Have you ever thought about homeschooling? 

It’s not for every family (many of us still shudder at memories of lockdown lessons), but for some, it’s truly life-changing.
And judging by the 100+ comments on my last @mumatherapy Instagram post about homeschooling, it’s clear there’s a real buzz around it right now. 

One of my favourite parts of being a writer is hearing real views from real people — asking the questions others might not, and then turning those answers into something meaningful that can help others. 

That’s why I’ve decided to share here the full Q&A I did with two homeschooling mums for my Mums & Tots summer edition article — so you can get the real tea on what it’s like to be both teacher and mum. 

Their insights are honest, eye-opening, and inspiring — exactly the kind of conversations that make writing such a joy. 

If you’re a writer yourself, never underestimate the power of real voices in shaping an article. 

And if you’re a mum looking for an insight into being a mum and teacher, this one’s for you! 

Two real homeschooling mums spill the truth — the highs, lows & surprises. But is teaching your child at home a dream, a challenge… or both? Lets find out.....

SUZE’S EXPERIENCE

EMMA: How long have you been homeschooling, and what inspired you to start?

SUZE: We’re in our fourth year now. In 2017 my eldest met a child who was home educated and became enthralled by the idea! However, it wasn’t until the height of the pandemic that I also started to feel excited about it. Despite all the challenges of that time, the children were so happy to be learning at home and they made great academic progress too. Fast forward to September 2021 and we finally felt confident enough to give it a go.

EMMA: What are the biggest joys and challenges of homeschooling?

SUZE: The children’s happiness brings me the most joy! We have good days and not so good days like everyone, but there is so much more laughter in the house since we started home educating. The children love learning at their own pace with time to dig into what really inspires them and I feel so incredibly grateful that we’re able to personalise their education according to their individual learning styles.

My biggest challenge is finding time for everything else I need and want to do and I feel like most parents relate to this in some way or another! For us, this has had financial implications and although it’s not every home educator’s experience I feel like it would be remiss not to mention this aspect as it’s definitely something we’ve had to contend with.

EMMA: What advice would you give to a mum considering homeschooling

SUZE: Trust yourself! I spent years researching home education and it was enormously helpful. Talking to a number of different home educators is beneficial too - there’s no one way to home educate and this really illuminates your choices. Ultimately though, I think the hardest part for many of us is going against the grain. Like most aspects of parenting, listening to your intuition is invaluable here because no one knows your child(ren) like you!

EMMA: What’s been the most unexpected challenge of being both a mum and a teacher?

SUZE: We learned during the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 that home learning wouldn’t work if I saw my role as a school teacher!  Our children do have tutors in some subjects (home educated children can access online classes for as little as £2 as well as distance learning programmes, online schools and in-person tuition) but when we’re engaging in projects together we approach them as fellow learners. The kids respond really positively to watching me grow and overcome challenges in this way and it’s definitely highlighted the power of parental modelling. We also make the most of being at home rather than trying to replicate school. For example, we might bring in Math's and Science to cooking by scaling recipes up and down and discussing boiling. Or, we might improve our spelling whilst playing games like Scrabble and Bananagrams. Home education has reminded me that our children are always learning and whether they’re home or school educated there are so many ways we can encourage this.

EMMA: Have you ever considered stopping homeschooling? If so, why, and what kept you going?

SUZE: Yes! Home educating isn’t a “forever” decision for us - we take it year by year, weighing up the benefits of home and school education as we all grow and change. I regularly doubt myself as a parent and home educator (don’t we all?!) but I’ve learned fresh air, a bite to eat and/or a good night’s sleep usually helps me see things clearly and washes those worries away!

EMMA: What’s one myth about homeschooling you wish people would stop believing?

SUZE: I sometimes wonder if the term “home” education is misleading because it seems to imply that children are sitting alone at a desk in their home all day long. This may happen, but I’ve personally yet to meet a home educating family where it applies! Alongside traditional school subjects and/or child-led learning, days might include nature walks, library visits, rock climbing, science experiments, play dates, philosophy classes, art workshops... Home educated children usually do a lot more than sit alone at a desk!

JOANN’S EXPERIENCE 

EMMA: What are the biggest joys and challenges of homeschooling?

