I am so thrilled to be a part of 31 Reasons We Love Homeschooling.
Who doesn’t like a good homeschool party?
There are so many reasons why I Love Homeschooling but there is one reason that is super-important to us. It’s investing in our children’s education. I get to choose where my money goes when it comes to our children’s education. I Love That!
I am asked quite often how we can afford to homeschool while living on one income. This question baffles me sometimes, but quite frankly, I don’t get upset because people ask questions when they don’t understand something. Right?
If the opportunity isn’t conducive to the long answer than I just simply say “it’s a sacrifice but it’s a sacrifice we are happy to be making.”
If I am fortunate enough to get into a full conversation and discussion (yes, it definitely leads to a discussion) I dive in with both feet.
I am more than happy to explain how I try my very hardest to keep our homeschool on a budget. How we use resources like the library for fantastic literature or how sometimes I work on creating my own curriculum from resources I find on the internet along with purchasing curriculum that I know will be beneficial for our kids. Let me not forget to mention the Umbrella School we are a part of. But, there is so much more to where our money goes and what we spend on our children’s education.
I gently remind those I am in conversation with that if our children were in public school there are expenses that I would have to account for, as well. There’s the cost of uniforms (if the school required) or new school clothes every year. {Of course we have to buy new clothes anyway but I can do that throughout the year. Not for all of our kids all at the same time of the year.} Then there’s the supplies that the public schools request you buy. Not just for your child but extra supplies for others in the class. Keeping in mind that this is times 3 for us since we have 3 children. There are also extras throughout the year such as, book fairs, class snacks, field trips, sports, extra curricular activities, and more. There’s also school lunches. Our children would have to buy their lunches or be sent with a bagged lunch. Some might think “ummm…don’t you eat lunch when you homeschool?” Why yes! Yes we do! We have the luxury of heating up and eating left overs at home. This eliminates having to buy specific food for lunches in our home.
I am not at all implying that I would spend more if I sent our children to public school, I am simply stating that sending kids to public school isn’t free.
One of the reasons I love homeschooling is because I get to create a budget for education. I get to choose where to spend our money on the education of our choice.
We get to shop for the perfect curriculum and education materials that tailor to each child’s interests and learning styles. My children are not all the same so we don’t buy a one-size-fits-all curriculum for them. We cater to their individual needs. This is super important to us. We can buy the supplies that I know we will use and need.
Whether our education budget is larger or smaller than those of public school families, I love the fact that I am purchasing our children’s education. Choosing where our money goes. Choosing how we educate our kids.
This is just a fraction of why I Love Homeschooling but it is an important factor for us.
So if anyone asks you how you afford homeschooling you can assure them you simply budget for it to suite your family and that you invest in your child’s education the same way you would invest in a public school education.
What about you? Do you like knowing where your education investment is going?
Be sure to check out all the wonderful posts in this 31 Reasons We Love Homeschooling Blog Party. There’s lots of love to be shared and spread around because there’s lots of Reasons We ALL Love Homeschooling.
Blessings,
Brandy
We are so blessed to have families in our church adopt us and hand down curriculum as they finish with it. I then get to spend our school budget more intentionally… and I love creating our own Unit studies to include my little blessings in as the areas that basically repeat Science & History. I also love taking teachable moments throughout Summer to apply what I know they learned or will be learning. And I get to pour our faith into their little hearts!!!!!!!! Homeschooling is an amazing blessing for our family.
Tiffany, I loved your comment about pouring your faith into their hearts. Another way to invest in our children through homeschooling… getting to focus on our faith.
Unit studies are such a fun way to learn! So many ways to LOVE homeschool.
Amen, Tiffany!! What a blessing! There is no better way to invest in our families than the gift of time.
Brandy, what an important reason to love homeschooling! I completely agree that how and what we invest in each of our children’s individual education needs is such a powerful part of homeschooling. Your blog also shares such great perspective on how to homeschooling no matter what your budget is. Thank you for sharing your insight with us!
Thank you, Amy! I love that I can disperse our education costs where we need them. It makes for a “custom education.” ~Brandy
I get asked that same question a lot too! I love how budget friendly homeschooling can be and when we do spend money on it, it is guilt free and so worth every penny! Thanks for sharing Brandy!
Forest, I love that you said “guilt free.” So true, knowing that our money is going towards their educational needs is so important to us. This has been great reading everyone’s reasons they love homeschooling. ~Brandy
This is SO true, Brandy! I love the concept of investing in our kids’ education.. Sharing!
Thank you, Melanie! Putting together our homeschool budget is my favorite budget to work on. {If budgeting can be fun! hahaha} ~Brandy
A sigh of relief – if its good for my kids, it doesn’t matter whether the cover is pretty or I bought the ‘latest & greatest’ or spent a fortune on it. On the flip side, if it really is a good fit for them, it makes it worth every hard-earned penny spent on whatever-it-was. Thank-you!
Right, Michelle! No guilt on spending money for our children’s education. You can spend a little or spend a lot. ~Brandy
This is so true! I love being able to custom tailor my education expenses, and there is some really awesome stuff out there I can choose to spend my school dollars on.
Yes, Denise! There is are so many good resources available – for all homeschool budgets. You definitely don’t mind dishing out a little extra when it’s a great resource and it’s fun to find something that is inexpensive and yet a perfect curriculum. A win all around. ~Brandy