Sunday's Gratitude Post

Appropriate to the holiday weekend, today I'm grateful for freedom - specifically the homeschooling freedom we have here in Texas. Our state is known for its independence. And while it doesn't have the best reputation for lots of things (you can probably come up with a long list here), it does do lots of things right: ZZ Top, Dr. Pepper, the world's largest urban colony of Mexican Free-Tailed Bats, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and the only migratory population of whooping cranes in the country, just to name a few. 

In Texas, homeschoolers have complete freedom. By law, our homeschools are private schools and fall under the same regulations as any other private school in the state (but our tuition is much more affordable). We don't have to register, take standardized tests, answer to any governmental organization, or follow a particular curriculum. We don't even have to conduct classes a specified number of days a year (in actuality, most of us "do school" far more days than traditional schools do).

In other parts of the world, life for homeschoolers is harder. Currently in Europe, homeschoolers rights are being threatened. (I'll post about that further in the future.)

So today, the day after Independence Day, it seems only fitting that I express my gratitude for our freedom to educate our children in the best possible manner we can imagine.

Thanks, Texas!

Photo of Texas bats by dizfunkshinal from here