MORE than 60 Sunraysia children are being homeschooled and this number is expected to rise. CAITLYN MORGAN sat down with three local homeschooling families to get to know how it works for them and why they chose that education path.
MILDURA mother of two, Stephanie Evans has a good handle on not only the homeschooling curriculum but also the mainstream curriculum.
While her son Jake, 13, is homeschooled, her daughter Gemma, 16, attends Trinity Lutheran College.
"Gemma is my extravert and Jake is my introvert and I am all about what works best for the kids," Ms Evans said.
Initially Ms Evans had no plans to homeschool either of her children but when Jake was bullied at school during his first year, she turned to teaching him at home.
When learning of the flexibility homeschooling provided, Ms Evans and her children took to learning on the road and travelled around Australia in 2016.
"We travelled through Mildura and we all fell in love with it so after travelling we decided to move here," Ms Evans said.
After 12 months of travelling, the siblings both wanted to give mainstream school another a try.
"I couldn't keep up with Gemma academically so by going to school they were able to push her more than I could have," Ms Evans said.
"Jake had a short stint at Trinity Lutheran College before returning to homeschooling.
"For Jake we found he worked best when homeschooled. It works best for his abilities and the flexibility allows us to focus on his interests."
Ms Evans said her homeschooling style would be considered "semi-structured".
"Maths and literacy are non negotiables as you are going to need them no matter what job you get so we will normally do them every morning Monday to Thursday," Ms Evans said.
"The afternoon will then focus on electives and we are finished up about 2pm.
"With Friday normally a day for catch ups or appointments."
Since moving to Mildura, Ms Evans has witnessed first-hand the influx of parents interested in her way of life, particularly in recent weeks.
"When we first came here there wasn't many other families ... but then in 2018 we saw it really take off," she said.
"This week we have seen around 60 families interested in homeschooling their children in Mildura and the surrounding areas.
"With new restrictions many are looking into it."
Ms Evans' advice for those who are looking to homeschool is to "do your research and work out what is best going to suit your family".
Siblings Jake, 13, and Gemma Hines, 16. Picture: Meagan Verstappen
HOME schooling couldn't be a more "perfect" fit for the Carlin family.
All seven children have excelled in their studies, with the youngest only five but reading at a Year 2 level and the eldest, 16, is on his way to becoming a physiotherapist.
"When homeschooling is done well, it can be fantastic for the children," mother Michelle said.
The decision to homeschool all of her children was one that was ultimately taken out of Mrs Carlin's hands.
"My eldest had a severe lung condition and could not go to school, which thankfully he has now outgrown," she said.
"At the time he was going unconscious three or four times a day, which is stress I couldn't put on the teacher.
"It also allowed him to school to his ability, especially when there were days he couldn't do anything. We could do school around his medical appointments and illness."
His siblings wanted to follow in their big brother's footsteps and learn at home as well.
"They are all close in age, so they like doing everything together," she said.
"We ended up getting to a point where they were able to go to school but the kids were way ahead of where the school systems would put them so we made the decision that the best thing for us to do as a family was to continue homeschooling."
Mrs Carlin said the family follows a more "classical style" of homeschooling. Generally the children are in the classroom and ready to learn by 8am on Mondays through to Thursdays.
Mrs Carlin will take turns working one-on-one with each of her children and by 1pm they are finished up for the day.
"Some of the older kids will do some work after lunch depending on what they have on that day and we will then usually take the dogs for a walk in the afternoon as a family before coming in to clean up at 3pm," she said.
"I love being part of (their learning) and try to give them all the resources and opportunities that I can, and give them the best education that I can and that their personalities are needing.
"I have tried really hard to foster a love of learning - that has been our main focus.
"I now have a son who wants to go down the line of business, I have three budding veterinarians and another who is deciding between astrophysics and neuroscience.
"I see as we have gotten further into homeschooling, I can appreciate the flexibility homeschool allows by following our children's interests, such as my 14-year-old who wants to be a veterinarian has been able to do Future Vet Camps and is part of Vet Club."
Mrs Carlin said the key to her success is researching how each of her children learns and having a good understanding that not everyone learns the same way.
"Understanding how your children learn is a really important thing, some learn visually, others learn by reading and others learn by listening," she said.
"I taught my first two together and then my third learnt so different to the first two, it was a real eye-opener."
While Mrs Carlin admits homeschooling is not for everyone, she has found it has been the best possible education path to follow for her children. "I have loved it, it's been a privilege to see them grow and learn and being able to foster their love of learning and seeing what they are capable of," she said.
"As parents we are always interested in how our children are going and I have been able to see that first-hand.
"I have been able to see what their weaknesses are and work on them and see their strengths and encourage them.
"The great thing about homeschooling is that everyone does it differently and does what suits their family.
"It is a great lifestyle but it doesn't work for everyone."
(Back) Lorchan, 10, Fynnian, 16, Owen, 15, Saoirse, 14, (front) Aine, 8, Zephan, 5, and Aoife, 12. Picture: Ben Gross
SUNRAYSIA siblings Dante and Allegra Mammone have seen more of the world than most at their ages.
Not yet teenagers and they have travelled far and wide with their parents Emma Walmsley and father Anthony by their side.
These experiences are ones that have been made possible because of the flexibility that homeschooling offers.
"There were lots of benefits to it so we thought we might as well try it and so far it has been working out really well for them," Ms Walmsley said.
"We have always followed the kids' interests and let them take the lead in their learning.
"It's a fairly relaxed approach but much still happens each day.
"The best way to describe what we do is child-led, eclectic learning. It is often called unschooling as we don't use a curriculum or have a schedule.
"We access resources as we need them for the kids, and we provide many opportunities for learning through experiences."
Ms Walmsley said there were "many reasons" why she decided homeschooling was a good option for her family.
"The main reason we chose home education is that we believe we can do a better job than the current school system," she said.
"Individualised learning is always going to be more interesting and beneficial to a child or adult than mass learning.
Another reason was "we have had a couple of extended travel experience with them and we want to continue to do that when we can, so (learning on the road) makes life a bit easier in that regard".
Dante and Allegra now 11 and 7 have spent a lot of their lives experiencing other cultures and traditions during their extended travels to many places including Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia.
"We value other cultures and want our kids to see just how differently people can live to us, but how similar we all really are inside," Ms Walmsley said.
"We value being out of our comfort zone and challenging ourselves in new situations and we value being together, having adventures together, learning and growing together.
"It is great for Dante and Allegra to see Anthony and I learning right alongside them, so they know learning is a life-long voyage and that adults don't have all the answers."
Ms Walmsley said the past almost two years has been tough with the family locked down in Sunraysia, but they look forward to continuing their journey travelling with their children once restrictions allow.
For those interested in homeschooling, the Sunraysia Home Education Network recently launched a public Facebook page for anyone to join. Visit bit.ly/3E71tfm