Whether you homeschool or not, I'd love to hear your thoughts on education. What was your experience like in school? What are your top homeschool tips? Let us know and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog. Thank you for watching! Love, Jennifer
I went to a private Christian school that had individualized learning with PACES. I took the college prep track and was very well prepared for college.
Bable wouldn't let me sign up. It said my email was already registered, then it said my email was invalid. I ditched duolingo because it was overwhelmingly pushing a cultural narrative witb the stories and sentence choices. I tried Pimsleur, but it was too fast paced, and mostly verbal only. I personally need to see written language to comprehend well. What is your view on Bable in these regards?
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I was homeschooled by “pioneer” parents way back in the early ‘90s, K-12. They used a pretty traditional approach, with the ACE curriculum. (There wasn’t much available back then.) I have 5 siblings, and I will say, they were very successful in that all of us LOVE learning. They did well in giving us opportunity and encouragement to pursue our interests, so all of us are skilled in various things like music, woodworking, art, sports, etc... My husband and I homeschool our three sons, my husband became really excited about unschooling, but to be honest it stresses me out to not have the structure, so I am planning to incorporate a few of the core subjects with ACE curriculum. However, I’ve observed my kids do learn so much by watching interesting videos on history, science, etc... and it sticks in their minds because they are enjoying it, rather than crying and seething over pages of dull, boring facts and dates and names which they will forget immediately, like I did. So I plan to continue trying to keep it as enjoyable as possible, just add a few things to help them for their future.
I want to shout out a warning to you about switching curriculum! If you are using Abeka for math now, DO NOT SWITCH! People complain that Abeka is hard, but it is progressive, too. If you begin with Abeka, do not deviate. You will regret it if you do. We allowed our oldest son to switch to Math-u-see for Geometry. He finished that year of math in a couple months and felt like he hadn't learned a thing! He actually requested we get the Abeka Geometry the next year, which set him back, but he WANTED to learn it and he felt let down.
21 years of homeschooling and another 8 years to go. Things to know: 1) Greatest cause of homeschool burnout/failure is the household not running smoothly. 2) Education is not school. Children are sponges, born to learn. 3) Character training is key. 4) Establish your family's basic essentials for learning during busy times/illness/new babies/relocation. 5) Never judge how another family is educating their children. Unschoolers can end up at Harvard and classically-educated kids can reject it all at 18. 6) It is okay for a child to have to work to find an answer on their own. 7) A little boredom is a good thing. 8) Resist the urge to turn everything into a teachable moment. 9) If you knew how much of what you teach your children will be forgotten by their early twenties, you would stress less over the little things. 10) Seek out the true, the good, and the beautiful in your daily life. 11) Learning is not a race. 12) Do not brag to others about advanced readers, giftedness, or AP classes. It just makes you look small and competitive. 13) Don't be afraid to subcontract subjects to someone else. 14) Reevaluate on a yearly basis if homeschooling is still working for you.
I was in public school growing up and am now in my 10th year of homeschooling my children. I've learned that gaps in education happen whether they are in public school or homeschool. But I've also learned that kids will fill those gaps when the need arises! My daughter taught herself typing when she was younger (with the help of an online program she found herself) because she realized it would help her when she was writing stories on the computer. No coercing from me! I feel like the key is having a growth mindset for yourself, and your children will follow suit. It's that love of learning Jennifer is talking about. 😊 I am loving all these comments.
I was public schooled and have now homeschooled our own children for 20 + years. I could talk for ages on what I've learned! 1. Homeschooling is faster than public school. Fewer students = fewer distractions = school days ends sooner. A win for all! 2. Homeschooling does not need to look like public school. Let your kid do math up in a tree, on their bed, UNDER their bed if it works for them. 3. Subjects can be combined. Requiring your child to write a report for history also doubles as english, grammar, spelling, etc. 4. You do not need to know everything in order to teach it to your kids. That's what curriculum is for. You learn together. 5. I love homeschooling. The best part may be that as you teach life skills, character qualities and morals, you get to shape your kids into people you actually like and enjoy being around.
That is so true! I ‚like‘ my children even more now that we homeschool. Homeschooling allowed me to work on their behavior. They are very pleasant people now to be around.
