A Homeschool Success Story

I went to my niece's wedding this Christmas break.  This is Rachael.  I met her when she was about 11.  She's a big part of the reason I homeschool.

I never thought I would homeschool my kids before moving to British Columbia as newlyweds even though I knew that all of Dustin's nieces and nephews were homeschooled.  Dustin told me it was my choice how to educate our children.

Then I met Rachael and her family.

Rachael did go to kindergarten and I think she went to first and maybe even part of second grade.  She was shy, and her mom was worried about her socially, and thought about homeschooling.  Then when they moved to a tiny island in the west coast that was VERY liberal, it was clear to Rachael's mom that homeschooling was the right thing for their family.

Rachael was homeschooled on an island that didn't offer any support. Although her shyness disappeared, she only had about two close friends (one LDS and one not LDS) for most of her preteen years, because that's all that was on the island.  I say this because some people think that if you aren't surrounded constantly by tons of other kids, you end up awkward, which just isn't true.

As she went through her teenage years, awkward was NOT a word anyone would have used to describe her. She had TONS of friends at this stage of life. She is proof that most homeschool stereotypes are false.

Even though I'm over ten years older then her, I've always admired her.

Rachael could run her whole house hold complete with dishes, meals, diapers, laundry, and all other motherly/housework tasks by the time she was 12. She had FIVE younger siblings at the time.  All without begrudging anyone.

Rachael had a love of learning like no one I had met before.  If I was doing a project, she wanted to do it too.  I made a home made scripture case, she made a home made scripture case.  I wrote and illustrated a children's book, she wrote and illustrated a children's book.

The whole family's motto was "If someone else can do it, then we can do it too, and why not do it now for fun."

Her goals and values as a teenager were so inspiring.  She knew who she was, who she wanted to be, and would not compromise.  And all the guys for miles around knew where she stood too.

As a teenager she went with her family to a remote island in the south pacific, and she helped her dad be the only doctor on the entire island.  She was a midwife and nurse, and loved the whole thing.

When she went off to school at BYU Hawaii, she was homesick for only a couple of days, although she called home almost daily, because her mom and her sister were still her best friends.

She got straight "A"s and didn't feel like it was a hard transition.

And now she just got married in the temple to the boy next door.

I know that not all homeschool stories are successful.  I'm not that naive, but when I saw Rachael and her family, I hoped that my future family could be like them...and so I homeschool too.