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| Home Schooling & Marriage |  Common marriage issues:
• Vision – do both spouses share the same vision for the family?
• Establishing/recognizing authority and spiritual leadership
• Submission
• Reciprocal support and encouragement; teamwork
• Division of labor
• In-laws
• Finances
• Time
• The comparison syndrome
General issues are common to many marriages. But there are the specific issues which are a bit different in homeschooling marriages.
• Vision – what do you do if one spouse wants to homeschool but the other doesn't? What if one spouse isn't as agitated about the whole idea as the other one? What if they have different points of view on curriculum, teaching styles, educational approach?
• Establishing/recognizing authority and spiritual leadership – who is really responsible of the homeschool? Is Daddy the "helper" or the leader? Who do the children see as being in charge? What about the indifferent Dad? Who teaches? Who controls the legal aspects of homeschooling?
• Submission – What if the wife feels guilty of not sending her children to public school, while her husband wants them to go? What if the husband feels guilty of homeschooling children?
• Mutual support and encouragement; teamwork – Does the wife feel as if she bears all or most of the obligations connected with children's education? Does the husband feel excluded or as if his wife is no longer help him in his own efforts towards the family? Are they have different purposes or work together in unity? Who does the wife turn to when she is discouraged about homeschooling? Where should she find inspiration, if the husband cannot/will not inspire her, – and does he help or prevent her from this?
• Division of labor – is homeschooling only mother’s responsibility? Is she expected to do it all – everything she did before plus this new obligation also? Should the division of labor change? What is the husband's role in terms of lightening the wife's load?
• In-laws – what if the in-laws are strongly opposed to homeschooling? How can the husband relief the situation and protect his wife and children?
• Finances – Homeschooling often brings about a financial crisis, particularly if the wife gives up her job to homeschool her children, or if the children were previously in public school (where curriculum and materials were "free"). What does the couple do in such a situtation?
• Time – how does the Mom arrange her time? What activities does she need to give up, if she wants to homeschool successfully? How does the husband need to arrange his time differently? How can the spouses find time together? What about free time for the Mom, when she is able to rest, calm down, and even indulge herself? When can she do such things like commissions, hair cuts, doctor attendance, etc., when the children are staying home with her all day? When she can speak with other women?
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