The number of families that chose to homeschool significantly increased last school year when the COVID-19 pandemic happened. Many parents were forced to homeschool or try home-based learning due to the lockdowns and to keep their children safe from coronavirus.

Before I discuss the main reasons why I think homeschooling is the best education option for kids during this COVID-19 pandemic or any pandemic, let me clarify that homeschooling is different from online schooling or online learning. It is also different from distance learning or the modular approach done by the Philippines’ Department of Education since last year.

What Sets Homeschooling Apart

Let me share a slide that I used in one of my online talks about homeschooling during this pandemic. This slide differentiates homeschooling from the other available education options during this time.

It is because of these differences that homeschooling provides a lot of benefits to homeschooling families during this pandemic.

For this blog post, let me focus on just five.

Top 5 Reasons Why Homeschooling is the Best

The #1 reason why I think homeschooling is the best at this time is that it keeps children safe at home while continuing their education. Children can learn and continue to learn even while at home. Their parents are their main teachers. There is no need for the kids to go out of the house to learn. There is no need for a teacher to go to the child’s house to teach the child. The student and the teacher are from the same household. There is no need for the parent to go out of the house to get the learning materials. Unlike in the modular approach wherein, most parents are required to go to the school to pick up the modules and submit them back after the child answers them. Homeschooling parents can opt to have the learning materials for their child or children to be delivered to their home. Or, they can simply print them from their own computer and printer. This means less exposure to people outside their homes during this time.

The #2 reason why I think homeschooling is the best at this time is that it is budget-friendly or less costly. Families can choose to be independent homeschoolers. That means families can choose not to pay for any tuition fees to any schools or homeschool providers. They can use the money that they save on tuition fees and other school-related expenses to buy their books and other learning materials. And even if families do not choose to homeschool independently but still enroll with homeschool providers or partner schools, most of the time, the tuition fee is lower since the parent is the main teacher. Many homeschool providers also allow parents to choose the materials or books that their children will use during the school year. This enables parents to buy books and other materials that suit their budget. Parents can even buy preloved or used books and materials if they want. They can use the savings to buy healthier food and vitamins for the whole family, not just for the children. This is one of the main reasons why I believe that this is the best option at this time. Many parents lost their jobs or closed their businesses during this pandemic. If they still have jobs or businesses, many of these jobs and businesses are struggling to survive. Some employees had pay cuts. But they’d rather have pay cuts or reduced work hours than lose their jobs completely.

The #3 reason why I think homeschooling is the best at this time is that it gives parents a lot of freedom on how to educate their children. Parents have the freedom to choose not just the curriculum or learning materials. They also have the freedom to create their own schedule or routine. They can align it or integrate it into their family’s lifestyle. Parents can schedule lessons or homeschool time when they are not working. Parents can decide how to educate their children. They can decide if they will teach all subjects, divide them between spouses, or outsource some subjects to other teachers who do online classes. Parents can decide if they will use printed materials only like books, workbooks, and worksheets. Or they can choose to include the use of gadgets or online lessons. It’s all up to the parent to assess and decide what he/she thinks is best for his/her child. This brings me to the next reason.

The #4 reason why I think it is the best is that it is less stressful both for the child and the parent. Since there is no school or teacher who dictates the schedule or the requirements, both the parents and children can work at their own pace and schedule. There is no right or wrong schedule. The best schedule is what works for your family’s needs. The best schedule is what allows your child to learn at the time of day when he/she is most alert, energetic, and engaged. Children need not wake up too early to join a synchronous class with classmates. Children and parents need not be stressed in answering module after module that is sometimes repetitive already and just busywork. Children and parents need not be stressed over deadlines, quizzes, and exams. The parent can decide if he/she will give tests or exams in their homeschool and when.

Moreover, the best time to teach is when the teacher-parent is not most distracted, stressed, or fatigued. Having the flexibility and freedom to do things your way takes a lot of stress from the parents and the students. The curriculum or lessons can be customized to the pace and interest of the child. Even if parents choose to enroll with a partner school or a homeschool provider, parents can opt to enroll with a homeschool provider that does not require a lot of requirements or frequent submissions during the school year. Parents can opt for providers that allow the use of an open curriculum where parents are free to choose what curriculum or books to use to educate their children. You can even choose to make your child’s toys as part of your lessons. You can teach through games as well. This past school year, my kids and kid spent a lot of time learning through play. It was my way to destress while teaching my kids important lessons while having fun. Some of our favorite games were Letter Dice, Scrabble, Monopoly Deal and chess.

We already have more than enough stress in our lives during this pandemic. We do not need additional stress. Our mental and physical health are very important during this time. Our children’s mental and physical health are more important than grades, schedules, or deadlines.

– Teresa Gumap-as Dumadag

And last but the least, the #5 reason why I think homeschooling is best during a pandemic is that you can make your lessons more relevant to your child when you homeschool. What do I mean by this? I think there are a lot of topics that are included in the curriculum that are not relevant and important to our kids at this time. When you homeschool, you, as the parent-teacher, can customize your child’s lessons or curriculum to include the most important lessons that you think your child needs during this pandemic. For example, since last year, we have focused more on health, science, finances, and most importantly, our Christian faith. I also made sure that we covered many life skills during this time because anything can happen during a pandemic. Parents can get sick. Or worst, parents can die. Our children need to be equipped with life skills. They need to know how to do basic household chores, how to handle money, how to earn through entrepreneurship, etc. Our children also need to know that there is a God who loves them and will take care of them and provide for them. They need to know that God is the Greatest Healer. That more than anything and anyone, it is God who can protect them and keep them safe from disease or any virus. Too much academic stuff in the curriculum can crowd the most important lessons that the students need to learn.

Homeschooling offers so much more! These are just some of the benefits of homeschooling. Our family has been homeschooling for at least 12 years now. We had been experiencing and reaping the fruits of homeschooling even before this pandemic happened. Now, that there is a pandemic, we continue to be blessed because of homeschooling. That is why I am eager and passionate about sharing this with everyone.

You can watch me give a talk on homeschooling here, here and here.

If you want to learn more about homeschooling and get access to free resources in educating your child, I invite you to join the homeschool support groups that I created and manage — the Homeschooling Parents Support Group PH and Catholic Homeschooling Parents Support Group.

If you are a Christian or a Catholic, I recommend that you use this devotional that I authored and launched recently to prepare and equip you in homeschooling your child this new school year. Homeschool Moms at the Feet of Jesus is available on Amazon and on my website’s online shop.

For more specific help on homeschooling and working from home while homeschooling, you can hire me as your homeschool coach. You can find the details here, here, and here. You can also check out the recorded talks that are available in our online shop.

I hope this blog post has been of help to you. And if you were still hesitant to try homeschooling, I hope that after reading this, you were already convinced to give it a try for at least 1 school year.