JOANN: The biggest joy about homeschooling is the time we have together. One of the many reasons I looked into homeschooling my kids was from the feeling that our lives constantly revolved around the school schedule. Mind you we only did kindergarten in public school but that was enough to see us constantly rushing around trying to make it to the school in time and all our weekends were spent either preparing for the school week or heading to a birthday party of a classmate. I remember just feeling so disconnected from my kids and wanting a change from the rigid structure the school schedule brought. Someone actually mentioned I look into homeschooling my kids, which I did, and after beginning that journey I never went back. It does have its many challenges and I find it funny that people are surprised when I tell them that not everyday is an easy day but I also believe in life we choose our hard. Every road has obstacles but if we are excited about what we are doing those obstacles are something we are more willing to work with. Some challenges I find with homeschool is trying to find a curriculum that not only inspires you to teach it but also your kids. Even a curriculum that worked one year might not the other so you are constantly adapting and figuring out what works best for each kid. It takes a lot of trial and error which at times can feel frustrating. Another challenge is as they get older the topics get harder especially in math for me. It's a reminder I should have paid better attention in those algebra classes. But again we adapt and math is something I have outsourced to a tutor so they get customized learning to a pace that works for them.

EMMA: What advice would you give to a mum considering homeschooling?

JOANN: Advice I would give a mom looking into homeschooling is just try it. Give it a year and see if you like it, you can always head back to the school system if it doesn't work out or you might find out it's the best thing for you. I don't think there is a right or wrong way to school. I feel like sometimes it seems like there is a war between public school families vs. homeschool families and there needs to be one choice or winner but that isn't the case. Every education option is a good one if it's truly working for you and your children. But if something does not feel like it's working then I'm all for looking into other options and making a change. Homeschool is quite a journey, but even in the beautiful chaos of it all there are just so many amazing moments to remind you why you chose it.

EMMA: Which subject do you find the hardest to teach and why? 

JOANN: Me and math need to have a talk because it's not my fave. Math is something that as my kids have progressed through it they have managed to hit peak levels of math expertise that I needed to catch up on to figure out what they were learning. Having two kids in high school and testing several grades ahead in math, it was something I knew I needed to outsource so that they could get as much from their homeschool education. There are many resources for families to use to have an online education system to help teach kids such as online classes and even tutors. These things are considered outsourcing where you get help in teaching a topic you might not be very strong in by looking into a resource that has teaching tools for your kids.

EMMA: Which subject do you and your child enjoy the most, and what makes it so
special?

JOANN: We love learning history and I think I light up every time I teach it because I'm learning right there with them. It was something not taught very well when I went to school so every time I teach it I get way too excited about learning all these amazing moments in history. I find it fascinating and that has definitely rubbed off on my kids. Nothing is more fun than learning right there with them and seeing so much excitement.

EMMA: What’s been the most unexpected challenge of being both a mum and a teacher?

JOANN: Being a mom to me is being a teacher. We teach them from the start. We guide them through life and adding the more educational aspect of it from homeschooling them feels natural. I can't say I ever feel like I am wearing a teacher hat and then switching to a mom hat. I'm just always mom and hoping to guide them the best way I can while occasionally throwing in some science projects and a book report or two in there.

EMMA: How long have you been homeschooling, and what inspired you to start?

JOANN: I have been homeschooling for 9 years now. I started with my two girls when one was in first grade and the other in kindergarten. Now I'm homeschooling all 4 of my kids with those two littles ones now in high school, a 5th grader, and a first grader. As I mentioned before I felt trapped in the school system. My oldest was also feeling pressure from friends she had made. There were already expectations from peers to dress a certain way and behave a certain way to be deemed cool. It really bothered her as she was used to just being herself. In addition to that we love to travel and visit many places. That all stopped once she started school and my two daughters were constantly reminding me how much they missed all the adventures. We learned so much from the many museums we would visit so when we started homeschooling I was so excited to incorporate traveling around to different places as part of our school. It has made learning engaging and fun.

EMMA: What’s the biggest way your child has benefited from homeschooling? Have
there been any challenges?

