Truly Rich and Blessed

Homeschool of Asia Pacific – Truly Rich Mom’s Review

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For all you parents out there who may be considering HOMESCHOOLING, here is a review of an existing homeschool provider, based on an orientation we attended, conducted by one of the newest homeschool providers in the Philippines: Homeschool of Asia Pacific or HAP. Their website is at http://homeschoolofasiapacific.com.

It’s a relatively new homeschool and hubby and I were able to attend the free orientation about a month ago at Eastwood Cybermall. The directress, Mrs. Bev Alarcon, and her husband have been homeschooling for about 3 years. At the live orientation, there were about 4 other couples present with us, and one single lady who was attending in her aunt’s behalf. There was also a fellow Catholic mom (I’m not sure if the other parents there were all Catholics), Liza, who has been homeschooling her kids for EIGHT years, using the Catholic Heritage Curricula or CHC from the US. (You can read about Liza’s homeschooling journey at their multiply site: http://hofach.multiply.com/).

Anyway, Mrs. Bev’s live orientation was quite informative and there was time for question and answer afterwards. Prior to the orientation, each couple/person there (except us, she seemed to have overlooked us) had the chance to introduce themselves and share why they were considering homeschooling. A lot of the parents cited stress on their children as the main reason. Some even had their kids undergo psychiatric care because of the stress they got in school! Gosh, kids these days!

Read my complete review of HAP here: http://teachermamarules.blogspot.com/2010/09/homeschool-of-asia-pacific-orientation.html

If you are interested to know more about homeschooling, specifically with Homeschool of Asia Pacific (HAP), you can check out this SlideShare Presentation that Mrs. Bev uploaded online (she is a web developer too, so the HAP website is VERY informative):

Updates on our homeschooling journey :)

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(Originally posted on August 4, 2010 at http://teachermamarules.blogspot.com/2010/08/month-and-half-or-so-in-review.html)

I was inspired by Mommy Michelle to update this blog when she started doing her “A Week In Review” posts. I realized that it’s been more than a month since we’ve arrived in the Philippines (my gosh!) and more than 2 weeks since my last post here (I’ve been regularly updating my Truly Rich Mom blog though. Check it out at http://trulyrichmom.com 🙂

