Homeschooling Q&A's, Part 1

I have promised this, but hadn't posted yet, sorry! I had a ton of questions that I was trying to organize, sort and answer. (: I'll try to post ten or so questions a day, and I'm probably going to have four or five categories. If you have any more questions I haven't answered, feel free to leave them in the comments.

The Basics


1. Do you get to wear your PJ's all the time?

Nope. I guess that each family is different, but I don't know anyone that wears their PJ's all the time. When my sister and I were in elementary school, the first rainy day of each school year was "Pajama Day". But now, we have to get dressed before we start.

2.  Do you get to sleep in however long you want?

Nope. We have to start school by 8am. Mom's rules. ;) 

3. Do you actually like being homeschooled?

Yes. Yes, I do. :)

4. Is it nice to be able to work at home with your pj's and stuff?

 It's nice to be able to work in my room, or somewhere else in the house, and not be squished into a little desk in an uncomfortable environment. But I almost never work in my PJ's. :) I can't focus well if I am [wearing pajamas].

5.  Do you just lay in bed all day?

No, of course not! :) I get up, eat breakfast, make my bed, brush my hair and teeth, get dressed, etc. I do my schoolwork either at a table somewhere, or at my desk in my bedroom. Laying in bed all day would make anyone feel stiff, sluggish and sleepy.

6. Do you do your hair and makeup each morning?

I do my hair every day, even if it's just a simple ponytail, because I like to have it out of my face. Also, it's makes me feel more awake and alert if I've gotten myself all ready. I don't wear makeup, even when I'm going out somewhere.

7.  Are your parents really strict?

I always laugh when I hear this question. :) My parents aren't terribly strict, I suppose. We have to follow Mom's rules, like getting up by a certain time, doing our work, etc. It's not like we're asked to be glued to our desks for eight hours straight, slaving over our work and translating Greek dictionaries, or anything like that. I guess I would say she is serious, but not too strict. :)

8. Is it a good education?

I guess that depends on your teacher. I know some people that homeschool that do barely any work. :\ But for the most part, homeschooling is a good education. The homeschooled student typically scores 15 to 30 percentile points above public-school students on standardized academic achievement tests. Homeschooled students also typically score above average on tests such as the SAT and ACT. So yes, I would say that homeschooling is a good education. There are other reasons why, but I won't name them all here. I may get into a few in a later question.

9. Who teaches you?

My mom. And occasionally, I will take a class with a few other homeschool families, and another mom will teach.

10. What's homeschooling like?

It's not as weird or different as it may seem. I wake up around 6:30am and get ready in about an hour. I usually start school around 7:45 or 8:00am. I start with my Bible work, and then move on to my other subjects. I do all of my subjects in the same order each day, just because I like to. I work on each subject for about an hour before moving on. Around noon, I break for lunch, which usually only takes 30 - 45 minutes. I have to be done with my schoolwork by 2:45 because I have to leave for gymnastics practice at 3, and it takes me about 15 minutes to get ready. If I'm not done by then, I have to finish my schoolwork when I get home from gymnastics, which is around 8:30pm. I have deadlines and tests, just like regular school, and I have to actually do my schoolwork, and not be goofing off on the computer or something. :)


(I got my statistics from here.)