Because of my character and demeanor as a child, my parents decided to enroll me into a homeschooling program. In those days, not many kids or families were doing it and homeschooling was a little bit “out there”, but the constant love and support that was always provided by my parents made it seem like what we were doing was “normal” – whatever “normal” may mean! I can honestly say that homeschooling was a big part of what made me the empowered, driven and creative woman that I am today. I am forever grateful to my parents for taking it into their own hands to provide me with a first class education during my early years.
With homeschooling, I was able to learn and grow at my own pace and create an environment and platform for a life long journey for learning. The theory of homeschooling that my parents used focused on strengthening creativity and character development, while emphasizing and teaching the basic core subjects (reading, writing, sciences and math). My homeschooling was based on theories found in the following two books: (i) Homegrown Kids by Raymond and Dorothy Moore; and (ii) A Thomas Jefferson Education: Teaching a Generation of Leaders for the Twenty-first Century by Oliver DeMille. These books made such an impact on my parents that they decided to give homeschooling a try.
I had wonderful tutors in math, science, and languages. My parents also enrolled me in private writing and music lessons that were included in the charter school program. The one-on-one training was incredibly interactive and it allowed me to learn and grow at my own pace. I was able to focus on the lesson in front of me and I would move at my own pace because there was no rush yet no reason to move slowly. I reached college level math at the age of twelve because I had a wonderful math tutor who made me excited about learning. The greatest lesson that each teacher taught me was that we all have the ability to continuously learn for the rest of our lives, and that learning is a choice.
IS HOMESCHOOLING RIGHT FOR YOUR KIDS?
by Shannon Rugani