Random Acts of Sass

That’s what someone asked me recently, when I told them of my desire to one day homeschool my children. “But that’s the best part of kids!” The insisted. “Sending them off to school!”

Bah. I disagree.

I have a lot of friends who are teachers, so I’m not one of these people who hates the public school system. In fact, I am a proud product of a public school and I value the experiences I gained through that. However, I want something different for my kids.

I want to infuse their lives with joy. Individuality. A framework that allows them room to be their own person but establishes the foundation for their little lives to be built upon.

If they are not morning people, then I say they shall sleep until 9:30. If they are morning people, then they can play quietly until Mommy gets up at 9:30. Okay? Great. (I know, I know. Keep dreaming.)

I was in love with history when I was a kid. But there were no “social studies” until 4th grade. So, in third grade, I took it upon myself to do a “unit” on the Civil War. That included reading books about it under my desk during “penmanship”, coloring a giant map of which states were Southern and which were Northern, and who knows what else.

I want to give my kids that. I want to take them places, show them things, watch them explore. I want to know them. Teachers are wonderful people, but I don’t think it’s fair that someone else witness some of the most important moments in my child’s life.

There’s also my faith. I don’t like to think of myself as a crazy Christian fundamentalist, and I’m not. However, I don’t want to spend hours a day unteaching things kids learn in elementary school. It’s a fine line, you know? Yes, Islam exists and we should respect other cultures, but Christ is the one true way.

The key to my philosophy, I think, is the idea of building a foundation and allowing my child to build any kind of house he or she wishes. I have a specific foundational design in mind but I don’t care what the house looks like. A science nerd? Sure. A music lover? Great. A history geek? Fantastic. But I want all my children to have sound values, solid principles, and most of all – joy.

Idealistic? Unrealistic?

I hope not.