Why Homeschool Your Child with Special Needs?
By Penny Martin

Over the twenty-three years I have been involved in the homeschooling community, I have met and talked at length to many families facing the decision of whether or not to homeschool their special needs child. This is certainly a decision each family must make. The sad part is there are many families that feel they cannot even consider the possibility. Overwhelming is a word I hear often and it certainly seems that way when you first consider this awesome responsibility.

My daughter, Amanda, is Educable Mentally Handicapped with an IQ in the 50s. Before we discovered her special needs, we were already homeschooling her older brother and had come to a conviction that the lifestyle of having our children at home was what we wanted for our family. But should we keep our special needs daughter at home as well and if so, why should we?

The idea of teaching her myself was quite distressing. She would not respond to my teaching style. I had to spend a lot of time learning about her needs and adjusting my teaching style to her learning style. This was the most difficult task I had ever undertaken and I often wondered if I could give her all she needed. So, why did we homeschool our precious daughter?

Take a few minutes here to consider the advantages:

1. All the academic preparation and application were centered on the ability Amanda had at the time. Every curriculum decision and every daily lesson was designed to help her gain the skills she needed. Working with your child every day, watching her development closely, and praying for her needs gives a parent insight into her individual strengths and weaknesses. I was able to focus the time available on the most important need at the present time. I spent much time repeating lessons and discovering the skills that came easy to her and the ones that she could not comprehend. This information has been extremely helpful in preparing her for independence as an adult.

2. Our family had lots of time with Amanda to show her the love we had for her and to praise and encourage her individual gifts and abilities. My prayers and goals for her were always to aid her in developing to her full potential. Practical life skills, character development, and independence were priorities in everything we taught her.

3. As parents, my husband and I had control over the socialization experiences our daughter had as she was growing up. We moved many times during those years and being active in a local church and neighborhood was always a priority for us. We could decide at any time to remove our children from negative input.

4. Influencing our children and watching them reach their capabilities is a desire in every parent’s heart. Each time a new skill is learned, we rejoice. Homeschooling gave us the time to see every development, focus on the positive purpose of each development, and build upon each skill.

5. Learn from professionals. Each therapy session is an opportunity for parents to learn how best to meet their child’s needs. Watching speech therapy sessions taught me exactly what to do at home on the days of the week we did not go to therapy. I was able to make those exercises a five day a week routine rather than only the two days she was with the therapist.

6. We were able to go on many “field trips”; some planned with other families and many on our own. Practical real-life experiences were essential in the development of life skills.

7. Though our children did learn some habits from each other and from friends we wished they had not learned, we did not see many of the behaviors often displayed by children with special needs.

My daughter is now twenty-five years old. I will say there were many disadvantages to the lifestyle we chose, it was not easy, but definitely well worth the hard work. I am so grateful for the daughter we have now. She knows who she is and is a joyful, well-adjusted young adult. Our prayers that she reaches her full potential are still being answered as Amanda continues to learn and grow.

Penny Martin homeschooled her three children for nineteen years and is now Bookstore Manager and one of the curriculum consultants at Circle Christian School. She can be reached at PennyM@Circlechristianschool.org.