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…
Tag: travel with kids
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 awhile. Ten years ago we had an idea to try homeschooling so we…
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…
Road Trip Basics
Me and my adventurous sibs, Smokey Mountains, 1971. I remember family road trips when I was a kid with vivid detail. My parents, two siblings and I would jam into our dark cherry red Oldsmobile F85 (lovingly nicknamed, “the Bomb”) and drive the three-point-five hours from Indianapolis to grandma’s house in southern Indiana about once…
Risk-taking, Relationships, and Trust
When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it. –Paulo Coelho in the Alchemist Recently, I had the good fortune to sit down with long-time friends Bj and Jess Gumkowski (world renowned athletes, teachers, coaches, nutritionists and generally higher level humans) to chat about life a bit. As she gestures, open hands to the…
My Multiverse
Are you familiar with the word “multiverse?” According to the dictionary, it refers to a hypothetical collection of identical (or diverse) universes, including our own. I wonder what my alternate universe life might look like? When homeschooling teens, your world changes lightning fast. The coursework is increasingly hard; the questions and discussions: intense. The emotions…
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