Preschool Starts Monday

 Dear Alicia,

Riley is of the age where she would be eligible for public preschool this year. I know you would say that it was my controlling nature that made the decision to homeschool our kids, and you are probably correct on that point. I am going to try and articulate in writing the basis for my unwavering decision to homeschool our kids, and why it won't be changed. I know I have tried to do it vocally, but I think you have a hard time listening to me when I speak sometimes because you see it as me being self righteous (which I can be) or just an asshole (which I can also be). I am also going to try and debunk some of the reasons I feel that you have against homeschooling, which I believe are founded in blanket observation and projections. 

Point 1: All about the academics.

The most important thing about school is academic achievement. Homeschoolers on average score 15 to 25 percentile points higher than their public school counter parts on standardized tests. (Click here to view the site I got the stats from and see the referenced journals on the bottom of their page) I believe that this is due largely because the state mandated curriculum can be adjusted to the time table that suits the homeschoolers need to fully understand it. For example, if Riley is struggling with vowel recognition and isn't 90% their but is 70% their, she would move on in public school, but it would be an obvious area of focus that would require attention from me as a homeschool educator and I would have to re-evaluate how we are approaching the education of that topic as to why she isn't comprehending it at a adequate level. I would then spend more time on vowel recognition, and work with her to develop methods for her to understand it better. Something public schools don't have the time or the drive to do. Like wise, if she is able to self pace herself through a subject like addition of single digits, then we don't spend a lot of time on that and we move to adding tens, hundreds, thousands, and so on until we find a challenge or determine mastery. Public schools would keep her jugging along doing the same boring things and not challenging the mind making some tasks mundane and not allowing her to test her potential. 

What I am getting at is that in a homeschooled environment, the curriculum and it's pacing isn't set by the average students success, it is set by Riley and Rosie. This is the most fundamental advantage to homeschooling. It ensures that they are consistently and adequately challenged enough to make learning enjoyable, while not so challenged that they are left behind if they need more time to fully understand and comprehend a subject. I know for a fact that any school where a teacher has a classroom of more than 10 kids for an entire day cannot adequately provide this to any student because time is against them. I also do not think that a teacher really cares about the success of a student as much as you or I do. The kids are our family, not our paycheck.

Point 2: Social Climate

I do not like the current social climate of America. I know that it is looked at that homeschooled kids are socially repressed weirdos by some (you included), but that doesn't have to be the case. I fear for the social indoctrination that the liberal teacher union marxists would try to ingrain into our children's minds (I am not going to go to far into that, because I think you know how I feel about that). I see people our age and I wonder how bad kids are going to be that are similar to our kids age because their parents are dumb. I mean kids are disrespectful, entitled, self-righteous, little fucks anymore. They all think everything is owed to them and it is because their parents think that way. 

I do not want to send my kids into a situation where they come home and I have to correct them because their teachers or fellow students told them something that goes against my beliefs. I also know that I would be in that school yelling at a teacher, and I would be calling up a parent putting them in their place for raising a little shit head. It is our job to protect our kids from the world, and the world is becoming bad. I need to raise our children to know how to navigate it. Especially because they are girls...they are more vulnerable.

Now that my rant is over I will talk a little more professionally about the social aspect of homeschooling.

They will have a social life. They already do, but it will be expanded. I have never been against dual enrollment for extracurriculars, which is great for sports, arts, etc. This is a great way to breed social interaction. I will also join a homeschooling co-op which will allow them to have get together with kids their age. They will however learn social etiquette from us and not from other kids or teachers. They will also learn professionalism and manors, something both of us should probably work on in the house. Like I said, I don't care if they swear, as long as it is appropriately. That means there is a time and a place. Like when Rosie was shocked that the bed was gone from the back room and was a little upset and said, "Where's the fucking bed?" I can't think of a better time and place. She wasn't in a professional situation, she was upset, and it was a personal conversation. Good use of the word. Social etiquette.

Point 3: They are Our Children, not the publics

When the president, and his education secretary say that they have a right to force curriculum and the parents shouldn't have a say because they are "our children" (meaning the publics children) I have a big issue with that. They are not the children of anybody but you and me, and it is our responsibility to educate them how WE see fit, not anybody else. It is part of being a parent, and has been for thousands of years. Publics schools are a new idea, and a failed idea. 

Point 4: What I am not doing

I am not doing it do make them some religious nut bag. I think they should learn about different religions, I think that I should learn about different religions with them. I think that you should learn about different religions. The more knowledge about anything is powerful. It also makes it so we raise our kids to be more understanding to those who don't have the same beliefs that they might. I however will not raise them to be a specific religion. I believe if they want to find faith that is on them. When they are older we can read the scriptures, but it isn't my plan to force any view points of faith on our children.

Instead I plan to teach them right from wrong, good from bad, and how to treat people with dignity and respect. My faith is to broken to teach them anything at the moment, and I see to many families torn apart from radically religious parents. 

Point 5: I love my children more than anything, and all I want is for them to grow up, be happy, and find success in whatever they want to accomplish. I truly believe I have the compassion towards them to teach them how to achieve those things. I know you have a hard time believing my motives are always pure, but when it comes to homeschooling it really boils down to that. I really want the best for our kids, and I know public school can't give it to them. I might not be the smartest person in our house, and I know I have said I am going to rely on you for help in some areas and you don't want to cause you have to work, but can you think of anything more rewarding then passing your knowledge on to your kids? I can. I can think of something more rewarding than teaching my kids...when they are finally more intelligent than me and are teaching me. 

I love you Alicia, and I know you have some reservations. You have to ask yourself though, are you reservations for the good of the children or are they because of selfish reasons? If you are worried about what people think of us as parents or what they will think of the kids, is that a reservation for the good of the kids or a selfish reason? Should you really be bothered by what other people think? And are you projecting your own biases onto other people? You know me, I will alway do what I think is best for my family, everybody else be damned. I couldn't care less what Blow Joe down the road thinks.

I should also let you know that I also internally question my ability to teach them...everyday. I don't know if I am smart enough. I hope I am, but I know I have forgotten how to do a lot of basic shit that is necessary to teach them what is required. I also worry about my health and a big reason why I am pushing so hard to fix every little part of it is because I have to live at least long enough to get them through school. I have never said that before...but some days I way up and feel so bad I wonder if I will. It has been better recently minus the increase in exhaustion, but I keep pushing through it, cause I don't have a choice. I have to what is best for them and for you.

I hope you can have faith in me in homeschooling our kids. We need to be a unified front on this. It is a big thing. 

I love you. I know I kind of rambled on this one. I probably got side tracked and some shit didn't make sense, but it is what it is. There are other reasons to homeschool too. Like if another pandemic or world event were to hit, and the public schools were to shut down, our kids wouldn't have their lives turned upside down and education interrupted, etc. I thought I would hit on the big ones. Anyway, I hope it was enlightening.

Love,

Hubby.