Home schooling is not like politics... there aren't just two major ways to home school along with a few negligible methods tossed in for ha-ha's. Anyone investigating home schooling immediately finds out that a mind-boggling array of beliefs and methods are available.

Methods range from a near carbon copy (and for you youngsters who don't know what that means: it's an exact duplicate) of a traditional school, albeit at home, to the no-structure, no-limits, you-can-paint-outside-the-lines-any-time-you-want approach. Personally, my family has opted for the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants method.

We started out in a more structured environment, using a video tape series from a major home school player. The kids loved it and did very well but when child number four entered school age we just weren't able to afford the program anymore. Since then, we've used our current method. Flying by the seat of your pants means you just go for it, dealing with problems as they arise.

We've piecemealed together a "curriculum" for each child, with our eldest, Amanda, supplementing her education with an academic writing course and algebra in a home school co-op. The rest use a hodgepodge of textbooks from a variety of publishers. So far, so good. The major drawback as far as I am concerned is that the lack of structure allows the "dreamer" in the family to, well, dream a bit too much. Some kids flourish in freedom while others need a more structured system.

Home schooling can be a very expensive endeavor depending on the route you take. It's even more expensive when you have five kids being schooled with another a couple years away from kindergarten. Yet, if you look at the alternative it's obvious that the sacrifice you make to home school is well worth it. I spent the better part of two decades doing two things: going school to school taking photographs, and working for various newspapers as a reporter. In both capacities I witnessed things in public schools that I would never want my children exposed to.

For my wife Barb and I, the choice was simple: we wanted to provide the best possible environment for our children to learn and prepare themselves for the future. No matter what the cost, no matter what the sacrifice, we would do all we could to give our kids the opportunity to become well grounded educationally.

Despite our choice, and despite what you may hear from some quarters, home schooling is not for everyone. It is a personal choice that parents need to make that depends on their circumstances, their beliefs, and their abilities. That is part of the reason we have put TheHomeSchoolersHelper.com on-line: to provide information on the why's and how's of home schooling so you can make an informed decision, and to offer many helpful sites that will aid you once you've made the decision to home school.

With the resources offered here, maybe you won't have to fly by the seat of your pants.

Bill Dolack is the administrative director of The Christian Heritage Center (www.ChristianHeritageCenter.com) in Staunton, VA. His personal website is www.BillDolack.com.