Other home school options were the writing classes ,and the Bible classes. Each and every course was excellent. In fact there was never any home-schooling that I was unhappy about.

You can home-school yourself without even taking courses. Say you want to learn to ride a horse or do something else. Go to your computer and look up the words horses or riding lessons; check all the sites and learn and school yourself right there at the web. Then go to the library in person and find all the books that you can find about horses, about upkeep of horses and about learning to ride horses. Absorb this material as if it had been given to you by your college professor. Really absorb, learn and take in every syllable of education that you can get your hands on at the public library. If you are interested in the subject of writing, go to the bookstore and find the “Writers’ Digest” Magazine or “The Writer” magazine. These will help you get started right away. At the end of the year, check out the “annual” issues; these magazines have the most leads and the most resources and information than any other magazine published.

The benefits of home-schooling are many. And these are just some of them:

TIME – You can study and read and practice in your own time. Perhaps you have a busy schedule and you feel you have no time for education. You can not go to college but you have time in the evenings when no classes are scheduled. This is just the right time to check into a correspondence school You make your own hours, days and you make your own work schedule.

PLACE – You study, practice and read in the place where you are, which makes you feel more comfortable. You don’t have to be self-conscious about going to class. You don’t need to wear certain clothes or pay extra for carfare to and from school. So the place to study is at home or on the bus when you are on the way to the beach. You can study and practice in the botanic gardens. Your choices of finding places to study, work and read is wide open. You can study, read and practice practically anywhere you choose to do so. You can bring your books and camp out and study inside your tent on a rainy day. So, one benefit of adult home-schooling is place.

CONVENIENCE – That is all certainly convenient. Home-schooling is convenient especially during storms, and unusual times in your life. Are you working full time and too tired to go to school after work? That just might be a reason to choose home-schooling. Study where and when you want to do so. Are you feeling sick? No need to worry. You won’t miss any classes when you home-study because there are no classes to go to.

There are certain correspondence schools that have minimal requirements. If you want to study photography, consider looking up NYI on the internet. If you are interested in writing -fiction or non-fiction, you may consider looking up NRI on the internet. There are hundreds of schools that will sound interesting to you. First send for information and then read the information. Compare prices and compare requirements. There are even Bible schools which offer correspondence courses. For example, you might need to be able to mail your lessons in to the company, but with some others you can send your lessons in by email. Check all the school as ask what their details are.

Why do I write about home-schooling? I write about this topic because I home-schooled my children (before they had conventional schooling) and also because I chose many avenues of home-schooling and correspondence schooling for myself. Here are some details on how it all began for me:During my life there were times when I had no time to attend school and I had no money to attend the average photography school. Photography was just a dream to me – until I began a correspondence class on the subject of Photography. Finally , one dream came true and I was studying photography, photojournalism and related topics through this correspondence school. Here is the process that I went through (I share this here for those whom are curious about the process).

1. Contacted the school by mail. I waited for them to respond. For some reason, I did not sign up right away. That hesitation benefited me, because weeks or months later, the company mailed a discount offer to me. (It seems like most schools and companies will do that if you hesitate to join, they try and give you more incentive to join up by offering you a discount after a certain time period.

2. Signing up with the discount, I began my education in that subject area. (Have someone look over your contract to be sure that you are getting a good, fair and safe deal). Sign the contract (when you are sure), send your check or money order in and you have started on the road to education.

3. I was diligent about my studies. I did the lessons, did the tests and kept up with all correspondence. Passed the courses and I was home free! Do the same when you begin. Use a calendar and send in exactly what you need to send it at the time when it is due. You can be a “A” student, right there in your home, your office or in your hospital bed.

4. Study hard, and pass the tests and you will be on the road to success. I did the lessons and the tests, completed the course and finally, I was the holder of a dream come true – my graduation certificate. That’s the process; it’s easy, uncomplicated and they are just waiting for your first inquiry. Look up the school you are interested in and begin.

So, now you know the benefits of adult home-schooling, what are you waiting for? Check out some home-schools or correspondence classes on the net and get started. I recommend New York Institute of Photography and I recommend, also, The Canon Masters Program (for photography). Follow these up with a college or high school art or photography class later on in the year and then you will have access to a darkroom to develop your photographs.

So, conventional schooling is good for some and home-schooling is good for others. Only you know the choice that is best for your time, your schedule and your life. Personally, I like the combination of both home-schooling and conventional schooling. This combination can fit into your lifestyle. For my own lifestyle, I opted for home-schooling and correspondence school while I was busy raising a family. Anytime that I had long hours and busy schedules, I always enrolled in some sort of home schooling and correspondence school. After that when things slowed down or when I found time where I could actually go to classes, I went to trade schools and attend college. There are even different ways to begin going to college. You can begin with “Continuing Education” courses, and you can supplement this with business courses that various community corporations give. And later on when you have time you can go to college full time. What I am saying is make school work for you and that will add education, creativity and many other wonderful events to your life. That’s all there is to it. Good luck in your new venture of adult home-schooling.

By: Linda Lin