How long is a typical homeschool day and how does it compare with the hours of a day in public school? Many parents, new to homeschooling, wrongly assume that they should homeschool for the same length of time as their public school counterparts.  In general, a homeschool day is much shorter than that of a traditional

There are no tags on any of my child’s clothes. When she needs new clothes, we spend hours in dressing rooms trying to find ones that are comfortable. Deeply intuitive, in need of quiet downtime, challenged by change, a perfectionist, she is not alone. There are, in fact, two people in my family of four

When I first started explored the possibility of homeschooling, I resisted. Hard. I thought of dozens of reasons why I couldn’t, why I shouldn’t. I insisted. I protested. And, as you can probably guess, I eventually accepted that homeschooling was the best option for my son.  One of my chief concerns was that I valued my relationship with

EPISODE 164 Homeschooling has challenges, finding support shouldn’t to be one of them. Support can help us when the homeschool day proves particularly tough. If you find yourself in an environment where you don’t have support, create your own!  Join Janna as she chats with Laura, a mother who homeschools in Europe.  Listen in Laura

There’s no doubt that there are very defined preferences among homeschoolers about whether or not to use secular and faith-neutral curriculum. I’ve heard these very pointed questions when it comes to evaluating curriculum: We have chosen to homeschool for non-religious reasons, so the debate of whether or not to use secular curriculum is not difficult for

The BookShark binder* is huge. It has to be to fit all of the information, lessons, and activity sheets included in the 36-week curriculum. We need the Instructor’s Guide that goes in the binder, but thankfully we don’t need to lug it around.  There are several ways we can keep our BookShark materials organized and accessible without wrangling a 3-inch

Having a child who lives with anxiety can often be an overwhelming experience. It’s painful for us, as parents, to watch our children struggle with the weight of anxiety disorder. We work tirelessly to help them learn coping mechanisms, develop strategies for managing their anxiety, and help them live their best lives. What if there was

If you’ve ever doubted yourself as a homeschooler, you’re not alone. No matter how many years we homeschool, doubt can get loud. Seeds of doubt plant germinate and sprout when our kids struggle, when we’re tired, when our kids say they are bored, or when learning stagnates. When worry rears its head, our inclination might be

We all suffer from information overload at times. When there is too much detail or too much to digest, we tend to shut down and not assimilate any of it in a meaningful way. The same is true for students. Some learning tools are overwhelming. For example, traditional maps and atlases that have hundreds of labels can

Are you in a season of on-the-go-schooling? Are you out exploring the world more than you’re at home? I know I am! Museum visits, sports practices, dentist appointments, weekend trips, co-op classes, piano lessons and countless hours in the car blanket our week. This constant motion means that our homeschooling has to be flexible. Sometimes reading assignments are