May I make a confession to you?
I was not a fan of the idea of homeschooling, in fact to be brutally honest I really a strong advocate against the notion of it.
Perhaps my opinion wasn’t wrong in that the very limited group of people I’ve got in my life who I’ve seen homeschool their kids, for the most, left the kids worse off than they were prior to starting the homeschool experience. (For the record, I’m not naming any names or pointing any fingers here). Over my 25 years or so since leaving school myself, the friends and family that I’ve witnessed homeschool kids, in my humble opinion really did a disservice to their kids.
But here is the thing. I was wrong. I was wrong in a big way. I was wrong in so strong a way that I had to write about it, but more importantly than just write about it, I want to talk about the events that changed my opinion and within that change draw a lesson that I learned and one that I think might be applicable for you as well.
Last year one of my companies was a vendor at a homeschool Show called Teach Them Diligently in Nashville, TN. We exhibited our introduction to electronics curriculum called The Basics v2.0 and Digital Theory. These textbooks are designed to be used as either a teacher, parent or self led course designed to introduce the user to electronic principles and the different components that make up every device we use on a daily basis.
During the show, I saw first hand thousands of parents who had made the decision to invest in their kids lives in a way I’d never seen before. The engagement between parent and child was amazing, and the kids themselves were amazing. Remember, I started this by stating that I was never a fan of homeschooling, part of that being is I’ve seen kids end up not being able to socialize and communicate in the real world given the isolation that could occur when done wrong.
That wasn’t on display at this show, rather family after family that I interacted with impressed me not only with the level of dedication and commitment that had been made to their kids, but the sacrifices the parents were making so that they could homeschool their kids. I remember talking to one of the parents (and if you are reading this you know who you are!) asking her how long each day she worked with her 2 boys. Her response was awesome stating that school began when the boys woke up each morning and didn’t end until bed time. She told me that aside from the curriculum she used, she saw every opportunity she could throughout the course of the day as a means to teach and instill life skills into her sons.
To say I was impressed would be an understatement. Seeing the selfless sacrifice thousands of parents were making, including in many cases the show itself being the family vacation for the year, I knew that there was a different side to the home school community drastically different from what I knew and assumed.
There are 2 takeaways that I’d like to leave you with this week.
Sacrifice is a good thing.
I saw it first hand with the parents who chose their kids over many other things life has to offer. That doesn’t mean the rest of us are bad parents, but in many cases a second income to a household isn’t an option given the parents desire to be actively engaged in their kids life. My first challenge to you this week is to actively seek out an area in life that you can sacrifice something with the intent of enriching the life of someone else.
Don’t be afraid to have an open mind.
I had a complete 180 degree change of heart as it relates to homeschool. I saw a different side to something assumed to be a bad thing. I was wrong. I had to change my thinking, and I’m glad I did. This week I challenge you to open up your mind to having a change of heart about something you might be wrong about. This one is a little tougher than the 1st challenge, but keep aware, you might be surprised what might change your heart.
As for me, I’m proud to be a part of the homeschool community, not as a parent who home schools, but as a supplier of curriculum that is used in that community I feel as though I’m a part of it. And I’m so proud of the hundreds of families I’ve been fortunate enough to meet as a result of the Teach Them Diligently shows and I’m glad that their example served as reason for me to have a change of heart and mind.
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