Biggest lesson for me as a homeschool mom.... no education is perfect! I put so much pressure on myself in the early years and constantly felt like a failure. Now I am just trusting that my kids’ education (I have five of them) is a process just like everything else in life. Also, it’s important to give ourselves permission to change things up if something is not working. Lastly, this homeschool mom gig is an incredible life lesson in refining my own character as much as it is for my children 🥰
I’m not a parent yet but watching your videos makes me strongly consider homeschooling my kids! The flexibility, the efficiency, and the time you get to spend together seems priceless! I went to public school and my FH went to private.
I'm so glad I found your channel. You are lovely. I'm glad we've stayed consistent with math. It is definitely a subject that needs daily practice. What I wish I had known about homeschooling - it's OK to quit. In fact, quitting is for winners. It takes a lot of courage to quit what isn't working for your family.
I also learned to add non curriculum things like ethics and mindful training. Spending time together discussing current topics while playing games or hiking.
I admire and respect all of you home schooling parents. I do not home school but I am a preschool teacher and preschool director and have taught children with developmental delays as well as typical children for many, many years. The one thing I would add is to be sure to consult a professional if you have concerns about the development of your child as it relates to their education because early intervention can be important.
Whilst that’s true, it’s also true that more preparation more knowledge accumulation on a particular thing helps you make less mistakes. You’ll prevent avoidable mistakes. Yes you’ll still make mistakes but you just avoid some.
Oh those are truly words of wisdom.. I think we can apply that philosophy to SO many milestones in life.. growing up, getting married, becoming parents, pregnancy, .. anything 😮😮
Holy cow! Just discovered your channel today and I’m in love 😍 I have a 3 year old and 20 month old and I’m still figuring out homeschool preschool, and homemaking in general! THANK YOU for your representation of educated, dedicated homemakers. We need more examples in the world like you!
I was very blessed when my son was 3 to have wonderful older homeschooling mom friends who taught me the importance of letting younger children explore and love to learn without having to cross off tasks
#6 is real life homeschool! We are deep down a rabbit hole of filmmaking right now. My 7 year old is taking foley art and set design classes. I love the flexibility of homeschooling.
#1) Find curricula, books, topics and other learning resources that you, the parent, also want to learn. I started studying Shakespeare with my first grader this year and it just totally lit me up as I had always wanted to study his works and my son loved it too. That is now this totally special thing that we share. For next year I found a history curriculum I’m really excited about and another curriculum that is full of books that are new to us with diverse characters from around the world and we are both so excited we want second grade to start now! I think when a parent is genuinely interested in the topic that that energy rubs off on the child. And that excitement keeps me loving homeschooling, even when something like the tedium of phonics makes me want to go to sleep. 2) Not only be okay with going away from the curriculum or off on a rabbit trail, but being okay with taking what might have been a week-long subject and turning it into a month, a semester or more. Originally, we were going to do one Shakespeare play a month, that wasn’t nearly long enough, so we did 1/2 the year on A Midsummer Night’s Dream and half on Twelfth Night. The same went for folktales. We were going to read folktales and listen to traditional music of one country every month. We started with Ireland and there was just so much richness and beauty there that my son didn’t want to stop, so we didn’t. We did a half a year on that as well. I believe that general knowledge about a lot of topics is wonderful, but through this experience I learned that it is also enormously valuable to have a greater knowledge of a few things than perhaps a shallow appreciation or understanding of multiple topics. And even though we do use curricula in our homeschool, I have learned to follow my child’s lead within that. And in that way I can have my cake and eat it too, so to speak, by allowing child-led learning while also getting to utilize some of the truly amazing curricula out there.
I love this video! I found your channel through intermittent fasting, but I’m loving everything about it! I love learning along with my kids, and how homeschooling opens up a world of possibilities. We’re on our 5th year. Thank you for sharing your thoughts! 😊
I loved this! We’re finishing up our first year of homeschooling (kindergarten) and we used Abeka Academy. I don’t plan to buy their whole package again in the future, but I’m thankful we had some video instruction for some of the lessons since I was really nervous about teaching (I didn’t want to mess things up & not teach correctly or what my son needs to know). But after having this year under my belt I feel a lot more confident in hand-picking a curriculum for next year & not relying on the videos. But I’m so thankful that was there for our first year! So, I’m totally with you- never say never 😂
Love tip #6! I've got a boy who loves airplanes and mountains, and will spend hours learning about them. We just picked up a few books on the library so he could explore those topics more. Our history lessons on WWII may not be reaching him deeply right now, but he could certainly list the top 5 tallest mountains in the world. We will remember what interests us.
