Although homeschooling seems new, it is actually centuries old. I like to remember that when I get to thinking, "What the heck are we doing?" It is simply one-on-one tutoring, with the parents as tutors. There is always the worry that we are doing something different with our children than what we had in our own childhoods, and so I look to the examples of those who have gone before us on this adventure, some of whom have produced great men and women of history.
I highly recommend that any family interested in homeschooling become involved in a local group, for friendship and guidance. Our group meets once a month for Park Day, with group field trips scattered throughout the year. There is also another group we are loosely associated with that meets weekly, but we generally can't make it that often. It does seem that groups are springing up all the time.
Besides her studies and art, Theresa also takes ballet and gymnastics. At the end of each year is her big dance recital in the Tucson Convention Center Music Hall, which she looks forward to with great enthusiasm. She has not a drop of "stage fright", and dances her little heart out! She has aspirations to dance with the Russian folk dancers who dance with the balalaika orchestra I play with.
Christopher, generally tags along with us on most field trips, and spends his days tagging along with his sister, whom he missed greatly the year she was in "regular" kindergarten. He knows his alphabet - probably from Sesame Street, can carry a tune pretty well, and loves running the computer. He learns the give and take of "socialization" by playing, fighting, and making up with his sister and their cousins. What else does a pre-schooler need to know? (Well, yeah, putting his clothes in the hamper...)
