Homeschooling is in trend now, what with the Covid taking over our lives. Suddenly, everything is at home. Work, study and play. Is it homeschooling though, or school at home?
For me, it started way back - it wasn’t the term or the trend then, it was just what felt right. Many see me staying home with the kids a waste of resources. I still feel that way sometimes; but not often. See, the kids milk me more than I would have given any company. As an employee, I would have left work on time - cos I would have worked for the money. With the kids though, there’s no clock in or clock out, and I get no money out of it.
Many also think we’re rich. Let me tell you a secret - my husband and I are both Accountancy degree holders. He applied his degree to his job, and I applied mine at home. Our ringgit is stretched to pay for assets and investments, and our expenses have not increased much over the years; definitely not in proportion to our earnings. We have one car, which will be paid up in 2 months, we take care of it and make it work for us. We don’t have credit cards, and our only loan is our home loan; which we also wish were paid up already.
This is the trick. Don’t care about the Joneses. Do what is right, for your family, and your income capacity - everything else will fall into place. If our lifestyle increased with our earring capacity; how will we ever build our investments? How will we ever be satisfied with our EPF funds when we retire? If we become used to living up to our earnings, or beyond - then our retirement funds would have run out before we have a chance to relax. If we are used to credit cards, then our EPF would have been spent before we have a chance to withdraw it. Then, we’d have to take on a part time job - and retirement would be a luxury, just like a mom raising her kids and teaching them is seen as a luxury today.
So no - we are not rich. Nor do we have rich parents - they provided us with food, clothes and education and are actually worried with what we are depriving their grandkids of. The decision to cut 40% of household income to stay home with the baby, was made when we were 4 months pregnant. There were many sacrifices and many people thought it was nuts to be living the way we were. We were happy though. We didn’t buy clothes on a whim, we ate at home, instead of eating out - and realised that the grocery budget was was more than enough. Enough even to buy ingredients to cook fancy meals to be enjoyed at home. Going out was for special occasions. Then, we got used to it; and it has become a lifestyle.
Similarly, we taught our kids - words, manners, games; and it progressed to songs and nursery rhymes and alphabets and numbers. When we taught them though, it wasn’t with a blackboard and a desk - it was whatever, whenever, however, and usually after an interest was shown.
To be honest, we tried kindergarten with our eldest, and we saw the makings of robots. Just when we found the right kindergarten, appropriately named Institute Of Play; we took a job in another state and couldn’t continue for the next year.
However, as much as they did learn, and found friends - I saw that my son, who was usually hungry for knowledge, became resistant to learning. I researched, of course - that’s the first time I heard the term ‘interest based learning’ and realised that was what I was doing at home. And it worked well. Why wouldn’t it? They are learning about something they are interested in and mostly through play and from someone who loves them and wants the best for them.
Who can compete with that?
Proverbs 22:6 - Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
We try our way, based on our interpretation- and your way, or interpretation may differ - and I’m sure God will give you the grace for what He has called you to do; just like He’s given us grace for our journey.
