Although we didn’t know it then, my family was what is now referred to as a pioneer of the modern homeschool movement. I still remember being stopped at the grocery store—several years after we began our homeschool journey—being asked why I wasn’t in school, inwardly wincing at the alarmed or confused look I was sure to get upon announcing my homeschool status, and then being shocked when my questioner had actually heard of such a thing.
Homeschooling is now mainstream, thanks especially to COVID-19. The 3 percent pre-COVID homeschool population exploded to 11 percent by fall 2020, the Census Bureau reports. That momentum promises to continue as parents tire of school mask mandates and curriculum focused on critical race theory.
