A good friend of mine recently told me that she has made the decision to homeschool her children because she does not trust the school system of the country she is currently residing in. This friend of mine is a go-getter. She got a degree in Hong Kong in Urban Planning. I always pictured she would either open a business of her own or go really far in the corporate world. However, when she realized that her children will not get the quality of education from the public school system of her town that she felt her children deserved, she decided to pour all her enthusiasm and energy into homeschooling. I could see the passion she has for her new path in life and she has poured heart and soul into it.
She also shared with me her apprehensions and fears because her decision, has received a lot of mixed reactions from the people around her. Despite the fears though, she feels she is doing the right thing and will push through with her decision no matter what challenges stand in the way.
Actually, she is not the first person I know to decide to homeschool. I know a handful of people, mostly Christians, who have also opted to homeschool for various reasons.
I admire all of them for their decision to do so because I don’t think I would have the ability to do it myself.
Personally, I like my children’s school so far. I think their school has a good blend of exposure to other people with different upbringing and lifestyles and the school is still able to instill good moral values. Since I am happy with the school, I haven’t really considered homeschooling as an option at this point.
However, it doesn’t diminish my admiration for mothers who have made the decision to devote their lives to their children’s education and upbringing.
That’s what homeschooling is about after all. Moms (or dads) focus on lesson plans for their children, teaching them and guiding them… practically being with them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Their lives are devoted to educating and caring for their children.
Right now, I am able to get away from my children for a while and immerse myself in work. I am able to go to a different life, separate from motherhood. Even though I’m at work my kids are never far from my thoughts, but the environment away from them recharges me a little bit. Having a world outside of motherhood helps me feel like my own person, and not just my children’s mom. And I like and enjoy that. I got me a bit of ME time… which in itself.. is a little selfish.
That’s why I have a deep admiration for the sacrifice of mothers who have decided to put their children’s needs above their own lives. It’s a big and extremely selfless decision to make.
To my friend, Tere, and all of you homeschooling mothers out there… Don’t let other people sway you from what you feel is the right path for you and your child. Your decision is motivated by love and that can’t be wrong for your child.
I salute you.
mom and pop moments 
i also think about homeschooling a lot. even before i got pregnant, it was one of the things i keep thinking about. in terms of resources, i don’t think it’s a viable option yet but it’s still in my thoughts.
and don’t think wanting me time is selfish. i think, by allowing ourselves some self time, we are able to re-energize and give more to our families. 🙂
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Yeah, homeschooling moms rock! I also can’t imagine doing it myself. And I agree with Anj (Hello Anj! 🙂 Parang kakilala lang ang dating, noh? Hehehe) that any moms deserve a “me time” though we are always on call 24/7.
Speaking of school, I’ve also been scouting for affordable but quality pre-school for Lance who is turning 3 this December which means he needs to be enrolled by June next year na. Any suggestions? 😀
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Hi! Wow Lance is turning 3? I enrolled my children in Cambridge (on the way to Marco Polo) but it’s expensive.. I was very happy by how the kids turned out though. The usual go to school is St. Benedict. Some people have also recommended CLC, Abba’s Orchard, CDCC (or CIE) and there’s one preschool that’s supposedly good but I can’t quite remember the name right now… will get it for you.
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Sis,
Salamat kaayo. I’ll keep the list you gave me and watch out for the other school you forgot. Hehehe
I heard Cambridge is good. How expensive is it? Just message me in FB nalang, pleassse. Hehehe
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MommyJ, you’re nowhere near being selfish when you have your own time. Thanks for this post =)
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hehe I don’t like it that other people are making you question your decisions. 😀
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Hi! I’m a 23-year-old mom to a five-month-old baby girl. I’ve been considering homeschooling a lot although the unschooling philosophy is something that I am also thinking much about. There are unfortunately very few (or none at all?) parents who are unschooling their children which excites and scares me at the same time, should I decide to go that path. I still have around 5-7 years to go until then and I hope that by that time, I could have a location-independent work and world school my daughter. That is my ultimate dream. Oops. I forgot the baby’s daddy, I think he is in on the plan, too. Haha.
I wonder what your thoughts are on unschooling, MommyJ? More power to your blog!
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Hi missadventures!
In my personal opinion there’s no right or wrong way to educate the child… there is a right way for YOUR particular child though and you’re the best judge of that.
The pros of homeschooling are you can control the curriculum. You control the method of teaching and the depth or degree of understanding for each topic. And you can do it anywhere at anytime to suit your child’s needs. You also protect the child from bad influences in the real world.
In my opinion the cons of homeschooling are the lack of social interaction for the child with people their age. How the child reacts to the real world is also dependent on what they learn as children.. how to adjust to different personalities and upbringing.
That’s just my opinion! 😀 If you’re really interested I can give you blogs of homeschooling moms I know so you can get a better picture of what they do and whether it’s for you.
Thanks so much for responding to my blog! You’ll make a terrific mom!
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Hi, there!
My 2 children, ages 4 and 5, went to a regular school in Cebu last year. It was good but not the kind that we really wanted. Plus, i want to get away with the traffic which is just a waste of time. We know there’s a better way. This year, we are homeschooling them. We tried OAK MEADOW SCHOOL OF VERMONT and we are just happy to have landed here. Their books (esp. The Heart of Learning) are enlightening to us parents and it allows us put more relevant ways we want our kids to do everyday, to become a habit. We hired one good professional teacher to come to the house mondays to fridays- 8:00 to 2:30pm (even on special holidays). We start our schooling on practical side—making the bed, put the laundry in the basket separating whites and dark clothes and i was able to let them have a fun job before going to the classroom with the teacher—harvest the eggs in the henhouse (they have a journal on how many eggs they picked everyday!) And, of course, every fridays, cooking time. Schooling is more fun, more relevant and made us parents learn a lot and be more organized, too, as they grow and learn.
We have the same concern about socialization. But we let them go out to our neighbor’s or friend’s house, for example or invite friends over. They don’t have to be the same age as my kids but the key here is they are exposed to Good interaction to different ages at this tender age. But trust yourself: i believe you will know if your child has a problem with socialization.
It’s early to say but to us, homeschooling is the way to go.
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Thank you for sharing your experience with homeschooling. I am sure it will help a lot of people still undecided about their own kids’ educational path.
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