Homeschooling in Paradise

Homeschooling in paradise is on the rise!

While the latest home education surveys reported a slight dip in the overall number of homeschooled children the last three years, homeschooling in Hawaii has bucked the national trend. Hawaii News Now reports that three-year figures in the Paradise of the Pacific are up 3.8%.

“It’s been such a joy for me to watch them learn and figure out a way to teach them to figure how they can learn the best,” said Nicole Guiles, a homeschool mother of three daughters living in Honolulu.

The island of Oahu, where the Guiles live, has long been known as “the Gathering Place.” That image of getting together paints a more accurate picture of homeschooling than the stereotype in people’s minds.

“I do think people have a misconception that homeschool means you’re sitting at home and that’s all you do. That is a myth,” Guiles said. “We’re quite busy, and the kids’ friends are from not just homeschool. Their friends are from public school and private school and home school.”

Ultimately though, Guiles said there’s one positive of homeschooling that can’t be beat.

“To me, the biggest advantage is getting to spend that time with my kids,” she said. “I can’t even put a value on that.”