My mom is a retired middle school math teacher. She said her biggest frustration was that the school district switched curriculum every couple of years, giving the kids holes in their learning. It was not an outcome based decision, it was about spending grant money to justify requesting more.
I grew up before there was homeschooling. My mother would have been wonderful as she loved learning and did not finish high school until my brother graduated in 1970 and she got her diploma the same year thru night school for a GED. She made us read books on summer breaks and often she read to us and I know you read to your kids and that is such a gift. Happy this was good experience for your family. I think in the future kids will have many options for learning as this year taught us the changes for families and love to hear the stories of how they adapted. Thanks for sharing.
We homeschooled this year and I’m feeling the tug. I’d love to hear more about this from you. It’s hard to make the leap without homeschool friends or connections yet. I’d love to hear your reasons why you made the choice.
I am a public school French teacher and enjoyed watching this video. I think it would have been great to home school my 3 children but it’s not allowed in Germany.
I wished I knew consistency was the key of parenting. I wished others told me when I was a new mom. But it is not too late to learn no matter where I am in my parenting's journey. And I am glad to figure that out a couple months ago. And it has changed everything. Can't agree with you more on the first tip "Consistency is the key". Thanks again for sharing!
Okay, I’m loving this so far. Had to stop after your first point to say- YES on consistency. One of my favorite things from the 2019 Amblesideonline conference was the secret to success with that curriculum guide: “Just do it!”. Simple but transformative!
Merci! This Babbel sponsorship came at the perfect time for me, as I've finally decided to just go for it and and learn...French! I've learned some Spanish over the years but French has always seemed difficult. I hope Babbel will make it easier! I just completed Lesson 1 Course 6.
I’ve been homeschooling for 8 years. I NEVER planned to and most people were surprised I was taking it on. It’s been the best thing for my daughter. We’re preparing for high school next year....a whole other ballgame!
Dear Jennifer! I thank you for posting videos on homeschooling. My experience about regular public school is that kids do not have the opportunity to learn one on one if they do not understand from the get go because teachers have to teach other children so they just keep going. I also believe that they do a lot of extra work that is unnecessary. (Aso called" homework"). I amgoingto share one of the greatest tips I learned from a seasoned homeschooling mom. Well, we have 6 kids and currently homeschooling 5 at the moment. Since it is expensive to buy each one of them books we stick to one curriculum and everyone gets to use the same book. We just pass down the grade level to the next child and so forth. What we do is this: We use transparencies and a wet erase marker. This saves us money, paper, storage, etc. I hope that this tip can be helpful to you or your audience. 😉
I was waiting for this one! Yes and amen to all these tips! It has taken me 5+ years to learn these, but I'm happy about the journey. As many of my fellow homeschooling friends have said, we as the teacher or rather lead learner redeeming our own education through teaching our children. And the biggest takeway from the journey is, that we are truly teaching the Whole Child. Great video! Thank you. Also, could you tell me what you used for the Minecraft Science class? I have two boys and a young daughter that really enjoy Minecraft. Thanks!
Hi Jennifer, Consistency is the key to learning! Yes, the 3 R’s 😉 are essential. Learning to dig out information has taught our children to not be afraid of doing hard work; other than prayer, I believe it’s the key to our children starting their own businesses after graduation from our homeschool. Thanks for the shout out for my tip; busy-work can drag down children’s enthusiasm and desire to learn! Do share your new curriculum soon! All the best. Julie 🌷
My daughter is 11 yo and I started my own deschooling when she was just an infant, which isn't to say I have it all figured out.. no no no. :) But that my own learning is life-long. There is always more to learn about child-rearing, natural learning, etc. Our homeschooling journey is great fun and great growth for both of us. I couldn't ask for a better teacher!
