Welcome to my first FRIDAY FEATURE! Many of my readers have either just started homeschooling or are still thinking about it. With that in mind I decided to start a weekly feature interviewing new and veteran moms, asking them to share with us how they started homeschooling, their struggles and their joys. I love hearing how other moms do it all and how they started homeschooling. Everyone’s journey is so different!

Meet Christina!

Did you always know you wanted to homeschool?

No! If you had told me even just a few years ago that I would be homeschooling my three children, I would have thought you were crazy! We even moved to a different city in an attempt to get into a better school district because having three children made private school out of the question for us. I honestly never considered it an option before.

How did you start homeschooling?

In her second year in public school, my daughter was experiencing bullying both at school and on the bus. She was coming home miserable and visibly upset every day. My husband and I were introduced to the idea of homeschooling by our neighbors who had taken their kids out of public school the prior year. It seemed like the best option for our daughter, first to get her out of a bad situation that wasn’t being addressed properly and then to allow her freedom to express her endless curiosity and creativity.

It turned out to be the best thing for our daughter, and now our two younger sons. They are thriving in the lifestyle that my husband and I have created, which both allows them to be children and nurtures their natural curiosities.

What is your favorite thing about homeschooling?

There are so many things that I love about homeschooling that it is a challenge to pick just one! I would have to say that I love being with my children every day. I get to watch them grow up, watch them being children, and experience life with them every day. It is challenging, for sure, but so worth it! I would also like to add that I love the freedom that homeschooling affords us. We are free to travel, to do what works best for our family, to be ourselves. We love so many things about our lifestyle, because homeschooling really is a way of life after all.

As a teacher, are there subjects you struggle teaching?

Math! I definitely lack confidence in this area, more so than in any other subject. I think my daughter could sense my hesitations and frustrations because this is the one area where we struggle to connect. It is getting better, though!

How do you overcome that?

This is a work in progress for us. We have switched up our curriculum several times. We are using Right Start Math now, and we all seem to be happy with it. I get well-laid out lessons and my worksheet-hating kids get lots and lots of games and manipulatives. So far, so good!

What advice would you give to someone interested in or just starting homeschooling?

I would say relax and trust your intuitions. No one knows your child(ren) better than you! You have made a tough decision, so allow yourself the time to figure things out and test different resources and approaches. Listen you yourself and your children, and together you will discover what works best for everyone. Also, reach out to other homeschoolers, either in your area or online, to get the additional support that you may need. Enjoy the journey! It is a huge undertaking, both hard and stressful, but the benefits can far outweigh the difficulties!

Can you give us an example of how you encourage your children’s curiosity?

Great question! I believe that our job as parents is to fill our children’s heads with beautiful things – beautiful literature, art. music, and experiences from which to draw inspiration. Time to explore nature is also a must! I think that starting young is essential. We expose our children to different cultures, sights, sounds, tastes, and more through regular read-aloud time, science center and museum trips, nature walks, library trips, and more. We also try to give our children easy access to books, art supplies, and games / toys in our home and we give them plenty of free time to explore those things.

How can readers connect with you?

I blog at Thankfully Home and have a Facebook page and Twitter account under the same name. I can be reached by email at info@thankfullyhome.com .

Would you like to share your advice with us? Contact me at raisingdavinci@gmail.com