The Flourishing World of Hispanic Homeschooling

Learning through anxiety

Karla Díaz is from El Salvador but now lives in Virginia. She might never forget the day her daughter’s public school called to say she was suffering from serious stomach aches and frequent trips to the bathroom. Karla picked her up immediately and noticed Angie, then 8 years old, was extremely frustrated and anxious.

“She kept crying and telling me she didn’t want to go back to school,” Karla said. “She panicked because she wasn’t learning how to read as quickly as other kids, and on top of that, another kid was bullying her in her class.”

Karla began homeschooling her daughter, Angie, to provide a safe, anxiety-free learning environment.

Karla started homeschooling Angie with the help of a homeschool support group. Angie’s anxiety subsided within a few days, and her stomach aches and frequent trips to the restroom stopped. She was also less timid and more confident.

María Cabrera, who lives and homeschools in the Dominican Republic, had a similar experience when her 12-year-old son Jeymel came home from school and said: “Mom, how long until they stop beating me up?”

Jeymel has ADHD and wanted to make the most out of his interests at school, but bullying by peers who mocked his symptoms crushed his confidence and love of learning. María said their family suffered a lot because of people labeling him.

She eventually decided to educate Jeymel at home, and soon witnessed a profound transformation in his ability and desire to learn. He didn’t struggle as much to pay attention and was more focused on his schoolwork.

Jeymel’s artistic talents—such as painting, crafting, and composing—also flourished in unexpected ways, surprising not only María, but also his music and art teachers, who think he might be twice exceptional (a gifted child with one or more learning disabilities).

“My son was like a tiny fish in a fishbowl, and now he’s been released into the sea,” María said.

While homeschooling did wonders for their children, Karla and María’s journeys weren’t easy. Angie’s school threatened Karla with truancy charges when she tried to withdraw her daughter from public school. She felt they did this because they questioned her ability to homeschool as a Hispanic woman. María, on the other hand, struggled to find educational resources in Spanish to satisfy Jeymel’s educational needs at home.

Why do Hispanic families homeschool?

Hispanic families choose to homeschool for a variety of reasons, but the stories we’ve heard unite around some common themes. Our Hispanic members have told us they homeschool because they want to do one or more of the following:

• Avoid bullying at schools
• Provide a better quality of education to their children
• Offer their child a personalized education

Most of them desire to provide a better education for their children with special needs, who are struggling in a traditional school setting and sometimes bullied because of their learning differences.

Adianez Almeida is a Cuban homeschool mom in Nebraska who discovered homeschooling could protect her daughter Susana from being physically attacked at school. The choice would also help her address the special needs of Susana and her son Enrique (both have been diagnosed with autism), as well as her own health needs. (She has been suffering from diabetes and uterine fibroids for several years now.)

“Homeschooling was as if heaven opened up for us,” Adianez said. “Whenever I meet someone new, I tell them about the wonders of homeschooling.”

Lariza Iler, on the other hand, is a Mexican homeschool mom who lives in Texas and decided to homeschool her son, Donnie, when he was 3 years old and struggling with a speech delay.

The Iler family: Humberto, Lariza, and Donnie. Homeschooling allowed Donnie to overcome learning challenges and pursue his passion for chess.

Donnie is now not only thriving as a student, but has also become a chess entrepreneur. (He loves chess so much that he named his schnauzer “Bishop.”)

“During the pandemic, many Hispanic parents realized the mental health of their children with special needs greatly improved by teaching them at home, away from the negative social environment they experienced at the public school,” said Marialena Zachariah, who has served multiple Hispanic homeschooling families over the years as HSLDA’s former bilingual educational specialist. “At the same time, they learned they could help them fill in academic gaps and began to see their children finally making progress in their learning,” she added. 

Finding more than peace of mind

Apart from seeking security or a personalized program for their children with special needs, our Hispanic members also desire the flexibility that homeschooling provides. They appreciate the additional time to bond with their children and share their values and beliefs with them.

Marcela Orozco and her husband Faber Parra, for example, fled their hometown in Colombia after continuous threats from gang members. They had to start over from scratch in the US, so they were overwhelmed with work and tiring school days.

“Life has to be more than this,” Marcela told herself.

The exhaustion, and the fact that their eldest son, Ángel David, had lost interest in school, led Marcela and Faber to homeschool him and their second child, Valentín. After two years of homeschooling, they lead a calmer life and have grown closer as a family.

