Here are the tiers they suggest:
TIER 1 – THE ROD AND STAFF HOMESCHOOLERS
The Rod and Staff homeschoolers (named after a well-known publisher from this tier) include the Amish and Mennonites and a few others who adhere to similar ideologies. They are the most conservative of all the groups and place a strong focus on holy living.
TIER 2 – SKIRTWEARER HOMESCHOOLERS
Skirtwearers are the second tier and are also very conservative, yet not as strict in certain areas as the Rod and Staff homeschoolers.
TIER 4 –THE TRENDY HOMESCHOOLERS
The Trendy homeschooler is much more mainstream than Tiers 1, 2, and 3 homeschoolers and even though they have their quirks, generally fit in well in secular society.
TIER 5 – LIBERAL MINDED HOMESCHOOLER
Tier 5 homeschoolers are more liberal in their thinking, pushing the limits of their Christian experience. Some fully adhere to Biblical teaching, some do not. Unbiblical lifestyles such as homosexuality can be accepted and even defended by tier 5, sometimes resulting in homeschoolers in the other tiers questioning the salvation of their Tier 5 brothers and sisters in Christ.
TIER 3 – THE IN-BETWEEN HOMESCHOOLER
The In-Between homeschoolers are harder to categorize since in some areas they are 2’s and some 4’s. Very rarely will they embrace a view from Tier 1, and never any belief from Tier 5. They are ultra-conservative in some things, but mainstream in others. For example, a Tier 3 homeschooler may not believe in watching any movies that aren’t rated G or Christian, but they are fine with females wearing pants. They also might be fully committed to chaperoned courtship but love to listen to Randy Houser croon “Like a Cowboy.” This is why they have earned their own category and are considered to be the In-Between homeschoolers.
Ok so I guess we're Tier 3 but mostly 2 with a few things from 4 thrown in :-) Funny thing is, is that we use Rod and Staff books. They are wonderful!! Very affordable and challenging. We also love that they publish stuff in German as Bill is teaching it to Caleb.
So, what do you think about these tiers? Where do you fit in?
