Hello! I’m so excited for this forum. We have three kids (ages 6, 4, and 2). I never intended to homeschool, but when our oldest was ready for preschool, it just didn’t seem like a good fit for her. I’ve come to appreciate the flexibility of a homeschooling lifestyle (we don’t need to bend to a school calendar); the low teacher-to-student ratio that lets me tailor school to their interests and abilities; and the opportunity to choose a more rigorous path than is locally available.
There is an active local co-op here, and while I am thankful for the activities they sponsor, I also feel like I’m hiding. Everyone I know uses Apologia and is YEC, and the co-op is planning a 1000-mile field trip to the Creation Museum this summer. While I absolutely understand choosing to keep non-YEC views under wraps and the many good reasons for doing so, for me my silence has been based on fear of rejection, and I don’t believe that that’s a healthy reason for me to be silent. I’m working on gathering up the courage to be more transparent, knowing what an encouragement it’s been to me to find Biologos and other believers who find the evidence for an old earth and evolution compelling. If nothing else, maybe seeing someone who engages with biblical and scientific scholarship AND loves Jesus might complicate some of the binaries advocated by groups like AiG. It’s comforting to know that other readers have struggled with how to broach this conversation, too.