Vietnamese single mother raises two children through travel and self-study

At 6 a.m. on an early November morning, inside a mobile home parked in Son Tra Ward in Da Nang, Thi urged her daughter, Nhu Y, 14, to log into her online sewing class.

While her daughter was in class, she phoned her son, Duy Thanh, to ask about his life in the dormitory of Vietnamese-German University in HCMC.

In early September, he was admitted to the university’s electrical and computer engineering program on the strength of a GED certificate (equivalent to a U.S. high school diploma), an IELTS score of 7.5, and an SAT score of 1,390. These results came from Thanh’s five years of self-study.

The family’s nomadic life began following a tragedy in 2020. At the time, the HCMC native was working as an accountant while her husband was a bus driver. He was diagnosed with cancer and passed away within two months.

Having lost her income after taking time off to care for her husband, she moved back to her mother’s house with her two children, selling yogurt at the local market and crocheting to make ends meet.

After his father’s passing, Thanh, then 12 years old, became addicted to video games. Meanwhile, the memory of her husband’s cancer made Thi pay greater attention to their living environment and food sources. She began researching in online communities of people who had left the city for the countryside

By 2021, Thi sold her house and land, and moved her two children from HCMC to a house borrowed from a friend in Cu M’gar Commune in the central Dak Lak Province.

Living alongside the Ede ethnic minority people, she noticed local children often accompanied their parents to the fields in the morning and attended school in the afternoon, yet remained healthy, had strong immune systems, and were helpful to others.

This observation prompted her to redesign her children’s education.

Taking advantage of the shift to online schooling during the Covid-19 pandemic, she enrolled her two children in homeschooling under the United States’ Acellus program, which cost US$25 per month. All subjects were taught in English.

To tackle her son’s gaming addiction, she handed him a hoe to till the soil and clear weeds. She involved both children in tasks such as painting and repairing abandoned houses and building cabinets.

Every day, Thanh went out with friends to play in the rain and splash around in streams, and helped tend fields of okra, scallions, cilantro, and radishes.

Thanks to the increased outdoor physical activity, he spent significantly less time on his computer.

Each month, she took her children to agricultural workshops where they learned to saw bamboo to build trellises for sponge gourds, prepare soil for growing vegetables, and study clean agriculture models, how biomass stoves work, and how to recycle biochar byproducts.

To earn an income, Thi sold farm produce online and referred guests to homestays. Their nomadic life began when the family started relocating every three to six months, moving through places such as Hue, Da Nang, Binh Dinh Province, and Tuy An Nam Commune in Dak Lak Province.

Duy Thanh (first from the right) during a community activity in Tuy An Nam Commune, Dak Lak Province, in 2025. Photo courtesy of Thi

In mid-2023, while renting a home near the coast of Tuy An Nam, she sent Thanh to help out at Phuoc Luu’s coffee shop in Lo Village to gain real-world experience. Over three months, he waited tables, looked after the dogs, tended the garden, and learned how to make drinks.

Outside of work hours, Thanh went swimming in the ocean with local children and studied on his computer in the evening.

When Luu opened a community bookstore next to the coffee shop, Thanh helped clean, set up the premises, and plant vegetables and flowers with the younger kids. His strong English skills allowed him to serve foreign customers.

He also joined trekking, camping, and waterfall expeditions, helping carry gear, cook meals, take photos, and support others.

“The boy completely changed after that summer, becoming proactive, lively, and outgoing,” Luu says.

To make moving easier, in early 2025, Thi purchased and renovated an old mobile home for VND800 million. The shower area was downsized to make room for a kitchen cabinet and a washing machine. Inside this vehicle, Nhu Y has a dedicated corner for sewing, embroidery, and playing the violin.

Both her children are now in charge of their own study schedules. Thi only monitors the schedules and uses an app to track the total hours they study each day..

“There is no single best educational environment for everyone, only an environment that fits each child,” Thi says about her family’s five-year journey.