Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Is Homeschool different for Girls

Is Homeschool different for Girls?
We homeschool four girls, so that makes us wonder, is homeschooing girls any different from homeschooling boys?
Maybe not, but since we are still waiting for the birth of our son, right now we are focusing on educating our girls and this obviously has its own unique set of challenges, joys and opportunities.
We don’t subscribe too much to gender-based approaches to activities and interests. For example, our girls each have their own personalities, they do like to wear skirts and look feminine, but they are just as comfortable in their boots and overalls learning about the water cycle, gardening, doing 4-H activities, learning about insects and the food chain, and just about any other outdoor activity involving mud, grease or engines.
We don’t buy into the “princess” culture that the world tries to impose on girls these days, what with Disney princesses, barbie dolls, even American Girl dolls, etc. Our girls do like to play with baby dolls, but these are generic, not “branded” dolls that serve to satisfy their fantasy play of being mommies and caring for a baby.
In education we carefully choose the literature that the children read, staying far away from any character-based series (such as Bratz, my little pony, care bears, fancy nancy, etc) that caters specifically to girls. We rely a lot on classics in literature, but even those are carefully screened. Our girls do like some of the American Girls series, but we only recommend a few of the characters, such as Samantha, Addy, Josefina and Kit. This interest stems from a geniune interest that our daughters have in history, and from reading all kinds of biographies and autobiographies of historical figures.
We will share our experiences in the wonderful world of Homeschooling girls here on our blog! Feel free to contact us with a comment!

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