Home school mom teaches life lessons

Milledgeville -- As a home school teacher for her five children, Cyndi Farmer of Milledgeville rarely gets the recognition she deserves. That is, until her daughter Jeanna, 10, submitted an essay on why her mom is her favorite teacher. Her mother has taught her how to be "a godly woman, a keeper of the home, a cook, a nurse, a loving mother and wife," Jeanna said in her essay. "She's always there to help me whenever I need anything." Farmer's other students are Caleb, 15, Alayna, 13, Micha, 11, and Katryna, 7. She and her husband, Craig, decided to homeschool when Caleb was 4, Farmer said. "I think the definite benefit of home school is that many kids in public school have a lot of peer pressure," she said. "We're able to teach the kids how to deal with it and work on the things they struggle with." Farmer works with the kids daily on math, English, heritage studies and science, using workbooks and taped lessons the children can watch in their rooms. Jeanna's favorite subject is science, and she often works on projects with her mom. "I like to do the experiments and learn how stuff grows, like people, plants and animals," Jeanna said. Sometimes the children work in their own rooms; other times they work together at the family's oval dining room table. "The great challenge is that their education is on my shoulders," Farmer said. "I want to make sure that they get everything they need before they go off to college." Reach Tara Becker at 815-625-3600 or 800-798-4085, ext. 570.