For most parents, deciding to homeschool is a big decision. Especially if you’ve decided to take your kids out of the public school system and you don’t know anyone who has made a similar choice. It’s an adjustment to your thinking, to how your household functions, your family finances, how your kids view you, and how you view yourself. Bottom line, it can be a lot to wrap your mind around mentally. You’ve done some reading and research, you’ve prayed about it, and you’ve agreed that God is calling you to homeschool. Now what? Homeschooling can seem like a gigantic elephant to swallow! The key to swallowing an elephant is to eat it one piece at a time!
The first piece I would try to digest is developing a homeschool mission statement. Why do I need a mission statement? Well, a mission statement is like a picture of the future. A target. Something to aim for.
Let me explain it this way. When I entered college, I had a vision of my endpoint. I pictured myself graduating with my degree in chemistry and working in some company’s lab in goggles and lab coat from day one. As I progressed through college, that vision came into focus a little bit more each year as I took classes and gained experience. Some of the finer details may have changed, but the overall picture remained constant.
Whenever I took classes or had setbacks that tempted me to want to give up, I would revisit that vision I had for myself as a scientist and think about all I’d invested in trying to make my vision a reality. Reflection on my overarching mission held my feet to the fire and helped me to persevere.
A homeschool mission statement is important for the same reasons. It is a vision for the future that gives what you do each day purpose. It holds your feet to the fire, even when you want to pull your hair out and scream! It also helps you to evaluate from day to day, week to week, and year to year, whether you are on target or veering off course. So what are the characteristics of a good homeschool mission statement?
A homeschool mission statement should:
- Articulate a clear and focused purpose.
- Be enduring.
- Be realistic and achievable.
- Not too broad or too narrow.
Here’s my family’s homeschool mission statement:
It is important to my husband and I that our children view history, the world today, their interactions, and others through the lens of Scripture. Our purpose, to instill a biblical worldview and godly values, is unlikely to change over the years. It is a goal that will endure throughout the course of our homeschool journey.
When I read our homeschool statement, I immediately start to think of the practical ways we target our homeschool mission and how those methods have evolved over time. We covered Apologia’s Biblical Worldview series in our early days of homeschooling, but now we do weekly family Bible studies. We still choose curriculum that has a decidedly Christian worldview, and the list goes on…
Finally, it’s important for me to equip my children with what they need academically, spiritually, and emotionally, but God has to direct their path. God has to reveal to each one what he wills for their lives in regards to career, service, and relationships.
Homeschooling is a marathon; not a sprint. Whether you decide to homeschool from your child’s toddler years on up or you make the decision during high school—a clear, defined purpose will help to prepare your family towards homeschool success.
Kendra
