How we came to the conclusion that homeschooling was for us.

In the name of God, the Most beneficent, the Most merciful

Have been toying with the idea of home education for some time now.
Started out by looking out for Alternative schools. Spent hours and hours looking for schools on the internet. Mailed a few, visited some and then shortlisted some that seemed viable. This ws when my Chusy was just 4 months old. I know, too early for schooling to come to mind.

Joined an Alternative education list and did a lot of research. Started visiting schools when Chusy was 2 and a half. The one we chose was a Montessori Pre-school and the lady who was in charge was a good talker. She said the right things at the right time and we were sold. After about a month of paying half yearly fee, we started feeling Chusy was not happy. He would cry in the mornings and say he didn't want to go. A little talking about what he felt helped us realize (in good time) that we needed to stop this. Our resolve was hardened by the chat we had with the in charge. Can't believe how we could have been so blind as to send our Chusy to school at that tender age even when other kids in our apartment complex had been going since they were younger than 2 years of age. That was the last time our Chusy went to any school in this city.

We were under a lot of pressure to put Chusy in school since he was 3 , which is the latest for kids here to start school here. What we saw in Chusy helped us fight that pressure. He was happy at home. He learnt to speak complete grammatically correct sentences when he was 27 months old. This is late for kids to start talking, but then the process takes longer for kids who start early.

He started pointing to pictures of objects in his book correctly even when he wasnt yet 2. he started recognizing letters at around 2 and a half and could tell the sounds of all letters. He started writing letters(uppercase ) when he was 3 -on his own. With a little help from me, he started reading 2 letter words at the same time and 3 letter words at 3 and a half. He knew his colors and numbers since he could speak. We knew he didn't need to be burdened with homework and unnecessary comparison with other kids at that age. We didn't need teachers to grade his work for us to know how much he knew.

We decided to wait for another 2 years-much to the horror of our relatives and neighbors. We were told we wouldn't be able to get him admitted to any 'good' school and he had to take his board exams in Grade 10 and 12 and wouldn't get into college. We think its too early and presumptuous of anyone to think that a child who does not attend preschool or is not in school by the time he's 5 will not be able to get into college. We have decided to give homeschooling a try and to continue until at least Grade 3. God Willing.