Whether your children are public, private, or homeschooled; you, as the parent, must make every effort to be directly involved with their education. And if you really think about it, every parent home schools their children to an extent. You "get to" teach them to brush their teeth, to color, to ride a bike, and ultimately, your values. You feel the pain of watching them fail whether it's in a soccer game or losing that big catch. You're the ones preparing them to interact with others by teaching them proper manners and respect for others. Whether it's fishing, camping, hiking, bowling, playing a board game or just coloring at the table, you're their teacher.

Also, those outside the family such as coaches, piano instructors, and even close friends also play as an extension to your own family in the role of teachers. Grandparents have always been keenly aware of their own roles in teaching the children of their children. They certainly have been for us, and we have greatly appreciated the roles they have played in our lives and our children's lives.

The decision to home school was made before we had children. To be honest, we never really sat down to weigh the pros and cons; we simply knew we wanted to give it our best shot. Don't get us wrong. This was, by no means, a blind decision. We had met several home schooling families and were able to gain a lot of valuable information from them. They helped us to realize that most everything we thought about home schools was totally false. We are very grateful to these families for their frankness. They never painted a rosy picture of home schooling and they let us know quite simply that like any job, it has its good days and bad days. Now that our oldest is 7 years old - and within just days of completing 2nd grade - we can attest that the rewards make it worth the time and sacrifices.

It's such a blessing to work one-on-one with our children to train them up in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6). Regardless of where your children are educated we believe it's imperative that we're closely involved as mentioned above. We should "bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4) regardless of where they are educated.

As with all parents, it's a true blessing to watch as our children's personal learning style reveals itself. Like all parents, we know our children. We simply want them to see the joy in learning, and teach them how to apply themselves when it turns into work. Therefore, we choose or modify curriculums to best match our child's unique characteristics. As their learning style matures or even shifts, we continue to guide them. As parents, we are totally dedicated to searching out each of our children's God-given gifts and nurturing those strengths to glorify Him by serving and loving others.

Once our children comfortably demonstrate their knowledge of a specific subject, they are given the opportunity to explore their new-learned skills with assignments designed to further encourage and strengthen their skills. These are the things we all, as parents, "get to do." You see, it's a change in attitude. Rather than a "have to" attitude, we saw that it's a blessing that we "get to" be a part of our children's lives. We're truly taking this a year at a time. We praise God that we get to teach this year, and if our situations changes, then we'll praise God that our children get to go to public or private school. I heard someone once say, "Make your plans wisely, but give God the eraser."