We went to the CFA homeschooling orientation today. My husband has recently said “Yes” to an experimental year of homeschooling and before he could change his mind, I wanted to finalize our plans. He comes from a family of educators and selling the idea to him was hard. Even now, he’s very skeptical and I feel that he could change his mind at anytime.
Well, the broader context is that he works at an educational institution which offers our children practically free education. He has stuck with his job for this very reason. Homeschooling will render this benefit of ours completely useless.
My problem is, I am totally convinced that homeschooling is the best way for any child to learn. I know it is foolhardy to throw away our educational privilege but I am worried that making a decision based solely on this might be one that we will end up regretting.
The CFA homeschool orientation was very enlightening. CFA painted a very realistic picture. I already read extensively on this topic on the internet and am aware that homeschooling will not be easy. They stressed important points like: 1) Homeschooling is not for everyone. Some have failed. 2) Your homeschool experience will only be as good as you make it. 3) Your total commitment is required. 4) Nobody is there to replace you, the teacher, when you are not feeling well. 5) The lower tuition fees should not be your main motivation to homeschool as it does not necessarily come out cheaper.
Above all, we were interested in their services because we are Catholic.
It is a good thing that we are starting to look into it while my child is just turning 5. He was going to a regular school until last year but I had to pull him out mid-year because he was having a miserable time there. As it turned out, my son, who is reserved, was being bullied by some of his classmates. Also, being an English speaker in a class dominated by Tagalog speakers proved to be a handicap for him. Since that time, we have been educating him at home. And he has been a happy boy ever since. A more relaxed learning pace and environment allowed him to come out of his shell more easily.
After the seminar, my husband and I had a brainstorming. Recognizing that this is something that I truly want to do for my children, my husband has said to take it one year at a time. When the time comes, we will also try to see if our son could get into the school where my husband has privileges. If he passes the test, we will most likely send him there and see if he likes it. If he doesn’t get into the school or if we see that regular school life is too stressful for him, we could go back to the homeschoooling option.
For now, that is the best arrangement that we could think of and one that makes good use of our available options.
Find out more about the Catholic Filipino Academy at
http://catholicfilipinoacademy.com/
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Tags: catholic filipino academy, cfa, homeschooling in the philippines, homeschooling philippines
11 Comments to “Catholic Filipino Academy (CFA) Homeschooling Orientation”
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hello.. i’m a stay at home mom too.. i also attended CFA’s homeschooling orientation last april 15.. i was already interviewed.. my husband also is not that into it, like you, we also had an agreement (if it doesn’t work out this year, next year will send our son back to reglar school).. my son and i cant wait to do it.. we’re actually excited.. we plan to be active on the “friday gathering” at the CFA.. this way, he’ll be able to socialize to other homeschoolers.. i’m convinced that i’m doing the right thing.. i want the best for my child.. who doesn’t? i know that this wont be easy, but i’m willing to do and experience it for my son.. so, good luck to both of us!! God bless!
Hi Jam,
I admire you for your decision!
We will continue to educate my son at home using materials of our choice. (It’s what they call home education, right?) I have discovered that the homeschool programs for his age focus on reading skills and then math. Since he is already an advanced reader, they aren’t very useful to us.
I notice that the dads tend to be very skeptical about the idea (sorry for the sweeping statement) probably because of the lack of information and some misconceptions about homeschooling.
I am sure your husband will learn to appreciate it when he sees the results. And it is already a blessing that he has agreed to experiment with it, even if he does not truly believe in it.
Good luck to you too! And would love to hear how you are doing! Thanks and God bless you too!
Hello! I’m a bit fortunate my husband is 100% supportive of my decision (so make that OUR decision, hehehe!) to homeschool our 4-year old (turning 5 this october). This is probably a result of the ‘development’ he has seen in her after my ‘trial’ homeschool using CFA’s Nursery Reading Program coupled with Kinder/Nursery textbooks in all subjects bought from local bookstores last year.