“I’m very, very happy,” Marcela said. “We never imagined we’d love homeschooling this much.”

Xiomara Reyes and her husband Victor, originally from El Salvador, felt the same happiness when homeschooling led their 13-year-old son, Wesley, to start confiding in them more.

Homeschooling allowed Xiomara and Victor, originally from El Salvador, to grow closer to their son Wesley.

“Now he comes to us with everything,” Xiomara said. “Whether it’s a problem with a friend or a question about faith. If he fights with someone, he tells us, and we talk to him about forgiveness.”

Mariela Rivera, who kept homeschooling her eight children even after a hurricane devastated her hometown in Puerto Rico, also experienced the wonders of teaching her children at home. “The interaction between a parent and a child by educating at home is beautiful,” she said.

What obstacles do Hispanic parents face?

Hispanic parents face the usual homeschooling challenges, plus others specific to their culture: self-doubt due to language barriers, fewer homeschooling resources in Spanish, and resistance from school districts or communities that question their ability to homeschool.

Let’s take a closer look.

1. Self-doubt due to language barriers

Our Spanish-speaking member families have shared that they usually experience a feeling of dread and self-doubt when it comes to homeschooling because they don’t feel confident enough to homeschool in English. Most of them live in the US, and are first-generation immigrants with a limited knowledge of English.

In almost every story they’ve told us, the same questions haunt the beginning of their homeschooling journey: How can I homeschool if my English is not good enough? What if I ruin my child’s education? Families feel the added pressure of complying with the law in some states where they are legally required to homeschool in English.

These fears can be discouraging, but Hispanic families rise to the challenge because they have to—sometimes homeschooling is their only option—and because their commitment to their children surpasses their fears and self-doubt.

Lariza dealt with this while overcoming Donnie’s speech delay, but eventually found the educational resources he needed. She used LeapFrog: The Letter Factory so he could learn the sound of each letter, The Reading Lesson to learn how to read, and IEW: All About Spelling to learn how to be a proficient speller.

Xiomara dealt with it while helping Wesley with his emotional barriers. After she used Abeka’s prerecorded classes in English to homeschool Wesley, he was reading fluently and writing in English with confidence.

“A lot of people think you have to be an expert to homeschool,” Lariza said. “But it’s all about finding resources and searching for alternative options.”

2. Fewer resources in Spanish

Although some curricula are available for Spanish-speaking parents, more Spanish homeschool resources are needed.

Marisol Rodero, bilingual homeschooling mom, noticed many Spanish-speaking families in the US and Latin America stopped homeschooling because they weren’t confident using English materials. So she developed a bilingual curriculum for them—Nobis Pacem.

“Parents want to be a part of the homeschooling, and if they can’t understand the lesson plans or don’t know what their children are doing in English, it’s hard for them to connect,” she said in an HSLDA podcast. “So having a structure in Spanish, and the community in Spanish—that’s been very helpful for them.”

3. Resistance from school districts or communities

Some Hispanic families also face skepticism of their ability to homeschool from their local school districts, who then question their decision to take their children out of public schools.

“They face strong disparaging verbal opposition from school officials and others because they are not fluent in English,” Marialena said. “Or because they think they won’t be able to meet the needs of their children with special needs, or because they are generally seen as not capable of educating their children.”

Karla experienced this firsthand when filing her paperwork to withdraw Angie from public school. When she expressed a desire to speak in Spanish with an official, she was harassed by the school representative.

“I instantly knew she was doubting my qualification to instruct just because I felt more comfortable speaking Spanish,” Karla said. “She assumed I was not qualified just because I wanted to speak in my native language. I felt intimidated for being a Latina.”

Leadership—a critical part of the movement

Despite these obstacles, Hispanic homeschoolers are overcoming their fears. They’re finding out they can actually homeschool, in large part due to strong Hispanic leadership in their community.

Hispanic leaders are stepping up to the task of supporting families. And as this leadership continues to grow in homeschool knowledge and training, the movement in turn grows stronger each year. We are seeing this with the growth of Hispanic attendance in homeschool conferences and the development of more Spanish-speaking events and resources.

HSLDA staff members Darren Jones, Joel Grewe, Amy Majors, and Karim Morato manning HSLDA’s booth at Educa por Diseño 2024.

“Each Hispanic leader, each Spanish-speaking conference or workshop, each effort to create or translate homeschool curricula—they’re all key aspects that help this beautiful community flourish,” said Karim Morato, HSLDA bilingual educational specialist and Hispanic outreach coordinator.

