What are the pros and cons of homeschooling?

• control the curriculum your children learn
• be personally involved in your children's education
• spend lots of time with your kids
• instill your values daily
• greatly reduce unnecessary drills, testing and "busy work"
• tailor your program to each individual child and his/her learning style
• limit negative influences often associated with "regular" school
  
• More natural social opportunities among different age groups.
  

CONS:

• limited access to certain extra curricular activities, such as sports/drama
• limited social opportunities (this is almost always easily overcome, but it is a VALID issue) Effort must be made to give your kids social opportunities that naturally occur at school
  

Please note that there were two other CONS listed here not given by this contributor. I tried to cut and paste them to separate them from my own comments and lost them. I apologize to the contributor.

I agree with the young woman below with one exception: While many things depend upon the parent, it also depends upon the parents' time and economic abilities. We don't have a lot of money and so cannot take advantage of all that is available in our community. I have to work part-time, so there are certain groups my kids can't go to simply by virtue of not having a ride.

It is simply something you must consider when making the decision to home school. We are very involved parents, naturally. I would say 99% of home school parents are very involved and invested in their children's education.

I am a teenager who was home schooled until this year and I have to refine this list:

• First of all, the schooling you receive by being home-schooled TOTALLY depends on the parent. If you are a parent deciding to homeschool, decide now to be committed and involved. I have seen many many home schooled children and they range from the very brightest to the most pathetic. In each case, the ability of the children depends on what the parent is willing to do for their children.

• Second, it is not true that you have a very limited access to certain extra curricular activities. As I said I have been home-schooled many many years and these are some things I have done. (It is all up to the parent)

1) I did soccer for three years, my mother coached my second and third year ~ She learned how. You don't have to already be a sport coach to give your child a sport education. 2) I play piano. It is actually easier to get a music lesson when you are home-schooled because you can fill time slots that public schooled children cannot. 3) I have been acting for years! It is no harder for a home schooled child to get into a community play than a public schooled one. In fact you get a better experience in community plays than in school ones. (Trust me they are MUCH better anyway.)

• Third. Limited social opportunities is ONLY VALID IF THE PARENT DECIDES THAT THEY DON"T WANT THEIR CHILD TO HAVE SOCIAL OPPORTUNITIES! I find it offending that someone has decided that it is a valid issue. I am in public school now and I find it the most boring, the most unsocial, and the best way to hold back children's progress yet developed.

• Fourth. I am not saying that a parent's time and economic abilities do not factor in a child's education. But there is much you can do without money. Science can be learned in the woods with nothing more than a magnifying glass and a mother's love. If a mother or father is working then this can prove to make the downfall of a child's education. This is something for the parent to consider. Sometimes it is the better of two evils to send a child to public school and to know that they will receive much less education than possible than to know that if you homeschool them you will never have the time to give them your love. In the economic recession we are living in today, it is quite possible that money problems can take priority over a child's education. It is very important for someone in the family to be the bread winner. There are SO many opportunities for children that are being home schooled that not being able to take advantage of certain groups is not going to wreck a child's education

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