Along the Way Homeschooling

 Textbooks: methodical. Thoroughly covers the baselines. Easy to look ahead and see what you’ll be learning next (both I and my daughter benefit from anticipation and planning). Gives you practice in the educational system used by colleges. Often specifically written in a way to help the student develop in that subject. —my daughter was so much more excited about school when I bought her a workbook because she could look ahead at the cute pages to come. Charlotte Mason: reading living books can be more enriching than relying on textbooks alone. Creative regurgitation as a learning/retention method makes so much sense. And it is closer to what you will need in real life (outside of the educational system). —my daughter already loves telling me all about everything she learns. Classical: You really do develop your brain to match what you’re immersed in. I can see a huge difference in children who watch mindless cartoons vs ones who engage with quality material. Plus, the cycles make ...

 My mom started homeschooling when there were very few options for curriculum. The curriculum selections had expanded somewhat by the time she was homeschooling me. But that was nothing in comparison to the number of options available today. I knew it was going to be a lot. But, guys… IT REALLY IS A LOT! There are more curriculum options than I can count. And variations for different learning styles. But, on top of that, we have multiple educational philosophies and approaches to homeschooling. We’re not just comparing textbook A against textbook B. No, we’re comparing the idea of textbooks themselves against a host of different approaches.  Do you want to read your textbook and fill out your multiple choice questions? Or maybe check a book out from the library, read it, and then “teach” it to your mom by giving an oral report or making a creative poster? Or maybe immerse yourself in the works of the greatest minds so that you learn to truly think deeply and discover this worl...

 When my firstborn was born, I started checking the CDC Milestone checklist each month. For me, this was not a source of worry, but a way to bring awareness of her development. I loved having that monthly reminder to marvel at her growth. She was pretty average — ahead on some things, matching on others, behind on a couple. But I never had to intervene. I just sat back and watched her grow. Maybe she couldn’t kick the ball this month, but a month later, all on her own, she was kicking a ball all over the yard and having a blast. It was fascinating! My job has been simply to present the tools (for example, keeping a ball around) and watch her take off with them when she’s ready. But I had this question in my mind — how far will this take her? Can it continue into her school years? Sure, a baby has an internal drive to learn how to roll over or to walk. But what about learning to count? Or studying US history? Or mastering punctuation? My firstborn is almost five now. We’re in presch...