Getting Started

Every year as summer winds down, inspiration strikes me when I’m shopping at my favorite store. You know, the one with the hypnotizing bull’s-eye and all that inviting redness? When the water guns disappear and are replaced by colorful displays of glue, markers, and folders, I want to pull a school list from the end […]

Simplifying Your School Morning When it’s time to go back to school, it’s not easy to get everyone up, fed, dressed, and ready for school, especially when it still feels like summer outside. If you’re not a morning person, it is even harder to think straight when you are rushing around trying to get things done. […]

Raising Globally Minded Kids One Book at a Time This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. How do you inspire kids to have a love for the world, while also inspiring them to love reading? Obviously, having access to good books is a start. Jamie Martin makes this job easier with her […]

Are You a Homeschool Planner Drop Out? Even before I was a homeschool mom I’ve loved planners. Well, I mean I’ve loved the idea of planners. I have purchased big ones and little ones, all beautifully inspiring in their own way. Unfortunately, that’s about where I stop. I’ve had a few successful months of planning, […]

When we started homeschooling, we were living in a tiny house. I mean, really tiny. And, the only place I had for “doing school” was our kitchen table, which was in the middle of our small 1930s kitchen and also the center for meals, craft projects, games, and gathering in general. All of my school […]

What’s your homeschooling style? Our homeschooling style, if I had to label it, would be academic/Charlotte Masonish/hands-on/eclectic/hodgepodge. As a new homeschool mom, I found a curriculum that we loved, but I soon discovered that we needed to branch out from it for some subject areas. Letting go of the compulsion to check off all the boxes, […]

Being Mom When You’re the Teacher When your kids are little, your role as mom is intertwined with your role as teacher. From birth, your kids are learning as you are teaching them EVERYTHING. Even before homeschooling “officially” begins, you are already established as your kids’ teacher – you teach them how to walk, talk, […]

Families Homeschool for Diverse Reasons There are as many different reasons families homeschool as there are homeschooling families. For many, homeschooling is a calling. Some say it is a necessity, and others simply say it is a choice. Regardless of the reasons families choose home education, each individual must make the decision freely, and both parents […]

Hitting a mid-year slump in your homeschool?  Here are 13 ways to gain a new perspective as we begin a brand new year: Purge old papers and books, and re-organize your school space. Sort out what you need to keep for each child’s portfolio, and get rid of the rest. Chunk what isn’t working. If […]

Here it is–your permission slip: You have permission to adapt your curriculum to meet your needs.  You really do. I promise. One of the most challenging things I face, even after many (12 so far) years of homeschooling, is giving myself permission NOT to check off all of the boxes on my instructor’s guide schedule […]

It seems to be a well-known phenomenon among homeschool moms that the “January blues” settle in shortly after the holidays. Feelings of not being as far along as we wanted to be can become overwhelming, and the “shorter” days and yucky weather seem to add to the stress. Just knowing that I’m not the only one […]

Embracing the “Light Bulb” Moments Our homeschool changed drastically this year, and I wanted to wait to share it with you after we’d had a chance to get into a routine. Our Family Story As a blog manager, I work part time from home. My husband works full time outside the home, and we spend […]