So, I was very glad to receive your answer! Thanks a lot!

Since we’ve spent the past 14 month living in a small town in Costa Rica, our opportunities for socializing have been a bit different than they would be in an urban American city. But they have made friends, have become mostly conversant in Spanish, and have experienced a lot of different things most kids in a city wouldn’t get, from visiting ruins in South and Central America, to helping at animal rescue centers, and more. We feel very fortunate.

We’ve also really enjoyed the time we’ve been able to spend together as a family, and being able to see them grow and be here for them to answer questions when they have them. I don’t regret the decision to homeschool at all.

It has been a while since you’ve decided to homeschool your kids. What can you say right now? Was it a good decision? How are you doing right now?

What really helped us feel right about homeschooling was to read what so many of the prophets have said about teaching your children, I have a great site I will forward you. Many moms I have talked to say their kids have gone back and forth through the years as their needs have changed many going back to traditional school for a year here and there, but with a homeschooling mindset their kids get so much more out of their traditional school experiences.
Good luck I am excited for you guys, here is my favorite Ensign quote about teaching children.

“It is a fundamental truth that the responsibilities of motherhood cannot be successfully delegated. No, not to day-care centers, not to schools, not to nurseries, not to babysitters. We become enamored with men’s theories such as the idea of preschool training outside the home for young children. Not only does this put added pressure on the budget, but it places young children in an environment away from mother’s influence. Too often the pressure for popularity, on children and teens, places an economic burden on the income of the father, so mother feels she must go to work to satisfy her children’s needs. That decision can be most shortsighted. It is mother’s influence during the crucial formative years that forms a child’s basic character. Home is the place where a child learns faith, feels love, and thereby learns from mother’s loving example to choose righteousness. How vital are mother’s influence and teaching in the home—and how apparent when neglected!” (Ensign, Nov. 1981, p. 104)

http://ldshomeschoolinginca.org/index.html
http://naturalmomstalkradio.com/blog/category/homeschool/
http://k12.com (you can get this free of charge through distance learning charter schools in Utah)

Breanna had fallen way behind and was being passed up by her younger brothers academically. Brandi is also a licensed elementary teacher so she decided to “catch her up”

After the 2 years Breanna felt the need to spend more time with her friends. When she was placed back in school she was way ahead academically of those kids that she had been unable to keep up with earlier. So far she had managed to stay ahead. However Brandi has to work a lot with her at night because she does have a tendancy to let things slide.

a note of caution… Check with your local school districts and see what their policy for re-entering school is later on.. One of the reasons Brandi let Breanna go back is in Nevada they passed a law that if you wanted to re-enter school you had to re-enter at the same grade you withdrew which is ridiculous!!!

Anyway observing as a grandmother if you can do it… Go for it.

Our oldest daughter Jen went half a day in 5th & 6th and in 7th we had a part time private school (Benjamin Franklin Academy) She then went back in 11th grade because she wanted all the extras of being in school. There were 21 in her graduating class in Missouri. she now has a master’s in marketing.

Beth went to Benjamin Franklin for 2 years and decided to finish at home and get her GED. She gor training as a massage therapist.

Both girls had gymnastics for about 3 years and piano for 7 + years. We were active in 4-H (from the time they were 6 & *) and I was a 4-H leader. Then of course there is Church.

You can find a style of Homeschool that suits you and each child. I was very casual and tended to use a lot of things we were doing in 4-H as part of our program. There as many ways to do it as there are people :-)

Computers and internet give you so many more options than I had 20 years ago. You don’t have to duplicate the way they do things in a formal setting. I would recommend books by Benjamin Moore. One of his titles is Better Late than Early. I think you will find this interesting. All this pressure on very early childhood education is popular right now, but there are other philosophies out there to explore!

When I pulled Sam out of school part way through the 4th grade, he was doing 7th grade math. When I put him back in public school for 6th grade a year and a half later, he was doing 10th grade math. When you home school your kids, they can learn at their own pace. They are not held back, forced to go at the speed or reach only the level of the slower students in the class.

Your kids are free to learn, to learn at their pace, and to find joy in it, when you school them at home. It just has to be consistent and well executed.

Oh, I want to take the opportunity to brag about Sam now, for just a moment: He got his SAT scores back recently and he scored 740 in reading and 720 in math.