50 Reasons People Homeschool

Why Do People Homeschool?

After working with homeschoolers for a 20+ years, we have encountered many types of children and families. Homeschooling is not a rare or strange occurrence anymore – it is mainstream and here to stay. Some of the reasons we have heard for homeschooling are wonderful, and some leave us wondering. Of course, many parents/students have multiple reasons for deciding to homeschool, and some people homeschool because they feel they have run out of options. All of the following are actual reasons we have heard in our role as educational consultants.

1. I want to be the biggest influence in my child’s life.
2. I want my child to get the best possible education he/she can get.
3. I want to spend as much time with my kids as I can while they are little.
4. My child isn’t being challenged. (Also: My child is gifted)
5. My child is being left behind. (Also: My child has learning challenges)
6. We want to homeschool so that we can teach our religious beliefs.
7. My child doesn’t want to go to school. (Also: My child refuses to get out of the car)
8. My child is being bullied.
9. My child has anxiety.
10. My child is agoraphobic.
11. My child gets sick often.
12. My child has diabetes that is hard to deal with in a regular school.
13. My child has cancer.
14. I don’t like the social situations that go on at the school.
15. I don’t like the way my child’s teacher handles behavior problems.
16. Our child has a difficult time in school because of our religious beliefs.
17. My child has severe food allergies and the school wasn’t able to handle these issues.
18. My child wants to graduate early.
19. My child is credit deficient.
20. We want to travel and it’s too hard to do this with the school schedule.
21. We don’t have transportation and the school won’t provide it.
22. They wanted to give my child an IEP but I don’t want one.
23. We can’t wake up that early.
24. Common core is a method of brainwashing used by the left to liberalize the youth of this country.
25. They teach about gay marriage in public school.
26. I want to be in control and choose what my kids learn about.
27. Public schools are not safe.
28. We have a lot of gangs and drugs in our school of residence. (Also: My child was in the wrong crowd)
29. My student was given too much busy work.
30. The school doesn’t provide enough support to struggling students.
31. The school gives work that is too easy for my child.
32. I don’t like my child’s teacher and the school won’t let him switch teachers.
33. There are too many kids in her class and she doesn’t receive enough attention.
34. My child learns differently and the school can’t accommodate his learning needs.
35. There is too much homework. We can’t spend enough time as a family because of how much homework he has.
36. I was volunteering so much in the classroom anyway, so I figured I may as well homeschool.
37. I didn’t want them to learn about sex-ed in school.
38. Homeschooling will allow us more time as a family.
39. My child has a rigorous training schedule for his/her sport and homeschooling will give him/her more time to devote to that.
40. I have health issues and couldn’t get my child to school.
41. We are taking care of an ailing family member.
42. My child has been repeatedly suspended/expelled. We just don’t know what to do anymore.
43. My child learns better from me.
44. Homeschooling works well with our lifestyle.
45. We want to be able to follow our child’s interests.
46. We like having a flexible schedule. When other kids are in school, we can go on field trips.
47. It’s a better fit for my emotionally-sensitive child who gets overwhelmed in a regular classroom.
48. We don’t have a permanent home.
49. Our child is constantly auditioning for film/TV roles which require us to travel during the week. (Also: we tour as part of a band and need to be able to bring our kids with us on the road).
50. We have friends who homeschool and it has worked well for them. We thought we’d give it a try.

Do you have additional reasons you have (or have heard) for homeschooling?  We’d love to have you share them in the comments! And if you are considering homeschooling, but want to know if YOU have what it takes, check out this post.