Memphis-Area Home Education Association

Home education is the fastest growing educational movement in the United States! It is a tutorial method of education in which the parents retain the responsibility for their children's education. Home education is based in the home, but your classroom is the world. The low student-teacher ratio allows students more opportunities to learn first-hand about science, history, government, and art in the real world. Children are educated in museums, libraries, places of business, art centers, the seashore, the mountains, in backyards, in kitchens, and even in cars. Home education is comprehensive. Home education allows each student to work at his own pace.

Home education extends far beyond mere academic knowledge and encompasses a child's spiritual, moral, academic, and character training needs as well. II Peter 1:5-7 says, "But also for this very reason, giving all diligence add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness love." Learning is not limited to four to eight hours a day. As we live before our children, we discover that deeper needs are more frequently caught by our children than taught by us in an academic setting.

Home education is a way of life!
Historically, the home was the original school. Public education did not exist in colonial America. In fact, fathers were responsible for their children's education.

Home education was successful.
Throughout the ages, most parents have accepted the challenge of teaching their children, steeping them in national traditions and nurturing them to be responsible citizens. Abe Lincoln, Ben Franklin, Pearl Buck, Abigail Adams and Thomas Edison were educated at home or attended a one-room school a few hours a day, a few months a year.

Historical evidence indicates that Americans were the most literate people in the world prior to the introduction of public schools and compulsory school attendance laws. Institutional schooling, both public and private, is now ingrained in our society and is a part of our cultural tradition. In view of world history, however, our present public school system is a relatively new concept. Megatrends, a best selling book from 1982 that outlines where our sophisticated technology is taking us, includes home education as a long-term choice of some Americans.

What is the cost?

David, the second king of Israel, wanted to build an altar on a piece of property. The owner offered to give the land and the offering to him. David's response was, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; for I will not offer anything to the Lord my God which cost me nothing." This illustrates that worthwhile endeavors frequently require sacrifice.

"Count the cost" by researching before you begin. The reading list in this handbook contains a sample of the many resources available to acquaint you with the amount of time, energy, and commitment home education requires. As you evaluate your decision, consider the following areas:

Expense

How much will it cost? Surveys suggest the average cost per child per year is about $500. The annual financial costs vary with each family, depending on creativity and family resources. Libraries and used book sales can help to keep costs down. Especially resourceful families have been able to do a good job on as little as $200 per child per year.

Commitment

Fathers must be willing to lead their families and respond to the extra demands on their time. Mothers must be willing to re-adjust their lifestyles and attitudes. Both parents and children must be willing to persevere through the change in family routines and relationships. But just as the butterfly struggles to emerge from his cocoon, the benefits of the struggle enable him to have the strength to fly and live life to the fullest!

Social Pressure

Well-meaning family and friends will communicate varying attitudes about your decision to educate your children at home.

Time and Energy

To add four or more hours of teaching to your daily schedule will be an adjustment. It will be easier if you organize your home, divide the chores and delegate, and plan your meals, your days and activities.

Are Parents Qualified?

One of the biggest fears is inadequacy, but in truth you will amaze yourself at what you are willing to learn when you must teach it. You can also purchase Teachers' Manuals for the subjects you are teaching. If you really don't feel comfortable with a subject, get a tutor you can trust or get a teaching video for your child. Knowing what your child should be learning at the different grade levels will help you to have an organized method to stay on target at each grade level. Think of it! Parents know their children better than anyone else and have the deepest love for them. Before a child is ready to attend school, parents have already taught them language, personal hygiene, basic social skills, and personal interaction. You are qualified!

Does Home Education Work?

Yes! Do you consider these people successful? John Quincy Adams, William Henry Harrison, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, George Washington, Woodrow Wilson, James Madison, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Albert Schweitzer, Wolfgang Mozart, Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, Douglas MacArthur, George Patton, Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, John Wesley, George Washington Carver, Charles Dickens, Pearl S. Buck, Hans Christian Andersen, John Marshall, Patrick Henry, Benjamin Franklin.

All these influential figures were home educated and your child can have an education equal to any of these people. The choice is yours and we can help you achieve your goals.