Being home-schooled
By Dara Fillmore
I recently graduated from high school and was thinking about my schooling years.
I remembered an essay that I wrote a few years back and decided to look at it
again. Here’s what I wrote:
There are pros and cons to home-schooling, but for me there are many more pros
than cons. In this essay, I’m going to relate to you several opinions that come
to my mind. One of the things I appreciate about home-schooling is that if I hit
the hay particularly late on a given evening, I don’t have to get up at 5 a.m.
to get chores done before school, like if I had to be on the bus at 7 a.m. I
don’t do well running on limited sleep. I also like our dress code; I can wear
whatever’s comfortable. And I don’t even have to wear shoes during bookwork.
Having one teacher is wonderful; she’s a principal, nurse, counselor, cook and
mom in one. She only has to contemplate helping three or four kids at once
(instead of 20 or more), so I get a fair amount of help with my work. I enjoy
choosing some of my own subjects, too. I can learn about horse breeds, chicken
genetics or stars. For example, right now, I’m studying Vincent Van Gogh and his
painting techniques.
Being the adventurous sort, there are a few things that I would find interesting
to do if I went to school. I’d love to ride a school bus just once, to see what
it would feel like. I’d like to play piano in a school concert. I would like to
get ideas from classmates about things like how to write stories or do my art.
And I love school tater tots.
Going back to homeschooling, I can finish nearly of all my work before lunch. In
first grade, I sometimes completed my work before others, so I had to sit there
waiting to go on to the next subject until everyone was finished. I don’t have
to buy “school” clothes. I don’t have to think about being laughed at for liking
chickens, wearing clothes that people think don’t match and being kind of short.
I don’t have to worry about someone talking about me behind my back because I
have foster siblings or because I don’t care if I get dirty while I’m having
fun. These are some things I’ll never miss about school.
At the end of first grade (the only year I went to school) my older sister and I
talked with our mom and dad about how we didn’t get enough time to play with
Barbies and our other toys. (We were at school about nine hours every day,
including travel.) I don’t play Barbies anymore, but now that I’m home-schooled,
I have more time to do things I love. I can play outside, compose stories, draw,
read or study Japanese. I can practice the piano, investigate sign language or
train my friends’ horses. And I have time to go on day trips or longer trips and
take advantage of the weather or opportunities that come my way, even during the
school year.
Now I’ve told you why I like home-schooling. I have much more time for pursuing
my interests and I can be with my family more than if I went to school. I love
home-schooling!
“For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord, and to practice it,
and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel.” — Ezra 7:10
