As we have begun home schooling, it brings up several philosophical questions for me to ponder. One question I have asked myself is, "If I know he has already mastered a concept, do I bother offering him the worksheets and/or readings on it that are scheduled in the curriculum?" On one hand, it is a confidence booster for him and gives him a sense of accomplishment to whip through a math worksheet on a concept he mastered two years ago. It makes him feel pretty smart, I think, because I remember feeling that way in school. I would whip through the worksheets as quickly as I could so I could read my library book.

Then, on the other hand, what's the point? Isn't part of the reason I'm home schooling to avoid the wasted time in classroom schooling? So that our children won't be simply "taught to the test," so that school won't be something dull for them to wait through to get to the more interesting parts of life? After all, the goal of education shouldn't be merely to transfer a certain set of information and skills to a degree that a certain test can be passed. The goal is to prepare the child to be able to actually use the information and skills in real life. So, yes, there is a certain set of skills and knowledge that need to be taught, but I shouldn't feel that it is any less valid for these skills and knowledge to be mastered through real-life experiences rather than formal instruction. If the goal is for the child to be better prepared for life, then the ultimate test is real life, right? I think we who have been through classroom education just have a tendency to think that each topic must be formally taught, worksheets filled out, and test taken, or else we are neglecting that area of our children's education. The more I learn about home schooling and, now, actually experience the process, the more comfortable I feel just letting learning happen, being primarily a facilitator.

Of course, this concept can apply in the other direction as well - spending more time on a concept that your child hasn't mastered, even though the normal lesson plan only calls for a few days. Or even putting off a lesson or concept until your child is more prepared to learn it, instead of following the benchmarks of your local school district. There is one school of thought that calls for not beginning formal reading or math instruction until a child is 7 or 8 years old - at which point they usually catch on very quickly and catch up to their peers in little time. I can certainly see the benefit of this approach for children who are either not interested or not readily catching on to reading at 5 or 6 years of age. It avoids burn out or feelings of failure or incompetence that could interfere with learning to read later when they are more developmentally ready. Would I be strong enough to endure the criticism of others for not teaching my six year old reading if I felt it wasn't beneficial to him yet? I don't know, but I hope I will have the courage and strength to make the best educational choices for our kids during this adventure of homeschooling.