Homelife for children

 Their children are safe from corruption and conscription. 

~Anthony Esolen, Life Under Compulsion: Ten Ways to Destroy the Humanity of Your Child

This one sentence is taken from a longer paragraph on how truly free people live and encapsulated for me the idea of why we educate our children ourselves in our home.

I. By providing for our children's education ourselves, we have sought to give them a wide array of ideas and stories that both inform them and inspire them to think about who God is, what man is like and how the world is designed to provoke discovery and creativity.

II. In order for them to do this, we sought to provide an environment that was rich in knowledge and worship of God, that learned about the people that have come before us, that understood that stories show us what character looks like, and that provided a way to see ourselves as having a role to live in God's world. All of this was provided for in our home and church life which while filled with sinful people, was actively protected from corrupting influence and pressure to conform to a different standard than the one proclaimed in our home.

III. Our home exists to proclaim one standard and only one. Our home exists to cultivate an understanding and love for that one standard. Our home exists to mature a way in which to move forward with confidence and purpose to live according to this one standard. Our home exists to promote joy and happiness in following this one standard despite the hardships of life.

IV. None of this is done perfectly. We know this more than anyone.