I have been homeschooling for 10 years now, and I’ve never really questioned our decision to homeschool. I have always enjoyed teaching my kids and being there for the “lightbulb” moments on their educational journeys. Don’t get me wrong: Homeschooling is hard, […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Mother & Teacher: How Do You Wear Both Hats?
When I first started homeschooling my two middle-school-aged daughters more than 10 years ago, I remember really struggling with the mother vs. teacher dynamic right off the bat. I thought that homeschooling my girls would bring us closer by adding “teacher” to the roles […]
NextGen Perspectives
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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 […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Tools to Help You Bloom as a Homeschool Mama
Although I’m a NextGen homeschooler and had a positive personal experience with homeschooling, I struggled with many of the same doubts and fears — the “big fat lies” — that all homeschool mamas face, and I didn’t homeschool from the […]
Faith & Family / Homeschool Encouragement
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Find Freedom From Your Homeschooling Fears
Fear often holds us back in our homeschooling journey and robs us of the joy God has in store for us as we teach our children and create deeper relationships with them. I have yet to meet a homeschooler who hasn’t struggled […]
Homeschool Encouragement / Real-Life Homeschooling
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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 […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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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 […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Finding Relief for Homeschool Burnout
There are many reasons why homeschooling parents can experience burnout during the school year. It could be seasonal (a long winter), topical (curriculum feels stale), or more personal (family crisis, illness). It may even get to a point that you […]
Faith & Family
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: Fear
Fear often holds us back in our homeschooling journey and robs us of the joy God has in store for us as we teach our children and create deeper relationships with them. I have yet to meet a homeschooler who hasn’t struggled […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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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, […]
Faith & Family
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: Being Overprotective
There seems to be an epidemic of helicopter parenting in our country today… Or maybe it’s just in my suburban neighborhood. But I also notice it a lot in the homeschooling community. In fact, for many parents, being able to better protect their […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: Sensitivity
When I first started homeschooling more than 10 years ago, I felt a lot of pressure and judgment — not only from outsiders, but also family members and even my own children. For those first few years, I was very sensitive and […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: The Schedule
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 […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: Perfect House
If you are expecting to have the same clean, picture-perfect house you had (or imagined you would have) when your kids left the house for six hours a day to attend school, you may be striving for the unattainable as […]
Homeschool Encouragement
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Ten Things to Let Go of This Year: Scope & Sequence
I have written before about my love for lists and all things organizational, and with that came a love of scope and sequences. I love being able to check off a skill my child learns — especially when it is earlier […]