Kids
6 of The Biggest Homeschooling Myths, Busted
After homeschooling her daughter during the pandemic, mom Sheryn Alvarez probably won’t do traditional school again
Before anyone gets snarky, let me just say that before the pandemic I also NEVER considered homeschooling. In fact, I was the snarky one who would secretly roll my eyes as I typed “no thank you” replies to my homeschooling mom friends that invited me to attend homeschooling talks.
But after considering the pros and cons of online distance learning versus offline homeschooling and our non-negotiable family values on screen time, I decided to bite the bullet and homeschool my daughter. And after 5 months of it, here are some homeschooling myths I definitely busted!
6 biggest homeschooling myths
Myth #1: Homeschooling takes up too much time
Homeschooling takes up time but not a lot of it. My daughter is Grade 1 this year and it only takes me 2-3 hours to teach 6-7 subjects a day, including Math, Grammar, English & Filipino Literature, Science, Geography, World & Philippine History. Yup, this is one of the biggest homeschooling myths out there!
So I have more than enough time for my home-based work, household chores and mother-daughter movie nights!
Myth #2: I’m not qualified to teach
I’m not qualified to teach, but surprisingly, my daughter retains more of her lessons than even I do!I think this is because young children are wired to be sponges, if we don’t put them in a box, their innate nature to wants to discover, absorb, explore, and experience will do most of the “teaching” for us.
Sharing this experience with my daughter:
WORLD HISTORY LESSON (March 16, 2021)
Me: “Ok Keilah, today we’re going to learn about Rome’s War with Carthage.”
Keilah: “Oh yeah I remember that from somewhere.”
Me: “From the Gladiator movie? When they reenacted it in the arena?”
(We watched the Gladiator the other day after our lesson on Roman Gladiators)
Keilah: “Yes, I remember that. But no, not from there.”
(Keilah continues to think)
Keilah: “I think Carthage was a colony of the Phoenicians.”
Me: (stunned silence after flipping through her World History keeping journal)
Myth #3: I’m not patient enough for homeschooling
Who is? I’m not! But kidding aside, patience is something that happens as it’s tested; not something we should expect to have before the need arises.
And trust me, as you see the joy and delight of your child as they have their “aha” moments right before your eyes, it’s more than enough motivation to muster up enough patience to see them through homeschooling.
Recently, my daughter and I were walking back to our house from hanging out at the beach and watching the sunset when she randomly started narrating the different equations of a sum.
She did this until we got to our front door. She was so delighted to share her mental math skills with me and I was beyond happy just watching her tiny face beaming!
Myth #4: My kids won’t be able to socialize!
I can’t speak for other moms, but based on how our life has been like this pandemic, it’s actually my daughter and her other homeschooling friends that have time to socialize!
Because once they’re done with their lessons for the day, that’s it! They’re free to play or call their friends — sharing ideas, activities and experiences — often from what they learn from their homeschooling lessons.
Also, I think socialization begins at home. When we spend time engaging our kids in meaningful conversation we develop their confidence in constructing their own thoughts and narrating them. When they feel heard at home they will know their voice matters outside of it.
Myth #5: They might have a hard time going back to “regular” schooling!
Will they even want to? My daughter has tried progressive play school, traditional school, and Montessori school. She was fairly happy in each and I certainly appreciate the love and effort her past teachers have invested in her growth.
But the first week I started homeschooling her, she randomly came up to me and said:
“Mom, how long am I going to be homeschooled? Can I be homeschooled till I’m a teenager?”
I couldn’t believe my ears! I guess at some point, we have to ask our kids or listen to their unspoken cues on how they feel they will thrive as learners and as people.
Myth #6: Homeschooling is hard!
But nothing worthwhile and valuable ever came easy, which totally makes this a homeschooling myth. Our children are our legacy to the world, and as parents it is our calling to make sure that they will grow into the kind of people who will make it a better world than the one we leave behind.
And this precious responsibility is best entrusted to our own hands, don’t you think?
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Sheryn Alvarez is homeschooling her 7-year old daughter in a Charlotte Mason education. Follow along their homeschooling journey on Instagram at @marketingmomph.
You can learn more about the Charlotte Mason method by visiting https://ourlivinglearning.com/ the only DepEd accredited Charlotte Mason school here in the Philippines.
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