Today we are looking at homeschooling from a high schooler’s point of view. In order to do this, Samantha S. from Le Chaim (on the right) has agreed to talk about her homeschooling journeys. Let’s walk.
Why We Started Homeschooling
I have been homeschooled since 4th grade. I am now 15, and will graduate high school next year. Our primary reason for homeschooling is horrible public schools and my lack of education. I have always been an extremely advanced student. In third grade, I tested at a high school level for comprehension, and my 3rd grade teacher was introducing me and another student to advanced geometry. We did little science, and no history. Although I loved my 2nd/3rd grade teacher, I wanted to give homeschooling a try. It was new, different, and sounded interesting.
Based off a friend’s recommendations and not knowing what we were doing, we went with A Beka. I found out A Beka is known for being one of the most advanced curriculums out there. I’m proud to say, I did A Beka for grades 4,5, 6, and 9. I did grades 7/8 together and used a unit study, which was most definitely not for me.
What started out as getting away from public schools turned into a lot more. I love homeschooling. (You can see the 50 reasons why on my blog.) I have learned more than I could have ever imagined, the most prominent be my
passion: history, and now politics.
You cannot fully understand why I love homeschooling without knowing my WWII story. In fourth grade, my dad took me and my sister to the library and picked out a book for me, I Am David by Anne Holm. That book, set in the
aftermath of WWII and the beginning of Communist Russia, introduced me to WWII. I had never even heard of Europe, let alone that time period before, and it interested me. Around that time, Focus on the Family aired a Holocaust special that I caught bits of. That made me sick, and I kept wondering about WWII, the Holocaust, and the 1950s. (I Am David, being set in the 1950s, confused me with WWII. This was before my parents allowed me to use the Internet and I could research it, and it confused the heck out of me.) Europe was all very new to me, as it took me quite some time to figure out Denmark (A Scandinavian country) was not in America. I continued studying the American Civil War, as I had for some time. Mid 2011, I officially began my WWII study. That turned into 2 1/2 solid years of nothing more than eat, sleep, and studying WWII.
Summer 2013 – I received my giant to-read list, a list of twenty major literary classics, and a bunch of short stories and poems. That ended my heavy WWII study, but I still continue to research it and be fascinated with it. Bored with schoolwork, I developed a new strong passion – politics!
As you can see, I am extremely passionate about history and politics. My free time is spent studying one or the other. Without homeschooling, I can definitely say I would not be who I was today. WWII has taught me so much about history, medicine, psychology, education, politics, and simply life. Now, if I went to public school for 8 hours PLUS had homework, this would not be possible. I also don’t think I could really go back to public school, now that I’m into politics and I have researched today’s education system.
Negative
The hardest part of homeschooling high school has ironically been the reason I began homeschooling in the first part – the education. We (my mom and I) did pretty well with Algebra 1, but Algebra 2 nearly killed us. I remain mostly unmotivated for science, but found a Christian DVD curriculum that looks promising. I enjoy competition (part Chinese heritage, part crazy parents), so with homeschooling, I don’t quite have that.
Positive
The biggest perk to homeschooling high school is electives. I have a friend taking “Jewelry” this year – where she makes jewelry – so I really don’t feel bad for reading every WWII biography memoir I can find, being addicted to
the History Channel’s WWII series, writing a ton of essays (err…blog posts) on WWII and calling it a course. Lee Binz, The Home Scholar, says a full credit course should be about 120 hours. I’m taking modern Hebrew because I’m in love with Israel. After I get that down, I would like to learn German, so when I watch German WWII movies, I don’t have to worry if there is English subtitles. I’m taking modern Hebrew because I’m in love with Israel. After I get that down, I would like to learn German, so when I watch German WWII movies, I don’t have to worry if there is English subtitles. With homeschooling high school, I can personalize electives to fit me. Every student is different and unique. It would be impossible for a high school to accommodate every single student’s specific interest.
Modern-day feminism has taken a rise on Twitter, and with that,#WomenAgainstFeminism. Not to get too political, but one thing I am thankful for is being home during my adolescent years. Over the last four years, I have grown so much, and I don’t believe I would be where I’m at without homeschooling. My biggest influencers were my parents, not peers. During those years, I never felt pressured to do anything wrong. And now, I have matured, my personality is strong, I’m proud of myself, and I’m unafraid and unashamed to be who I am.
And lastly, I homeschool high school because I love it. Although it may not work for everyone, it works for me. And I love it.
Additional Resources
Samantha S. is a teenage homeschooler from Indiana, USA. Samantha is interested in WWII history, Israel, and politics. Her specialties are words, frugality, homeschooling, and procrastination. When not blogging, Samantha spends her time reading, trying to speak Hebrew, and wasting time on Pinterest.