Summer Reading How-to Guide

Warm sunshine, cool breezes, gentle rains, sunrises, lazy mornings, beach afternoons, and late nights are all perfect times to read. Reading more (like drinking water or increasing activity!) is a powerful lifestyle change almost everyone aspires to make. Small changes in daily habits can greatly improve our well-being and enjoyment of life. I can’t help…

Our Power to Pivot

It’s that time of year! Homeschool courses have been carefully chosen, books purchased, and field trips planned. It’s almost October, and we are off and running! And then. What if one or more of the courses is flat? The kids aren’t interested, the website is too complicated, or the material is not resonating. Now what?…

Piano People

When I was a little girl, I wanted to play the piano more than anything. At around 7 or 8 years old, I often walked into our neighborhood piano teacher’s house and sat on her hallway bench to listen to her play. I signed myself up for lessons one day, and my parents were horrified….

Master Your Homeschool Mission

This may be redundant, but with the renewed attention to homeschools everywhere, I don’t mind repeating: Every family is unique, and each homeschool is different. If you are considering a switch to homeschool life, the best way to start is by establishing some ground rules. Think about your family’s core values, goals, and overall vision…

Home Sweet (Home) School

It’s a beautiful thing, sitting here, on the other side of fierce and giant and scary risk. I do like to dip my toes in things that scare me, but right now, I am happy to bask in my comfort zone for a while. Ten years ago, we had an idea to try homeschooling so…

Brave, Strong, Smart.

“Motherhood is not meant to be done alone,” she said. As I read this in an Instagram post, it hit me like a punch. Though I do have Tony’s help and support always, the homeschool role in our family is largely my responsibility. Where we live, there is not a real homeschool mom group where I can…

What is ‘Normal’ Anyway?

“Your kids will never be normal,” a friend said to me with a smile as we snacked on fresh guacamole and homemade chips. It was unusually windy that day. We had to stand in a wide stance so each leg could alternate, absorbing our weight as the boat swayed from one side to the other, our…

Sharing the Love: Curriculum Ideas for High School

‘Education is not the filling of a pot but the lighting of a fire.’ –W.B. Yeats Some traditional schoolers think that a homeschool teacher teaches every upper-class subject from Calculus to Physics to World History. This is not how homeschooling high school works. A homeschool teacher at this stage is more like a counselor/advisor/course coordinator….

Poetry, the Easy Way

“Without poetry, we lose our way.”   —Joy Harjo, current U.S. Poet Laureate & Academy of American Poets Chancellor A favorite children’s book with beautiful illustrations by Jean Pierre Siméon; paintings by Oliver Tallec. … Want to add in some easy poetry to your homeschool world? Start by checking out poets.org.  Housing the works of over 3,000…

Hey Mama, Welcome to the Club!

I want to extend a hearty welcome to all the new Homeschool Mamas out there. And there are a lovely lot of you! There are a thousand reasons to homeschool, all grounded in quality of education, health, safety, travel, opportunity, personal development, experience, sports, etc. But sadly the number one reason many people are driven…