Catholics turning homes into schools

When the school year begins, some Catholic students won't return to the classroom. For Catholic homeschoolers, kitchen tables, living-rooms and homemade classrooms serve as places of learning.

Doreen Truesdale's decision to teach her children at home comes partly from her commitment to the idea of a "domestic church. For us, the most effective way to do this has been to homeschool.

"We really strive to keep the faith of Christ in front of us every day. We wanted the teaching of our religion to not be limited. We wanted it to flow into every academic subject. We wanted to teach our children how to live their faith every minute."

Curriculum

The Truesdales -- Doreen; her husband, Stephen; and their four children, Nikolas, 11, Domenika, 10, Antonya, 8, and Peter, 2 -- are beginning their second year of homeschooling.

They use a curriculum from St. Maximilian Kolbe Academy, a private school in Napa, California, that Mrs. Truesdale said relies on a classical, Ignatian method of teaching.

Kolbe Academy provides a full set of materials, including standardized tests, SAT-prep materials, textbooks, lesson plans, and even teachers who check over the children's work and issue report cards.

God's world

Science units, like this year's ecology seminar, "place the lessons within the natural world created by God," Mrs. Truesdale said. "The idea is, hopefully, education in general will bring [children] to a greater understanding of God.

"Faith is not something that is applied just on Sundays or in religious education classes. It's every minute of every day. It is the best way to teach our children how to live their faith."

The Truesdales, members of St. Mary's Church in Albany, structure their academic year to match the Church year. They read the daily Mass readings, go to Mass on First Fridays and mark saints' days by doing "fun projects."

Faith at core

The Meyer family, members of St. Mary's parish in Hudson, decided to try homeschooling because of the centrality of their faith in their lives and the need to "find something that would work for each of our children's individual talents," said Dawn Meyer.

She was also attracted by homeschooling's allowing her "Catholic Christian beliefs to be found throughout the entire schooling day. As long as we're spending this much time together, we want God to be a part of it."

The Meyers start off their day by going to Mass and then return home for the day's lessons. On Fridays and weekends, Megan, 10, and William, 7, get together with a group of other homeschooling families for fun and field trips. Their daughter Mary, 4, attended preschool last year.

Decision time

At first, Mrs. Meyer didn't know if she was up for the stress of being the primary teacher.

After talking with homeschooling parents and praying, however, she decided that "this was what God wants to do at this point. The curriculum I'm using provides everything I need and gives me the help I need."

She calls her decision a success. "They're learning, and Mommy's learning, too; and, by the grace of God, it's working," she said.

'Boots on'

The Kirsimagi family of St. Mary's parish in Nassau begins its school day at 8 a.m., according to Heather Kirsimagi.

Depending on the pace of that day's lessons, they finish around 2 p.m. and spend the afternoon with friends or going on field trips.

Mrs. Kirsimagi enjoys that particular aspect of homeschooling. On one recent rainy morning, for example, "we got our boots on and went down the street to a culvert that was flooded, and talked about the power of water and hydroelectricity."

Socialization

In the beginning, Mrs. Kirsimagi worried about socialization because her children -- nine-year-old David; Mary, who is in grade three; and first-grader Theresa (there's also Carol, who is one) -- tend to be shy types.

"I started out thinking, 'Oh, my goodness, I hope I don't deprive my children,'" she said. "But we've found that we've grown closer as a family. It's really helped us all feel closer to God. It's been really good for our family.

"They have learned to socialize with people of all ages, adults as well as children. We do things with other families. They're thinking more about other people, more about the world. I don't have to worry about what they are being exposed to in a school system."

Religion punctuates life in the Kirsimagi home: grace at meals, nighttime prayers, Sunday rosaries, novenas and chaplets. Mrs. Kirsimagi's husband, Phil, reads from the Bible before bedtime.

In it together

Many of the parents are involved with a homeschooling network in the Capital District, which Mrs. Truesdale calls "huge." All three of the families try to spend time with other homeschoolers, playing sports, going on field trips, or just having the children play together.

Mrs. Truesdale said she "can't wait" to see what the next few years have in store for her family and others who have chosen the homeschooling path.

"The growth of the homeschooling community in the Capital Region and beyond will necessarily bring about a market to serve homeschoolers," she noted. "How that is going to happen, I really don't know. Long-distance learning is just starting; this kind of academics is going to explode. I don't worry about it. God will show us what we have to do."

(9/1/05) [[In-content Ad]]