Anyway, a lot of things have happened to our missionary family in the past month and a half or so. One of the most significant things was Rysse’s 1st birthday party which we celebrated with a Noah’s Ark theme at a local swimming resort (small but NICE!). Remind me to post pics and tips on how to throw a Noah’s Ark birthday party in a Philippine setting later on, ok?! The event turned out to be a reunion of sorts for extended family and close friends, a true celebration of God’s faithfulness to Rysse and our family for the past year! 🙂
We have not been giving Tim any “lessons” as regularly as when we were in Timor Leste (which was usually at least once a day for about 30 minutes, three times a week). It’s been a kind of “vacation” for him I guess. I didn’t want to push anything on him considering he’s already had a lot to adjust to (settling in, moving from my in-laws’ place in Cubao to my parents’ place in Cainta every other week, adjusting to not going with us all the time to the Home Office, etc etc). However, I’d like to think that Tim’s homeschool preschool journey has been ongoing although not in the “subject matter” that most teachers think kids his age may need. By God’s grace, Tim has “matured” and seems to have outgrown certain things that used to frustrate hubby and I:
1. He has learned to say “po”, “please”, “thank you”, “sorry”, and “excuse me” appropriately with less prompting from us.
2. He has gotten over his fear/aversion to:
 (a) having his hair cut – he went to the barber shop willingly with his Lolo Rading and Papa, and even volunteered to go first! (What a pity, Papa was unprepared and didn’t bring a camera so we have no proof! Anyone willing to donate an I-phone our way?! hahahaha. Anyway, Tim shows off his new haircut in the pic below, taken at Rysse’s birthday party 🙂 And yes, that’s me, trying to sing karaoke! hahaha)
(b) having his fingernails and toenails cut while awake – I used to cut his nails when he was asleep because he absolutely refused to have them cut! Now he is more than willing to do so! (Although most of the time, he wants his Papa to do it, not me! Which means “Hurray!” for me! hahaha)
(c) having his ears cleaned – The same situations as his nails. But last week his Tita Gela cleaned his ears and got out a huge bit of ear wax, which has probably been growing in size since Tim was born! hahahaha.
3. He is less of a picky eater now, and knows basic table manners (elbows off the table, say “excuse me” when you’re going to leave the table). He eats most of his meals with other family members now too! (Before he would eat separately, we’d usually feed him earlier to save time!)
4. He is getting better at sharing, taking turns, waiting for his turn (although he still has his melt-downs, especially at the end of the day when he’s tired from playing).
5. He has picked up a few more Filipino words. Perhaps watching TV with his lolo and lola isn’t such a bad thing after all. He learned what pula and puti mean by watching Sa Pula, Sa Puti with his Lolo Rading, hahaha. (Although, we have been more vigilant lately about what he’s been watching. And make sure to watch with him as much as possible, so we can explain things when he asks about them. And PUT OUR FOOT DOWN when the programs are not for him i.e. get him out of the room as much as possible or ask for the channel to be changed).
6. He has been praying spontaneously a bit more often now (his morning and evening prayers with us don’t count here). Especially with the recent typhoons and rains lashing down upon the Metro. (He’s scared of thunder so he always says “Mama, let’s pray to God to stop the storm. And no flooding. No thunder. etc”) Oh, and just this evening, when we were saying our night prayers, he said “I wish Jesus could come here at Lolo Rading’s house, and his angels too.. *pauses for a while* Oh.. and God too!” HI-LA-RIOUS and oh so heartwarming! 🙂 Moments like these just make me ever so grateful to be his Teacher Mama!
7. He has learned that the “office” for Papa and Mama is no longer just outside our bedroom, as it used to be in our mission house/office in Timor Leste, but is now somewhere else. Which means that most of the time, he has to be left behind when Papa and/or Mama go to work. In the beginning, he HATED this and would throw tantrums. BUT he has learned to ADJUST, and now only protests occasionally. Thank YOU Lord. (Although I’m hoping our working arrangement will change SOON. Please po Papa Jesus!)
Anyway, so far, these are the things I believe Tim has learned DESPITE our lack of “formal learning”. I still believe that life lessons are some of the MOST important things for him right now anyway, so I won’t be pressured by all the comments like “He’s turning 4 na? Shouldn’t he be in school?” etc etc. 🙂 HOMESCHOOLING PRESCHOOL is STILL the WAY to GO for US. 🙂
For all those who have been following our homeschooling journey, and have been HUGE sources of support and prayers, THANK YOU SO MUCH. May GOD bless us all. 🙂
P.S. I almost forgot. Hehe. By God’s grace, we have never missed out on READING ALOUD to the kids every day. During our bedtime ritual, we read at least three books to Tim with Rysse occasionally listening intently alongside him (other times, she plays with the books or practices turning the pages). In connection to this, I JUST LOVE BOOKSALE BOOKSTORE! Secondhand books are the way to go! 🙂 Love it love it love it! 🙂 We must have bought, I don’t know, like 20 plus new “old” books so far, mostly from Booksale. Hahaha. Thank YOU Lord for providing all these blessings! We heart You! 🙂

Homeschooling is Pro-Life!

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(Timothy Alan S. Rodriguez, safe and sound in Mama’s womb 🙂

I first felt the Holy Spirit’s stirrings to homeschool when I attended our community’s first major Pro-Life event way back in 2006. We had a speaker from Human Life International, Brian Clowes, and it was a truly inspiring, eye-opening event. Back then I was pregnant with our first child, who will be turning 4 in October. Hubby and I were so privileged to be part of the Pro-Life event/training back then (we were even chosen as models for one of the creative presentations!). Little did I know that Pro-Life and Homeschooling would eventually become two big passions in my life!

When Joseph Meaney of HLI came to Timor Leste in 2007 for our Family Life Conference, he spoke again about homeschooling and presented briefly the differences in kids who are homeschooled versus those who aren’t. His presentation really made me (and hubby too!) start to seriously consider homeschooling as an option for our children.

The conviction to homeschool our kids continued to grow (perhaps God really planted it in our hearts) and was further strengthened when we heard about Bo Sanchez’s homeschool catering specifically to Catholic Filipino parents like ourselves.

For my part, I have come to believe that homeschooling may not be God’s will for some families, whom He may call to doing mission by sending their kids to public or private schools (even Catholic schools nowadays need a LOT of revival and renewal and are prime mission fields!). Indeed it is challenging and perhaps a bit frightening to even consider teaching one’s children at home. “I’m not a qualified teacher!” “Will I have the discipline and time to do this?” “How can we afford to live on one salary?” “Will my kids be anti-social?” These questions are usually the first that come to mind when one starts thinking about homeschooling.

Thankfully, if one does enough research (thank You Lord for the internet!), one can get lots of answers to these questions, and also find encouragement and draw inspiration from countless homeschoolers who truly believe that teaching your kids at home is THE way to go!

