Carnival of homeschooling: Homeschool Freedoms Edition

Welcome to the 457the Edition of the Carnival of homeschooling!  The theme this week is homeschool freedoms.  For me, homeschooling was all about freedom, but probably not in the way you think.  I will let the HSLDA to their job as they see it, and I will let the lobbyers lobby.  I am most concerned about freedoms on a much smaller and individual scale, to raise and educate my kids in the way I thought best. 

This is important to me because as a homeschooler, I still see a lot of group thinking.  I don't really see a point in having the legal right to homeschool, only to check with everyone and their mother before deciding on a curriculum, event, or even a political stance.  Homeschooling is an individual endeavor, and I believe that while input and opinions are nice, they are just that.  We have to remember that as parents, WE ARE IN CHARGE.  So during my homeschool years I was very careful to make sure I never answered to  state guidelines, the school board, the principal, the teacher, homeschool organizations, homeschool groups, my parents, relatives, or even friends. I was able to give my children the attention they need
as they needed it, and to educate them according to their learning styles and gifting.  It has truly been a freeing experience.  

As usual, I will add some great homeschool reading links to this carnival.  

Here are some of the different freedoms that homeschooling families experience:

• Christine MM at The Thinking Mother blog discusses differing opinions on parenting and educating teens of a psychiatrist, a psychologist, and a neuroscientist vs. the role and duty of a home educating parent. In the end, she gets to make the decisions, because it is her child, and he is not yet an adult. Read more at Parents vs. Psychologists vs. Psychiatrists & Homeschooling.

•  Homeschooling freedom allows you as a family to study and learn from subjects that are near and dear to your heart.  If you know anything about unit studies, you will know that reading, writing, science, and often even math and social studies can be learned through the lens of any subject the child/family is enthusiastic about. The Harvest Moon by Hand Blog offers Milkweed and Monarch Butterflies Nature Study saying: We have been raising and releasing monarch butterflies for many years now. We decided to do a nature study about monarchs and milkweed because they have become an integral part of our science curriculum each year; and it seems like there is always new information to learn about milkweed and monarchs - and how milkweed biology greatly affects monarch biology  We hope to create a monarch waystation this spring/summer.

•  There is also freedom to not be perfect. We don't always get it right, but we learn from our mistakes as well.  This post shows that there is value is admitting missteps so you can make adjustments and fix the problem, and perhaps learn together.  Often the journey is more important than the initial lesson. 7SistersHomeschool.com presents Homeschool Consumer Math Often Misses the Mark.  

• Only you can dictate how much homeschooling will costs.  There is a lot of freedom in that! This post by Dewey's Treehouse gives great advice on how to keep being frugal past the k-6 years.  Personally, I used many of these tactics on curriculum, so I could spend money nurturing their talents. So be sure to read Homeschooling, still frugal thrifty cheap but hard to write about it.

• Field trips were never like this!  There are no parent forms.  There are no lines. There are no schedules to keep.  The freedom of homeschooling makes field trips more freeing and relaxing, and in doing this, so much is earned. Please enjoy Field Trip to Blue Bell at The Smallest Acre blog. 

• All of these homeschool freedoms are more easily enjoyed if you follow just a few simple rules.  These guidelines are often set by the state.  In this post, Henry at Why Homeschool reminds California homeschoolers to use the private school option to file their R4 form, which gives them freedom to operate as a private school. Read more at California homeschoolers - remember to file your R4 form.

• As a veteran homeschooler, I continue to exercise my homeschool freedoms by continuing to share and and continuing to encourage new homeschoolers and homeschoolers still in the trenches.  I am free to continue to be vocal about homeschooling journey, in my blog and on YouTube in spite of anyone who would prefer I keep my opinion to myself and in spite of anyone who might  not like the looks of me.  For this reason, I am sharing Why am I still homeschool blogging, at Notes from a homeschooled mom.

If you enjoy reading this Carnival of Homeschooling please participate!  We are so close to #500 I can taste it!  Let's keep it going!  Go here for the instructions on sending in a submission.  As always, entries to the Carnival of Homeschooling are due Monday evening at 6:00 PM Pacific Standard Time.

Give this blog some love by commenting.  What freedoms does Homeschooling give you?  Please chime in - in the comment section.