High School at Home

At the heart of choosing to home educate through high school, my daughter and our family felt that this path fit our priorities best. Looking at all outside options, continuing to home educate makes most sense. Looking at all home schooling options, High School of Your Dreams, make most sense.

There is a lot of social pressure to make academics the top priority for all high schoolers. The argument is that this is the season for intensive academic growth and preparation for college. Yet, our family continues to question this argument. More specifically, we ask ourselves, what would an academically rich curriculum look like that wouldn't sacrifice other, we believe higher, priorities?

Priority one: God
How will we protect, foster, and ensure an environment that brings our high schooler closer to God? How will we make time for an increase and maturity in prayer? How will we minimize distractions from and attacks against our high schoolers relationship with God? How will she receive opportunities to defend God and her faith, growing in spiritual strength and maturity? How will she best get to know and love her faith?

Priority two: Virtue
How will we help her to continue to grow in virtue? How can we help her build upon her strengths while dealing directly with her weaknesses? How can we best mentor and guide her? What virtues are of highest priority?

Priority three: Personal Care
How can we help her to get enough sleep? Eat well? Exercise? Heal in time of illness? How can we help her to best prevent harm to her body, to avoid being exposed to alcohol, drugs, body piercing, tattooing, slicing, promiscuity, and more?

Priority four: Relationships
How do we help her to stay connected in a healthy way to those who love her, and who she loves, the most? How do we encourage healthy friendships?

Priority five: Skills and Service
How do we help her to grow in academic skill? How do we help her to prepare for her vocation of wife and mother? How do we help her to prepare for college? How do we help her to serve others through her talents and gifts?

When batting all this around a few months ago, we were honest with our daughter. Although we felt that we could provide a unique, enriching, and real-life high school curriculum, there may be negative consequences connected with this decision. Some people may not understand it. Some colleges may not accept it. Some tests scores may not be as high as under other circumstances. Yet when all was said and done and the decision needed to be made, we chose to stay home and to continue learning together.