As for our family, we are still in the process of making the final decision to homeschool (when to “officially” start i.e. with a structured curriculum, which curriculum to use, how to deal with the financial and practical aspects, etc etc). For the meantime, we just want to make the most of the time God has blessed us with, especially by having our kids on mission with us. This includes “homepreschooling” our kids.

To be Catholic in this day and age calls for a firm belief in defending our faith, our families, our homes. If I call myself Catholic, then I should be Pro-Life. I firmly believe that homeschooling is pro-life, and that the pro-life work should involve advocating homeschooling.

When we homeschool our kids, it is easier for us to pass down our Catholic faith and life to them. We also get to choose what influences them and in turn how they will live their lives as good Catholics and responsible citizens. We get to be there for them during the critical, crucial stages of their development in all aspects of their lives. We get to teach them about things that are not normally taught in schools, especially the lessons of life.

 
 (3 and a half year old Tim, reading his “Bible” after seeing his Papa reading our daily Bible reflection guide. It was so CUTE and INSPIRING! He even told me “Mama, I’m reading about Jesus rising from the dead. Or you call it `Resurrection.’ 🙂 Note to self: Buy Tim his own kid’s Bible when we get home to the Philippines! Hahaha)

Homeschooling is PRO-LIFE.

If you believe that God is calling you to homeschool, do not be afraid. There are many men and women, families out there who are doing the same thing. Because they are CONVICTED, not just convinced, to do so. Let’s pray for one another that we will be able to act upon all that God is calling us to do, especially in the best interest of our children.

“As for me and my house, will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

 (Our 2nd child, almost 11-month old Rysse, seems to enjoy praying the Rosary with us. The other night, she woke up at 2 a.m. and when I carried her, she saw the rosaries on our little altar in the bedroom, and kept pointing to them and smiling and babbling, so I gave her one to hold. She kept babbling, and it seemed as if she was reminding us to pray the Rosary, which we usually do every night, but that night we had overlooked it. Needless to say, we ended up praying early that morning, and Rysse went back to sleep soon after! Amazing God!)

Listed below are some books that may help you discover the richness of homeschooling 🙂

COJ or CFA (Catholic Preschool or Homeschool?)

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Right now we are in the process of discerning what God wants for our kids’ education. Tim just turned 3 yrs and 5 months and we’ve been wanting to enroll him in a preschool or something similar here in Timor Leste. However, so far, all the schools that he could apply to are categorized as “international” (read: EXPENSIVE hehehe) and also, every time we ask him, he’ll say “I don’t want to go to school. This is our school. Here.” (And he gestures around him). “And you’re my teacher, Mama!” (Aaawww… *heart melts* )

Truthfully, ever since I learned about homeschooling from Bo Sanchez (Catholic Filipino Academy or CFA) and other resources online (mostly from non-Catholic Christian sites, which by the way are very, very good! :)) I’ve been thinking a lot about what Tim always says about going to school (read above :)) Perhaps homeschooling IS the way to go for us, and God is using Tim to send me a message.

On the other hand, if we do go for homeschooling, we know it will be a HUGE commitment, especially on my part. I’d have to really stay at home (or find work I can do from home) to be able to teach Tim (and Rysse when she’s old enough). Which means Anthony would be the only one left working.

The question in this case would then be “Can we afford to live on one income?”

Hmmm…

On the other hand, there are several good preschools (in the Philippines) that I’ve discovered online. One of them is Cradle of Joy (COJ), which has really caught my attention, since they advertise themselves as a Catholic Progressive School, and claim that their curriculum is the closest aligned to homeschooling. After having read some of the testimonials of parents who have sent their kids to preschool there, I’m half convinced that COJ is the school that we’ve been looking and praying for.  (Although, at present I have no idea how much the tuition fees there cost! Perhaps when I do find out I’ll change my mind! hahaha.)

Anyway, for the meantime, while we are still here in Timor, I guess I’ll just make the most of Tim wanting to go to “school” at home with myself as his “teacher.” I’ve managed to get some good materials online (here’s a sample from www.dreamenglish.com: howmanyfish) and from the bookstores in the Philippines, and hopefully I’ll be able to teach Tim the basic preschool concepts he needs to know at his age. At least for the next few months, that’s how our set-up will be.

What do you think? COJ or CFA? 🙂

Disclosure

Truly Rich and Blessed contains paid advertising banners and some contextual affiliate links. An affiliate link means that I receive a commission on sales of the products or membership sites that are linked in some of my posts. So, if you click on a link and make a purchase from or become a member of an affiliate site, then I may make a commission from that purchase — at no added cost to you! Thank you for supporting Truly Rich and Blessed this way.
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