Homeschool Myths – The Top 6 Most Common Myths

Bring up the word homeschool to almost anyone who is not familiar with the topic and I can pretty much guarantee that at least one of these homeschool myths will be mentioned.

I will be completely honest and tell you that I myself thought a few of these “myths” as I now call them, were in fact true.

Realizing, after many years under my homeschooling belt, that a lot of new to homeschool families may be encountering these lead me to this post.

Below I’ve listed some of the most common misconceptions or homeschool myths out there these days.

Homeschool myth #1: Must be a “teacher”

A lot of parents who are on the brink of making a decision to homeschool, get stuck here.

Thinking you must be a certified teacher, or have some teaching experience is probably the biggest homeschool myth I hear about. You as a parent are a natural teacher, whether you realize it or not!

As I wrote about in a previous post, How Long Should Homeschool Take, your child is learning from you from infancy!

Stepping into the role of teaching color recognition, ABCs, pre-reading skills is no different than being a teacher and a natural transition that a lot of people tend to overthink. 

Also, take it one day at a time. No need to worry about teaching pre-calculus when you’re contemplating starting homeschool at 5. You’ll figure it out, focus on the now.

Another thing to remind yourself of is that being a good mom or parent comes first, and creating a strong family & home life sets up the successful foundation for a positive homeschool life.

Showing your children love and establishing boundaries, while making expectations clear is a part of parenting that again flows nicely into a homeschool environment.

Homeschool myth #2: Must know it all

Along the lines of thinking you must be a teacher, thinking that you must know EVERYTHING is another one of the common big, fat homeschool myths!

The resources available to homeschooling families are tremendous these days. 

The internet, social media like Facebook (allowing parents to connect and possibly meetup for field trips, classes etc.), as well as the local public library can all aid the unsure parent in finding some confidence in their teaching ability.

There are also many curriculum choices (like my pick for best homeschool reading curriculum) out there that have an “open and go” approach, leaving less room for the parent to overthink “how” to teach.

Homeschool myth #3: Must have a schoolroom & “all the things”

My last post Homeschool Essentials delves into this topic further, but I will say that having a dedicated schoolroom is another huge homeschool myth.

In this day and age of in your face media we all have a lot of pressure on us to fit into certain molds.

Being a new homeschooling mom you can easily feel the pressure to make the space you’re schooling in perfect and Pinterest worthy.

But you know what, you don’t need to!

You do need space to store your supplies & books, but a whole room is not necessary. If you have the space to dedicate a whole room to school and want to use it, great!

Simply gathering around the dining room table, or on the couch or on the back porch will get the job done too!

Having all the other things, like shiny new supplies every year, and brand new curriculum every year is also not necessary. I learned this after a couple of years of spending a lot on what I thought we had to have.

It is fun to have some new pencils, or art supplies, or notebooks waiting for your kiddos on the first day of school, but you won’t have that endless supply list that a typical school will require.

Also, as your kids progress and if you want to teach younger kids with the same curriculum, you can reuse some items instead of buying new. I started saving money and time once I realized how many things I thought were necessary, weren’t.

One thing you do need, and what I consider to be the greatest resource of all, is time.

Some time to research & plan, some time to gather what you deem necessary but most important of all, time to be together as a family.

Homeschool myth #4: Must re-create school

The previous homeschool myths leads easily into the next topic, the misconception of the need to recreate a school setting.

You don’t need a school in your home to effectively teach your children.  Learning takes place all the time, at home and outside the home.

When you are working at home, try to focus on making the place or places you do work comfortable and cozy, places you want to be.

I wrote a post on how long should homeschool take each day and covered this topic.

A typical day in a traditional school setting takes about 6-8 hours. That includes classroom management & disruptions from 20+ other students, shuttling back and forth between classrooms or activities and countless other “distractions” for lack of a better word.

If you choose to homeschool, you have to remember you don’t need to fill a whole day schedule because that’s what we are all used to. The formal teaching, learning and working portion of your day will likely be a fraction of what a traditional school day would be.

Homeschool myth #5: No social interaction

The “s” word – socialization –or the assumed lack of it for a homeschooling family should probably have been my first homeschool myth. 

It’s one of the hottest topics when homeschool is brought up in conversations.

“But what about socialization?” is a question every homeschooling mom has heard more times than they can count! 

I personally, don’t believe in the idea that kids are only “socialized” when they are sitting in a classroom setting with 20+ kids their own age. 

Being in the community, and with family members and neighbors of all ages on a day to day basis provides a very well rounded way to interact with others. As does any extra curricular activities your child participates in, either as part of your homeschool day or after school hours.

There are also more than likely plenty of opportunities to meet other homeschooling families if you are new to homeschooling and would like to make some new friends.

I mentioned in an earlier post on how to get started homeschooling that searching Facebook for local homeschool groups is a great place to start. 

Attend any local meetups you can find as you get started homeschooling. As intimidating as it can be, remember all of those families are there for the same reason, to make friends!

Homeschool myth #6: You can’t work and homeschool

Finding a balance in life, especially when you’re a parent, with all that needs to be done, is very tricky. In fact, it sometimes feels impossible.

A big misconception, or another homeschool myth, is that you cannot balance work and homeschool at the same time.

Well, guess what, with some creativity, you probably can!

How to find time for both work and homeschool

I have had the opportunity to get work done in the early hours of the day before my children are even awake for the day, as well as taken time in the afternoon after school to work on what I need to get done for the day.

I have even spent evening hours after dinner & when my husband is home to finish up some emails or tasks I didn’t get finished earlier in the day.

Assuming you can fit your work in around the rest of your day, you can do as I have done.

However, if you have a deadline or set schedule, an important thing to remember is that homeschooling hours are flexible hours.

Getting help from a fellow homeschool friend or a family member or if you are a part of a co-op where your kids are dropped off for a few hours a few days a week, makes sticking to a deadline or work schedule easier.

Whatever way you are able to fit in your work alongside homeschool I have one big piece of advice – do not try to multitask and do both at once. Meaning, segment or schedule your time so that you have uninterrupted time for both tasks.

One guaranteed way to stress you out & make you less productive is by trying to do it all – at once! Checking emails & answering questions on grammar or algebra is a recipe for one stressed mama.

Let your children know (assuming they are old enough) that you need to have your work time respected, and do the same by respecting their homeschool time.

Also, probably way easier said than done, do not feel guilty over taking time to do your work.

Again, if your children are not babies/toddlers, let them see the importance you place on both work and homeschool. It’s a great way to set a positive example of balancing, and not overcommitting and ending up frazzled.

Debunk those homeschool myths & enjoy your days

I really hope by sharing these common homeschool myths and debunking them a bit, I help you gain more confidence in your decision to homeschool.

Realizing that others are thinking or have thought of the same obstacles can be reassuring when making a big life decision.

Go on and teach your kiddos – you’ve got this!