Eight-year-old Zhang Hongwu asked the visitors to his home a rather strange question.

"Do you know why bananas ripen more quickly when they're wrapped in plastic bags?" he said.

"Because they create a kind of gas that can make them ripen faster. The bags stop the gas from escaping," he said, impressing the visitors with his precocious question-and-answer routine.

Zhang sounds a little smarter than his peers because he is. His father Zhang Qiaofeng, a graduate of the prestigious Peking University, quit his job in 2011 to start teaching little Zhang at home. Zhang Hongwu learns math, Chinese, English and science from his father, as well as participates in extracurricular activities, such as painting and swimming.

As a single father, Zhang Qiaofeng has been able to devote all of his time toward his son's education, sharing his experience with other parents on his microblog on 163.com, a popular Chinese online community.

Many of Zhang Sr.'s posts have been popular on 163.com, with some of them forwarded hundreds of times by parents, teachers and educators. Some of his followers have consulted him for educational advice, with others even encouraging him to establish an educational institution.

"Parents should be more like mentors, rather than teachers. We should cultivate children's creativity instead of teaching them to memorize," Zhang said.

Other homeschooling parents have also harnessed the Internet to connect with each other and share their challenges and successes. QQ, a popular instant messaging program, features several groups dedicated to homeschooling, including the self-proclaimed "Association for Homeschooling Children."

The group usually hosts two or three daily topics of discussion, with parents posting pictures of their children and exchanging experience. Group member "zaozaoba" said he and his wife chose to teach their daughter at home two years ago in order to create more room for the girl's development.

However, not everyone has jumped on the homeschooling bandwagon. Some are skeptical about taking children out of an environment where they are exposed to a variety of people and situations.

"Socialization is a key element for a child. Homeschooling will not provide the child with enough interaction with the outside world," wrote netizen "sonykids12345" on Zhang Sr.'s microblog.

Li Xiaoling, a senior member of the "Assocation for Homeschooling Children" and an organizer of charitable activities for children, said that the charitable activities have largely "enriched the lives of homeschooled children."

On Valentine's Day this year, eight parents and their children went to downtown Beijing to sell roses to passersby, donating more than 2,000 yuan to a school that was affected by an earthquake in southwest China, Li said.

"We sold toys in neighborhoods in May and June and donated the earnings to poor students," Li said, adding that more people are joining them "no matter what kind of education their children are receiving."

"More parents are paying attention to our efforts through the Internet, but they should be prudent before starting homeschooling, as it is highly demanding for parents," Li said.

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