To Homeschool Or Not To Homeschool

That is the question.

We have reached a point where we've experienced both sides, homeschooling and going to schools, and recognized that each has its advantages. If you're undecided about this issue, I can't provide you with an answer, but I hope our sharing and experiences will assist you in making your decision.

In this blog, I will outline the advantages of both homeschooling and public schooling.

I will first highlight the advantages of homeschooling, followed by the advantages of attending schools.

From our experience, the benefits we've observed in homeschooling are as follow:

1. Time to get to know and understand our children

My husband and I both work part time / freelancing. We realized that the best approach to focus on either work or family was to dedicate an entire day to each. For instance, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, I would focus solely on my job, without doing any household or childcare tasks. My husband would handle cooking, diaper changes, dishwashing, house cleaning, and homeschooling. Similarly, when he worked on video production on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, I took on the responsibilities of cooking, cleaning, and managing the children's homeschooling. It took time to adjust to both being at home, but this arrangement proved to be the most effective for us. We each teach different subjects in homeschooling and have learned to respect each other's teaching styles.

Returning to my main point, we each spend an equal amount of time with all the children every week, and we spend a lot of time together. We both have come to understand our children's personalities very well. We can observe their learning abilities as well as their strengths and weaknesses.

Nature scrapbooking with Daddy after an outing to Ping Shan, New Territories, Hong Kong

We discovered that their learning styles were quite distinct. One eagerly picked up a pencil to write and draw without any encouragement, while the other required significant motivation to do so. One is an auditory learner, while the other learns visually. They both enjoy incorporating movement into their learning, making them kinetic learners as well.

As we spent hours with our children, we have come to learn who they are as individuals. We both know all about their personalities, their likes and dislikes, their temperament, their strengths and weaknesses. We were both very close to the children in our own way.

2. Flexibility to travel and experience different things

The second benefit is quite straightforward: we have the flexibility to visit various places without worrying about crowds and space. I like taking the children to the library, park, and swimming pool during weekdays when most people are at work or school. This is particularly refreshing in Hong Kong, where it's typically crowded, as we can avoid long lines and large gatherings.

Doing schooling wherever we go, even in restaurants!

Beside the daily trips around our neighborhood, we would also go camping whenever we wanted and enjoyed the tranquility of the otherwise crowded and noisy campsites.

Camping trip with Daddy (Hong Kong)

At the Space Museum in Hong Kong in the middle of the week.

3. Learning at each of their own pace

One of the key advantages of homeschooling is the flexibility it offers to learn at an individual pace. In Hong Kong, where the education system is known for its fast pace across all subjects, we ensured our children fully grasped each concept before progressing. This approach allowed them to establish a solid foundation in literacy and math. There was no pressure for either the parents or the children to reach a specific level by the end of each year, which contributed to their strong understanding in these subjects.

One might assume that by not adhering to the curriculum established by the education system, we would lag behind, but nothing could be further from the truth. Without the pressure to learn rapidly, the children were able to enjoy the learning process, ensuring that the pace of learning remained unaffected. Additionally, the children were able to learn in their own unique ways. As I mentioned earlier, my children have different learning styles: one is an auditory learner, while the other is a visual learner. By accommodating their individual learning preferences, they were able to absorb information quite rapidly.

Some advantages of attending school (according to our own personal experience):

1. Being part of something bigger
   

Attending school offers the advantage of allowing our children to feel like they are part of something larger than themselves. Being involved in the school community provides them with a sense of belonging. This feeling is enhanced through various school-organized events, such as sports days, field trips, Cultural Day, Book Day, and festival celebrations, among others, which help strengthen their connection and identity with a larger community. The shared experiences with their classmates and teachers solidify their sense of belonging.

Field trip to the local Wetland park in Hong Kong.

The older boys, as members of the school team, had the opportunity to represent their school in sports competitions—experiences that homeschooling couldn't provide them. The experience of being a part of a school sports team, representing the school, further strengthened their sense of pride in themselves and their peers.

Representing their school in table tennis competition.

Just as we develop a strong bond with our children by spending time with them continuously, they also form strong relationships with their classmates and teachers by spending 8 hours a day, 5 days a week together. Friendships are formed, strong connections are established, and they feel loved and accepted by others. This leads me to the next point.

2. Being loved and cared for by others

I truly value the school community that our children belonged to; we were fortunate to have compassionate and caring individuals at their school. Witnessing our children being accepted and loved by others deeply moved me. One of my children faced challenges with attending school regularly, but through extensive communication with the school, they were able to accept him without penalizing him for his difficulties.

My heart swelled with gratitude for the teachers who poured kindness into them and the friends who welcomed them without hesitation.

Hugging a best friend at a birthday party in McDonald's

3. Being able to focus on our careers

As much as we love our children and want to spend as much time with them as possible, balancing homeschool, childcare, house chores, pursuing a career, self-care, and time for your spouse can be overwhelming! I have to admit, sending them to school has been one of the best ways for us to pursue our career goals.

As much as there are benefits in being a part of school (as mentioned in my previous two points), I prefer that we can give our children more opportunities to develop themselves in a more wholesome way — in their academics, their character, their life skills, their passions, and their interests. The traditional school setting was not able to do that for them as well as homeschooling did. But for this season, I believe going to school serves our family and allows us to sustain ourselves in the time when we needed it. I am grateful for the opportunity for what help the school offered us.

Building a little cardboard house in our tiny 500 sq ft apartment in Hong Kong

Summary

Our family’s journey has shown us that both homeschooling and traditional schooling can be beautiful in their own ways. Homeschooling gave us the gift of truly knowing our children, traveling freely, and letting them learn at a pace that suited them best — and academically, we saw them thrive. Their literacy and math skills grew steadily and confidently, without the pressure to keep up with a fast-paced system, and they truly enjoyed the process of learning. When we transitioned to school, we saw the joy of belonging to a community, building friendships, and having time to focus on our careers. For us, the choice was not about one being better than the other, but about what fit our family in each season of life.

I’d love to hear from you — are you considering homeschooling, public school, or a mix of both? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below so we can learn from each other!