Anonymous wrote:I'm in an amazing point of opportunity in my career, and have two young kids. Really have a chance to excel within my organization, but it's not like, a passion, I guess. But I think I could do a better job raising my kids than anyone else, and don't believe the education they'd get at public school would be good quality, and private school is very expensive and still probably not as good as home schooling if I devote all my energy into my kids instead of my high demanding job. But giving up my salary would mean a significant impact on our quality of life/what we could save. We'd be able to do it, but without my 100K incomes, we'd be making about 140k (this includes rental income). How to make this decision? Nothing more important to invest in than my kids, right?

I'm in education. It's incredibly hard for any one person, no matter how talented to replicate what a school does. A school allows your children to establish relationships with a large group of diverse peers. To learn how to build on others' ideas, negotiate, discuss, debate, and communicate to people who may not see eye to eye with you. To work with various adult role models, who model different ways of being in the world -- different modes of coping with problems and life situations. Homeschooling means limiting your children to your own perspective on things (supplemented occasionally by various outings and classes, which don't substitute for the kinds of relationships they would have in school. It also risks depriving them of finding a peer group to which they belong. For elementary aged students, belonging to a community beyond the family is a very important step of development. I think if you have a church or something like that in which you're raising the kids this might be a different story, but otherwise I think a decent school could do a much better job on all fronts.

I also sense a bit of all or nothing in your post. I think you need to step back a bit and look at whether your ideals in either domain, work or home, are realistic. I know several homeschool parents who find the job rather high burnout, especially if they have sky high expectations of replicating an entire mini-culture or world in the confines of their home. I understand your frustration with the educational options available to you. I suggest investing your money in a really good home library, developmentally appropriate art area, and outdoor play area. Most homeschoolers I know have their kids reading and/or playing outdoors most of the day anyway so by providing that enriched environment you are showing your children that you value their education.

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Thank you for replies. Yes, I don’t want to waste my kids time. I will consider private, but it’s not even about school quality, but that I feel I don’t want them not going at their pace,faster or slower, which is what any school requires.

Something tells me this is actually about you wanting to be a sahm but trying to tie yourself into knots to justify it.

Op here. Thank you for replies. Yes, I don’t want to waste my kids time. I will consider private, but it’s not even about school quality, but that I feel I don’t want them not going at their pace,faster or slower, which is what any school requires.

I’m a teacher, could afford to stay home and homeschool, yet I would never do it. Is there a lot of wasted time in school? Sure. But my children learn to interact with other children and learn to self-advocate at a level I can’t do through homeschool even if I were to join a homeschool group. I also know that while I am my childs first and best teacher, that sometimes they learn better from others. OP, move to a better school district, stay at your job, and spend your income taking vacations to interesting places and doing enrichment activities.

Homeschooling seems like such a drastic solution to bad public schools, and one that's really hard to implement correctly.

It would make much more sense to either look at privates, consider publics with enrichment, or, as others have pointed out, move to an area of FCPS with good schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could you set a home daycare business to bring in some income while being home with your children?

She has no certification or the proper background. No one who is educated is going to send their kids to a neighbor with an econ degree.

Nobody in their right mind is going to send their kid to a lady who is too busy homeschooling her own spawn to properly watch their child.

Homeschooling is extraordinarily efficient and cantake place any time of the day or evening. Weekends, too.

Why would OP quit her job that she's performing at a high level, for another job that pays 1/2 as much (if that) and then ALSO have to spend all her additional time homeschooling her children ANY doing all of the regular domestic stuff? That makes zero sense.

Montessori school of Alexandria is 12k-13k per year depending on grade.

Rather than live in Alexandria city and homeschool, if you are so unhappy with the public schools, why don't you move to Fairfax County--either the FCPS part of Alexandria, or Burke, or Springfield?

We are going to have a generation of idiots who were "homeschooled" by untrained parents who thought they could do better. Uggh.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could you set a home daycare business to bring in some income while being home with your children?

She has no certification or the proper background. No one who is educated is going to send their kids to a neighbor with an econ degree.

Nobody in their right mind is going to send their kid to a lady who is too busy homeschooling her own spawn to properly watch their child.

Homeschooling is extraordinarily efficient and cantake place any time of the day or evening. Weekends, too.

So what are her weird homeschooled kids going to do during daycare hours? Torture and bully the daycare babies?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could you set a home daycare business to bring in some income while being home with your children?

She has no certification or the proper background. No one who is educated is going to send their kids to a neighbor with an econ degree.

Nobody in their right mind is going to send their kid to a lady who is too busy homeschooling her own spawn to properly watch their child.

Homeschooling is extraordinarily efficient and cantake place any time of the day or evening. Weekends, too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could you set a home daycare business to bring in some income while being home with your children?

She has no certification or the proper background. No one who is educated is going to send their kids to a neighbor with an econ degree.

Nobody in their right mind is going to send their kid to a lady who is too busy homeschooling her own spawn to properly watch their child.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could you set a home daycare business to bring in some income while being home with your children?

She has no certification or the proper background. No one who is educated is going to send their kids to a neighbor with an econ degree.

Children of working moms - especially girls - do better later in life. Want your kids to be successful? Keep your job and don’t model traditional gender roles.

Like a pp mentioned, I also feel that a lot of my kids’ time at school is wasted. I taught my kids to read and do math years past their grade. I know they are capable of much more. If I had a terrible school, I would just home school and let them get their socializing in extracurriculars. Our school isn’t that bad but the biggest reason I don’t pull them out is their love for going to school every day. I wish they weren’t exposed to some of the kids there but I think they will be better for it in the long run.