Hi Jennifer, I just wanted to recommend Teachers Pay Teachers as a supplement to any curriculum you are using. They have wonderful teacher created lessons, crafts, and worksheets you can purchase. I treasure all your videos. Thank you and God Bless you and your family.
I love all your tips! I’m a very new homeschooling mom and would love to know what curriculum(s) you have chosen for your kids and your opinions about how effective you believe those curriculums to be.
I dont see anyone else commenting so I'll chime in. We use Mother of Divine Grace. It is Catholic but you don't have to be Catholic to use it. They use a mix of their own curriculum along with outside resources. It is is classical approach. We love it. It is also a satellite school, so if you enroll (which is super affordable) your children receive an accredited diploma & transcripts, and also a consultant who helps along the way. We love it. We are in our third year. As a beginning homeschooling mother, I felt overwhelmed with the options out there. They are truly infinite. And I was not a professional teacher before-- so combining curriculum of the different subjects one by one seemed impossible for me. That's when I started looking at a complete curriculum that have been compiled and tried. I do add special interests as they arise but I know for sure the basics are covered, and I just have to follow the list of tasks for the day. (This sets them up for independent learning later too, when they can follow the list themselves!) Anyway we love Mother of Divine Grace, check it out if you're interested !
This was a very informative and helpful video, Jennifer~a great resource, not only for new homeschooling folks, but for those who have been doing it for some time! Thank you. 🌸
Thank you for this! I'm currently "supplementing" my kindergartener's public school education with Charlotte Mason's "riches," because I fell in love with her method while I was research homeschooling during COVID. If I could ask, what method(s) or curriculum(s) do you follow with your homeschool?
Great video, gracias por mencionar mi humilde canal ! ❤️ I completely agree with consistency being #1. I have also enjoyed adding more poetry in, no doubt thanks to your influence and helping me appreciate it more.
I'm 55 and I can still remember the most of the Longfellow Poem. Someone must have made that really fun when I learned that because my kids did not memorize it. Both of my children went first grade through graduation in a tiny schools in Pownal, Maine and Gray/New Gloucester H. S., Gray, Maine. In the first through 8th grade they were in class with 12 to 14 kids, most of whom were together for the whole 8 years. It was the most amazing education. If something was strange, the teacher would call and ask if their dad just left on deployment (we were a Navy family, but we lived away from the base, because my husband wanted the only sailor he saw to be in the mirror.). My daughter's second grade teacher did a week long study of Puerto Rico, with food and maps so the children could learn about the place Melissa's dad was in. They had an amazing music teacher who actually recognized that my son could call out the key and hum music the first time he saw it. She had him tested and we found out he was highly gifted in music. So she has him join the Maine Children's Choir which he did until his voice changed. He could literally hit Celine Dion's range in "My Heart Will Go On). Ironically he's a deep treble, almost bass now. I think homeschooling is fantastic if the parent is educated enough to be able to teach/learn the curriculum. We had one at church who thought grocery shopping could be the entire math class in a week or watching movies could serve as geography. While that's not a bad thing in conjunction with an appropriate curriculum, these poor kids grew up under their mom's coattails, horribly unsocialized, and had never been told they were wrong, because when they made a mistake she just corrected herself before she sent it to wherever. I'm sure you are an amazing teacher. My best friend had two degrees, one in Russian studies and the second in Political Science. Her husband had a Masters in English, and they homeschooled their three kids, mostly her because they were in the Navy, too. Their daughter graduated high school at 16, started college at a junior College the first year and then went on to graduate from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Electrical Engineering at 19. She could not even rent an apartment because she wasn't of age, and probably would have been their best tenant and made mad money working for the Corps of Engineering in Vicksburg, Mississippi. That's the level of homeschooling mom I would imagine you are.
I am a homeschooling Mother of four as well. I'm curious how you manage time to teach all four, exercise?, make these videos, etc...? Two of my four have health issues, and I'm trying to manage homeschooling, exercise, getting healthier by losing 15lbs, and find time to even prepare lessons. I'd love to get your thoughts.
Great video!! I have always loved the Longfellow poem ...I was probably in 4th or 5th grade when I read it for Social Studies . This was in public school in the late 60's.
