Z is for Zoos

Posted on August 26, 2017 by Barb

Z is for zoos… and then there are museums and parks and arboretums and many more educational destinations you’ll find outside your home.

Yes, you need to be home in order to homeschool. But you also need to include the outside world if your children are to be truly educated. Learning about the world around them is key; since kids love and thrive on experiential learning, taking them regularly to zoos and other fun and educational places is well worth your time and effort. (Let’s face it: it’s fun for us, too!)

I hope you’ve enjoyed “The ABCs of Homeschooling” this summer. See you in September!

Y is for Years

Posted on August 25, 2017 by Barb

Y is for years. Your children are home with you for a limited number of years. When they’re little, those years stretch ahead so far that it makes you feel like you have plenty of time before your children are grown and on their own. But those of us whose children are now young adults can vouch for the fact that the child-rearing years went pretty quickly, all things considered.

By homeschooling your children, you get to enjoy their childhood: all of it, not just before school when they’re rushing out to catch the bus, or after school when they’re tired and cranky. You get the best of them each day.

Someday you’ll look back at all your fond memories and be thankful that you were there to see your children catch on to reading, make art masterpieces and master fractions. You will treasure your homeschooling years.

Which stage of homeschooling are you in?

X is for X-Rated

Posted on August 24, 2017 by Barb

X is for X-rated. The world of children has become increasingly provocative. Girls’ dolls are made to look sleazy, as are girls’ clothes. Meanwhile, boys are encouraged to play video games and watch movies that objectify women and present them with visual images they’re far too young to handle.

One of the advantages of homeschooling is that you can limit how often and how much your children are exposed to an X-rated world. Instead, they can enjoy the once-common innocence of childhood that previous generations enjoyed.

Now available: the 3^rd edition of Life Prep for Homeschooled Teenagers, completely revised and expanded. Check it out!

W is for Wisdom

Posted on August 23, 2017 by Barb

W is for wisdom. There’s very little wisdom found among young peers in the schoolyard. But homeschooled kids can gain wisdom from their parents and grandparents, as well as other family members, neighbors and the adults with whom they come into contact during their daily lives out in the real world. Homeschooled kids also have the opportunity to read classic books (as opposed to modern textbooks) where even more wisdom is available for the taking. Increased access to wisdom is one of the many advantages to homeschooling your children.

How do you prepare your children for the new 21^st century economy? By raising them to thrive!

V is for Vacations

Posted on August 22, 2017 by Barb

V is for vacations. One of the many benefits of homeschooling is that it frees you from the school calendar and lets your family take vacations during the school year, when tourist havens are uncrowded and so are the beaches.

We often took vacations in May and September and spent the hot, muggy summer afternoons doing school in our air-conditioned house. It was a win-win situation. When we traveled, our kids loved when we drove past schools with children trapped in classrooms while they were free to have fun.

In May 2000, we watched a shuttle launch at Cape Canaveral in Florida and were tickled to see that many of the cars, vans and campers lining the road near where the spectators stood had bumper stickers proclaiming homeschool status. Let’s hear it for vacations any time of the year!

Prepare your children for the future: read my book, Thriving in the 21^st Century: Preparing Your Children for the New Economic Reality.