Image credit: Words Through the Years
I have always loved words. I love to write them. I love to analyze them. But mostly, I love to read them. I love words because they tell stories. So here’s mine.
Before I started school, my parents decided to home school my sisters and me. They bought the books, set up a “school room,” and proceeded to give me the best education I could have asked for. It probably wasn’t until late elementary school that I realized that this was anything out of the ordinary. Between my four sisters, home school group, church activities, and 4-H, I was rarely lonely and for the most part, blissfully ignorant of the “oddity” I was experiencing.
In 7th grade, I joined the speech team at the local high school and got my first taste of public school. Or gulp. It was a bit overwhelming. There were also times when I felt like being homeschooled had cheated me out of valuable life experiences (like eating in a school cafeteria and sitting in desks for half my day…).
It wasn’t until I started attending college that I began to truly appreciate the education I had received. By my junior and senior years of high school, I was taking several PSEO classes and much of my coursework was largely self-directed. There were plenty of adjustments to be made in college, but overall I felt prepared for the discipline college life demands.
That’s really what this blog is all about: self-taught 20/20. From my perspective as a college junior, I can clearly see that being home schooled has largely made me who I am today. And I like that.
What about you? What’s your story? Feel free to share it below. And remember – I love to read words.
Kayla
Self-Taught 20/20 
Good post, Kayla! I’m gathering this new blog has multiple authors … what’s the impetus for the site?
Thanks Jackie! Zoey and I are putting together this blog for our social media marketing class. We’re excited to connect with other home schoolers (and non-home schoolers!) and share experiences, insights, and laughter! Thanks for reading!
Nice work, Kayla! I was just thinking about and appreciating my own schooling while reading this article: http://www.worldmag.com/articles/19016. I’m so blessed to have been able to go to MNCS and enjoy both structure and freedom in an environment designed to nurture the desire and ability to learn.
Wow – really thought-provoking article, Hannah! I agree with you that both structure and freedom are crucial elements in education. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for sharing some of your experiences! Although I attended public high school my whole life, I was able to benefit from PSEO classes as well. They were a great help to me and allowed me to learn more than what was offered in the public setting. The college classes also prepared and encouraged me for my college years! I look forward to reading more about your experiences!
Thanks Rachel! I agree – PSEO is great on so many levels.
Hey Kayla and everyone else here! ok, so you like words right? 😉 haha, here’s my education story:
I started out home-schooled and part of a Christian home-school co-op group and a home-school band in the Twin Cities suburbs. They were pretty sweet but also very, well… stereotypically home-schooled. I lived in a rougher neighborhood though, and friendships were really only made at church. In 5th grade, I entered a public school that was encouraging, loving, and challenging. I learned under the guidance of teachers who truly cared. Peers thought my being home-schooled was cool and were very welcoming. Half-way through 5th grade, I changed to a different public school in a different district: one with a lot of rules, adults who loved control, and peers who were cliquey, gossipy, mean, and judgmental. Within it, I found a few strong Christian friends, but the school seemed to be trying to train little robots instead of educating various kid personalities. It was overwhelming to be thrown in there as a preteen who had been previously home-schooled in a very sheltered, Christian home. I found the public school environment to be very emotionally and socially difficult but strengthening because of the many personalities you have to deal with and work with everyday. I definitely received funny responses when I said I was home-schooled and as I continued to be sheltered (I wasn’t allowed to participate in sex ed classes and such…). The transition was tough, but it made me stronger to go through it.
Educationally, I am very glad I went to public school. Personally, I found I wasn’t very motivated to gain knowledge when it was just my siblings and I, but when you had a little competition and comparison with a whole class of kids, it gave me more motivation to do well and greater satisfaction when I could share academic success with people other than my parents. I enjoyed being home-schooled for the safe and comfortable learning environment and the lower amount of stress, but I didn’t experience close friendship until public school. For me, public school provided more opportunity for friendships and experiences with things I wouldn’t have been able to get being home-schooled, like chemical experiments, scientific instruments, computer software, art supplies, technology, tech ed classes (electronics, woodworking), home ec classes (sewing, cooking), HTML classes, accounting classes, language classes, various phy ed classes, medical classes, psych classes, art classes, etc. I got a taste of all of these new subjects, and the teachers and supplies were already set up for me and mostly paid for by state taxes.
I know many friends who had awesome home-school experiences, and I do think my parents did a good job too. I know I gained a strong foundation while home-schooled. But for me, I think I really needed to have that challenge and peer pressure to become stronger in my own personality, my beliefs, and my desire to gain knowledge.
m’Kay. wow that was longer than I meant it to be…sry!
Thanks for sharing Ali! Your experience with two very different public schools is really interesting, and I definitely see where you’re coming from with the advantages and disadvantages of public and home school. I also appreciate your comments on the value of the friendships you were able to develop in public school. Check back next week for more of my thoughts on the subject!
Thanks for sharing. I was homes schooled too. There were definitely days (years) I wanted to go to public school, but looking back, I can’t even begin to describe how grateful I am for the education I had. There is a lot to be said about teaching yourself to do things, and not always being handed instructions on a silver platter. I’m excited to see the things you have to share on here.
“Home-schooled” 🙂 I definitely botched that spelling the first time.
Thanks! The whole self-directed aspect of home schooling definitely has its advantages.
Thanks for a marvelous posting on home schooling! I actually enjoyed reading it, you can be a great author. I will make sure to bookmark your blog and may come back later on. I want to encourage you to continue your great writing on the importance of education, have a nice day!
Thanks so much for reading! We appreciate any feedback we can get.