Noelle Robinson may not be one for the spotlight like mom Cynthia Bailey, but she will be a success if mom has anything to say about it. Cynthia recently took to her blog to talk about her decision to home school her daughter after Noelle’s grades and self-esteem began to fall because of bullying.
“The environment for her became one that was spirit-breaking as opposed to spirit-lifting. I know my child very well, and she was not flourishing,” wrote Bailey. “I noticed that her behavior went from confident, strong, smart, and happy to low self-esteem, quiet, withdrawn, and sad. Her eating habits changed, grades dropped, and she started biting her nails uncontrollably. It was heartbreaking, and I felt so helpless.”
Instead of watching her daughter go down the wrong path, Cynthia decided to do something drastic. “I was literally dropping her off one morning for school and was kissing her good-bye when I paused for a moment to look at her, and I did not like what I saw. That was it for me, I was done. I told her to get back in the car and took her home. I immediately felt a sense of relief, and guilt left my body. I knew I was doing the right thing. I never had any regrets, and I never looked back. Noelle was home schooled for the rest of the year,” explained the model.
Although the 12-year-old is now doing well both academically and socially at her new school that Bailey and her husband enrolled her in after a year of home schooling, Cynthia does not recommend that every parent take their child out of mainstream schooling at the first sign of distress. As the model puts it, “Finding the right school for your child is very individual. What works for one child may not work for another. A mother’s love and instinct is very powerful, there is nothing like it.”
It is certain that Noelle has a bright future ahead of her with mom by her side.
