Homeschool or Preschool

by Tania
(South Africa)

I am very interested in having my son home schooled. He is currently attending a private school's pre-primary. They are in a farm setting and their curriculum is based on "learn through play".

We are planning to have another baby soon and I want to know if it would be advisable to let my son go on for now at the school and then say do Grade R still at the school and then when the baby is ready to go to creche which will be around the age my son will have to go to grade 1 - take him out and start to home school him then?

Then we will have enough time in the morning to home school him and then just repeat the process with the next child.

What I want to know in the end....is it better for me to start teaching him at home "the sooner the better" or leave him for a few more years?

Will he find it more difficult to adjust to being home schooled if I leave it till after grade R? I would really appreciate your thoughts on this.

He is a very social and well adjusted child. According to his teachers he is very mature for his age. He is the youngest in the class, most of the children have already turned 4 and he is on par with their skills....emotionally sometimes still visible that he is younger, but I suppose that is to be expected.

My husband works away quite a lot and we are thinking that home schooling will make it easier for us to go away when we want to and spend time with my husband when we can and not be bound by school terms....and then there are many other reasons why we want to teach them ourselves.

I am looking forward to your reply. Thank you so much for taking some of your time to get back to me.

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Shirley's Answer to Homeschool or Preschool

Based on my experience of homeschooling, having 6 babies and raising a family I would encourage you to bring your son home as soon as
possible in order to avoid having to undo anything that could be set
in motion by him being away from you during this time.

Some children easily become peer-dependent and have to adjust to being
back at home away from a crowd, whereas a child who is at home learns to amuse himself and entertain himself naturally, from a young age.
This is a great lifeskill that many adults today lack.

If you are planning another baby it will also be a wonderful time for
your son to have his last months alone with you, but also a time where
he will be able to share the experience of having a new sibling,
instead of being at school, wondering what he is missing out on.

I have never had an older child being jealous of a new sibling and I
think that it is partly because they are with me and get all the mommy-attention they need. I always make them feel that they are GETTING A NEW SIBLING, something to ADD to their life, not someone who takes me away from them.

You will also be avoiding any potential for peer pressure and negative
socialization that could occur in a class situation.

I recommend that you keep researching homeschooling and the benefits
and as you find answers to your questions and doubts, you will become
more confident about making your decision.