Homeschooling Daddy

There is something very sacred about a husband and wife joining heart’s, minds, goals, and aspirations

in a unified effort to home school their children.

Husband and wife work together

to bring a well roundedness to all things in their life together.

This applies to our homeschool, 

where I am blessed by my husband’s loving interest in all the events

and incidents of the school day. 

Daddy is our school principal. 

He is the authority on curriculum, 

the ultimate disciplinarian,

keeps regular meetings with his teacher,

making sure he is understanding of the struggles and the victories.

He looks over the week’s work with each student, 

having been informed by the teacher of particular areas of interest. 

In this, our hearts may throb with the same joy

and share the pang of each sorrow.

I am so very thankful to my dear husband

for his leadership and support in our home school. 

We make all school decisions together, 

which means we must communicate clearly and regularly.

Every hope and plan is equally embraced.

He is also a very capable teacher,

having substituted for me on many occasions,

especially in the week following the arrival of a new babe. 

He is well aware of how things run 

since he studies at home and can witness school in progress, 

and since his talkative wife keeps him well informed. 

When there are struggles, daddy is swift to sympathize, 

pray with and advise me, the teacher.

He takes his position seriously,

as we both do realize the gravity of raising children

unto wisdom and understanding.

We share the same burdens, which only makes shouldering them easier.

What his involvement means to me is difficult for me to put into words. 

There is much security in his support of our efforts.

How much it means to me to be able to discuss school with him, 

not just talk to him and have him nod occasionally,

but understandingly converse over both the big and little things.

His influence is felt by all the children,

who know that they not only answer to me,

but to the approval of daddy, 

who watches over all our schooling intently.

When the cares of the day have been especially trying,

and matters have not gone smoothly,

he sees that mama’s nerves have been sorely overtaxed,

and seeks to quiet the trembling heart and impart peace and strength.

Often at these times 

he will sit the children down and discuss with them the root of the difficulty. Perhaps it is a sick child,

or an over-tired pregnant mama who needs assistance.

He will call all together to form a council

to see what can be done to mama’s aid. 

Here, he may step in and give new assignments,

pardon mama from the rest of the day’s affairs

and administrate the children taking over what responsibilities are left.

He has at times, taken his day off to spend in a field trip outing,

or rearranged his schedule so that he may participate in an activity, 

such as the building of a volcano.

His heart is in our schooling,

there needs be no nagging from the teacher to get him involved.

The responsibility rests on both parents. 

There are some fathers who seem to forget

that any share of the homeschool burden and duty to train belongs to them. They leave it all to the mothers.

They come and go as if scarcely more than borders in their own homes,

taking no active interest in their children.

“Men are busy in their fulfillment,

busy gathering money to lay up a fortune,

busy chasing the world’s honors and building up a name,

busy in the quest for knowledge; and while they are busy, 

their children grow up,

and when they turn to see if they are getting on well, they are gone. 

Then they try most earnestly to get them back again,

but their interest efforts avail not.

It is too late then

to do that blessed work for them and upon their lives

which could so easily have been done in the tender years.

Childhood comes but once with its opportunities.”

JR Miller, Homemaking, pg 88

Woe to such men.

Anything else should be neglected rather than the training of his children.

Here is what my husband has to say about the matter: 

“Too often the father of a homeschooling family is only living out the

convictions of his wife. A father must come to this conclusion

himself, between him and his Heavenly Father and not under the

compulsion of his wife. The decision, though it is important for the

mother to have the conviction to home-school, must first and foremost

be the conviction of the father. If homeschooling was only about

teaching children to read and write this would not be such an issue,

but predominately, homeschooling is about relationship and

discipleship, living Christ before and along side our children.

Therefore, the father and his attitude is critical to the mission. If

the father has a "ho-hum, yawn, whatever you think is best dear"

attitude about the discipleship of their children then "homeschooling"

will be pale and insipid. However, when a father understands the

gravity of his task and puts his hand to the plow and bends his back to

the responsibility... the fruit of his obedience to his Heavenly

father will be a bumper crop. The children must comprehend that, as a

family, they are living out the vision that God has given their

father. It is the dad's responsibility to have the vision, to

communicate the vision, to keep the family headed in the right

direction. He should be shouldering the burden of choosing curriculum

(with the insight and wisdom from his most capable and servant-hearted

wife) and setting a course for the training and discipleship of his

children. He should never just leave it to his wife to swath her way

through. He must be interested, caring, proactive, and willing to

help where ever it is needed or necessary." - Brian

“Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father,

and attend to know understanding.”

Prov. 4:1

“And fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, 

but arise them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. “ Eph. 6:4