We’re now enrolled in Kinder and we’re seriously excited esp. after seeing the Lesson Plan supplement.
Despite such, i have always assured my husband of the ‘openness’ of my homeschooling plans, meaning if I find out eventually that our homeschooling efforts are no longer effective (and that our child would seem better off in a regular school), then we would stop and send her to such schools.
And like you, I totally believe that homeschooling is indeed the best way for every child to learn. I just hope and pray that we will all be given the much needed strength and patience in this worthy endeavor.
Hi teacher Mama,
I like the fact that you have a realistic attitude towards homeschooling. Though it seems ideal, sometimes it is the parent-educator that realizes it is not for them. Though LOVE for your child is an important factor in homeschooling success, we all have to admit that pedadogical skills and the proper attitude are essential too.
This coming June, we are attempting a mix of playschool, regular trips to the playground (to meet other kids), math and reading/writing at home. We are also looking at a music and movement class.
Oh, I pray that we will all be effective mentors to our children!
Best of luck and God bless all devoted mothers like you!
Hello, cant help noticing this thread, so I would like to contribute something. We are CFAers(Catholic Filipino academy),and have been homeschooling our kids for 5 years now, and we really can see the difference that homeschooling did to our to our kids. For parents who are planning to homeschool, please don’t fear, follow your heart’s desire and it will not be a wrong decision. We have our blog that you can look, http://www.homeschoolingkiddos.blogspot.com/
There is a good book on homeschooling that you can refer which is a good source of inspiration for parents, entitled: A Survivor’s Guide to Home Schooling by Luanne Shackelford
you can find it at Amazon.com.
Good Luck to everyone and God bless..
Thanks Oliver for your comment. You have a great site, great resource especially for iffy homeschoolers. I like your posts on socialization, as that is a burning issue, which all newbie homeschoolers have to grapple with.
Thanks for the tips and encouraging words.
Hi! I went to their website but their contact tab does not work. If you don’t mind, can you give me their contact numbers or where to reach them? Thanks a lot.
Hi Tezha,
Please try this e-mail address: cfainquiry@gmail.com.
Thanks and best regards!
or you mat try contacting these numbers: 2500064/4701639/09299577245
greetings!
i have been doing research lately about homeschooling and i can say that everyday i am getting convinced that this is the best for my child.
by the way he will be turning three this june, are there any programs for his age? he knows the basic colors, shapes, can count from 1-10, can speak simple sentences, and we do flashcards of animals too.
i think i would enroll him with the catholic filipino academy as we want him to grow up to be a good catholic. i have read that you have orientation seminars, are there any available in baguio?we live here as you can see.
i am a working mother and i am a medical doctor, an anesthesiologist. and as you can see, our schedule can be a bit daunting most especially if there are many emergency operations. initially i am planning to leave my current work as school physician (this school is just about ten minutes walk from our house). i wanted to look for an opening in a hospital so that i could practice my craft and earn more. but now that i am considering homeschooling my kid, i am reconsidering my options. i have a flexible schedule here at the clinic, working from 8:30 am to 1:00 pm. and the rest of the day i spend it as free day of bonding with my son. that free afternoon could be our school time for studying. and i know that this is what God would approve of because i have peace of mind and i feel happy thinking about this. though i am very fortunate because my husband is very supportive, but my sister isnt. she has so many negative things to say about homeschooling. my parents and my sisters are all educators of this same institution where i am currently employed (my son has free education til grad school if he wants because of my being an employee), but i totally agree with all of the benefits homeschooling can give to kids.
i do hope we could be given a sample program, how to purchase materials, and also attend an orientation.
thanks very much and God bless
Hello Happimommi,
CFA does have a preschool program. I would suggest that you write to CFA and ask how you could get an orientation as you are based in Baguio. I am aware that there are CFA homeschoolers even overseas so it should not be an obstacle to you.
I admire you for wanting the best for your child and wish you success with you plans!