Thoughts on Homeschool and Sibling Relationships

It's all good, I promise!

I am so very grateful for our homeschool community.

When Jackson (age 11) was a baby, I began attending a mom's group at our new church, and before I knew it, I joined the leadership team and made some friends who - 10 years later - are still some of my best friends.

Many of these moms are fellow homeschoolers, so we all banded together in 2020 when many of us began our homeschool journey and have since built a beautiful community for our families.

In the last year, we have welcomed new families into our crew, so we have a good mix of "veteran" homeschoolers and newer ones, and together, we enjoy many playdates, field trips, mom's nights, and bouncing ideas off each other in GroupMe.

Last week, we were introduced to a family wrapping up their first year of homeschooling, and what she shared resonated with me: Her daughters' relationship is so much better now that they homeschool.

"Ours, too!" A friend added as she, too, is newer to homeschool and has seen a massive difference in family dynamics.

Since we pulled Jackson out of Catholic school right after kindergarten, I don't have much to go on in terms of my boys' relationship before and after traditional school.

Jackson (11) and Gabe (8) have always been the best of friends, and since Jackson only attended traditional school when he was young, they never had any problems picking back up where they left off at the end of each school day.

Though our days/weeks/months are jam-packed and consist of MANY outside-the-home activities (currently, the boys have an all-day enrichment program on Tuesdays, plus two baseball practices a week/each, games, faith formation, field trips, and playdates - many, many playdates), my boys still spend the majority of their time together and genuinely enjoy each others' company.

Yes, we have our fair share of fights (because, brothers), but there isn't a day when my two oldest don't play a pickup baseball, hockey, or basketball game.

My middle son is both his older and younger brother's best friend, and when he isn't playing sports or trading cards with his older brother, he is reading to, creating things for, or playing games with his younger brother.

Owen's (the youngest, 3) heroes are his brothers - they can do no wrong in his eyes, and he mopes around the house when they are at their Tuesday program and he is stuck running errands/playing games with mom.

My boys are each others' biggest defenders - if one of them is getting picked on, the other steps in (which I have both seen firsthand and have heard about after the fact).

While they each have their own (and shared) friends, they are each other's best friend at the end of each day.

Several of my co-workers at CatholicMatch were homeschooled. When I asked my co-host about his experience/relationship with siblings now, he shared that they were always very close and remain so, which he credits to homeschooling.

Family is the most important thing, and I am confident in saying that homeschooling continues to strengthen my boys' relationship and, I pray, will cement strong relationships in the future.

If you're on the fence about trying it, I say go for it - I have yet to meet someone who regrets homeschooling their child(ren).