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The month of June is usually a very busy time for parents and kids because of the opening of a new school year. But everything, including our children's schooling, has drastically changed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last month, the Department of Education (DepEd) announced that this year, they will be relying heavily on parents like you to be your child's tutor for most of school year 2020-2021. If you're a new parent, this can be scary and intimidating.
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Apart from preparing the right online tools and learning materials, what else do we need to know about homeschooling?
Celebrity mom Chesca Garcia-Kramer and Homeschool Global Learning Inc., chairman Edric Mendoza answered that in a very informative and helpful Instagram live video.
Homeschool Q&A with Chesca Garcia-Kramer and Edric Mendoza
What is the difference between homeschooling and home-based learning?
"Many schools, because of the quarantine protocols, have required their children to stay home and carry on the learning through online, so that would be home-based learning," explained Edric. "The people that are driving it are still the school and the teacher."
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW"Whereas in homeschooling, the one main difference is that it is moms like Chesca, dads like Doug, who are now driving the learning, instead of the school and the teacher," Edric added. "A large part of what makes it homeschooling is that the parents are primarily driving the learning of the children."
Apart from that, Edric also said homeschooling offers the flexibility—the ability to learn anywhere in the home at any time.
Homeschooling is hard and I am not confident when it comes to teaching my kids, what advice can you give me?
"Welcome to the club," joked Edric. "The beauty of today's homeschooling world is there are ways to feel more confident about teaching," he added.
Edric said you can use the word 'facilitating' instead of 'teaching'. Instead of thinking that you need to be the master of your children's school subjects, which is what a traditional teacher had to be able to do, you need to think of yourself as a facilitator. You connect your children to the learning materials. "Let the learning materials do the heavy lifting," Eric said.
CONTINUE READING BELOWwatch now"For parents that are concerned today, don't think that you have to be a teacher, where you have to master everything. Instead, think like a facilitator," he added. "You are not alone. Look to be a resourceful person instead of being a master of the subject areas."
"With my children, when I don't know something, I tell them, 'It's time for you and mommy to research together'" Chesca said.
"More than teaching your kids, your kids are also teaching you something as a parent," she added. "About your character, about how you see things. You'll see there what kind of character you're modeling to your kids."
How can I help my kids continue learning?
"Remember that when you homeschool your kids, there are two components: the academic part and the life schooling," Eric shared. "I would suggest, for the academics, you need to be able to set schedules but allow your children flexibility."
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOWHere are some of Eric's advice:
- Spend 2-3 hours of teaching time everyday if you have small children.
- Spend 3-4 hours of teaching time everyday if you have 10-12 year olds.
- Don't lump subjects together.
- Create breaks—don't do it continuously.
Eric and Chesca also emphasized on the importance of making sure your children get enough sleep, physical activities, and nutritious food.
You can watch the entire live video here:
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOWHave you started your homeschooling journey yet? Share it in the comments section! Looking for learn-at-home options and wondering about tuition fee? Head to Smart Parenting Classroom now!
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