Just a few examples: HSLDA’s National Leaders Conference recently saw a significant increase in attendance of Hispanic leaders. And Educación por Diseño—a homeschool support group for Spanish-speaking homeschooling families—welcomed more than 50 Hispanic leaders from all over the US and Latin America to their third annual Spanish-speaking conference this year—a marked increase from last year.

Darren Jones, HSLDA senior counsel and director of group services, who attended this conference as a speaker, said it was neat to see all the logos and colors he’s used to seeing in state homeschool conferences, but in Spanish: “Walking through the vendor hall was almost like walking in an alternate dimension.”

Home Educators Association of Virgina has organized a meet and greet with Hispanic families during their annual homeschooling conference for three years in a row. The organization has also included Spanish workshops in the program. Arizona Families for Home Education has also hosted a “mini conference” in Spanish as part of their annual convention for two years now.

Additionally, more Spanish-English bilingual curricula are being developed, such as Nobis Pacem and Homeschool To Go. And more educational editorials and vendors are translating their content into Spanish.

Institute for Excellence in Writing is translating its seminar on teaching writing into Spanish. And Bob Jones University has created Spanish translations of all curriculum instructions for 4th through 12th grade. They intend to finish more grades next year. Apologia Educational Ministries is also translating a step-by-step guide on how to use their science curriculum from pre-K to high school.

These bilingual efforts strengthen the movement for two main reasons, Karim said. The first is that Spanish-speaking leaders should grasp key aspects of homeschooling in their native language and share them with their homeschooling community.

Jones agreed: “Hispanic leaders need to grasp the depth of important concepts through their native language—concepts like the foundational freedoms of the homeschooling movement or even technical stuff about how to start a co-op.”

This is why HSLDA Outreach focuses on equipping Hispanic leaders in their own language: If they understand the fundamentals of how to homeschool, as well as the specific needs of the Hispanic community, they can satisfy the needs of this growing community much better.

The second reason bilingual resources are vital is that they help families preserve their Hispanic roots, which is a crucial element for many Hispanic parents who worry their children won’t grow up speaking Spanish.

“It is important to equip leaders to create bilingual homeschool groups so parents feel encouraged to teach their bilingual children and preserve their Spanish-speaking heritage without undermining English instruction,” Karim said.

Coming alongside the Hispanic community

So how can the English-speaking homeschooling world support the Hispanic movement? Importantly, we can understand their specific culture and needs.

The Hispanic homeschooling movement is unique and will develop differently than the English-speaking movement, mainly because of the language aspect. A majority of Hispanic families need a space to share their fears, ask questions, and connect with a community in Spanish.

Mariela continued homeschooling her eight children, even through the aftermath of a hurricane.

The movement is also unique because it consists of different cultures and follows different laws throughout Latin America and the US.

In any case, English-speaking homeschooling families can come alongside the Hispanic community by acknowledging that they are in the “first wave” of homeschooling, and making suggestions instead of telling them what to do, Jones said.

Hispanic homeschooling families will find all ideas helpful, but might need to adjust them to their own needs and challenges. Still, it’s of the utmost importance for the English-speaking homeschool community to keep supporting the Hispanic movement with training and resources.

“Support more conferences in Spanish, add more Spanish workshops and training in state conferences, and equip more Hispanic leaders,” Karim said. “All of this has proven helpful to keep strengthening this community.”

A testament to resilience and hope

The growth of the Hispanic homeschooling movement is a testament to the resilience and determination of these families. Time and time again, our Hispanic members have shown us their deep commitment to their children’s education and well-being. They are often eager to share their stories with HSLDA to inspire more Hispanic families, assuring them that homeschooling is possible.

Marcela and Faber with their two sons, originally from Colombia. Homeschooling brought their family together after moving to the US.

Through their stories, we’ve learned that they homeschool to provide a high-quality and personalized education to their children, and to avoid bullying at schools. But we’ve also witnessed their strength as they overcome their most pressing obstacles: self-doubt due to language barriers, fewer homeschooling resources in Spanish, and resistance from school districts or communities.

It’s been truly humbling to learn from their example. And it has been our honor to listen to, treasure, and tell their stories.

As these families continue to thrive, they are paving the way for future Hispanic generations and proving that with love, determination, and the right support, homeschooling is possible