JOANN: There have been so many benefits with my kids and homeschooling them I would need several days to list it all. But several stick out as my top favorites with the first being that they get to be themselves. There is no pressure in homeschool to conform or be on a specific trend. It has been a joy to see them like what they like. Another benefit is that they are very social. Shocker I know! Everyone likes to ask the socialization question or tell you about weird uncle Bob who was homeschooled. Homeschool kids are honestly some of the most social kids I know and from all the field trips we have done with homeschoolers I have met a lot of them. They just talk to anyone regardless of age, regardless of if anyone thinks that person is cool or not, they are just excited to chat away. I had one parent compliment my kids and her compliment stuck with me because she mentioned how her teenage son was inspired by how sweet my kids were to everyone that he began thinking of how he treated other people. Lastly, another benefit with homeschooling is you can go at a pace that works with your kids. My two oldest zoom through school and many things come easy to them so they are on an accelerated path for college. My third daughter needs to take her time and we are able to work at a pace that she can truly retain the information presented in school while my youngest is also another zoomer. You can go as fast or as slow as you like for your kids which is great.

EMMA: What does a typical homeschool day look like for you?

JOANN: A typical day for us starts at 8 am. Another perk is not having to wake up super early! We have breakfast and then I give each kid about an hour of individual teaching time. I try to teach a subject per day while my homeschooled highschoolers do a bit of each subject each day. Then we break for lunch which is followed by doing some homework from our curriculum of the day. I usually have two days in the week planned for outdoor learning where we will head to a museum/zoo/ or art gallery to learn at that location. School days at home usually run about 4-5 hours to get through all 4 of my kids.

EMMA:  How do you handle moments of self-doubt or overwhelm as a homeschooling
parent?

JOANN: There are moments where a break is needed and in the past I have not taken as many breaks as I do now. If the day is not going well we take a hike and enjoy nature. Learning is always happening and I think when we see that the breaks come more willingly. In the past if we didn't crack open the books I felt like I didn't do well that day. Now I'm much more flexible with that so that I don't burnout. If we need to get the wiggles out we dance, we sing, we head on walks, maybe math has us all in a mood so we switch to something else and come back to math later. I also make sure I don't compare our journey with anyone else's. There are a million and one ways to homeschool. It looks different for every family and while we can inspire each other we also need to remind ourselves that each journey is unique for your kid. Some have amazing homeschool rooms, some just a dining table, some learn strictly online. It's all okay and if we compare we might bring self doubt which is never helpful.

EMMA: What’s one myth about homeschooling you wish people would stop believing?

JOANN: There are so many myths I wish I could set straight! A big one for me is socialization. I get told a lot how social my kids are and how interesting that is because they are homeschooled. Homeschool doesn't mean staying home all day and school. If it did I would be saving a lot of money on gas. These kids do get out, they explore, they are in sports, they have friends. It really boggles my mind that so many people think without a school structure kids wouldn't be able to meet other kids and that's not true at all. The homeschool community has been growing and it's lovely to see so many ways to connect.

EMMA: What’s one thing you never expected about homeschooling but now love?

JOANN: If you told me I would be homeschooling my kids I don't know if I would believe you. I think homeschooling in general is something I can't believe I love. I always saw us doing the public education system. I made sure we moved to an area that had great public schools and I think it's funny that we ended up homeschooling after all that. I never saw myself teaching but when we jumped into doing homeschool I got so excited to be a part of their learning journey that now teaching is something I'm glad to do and help with.

EMMA: If you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice before you started
homeschooling, what would it be?

JOANN: One piece of advice I would give myself is to not worry. Life doesn't come with a crystal ball but boy was I worried when we started homeschooling of what the future would hold. I had excitement but I also had fear that I would somehow mess up their education for life. I can't believe we have been on this journey for so long now and honestly I would choose it a million times over.

A big thank you to Suze and Joann for opening up and offering such insightful perspectives into homeschooling. You were both very honest and inspiring. 

You can give them a follow on Instagram to see more of their family adventures and ethical lifestyles here-

@ethicalcheerleader @thequartermousters on Instagram 

You can find the full article Why More Parents Are Choosing to Home School – And What It’s Really Like in the summer issue of mums & tots magazine or get a brief summary here https://www.emmagrantauthor.com/blog/why-do-parents-choose-home-schooling

Or come and join the conversation over at Instagram @mumatherapy 

Much Love, Em x

By Emma Grant – Author, Hypnotherapist, Nutritional Therapist, Parenting Coach & Founder of Mumatherapy® and Happy Childcare