A rich cultural education for pennies on the dollar

Quality doesn't mean expensive when it comes to teaching your children

Private elementary and middle schools in NYC (and other cities nationwide) are topping off at 60K, which is ridiculous. Even though most of us can agree that it’s bananas to forgo our retirement in order to teach Bobby his ABCs, you’ll still find parents who will fork out 15K a year for one of their children to attend a local private school. No one will bat an eye - this has become normal. Parents will pay big bucks because they wrongly assume they cannot provide this independently. I’m here to tell you that you can give your child the same (better) education as these schools. I know they make it all look fancy with their uniforms and dual immersion offerings, but I promise you….those kids won’t be any more educated than yours should you stay home and diligently homeschool. It simply takes some dedication, creativity, and trust in yourself.

In my opinion, experience and hands on learning OUTSIDE of a classroom is key. Sure, kids can be sat in a chair and taught any number of things for 9 months out of the year but when they get home and you ask what they learned, what do they say?

“Nothin…”

It’s because it wasn’t memorable. It didn’t peek their interest. It didn’t make them think. It didn’t challenge them or get the synapsis’ firing. It wasn’t instructive to their current situations or interests - it was flat and stale. Of course, there will be moments in all educational settings when a student will be dissatisfied and bored. But when students are continually presented with the good, the true, and the beautiful, they will flourish.

The classroom model of learning (row of desks, running bells to dismiss, caged playground) is outdated, has been taken to extremes and it doesn’t work for a vibrant and life-long learning model. Sure, it works for memorization but certainly not for retention and growing a student in virtue, wisdom, and creativity.

America pays approx 14k per year for each child in public education. What do they get in return? Failing test scores, violence in schools, and depression among most teens. What about if you independently educated your child at home and spent $500 a year (which is actually more than what I’ve spent some years) and had dozens of excursions, cross-cultural experiences, loads of free time to explore your child’s interests (or time to assist them in their learning challenges?)

When you homeschool, you have time. Time to give your child the experiences that you didn’t get because you were in school every day for most of the year.

Let’s talk about how to do this.

1.) Learn about your city/town/village and what it has to offer as far as museums, orchestras, zoos, art galleries, operas, and theatre. Guaranteed it has some or all of these and if you do your due diligence, you can find discount prices for students or family tickets. Take your children to any/all that they seem interested in. Pay special attention to cultural parades and exhibits that don’t necessarily align with your personal experiences (for instance, we’ve taken our girls to Mexican and Native American heritage festivals. We’ve prioritized museums and exhibits which highlighted different cultures and lands.) Show them there’s life outside of their small bubble. Bonus: almost every museum we’ve ever been to was free or had free days.

2.) Shop on FaceBook Marketplace, eBay, Thriftstores, and Estate Sales for cast-off books and records. I once found a 7-record set of all of Shakespeares works for $10. I’ve also found our most beloved art books for less than $1 at estate sales. Some of my most used homeschool equipment was found secondhand - our house is like a museum and it’s all been thanks to other people’s “trash.” You can also do this for microscopes, art prints, taxidermy animals, medical equipment, games, and crafts.

3.) Make friends with fellow free-thinkers and home educators. Chances are they have skills and interests that you might not have and they can educate your child in ways you are not able to. My children have been taught French, theatre, equestrian skills, biology, knitting, flower-pressing, pastry-making, and much much more by people in our circles. I would not have been able to give them that, but I knew people who could.

4.) Be willing to swap skills. This upcoming school year I’ll be teaching high school history in our co-op because that’s in my wheelhouse. It will be a rigorous course and worth a college credit and I’m happy to do it. I’m in a circle of friends who will in turn be teaching my kids subjects which I don’t excel in like, Chemistry, Poetry, Music theory, Shakespeare, and European Literature. Be willing to gladly share your skills with others and they will share in return.

5.) Shop the used bookstores and garage sales for ALL the books. The greatest contribution you can make to your child’s education is their literacy. Give them good books. Find accounts on IG or FB that dedicate themselves to giving you reviews of quality literature and buy anything you can afford and find. Read to them every day and have them read independently. This is the greatest gift you can give them.

6.) Finally, get them very involved in your church. Having a faith tradition is a huge factor in life success plus it will buoy your child when the waves of life crash down on them. These places or worship are small little ecosystems were your student will not only learn the tenants of your religion, but they will have the gift of responsibility for others. They will meet different ages and socioeconomic groupings and these will become life-long companions who will offer them wisdom and perspective. Committing to a faith group is a rich gift that money can not buy.

Trust me….It doesn’t matter if a parent is mortgaging their home to send a child to the best parochial school in our country….if you stay at home with your child, read to him/her regularly, visit your local bookstore and art museum, and go on hikes in your local park, your child will be JUST as competitive by any metric. This is because you have likely taught them to love learning and you yourself expect them to participate in the great feast of ideas. They’ll be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with students from any other setting.

That’s not the goal, of course, but it’s good to hear.