As I write this my wife is sitting at the dining table with my daughter working over some math questions. Not only are mother and daughter working together on the project, but mother is learning from her daughter – Hmmmmm.

It has been our delight to have each of our seven children taught at home, for at least part of their school experience. We have used a variety of programs and found that they all work in different ways. We have changed our focus over the years, worked through a variety of attitudes and ideas and found many benefits of learning and teaching in the home environment.

Home educating has been popularised, neglected, revamped and revitalised in various circles in the past two decades or so. Christian schooling has also been through various phases and iterations. From our perspective we have a great affection for teaching and learning within the home. We love the process, love the amazing academic results and love the lifestyle benefits which both children and parents get to enjoy.

Our two youngest children, both being home schooled for their entire academic life, at least until tertiary studies, are significantly ahead in measurable academic terms. They have achieved this with much less time investment than their peers are putting in within the formal schooling context. They have also had time and opportunity to meet amazing people, work on amazing projects, explore their talents and learn many domestic processes that make them increasingly valuable to our home life.

Both children love to cook and especially to experiment with recipes and ideas. They both love reading as well and have devoured fiction and non-fiction works alike. They enjoy making home-movies, writing plays, playing sport, learning new things, playing with lego, designing board games and so on. It is an absolute joy to have them as a vital part of our lives and to be a vital part of theirs.

If you are looking for a home-school advocate, you can count me in. We have met many families who employ one of the many home-schooling methods and we have been continually impressed with what we see. I encourage parents to give prayerful thought to the possibility of enriching their own lives and those of their children by bringing the education back into the home.