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I have followed Ashlee for quite some time and I am so excited to introduce her to you! Watching her on YouTube and following her on Instagram has been a huge encouragement as I imagine the years to come in our homeschool journey. I truly believe she shares her experience of homeschooling teens through the junior high and high school years with the goal of living out Titus 2. I’m thrilled that she has agreed to share some of her experience and wisdom here with you! Take it away, Ashlee! -Kristen
Homeschooling Teens: Beyond the ABC’s and 123’s
I see it often. I hear it often. Homeschooling parents who have been home educating for years suddenly questioning themselves again. Just like they did in the beginning. “Can I do this? They have to go back to “ REAL” school for high school right? There’s no way I can homeschool middle school let alone high school! I can’t teach algebra! I barely passed! What about prom?” I mean every child definitely needs the awkward experience of standing around 100’s of awkward teens in formal attire. (Hear my sarcasm) Right? Wrong!
I like to poke fun and keep it light hearted, but truly something about homeschooling teens and going beyond the elementary years sends even the most experienced homeschool mom spiraling a little. I get it, I really do.
While I never went too deep into that spiraling thought black hole, I did feel some doubt start to creep in as we approached high school. I even felt pangs of sadness at the thought of abandoning our beloved morning basket time for more rigor and intensity that I thought was needed or required to homeschool high school. (Spoiler: We still do morning basket two years into high school.) Turns out homeschooling high school has been one of the greatest joys and blessings in my homeschooling journey.
God’s got you!
One thing I want to remind you all of, and one thing I had to remind of myself of (and occasionally still do)! Is that God has you covered. The same God who placed the conviction of the Holy Spirit in your heart to homeschool to begin with does not suddenly abandon you at the dawn of a new season. He’s there. He’s guiding and he honors our obedience. He will fully equip and provide what you need to homeschool in high school, just as he did when he prompted you to begin homeschooling.
If you feel worried and ill equipped, pray and lay that burden at his feet, because he’s called you to do this work! He’s been leading and preparing you through the many earlier years of homeschooling to get here. Or showing you what you’ve needed in order to take the leap into homeschooling later in your kids lives. It’s never too late. It’s always the right time to obey.
So the question is- do you trust him?
Look at how the Lord has been faithful in your homeschool and life up to this point. Why would we not trust him now with some of the most pivotal years in our kids lives?
Enjoying this post? You may also like Morning Basket Tips For Success.
Enjoy the fruit!
One of the absolute best parts of homeschooling older children is seeing the fruit begin to be produced in their lives. For years you’ve been laying the foundations both spiritually and academically, and now you get to enjoy that labor. There are absolutely zero things better than getting to sit with your teens and discuss world events from a biblical standpoint, read a book at the same time and discuss, or have a meaningful conversation over their logic course. This has been one of my absolute favorite things about homeschooling my kids beyond the elementary years. I love getting to see them think deeply and have personal convictions as they really discover who they are in Christ and what it means to truly follow him.
Teen years and pre teen years are something our world and culture tells us to be afraid of.
Ashlee’s oldest kids studying at home together.
Movies and books everywhere tell us that our teens will hate us. They’ll want to lock their doors and isolate themselves in their rooms for hours on end. While there are definitely challenges to homeschooling through the teen years (I’m looking at you, hormones) there is no other time in your child’s life where you should draw near to them more.
The world is so persuasive, so convincing, and at times so appealing. Our teens need us to be sharing the truth with them daily, and shield them from some temptations they are not strong enough to bare. Teens need us loving them, and reminding them of where we go to find our answers. They need us to pray with them, and for them. To be around the table together and sleep longer than public school bells allow. They need the encouragement from you.
They NEED you.
Teens might not need their shoes tied, or help with their cursive handwriting sheet anymore, but your teen needs you. Homeschooling and spending every day with my kids as they walk out their teens years has been some of the most sanctifying mothering I’ve done. How gracious is our God that he allows us to see just enough fruit to keep us going? What an honor to spend my days loving and guiding my kids through their education in Christ. They may only have a few more years left under my wing and when I consider that it makes it nearly impossible to want to send them away. Homeschooling teens is REWARDING with a capital R.
My advice when homeschooling teens-
Don’t get hung up on the details. Transcripts and record keeping will all be figured out. College testing and applications will come and you’ll know what to do. Classes your teens take at home can easily be selected from various homeschool curriculum companies. It’s really no different then when you chose pre-k curriculum. We’ve loved the resources we’ve found and pulled together in our homeschool to accomplish those higher grade credits and that is why I remain committed to sharing our homeschooling journey through graduation. I want to be the friend that can come alongside and say this is what we did, and then you can take it and make it your own. Homeschooling higher grades is an absolute blast, and don’t let anyone tell you any different.
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