Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Mike Smith:
My guest this week is Zan Tyler, a speaker, author, and veteran homeschool mom. Zan, thank you for joining us today!

Zan Tyler:
Mike, it is my pleasure to be here!

Mike:
Zan, your heart is to encourage other homeschooling moms. What is the number one struggle that homeschooling moms face?

Zan:
Mike, as you know, Joe and I homeschooled all of our kids from kindergarten through high school, for a total of 21 years. When we started, I was threatened with jail by the state Superintendent of Education. That was in 1984. And things in South Carolina didn’t get better until 1992. So our first eight years of homeschooling were spent in the legislature or the courtroom.

As hard as that was, that wasn’t the hardest part of homeschooling for me. The hardest part is bearing the weight of your child’s education and preparation for the future. At the end of high school, you can’t blame a bad school district or a bad teacher—there’s no passing the buck.

The second dilemma for every homeschooling mom is simply one of overwhelming responsibilities on a daily basis. In addition to being a mom, you’re now the teacher, the learning disabilities specialist, the curriculum expert, the learning styles guru, and the director of extra-curricular activities. All of this, I think, can compound to lead to true feelings of inadequacy, and really feeling like there’s no way to effectively homeschool your kids.

Mike:
Well, Zan, I know a lot of moms are going to identify with your struggle, as well. I look forward to hearing more on our next program! And until then, I’m Mike Smith.