do anticipate that as we articulate our goals it will confirm our decision to stay with HOD.