WARWICK — The morning commute to school for the children in the McMahon family is a decidedly short one.
Every morning just after 8 a.m., the three children clear away their breakfast dishes, transforming the sunny kitchen into a school room, with the table at the center serving as a common desk.
Using the "Catholic Heritage" curriculum, Tammy McMahon instructs her children in each subject on a one-to-one basis, proceeding at the pace of each child. When a concept is mastered, she moves on to the next one; when a particular interest is expressed, time can be taken to research it further.
A parishioner at Sts. Rose and Clement Parish in Warwick, McMahon has chosen to home school her three children: Peter a third-grader; Haylie, a kindergartner; and young Grace, who happily colors and sorts alongside her siblings, but at the pre-K level. So far, they are all enjoying the experience, even the littlest one.
“She gets very excited during school time,” mom says of her youngest daughter. “She knows where she sits, and she goes over colors and numbers and shape sorting while I teach the older ones.”
According a 2007 survey — the most recent available from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Educational Statistics, there are 1.5 million students home-schooled in the United States today. Of those surveyed, 36 percent of parents cited religious reasons for home schooling, making that the most common overall reason, while 21 percent were concerned about the negatives in social environments such as a lack of safety, the presence of drugs, or negative peer pressure. Other reasons include dissatisfaction with academic instruction (17 percent), while the remaining factors included consideration of finances, family time, travel, distance, and health or special needs.
According to statistics provided by RIGHT (www.rihomeschool.com), more than 2,000 families are home schooling in Rhode Island this year. Available curricula range from accredited programs with books and tests to online courses, to cooperatives where parents gather weekly and swap instruction, with each parent teaching a group of children in a subject they specialize in. For instance, a local Christian co-op offers forensics to high schoolers taught by a home schooling dad who works as a detective.
From the faith perspective, accredited Catholic curricula, complete with study materials and tests, as well as diplomas for the students after their grades are submitted, can be purchased from several sources, such as Seton Home Study School, Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Home-Schoolers, and Catholic Heritage. Several Catholic home schooling families in the state belong to CHERISH (Catholic Home Educators of Rhode Island Serving Him), one of many local home schooling groups that offers support, educational ideas, and socialization opportunities to children who learn outside of school.
On this morning, a picture of individuals making lollipops out of boiled sap has Peter McMahon very excited. His interest was piqued by their geography lesson on Canada, for which each of them has made their own passport as they "travel" through Canadian culture and history this month. In a few days, the students will literally get a taste of the labor of their neighbors to the north when this little school will be serving maple pancakes as one facet of their cultural study. With home schooling, even mealtime can be part of a child’s education.
“Home schooling doesn't mean we stay at home. It's all-day learning wherever we are, like identifying and weighing produce at the grocery store,” McMahon said, noting how her children use real world experiences as learning opportunities.
While Peter plays soccer and takes guitar classes locally (along with his dad, Keith), Haylie enjoys dancing and horseback riding lessons offered specifically for home-schoolers. More and more lessons and programs are being offered for home-schoolers at a discounted rate since these students are available during off-peak times.
“I really enjoy the opportunity we have to spend time together as a family,” Peter McMahon said, noting how the extra-curricular activities and individualized instruction provide him with a strong foundation in his education.
In additional to being educated in a non-traditional setting, the McMahons are very active in their parish and community.
For four years, Tammy has run VINE (Volunteers Impacting Neighbors Engaging) through St. Rose of Lima School. This program teaches children all the basics of planting, tending, and harvesting a garden, the fruits of which are donated to local community food pantries.
“At some point, I'd like to start with morning Mass, ideally. We do every subject, every day, and go to the library on Wednesdays along with the kids' other activities,” Tammy McMahon said.
Contrary to what many think about home schooling, it is not an informal process.
“We do not have school in pajamas. If we did, we wouldn't be really ready for the day,” McMahon said.
She is eager to dispel other typical myths that surround homeschooling, from concerns over socialization to whether parents are capable of schooling their children.
“Whenever I see a parent expressing doubt in their ability to home school, I tell them: 'you are educated enough to teach your child. You taught your kid how to walk, talk, dress, and feed themselves; you've been teaching them since day one. God will give you the grace and knowledge to home school if it's meant to be.’”
“For me, this is truly what I'm meant to be doing with my family. And I have complete peace about it,” McMahon said.
She said that when she first considered home schooling four years ago, society was not as supportive as it is now. When she decided to go forward with her plan this year, she learned that more and more people are home schooling and about the benefits of it.
A working mom, Tammy helps people with disabilities at the Trudeau Center and also runs a small business.
“Yes, you can home school and still have a job,” she smiles.
Veronica Plante, who serves as the religious education coordinator at St. John Vianney Parish, Cumberland, is the mother of three home-schooled children. Although her parish does not have a school of its own, she is happy to help facilitate the academic and spiritual formation of her children while also encouraging them to explore their faith more deeply through the Mass and opportunities for fellowship afforded through their church.
“We are very active in our parish,” Plante said.
Jamie Delehant, a parishioner at St. Rocco Parish in Johnston, is the mother of five home-schooled children ranging in age from kindergarten to 12th grade.
Catholic education is important to the Delehants, as they see home schooling as a good way to achieve their goal of providing a faith-filled environment for their children to learn in.
“I think of Catholic home schooling as an 'immersion program,' similar to what one would do for learning a new language in a foreign country,” says Delehant.
“This task — passing on authentic Church teaching and traditions — is the primary objective of home schooling since we are both preparing our children spiritually for this life and for the next. Another objective is to educate our children in the academic subjects at a pace that is appropriate for their individual needs and in an environment that is free from the unnecessary distractions that too often plague a classroom.”
Jenn Kushner teaches CCD at St. Pius X Parish in Westerly, where her two home-schooled daughters are also enrolled in religious education in grades one and three. She is not ruling out sending her children to a traditional school in the future to continue their education, but for now, home schooling is a wonderful option for her family and supported by those around her.
“My daughter Veronica just made her first communion and will be an altar server in the fall. I am so grateful that I can maintain good relationships in my parish and they know my choice to home school is not a vote against their school...just what God has called my family to right now! Someday, maybe they will go to Bay View — I was married in the chapel there —and right now I am currently chairing a conference there for Women in Science in the fall.”
