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Homeschooled Moms Homeschooling Our Next Generation

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  • Homeschooling 101
    • Homeschool How-To
    • Hands-On Homeschool
    • Real-Life Homeschooling
  • Ask a NextGen Homeschooler
    • Your Questions Answered
    • NextGen Perspectives
    • Why We Homeschool
  • Homeschool Encouragement
    • Faith & Family
    • Ten Things to Let Go of This Year
  • Homeschool Encouragement

    Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: The Schedule

    - By Renée Gotcher

    I am one of those list-making/calendar-posting/digital-app-updating Type A mamas who thought I would have no trouble keeping it all together once we started homeschooling. After all, I’m a former editorial manager who steered multiple magazine sections like a tight ship, with an assignments timeline whiteboard up in my office leading the way and a project management spreadsheet keeping all my…

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  • Homeschool Encouragement

    Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: “School”

    - By Renée Gotcher

    You might already be asking yourself: What do you mean let go of school? Isn’t homeschooling all about school at home? Yes and no — and the longer I homeschool, the more I understand the “no” side. Let me explain… When we started homeschooling, I thought I was being pretty out of the…

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  • Faith & Family - NextGen Perspectives

    Tango With Traditions or Time For Our Own?

    - By Renée Gotcher

    I love the idea of traditions just as much as the next person, and the warm and fuzzy feelings that word evokes in my heart. However, I’ll admit that, try as I might to establish and keep traditions, I’ve really struggled over the years with consistency. Which is a problem…

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  • Faith & Family

    Strategies to Slow Down & Savor the Season

    - By Renée Gotcher

    Can you believe Thanksgiving is less than one week away? Ready or not, the retail rush into the holidays has been in full force for weeks now, with Christmas displays up at some stores in my town even before Halloween! And I’ve been inundated with email ads from businesses that can’t even wait for Black…

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  • Homeschool Encouragement - NextGen Perspectives

    Five Reasons I’m Thankful for Homeschooling

    - By Renée Gotcher

    As a NextGen Homeschooler, I am thankful for my own homeschooling experience as well as the opportunity to homeschool my own daughters now. Homeschooling has come a long way since the mid-80s when my mom started homeschooling: From more curriculum options and enrichment programs to public funding for homeschooling co-ops. Homeschooling is…

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  • Homeschool Encouragement - Homeschool How-To

    31 Days of Homeschool How-To: Find Support

    - By Renée Gotcher

    Welcome to our October “31 Days” series at NextGen Homeschool: 31 Days of Homeschool How-To Tips! As NextGen Homeschoolers, we remember what it was like to be homeschooled ourselves, and our experiences as students have helped shape many of our best systems and strategies today. In the next 31 days, we’ll be…

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  • Homeschool How-To

    31 Days of Homeschool How-To: Unit Studies

    - By Renée Gotcher

    Welcome to our October “31 Days” series at NextGen Homeschool: 31 Days of Homeschool How-To Tips! As NextGen Homeschoolers, we remember what it was like to be homeschooled ourselves, and our experiences as students have helped shape many of our best systems and strategies today. In the next 31 days, we’ll be…

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  • Homeschool How-To

    31 Days of Homeschool How-To: Save Money

    - By Renée Gotcher

    Welcome to our October “31 Days” series at NextGen Homeschool: 31 Days of Homeschool How-To Tips! As NextGen Homeschoolers, we remember what it was like to be homeschooled ourselves, and our experiences as students have helped shape many of our best systems and strategies today. In the next 31 days, we’ll be…

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  • Homeschool How-To

    31 Days of Homeschool How-To: Daily Routine

    - By Renée Gotcher

    Welcome to our October “31 Days” series at NextGen Homeschool: 31 Days of Homeschool How-To Tips! As NextGen Homeschoolers, we remember what it was like to be homeschooled ourselves, and our experiences as students have helped shape many of our best systems and strategies today. In the next 31 days, we’ll…

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  • back to school
    Real-Life Homeschooling

    When Back-to-School Isn’t Picture Perfect

    - By Renée Gotcher

    What do you remember most about the back-to-school season of your youth? The smell of freshly sharpened pencils, perfectly tipped crayons and a clean backpack? Picking out a cooler lunchbox? Laying out your first day’s wardrobe, complete with scuff-free school shoes & coordinating hair accessories? Making plans to sit next to your…

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  • Homeschool How-To

    Homeschooling in a Dual-Purpose Room

    - By Renée Gotcher

    Welcome to our family front room slash dining room slash daily homeschool area! We have been homeschooling in a dual-purpose room for the past four years, and I have reorganized this room every summer to better combine its many functions. For starters, it’s the first room you see when you walk in the…

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  • NextGen Perspectives

    Does Common Core Affect Homeschoolers?

    - By Renée Gotcher

    As a homeschool blogger and leader in my local homeschool support group, I get a lot of questions about Common Core. Questions like: “What’s the deal with Common Core? Why should I be concerned? Does Common Core affect homeschoolers?“ I’ve even met parents who’ve decided to homeschool or are considering homeschooling…

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