For us, family travel is a legacy: It’s a priceless inheritance that’s been passed on from one generation to the next. From immigrant families that established new roots in the United States to pioneering families who headed west and farming families who settled down across the plains, my husband’s family […]
Category: Real-Life Homeschooling
Homeschool advice from NextGen Homeschool Moms about the ins and outs of real-life homeschooling experiences.
4 min read
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Homeschool Graduates: The Next Chapter
Many readers know that our two daughters are homeschool graduates: They both graduated from our homeschool when they were 16. Now that several years have passed, I thought it would be a good time to update everyone on how they are doing post-graduation. Our First Graduate Our eldest daughter, Hannah, will be 22 next […]
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Three Generations at Teach Them Diligently
This was my third year attending a Teach Them Diligently Convention. The biggest blessing of the conference this year was being able to attend with three generations of my family: My mom, who homeschooled us in the 1980s, my homeschooling sister and sister-in-law, and three of our homeschooled daughters. My mom, […]
4 min read
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Learning Continues Despite Life’s Distractions
Even after 10 years of homeschooling, my biggest challenge is still consistency. Because of our lifestyle — owning two busy donut shops — my plans are interrupted on an almost daily basis. Add to that the recent chaos of building a house, selling a house, moving to the new house, and […]
3 min read
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Spring Dilemma: Must We Finish Curriculum?
With the joy and sunshine of spring comes this very familiar reader question each year: “I feel like the end of this school year is coming much faster that I want it to, and I’m worried that I need to finish every textbook and lesson from the curriculum that we’re using […]
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: Not Qualified
One of the top reasons for not homeschooling that I hear from parents is that they don’t feel qualified to teach their children. They believe that if they don’t know Chemistry or Calculus, or whatever the subject, this lack of knowledge will hinder their child’s education. Personally, I don’t struggle with this concern or give it merit because: […]
2 min read
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Real-Life Homeschooling: A Day in Our Life
Last week I got to thinking about how our homeschool days have been flowing… all over the house. So I decided to take a few pictures of where we “did school” throughout the day to give you a glimpse of what real-life homeschooling looks like for our family. On this particular day, I was late getting […]
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Thankful to Homeschool When Life Happens
I’m going to be honest here: This year has been particularly hard. Life has gotten pretty crazy with major changes for our business, home and family, including the building and development of newly purchased property while trying to sell our existing home. My well-laid homeschool plans have had to be […]
3 min read
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Back to School at Guardian Academy, First Day
If I had to sum up our first day of school here at the Ward house in one word, it would be “hectic.” But hey, that is just my life right now. Because of some changes in our business, I have to go into town and close the donut shops […]
5 min read
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When Back-to-School Isn’t Picture Perfect
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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Guardian Academy Curriculum Plan, Part 1
I love new beginnings! I had started planning for this new school year even before the last one ended. This coming year I will be teaching my son Joel (4th grade), Leif (almost 4 and loves to be included), and two of my neices (9th and 8th grade). And I will […]
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“Freedom Worth Defending” – 29th Annual Oklahoma Homeschool Capitol Day
Our family decided to attend this year’s Oklahoma Homeschool Capitol Day. I took our two daughters to this event seven years ago, when our son Joel was only a year old. Hannah had made homemade apple pies for our Representative and Senator. We hadn’t attended since then because the girls […]