So you've decided to homeschool. That's great! Are you going to bring school home or are you going to home school? Yes, there is a difference.

Doing school at home might go something like this:

At 8:30 the mom/teacher and children/students are in their schoolroom with desks lined up in a row. They work through their textbooks, filling in worksheets, preparing for the end of unit test. The teacher is kept busy grading papers and keeping the students focused on their work. At 3:30, they leave school at the schoolroom door, teacher turns back into mom, and students turn back into her children. This is done 5 days a week using a typical school calendar.

Homeschooling will probably look more like this:

At 8:30 in the morning, one child is practicing the piano, another curled upon the couch reading a book about George Washington, mom is in the schoolroom listening to the 6 year old read, while the toddler is playing with his cars at her feet.

After awhile, they all gather in the Living Room to listen while mom reads from the Bible and from Louisa May Alcott's book Little Men. Then while mom nurses the baby, the others go outside to play. They get interested in a frog in the garden and rush inside to ask questions about it. One writes about it in his journal, while another draws pictures of it.

After working on math and other academic activities they all eat lunch. The afternoon is filled with activities such as co-op classes with other homeschoolers, park day or running errands with mom.

What is the difference between homeschooling and doing school at home?

Homeschooling parents realize that learning is not limited to a schoolroom. Instead, learning happens all day, all over the house inside and out. While there is a certain amount of "book work" to be done, the "book work" does not dominate the schedule. Trips to the grocery store offer lessons in economics. Playing in the yard teaches about weather, seasons, insects etc., going to the local museum teaches about history.

Homeschooling parents also discover that they are not teachers in the traditional sense. Their job is to provide their children with the experiences and resources they need to help them grow into responsible, God fearing adults. At times, this comes from play time, visiting grandparents, doing chores, or watching TV (yes, carefully chosen TV programming can really be useful). At other times this comes from sitting down with pencil and paper and working those math problems.

Homeschooling is an extension of what parents do from the moment their children are born. Instead of helping them learn to walk and talk, they are now helping them learn to read and do Algebra.