I was NEVER going to be that parent that gave their child cereal for dinner... I nearly died a thousand deaths when I did that the first time. I was sooo embarrassed, but so dang tired I couldn’t do anything else! It doesn’t happen often at all, but my child is healthy and happy and on days when I just can’t... cereal is king. Never say never!! PS We had to homeschool for 4 - 6 months in 2020 due to covid... I am NOT that mom. I learned that I have limits too. My kid is smart but needs competition to drive her. Praise God for teachers and peers.
Thank you for doing this video. It is so good! Can you please put a couple of links to the online learning that you truly love (besides babble)? For instance, starfall is very good for getting started reading...
Jennifer you are such an inspiration! I am scared of the thought of homeschooling, but at the same time I am very interested and tempted. Maybe I can try some over the summer to test the waters? What curricula do you recommend?
I felt the same way. We are now finishing our second year of homeschooling. It has been the biggest blessing and most challenging thing I have done. I don't plan to send my children back to public school. I have a 3rd and 6th grader currently. I pulled my children at the end of the school year then started school July 1 to try it out. I figured I would know in 6 weeks if I could do it or not. If not I could send them to public again and they would start the year with their classmates. Each year you do get more confidant with your ability as well. I remember still feeling scared about my choice months later. You've got this!
Yes never say never I said I would never have any more children after my second child snd then in my 30s went on to have 2 more I also said I would never ever ever home school and here I am in my 2 term of homeschooling !!!
No wayyyyy it’s Mary from the kelly rowland “stole” video ❤️.........please can you tell me where time as gone it feels like yesterday the video came out
Great video as always Jennifer! We are doing kindergarten this year and we all love it. I am trying to figure out what math program to choose for next year and beyond because I would like to stick with it if I can! I am curious what did you end up choosing and switching to? I ask because I also love Charlotte Mason and I trust your judgement (as I currently wear the LLbean dress you recommended a few years ago- ha!). Thank you!!
How do you homeschool and have your own business? Especially making videos and writing? I love having my little ones home but it’s hard to find time for my own work! X
Hi Jennifer! how old were your kids when you started homeschooling? My daughter is almost 3 and we've been doing some type of learning activities here and there. I wonder when is the right time to formally start and have a lesson plan. Thank you.
I was just informed my membership was paused ...but I have had to cancel that credit card and am waiting for my new card and I will be re-joining. Just letting you know. My FB was not just hacked but hijacked and now someone names James Harry has got my FB account and several other accounts but my son has salvaged allot of my other things I am subscribed to. So look for my re-connect soon.
Homeschooling is such an excellent way to educate! I had some excellent teachers in school, but the social aspect was tough since I was an immigrant. Efficient learning is certainly appealing. 💝 Congratulations on learning Spanish!
Hi Jennifer, My son perked up when he heard “Minecraft Science.” Would you mind sharing which site / company / program you used? Thank you for sharing. Great video!
Heyy Jennifer. Thanks for this video. I was wondering if I can join the chic society.. is it available for countries out the states? I'm from Sri Lanka 💞 just that the link says it isn't available..
Jennifer, just wondering, why do your kids don't go to school? It's an option or you don't have schools around you? Here in Portugal we don't have that reality, we have schools. Like that, your kids don't socialize, don't have friends.... Isn't that strange? Just asking because for me is just a distant reality. As the pandemic strike we were forced to do that, sort of, and it's not going well for most families. Love your channel!
Yes never say never I said I would never have any more children after my second child snd then in my 30s went on to have 2 more I also said I would never ever ever home school and here I am in my 2 term of homeschooling !!!
Whether you homeschool or not, I'd love to hear your thoughts on education. What was your experience like in school? What are your top homeschool tips? Let us know and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog. Thank you for watching! Love, Jennifer
I went to a private Christian school that had individualized learning with PACES. I took the college prep track and was very well prepared for college.
Bable wouldn't let me sign up. It said my email was already registered, then it said my email was invalid.
I ditched duolingo because it was overwhelmingly pushing a cultural narrative witb the stories and sentence choices. I tried Pimsleur, but it was too fast paced, and mostly verbal only. I personally need to see written language to comprehend well. What is your view on Bable in these regards?
Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
I was homeschooled by “pioneer” parents way back in the early ‘90s, K-12. They used a pretty traditional approach, with the ACE curriculum. (There wasn’t much available back then.) I have 5 siblings, and I will say, they were very successful in that all of us LOVE learning. They did well in giving us opportunity and encouragement to pursue our interests, so all of us are skilled in various things like music, woodworking, art, sports, etc...
My husband and I homeschool our three sons, my husband became really excited about unschooling, but to be honest it stresses me out to not have the structure, so I am planning to incorporate a few of the core subjects with ACE curriculum. However, I’ve observed my kids do learn so much by watching interesting videos on history, science, etc... and it sticks in their minds because they are enjoying it, rather than crying and seething over pages of dull, boring facts and dates and names which they will forget immediately, like I did. So I plan to continue trying to keep it as enjoyable as possible, just add a few things to help them for their future.
I want to shout out a warning to you about switching curriculum! If you are using Abeka for math now, DO NOT SWITCH! People complain that Abeka is hard, but it is progressive, too. If you begin with Abeka, do not deviate. You will regret it if you do. We allowed our oldest son to switch to Math-u-see for Geometry. He finished that year of math in a couple months and felt like he hadn't learned a thing! He actually requested we get the Abeka Geometry the next year, which set him back, but he WANTED to learn it and he felt let down.
the Daily Connoisseur, do you still homeschool??
21 years of homeschooling and another 8 years to go. Things to know:
1) Greatest cause of homeschool burnout/failure is the household not running smoothly.
2) Education is not school. Children are sponges, born to learn.
3) Character training is key.
4) Establish your family's basic essentials for learning during busy times/illness/new babies/relocation.
5) Never judge how another family is educating their children. Unschoolers can end up at Harvard and classically-educated kids can reject it all at 18.
6) It is okay for a child to have to work to find an answer on their own.
7) A little boredom is a good thing.
8) Resist the urge to turn everything into a teachable moment.
9) If you knew how much of what you teach your children will be forgotten by their early twenties, you would stress less over the little things.
10) Seek out the true, the good, and the beautiful in your daily life.
11) Learning is not a race.
12) Do not brag to others about advanced readers, giftedness, or AP classes. It just makes you look small and competitive.
13) Don't be afraid to subcontract subjects to someone else.
14) Reevaluate on a yearly basis if homeschooling is still working for you.
These are great tips!
This was an amazing list👌🏽👏🏽👏🏽😊😊
Thank you for sharing your experience! Especially advice number 10 is what I live for.
I love this! From a fellow homeschool mom of 19 years and 6 to go!
This is a lot of wisdom packed into a small list. Thank you for taking the time to share ❤️
I was in public school growing up and am now in my 10th year of homeschooling my children. I've learned that gaps in education happen whether they are in public school or homeschool. But I've also learned that kids will fill those gaps when the need arises! My daughter taught herself typing when she was younger (with the help of an online program she found herself) because she realized it would help her when she was writing stories on the computer. No coercing from me! I feel like the key is having a growth mindset for yourself, and your children will follow suit. It's that love of learning Jennifer is talking about. 😊 I am loving all these comments.
Absolutely! I've learned that gaps fill up when the need arises
Love your point about having a growth mindset!! I try to exemplify a desire to learn always and hopefully they will pick on that!!
I was public schooled and have now homeschooled our own children for 20 + years. I could talk for ages on what I've learned!
1. Homeschooling is faster than public school. Fewer students = fewer distractions = school days ends sooner. A win for all!
2. Homeschooling does not need to look like public school. Let your kid do math up in a tree, on their bed, UNDER their bed if it works for them.
3. Subjects can be combined. Requiring your child to write a report for history also doubles as english, grammar, spelling, etc.
4. You do not need to know everything in order to teach it to your kids. That's what curriculum is for. You learn together.
5. I love homeschooling. The best part may be that as you teach life skills, character qualities and morals, you get to shape your kids into people you actually like and enjoy being around.
Love this! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Learning together is so true
That is so true! I ‚like‘ my children even more now that we homeschool. Homeschooling allowed me to work on their behavior. They are very pleasant people now to be around.
Heather! YES! ALL of this YES!!! ❤️👏🏽🙌🏽
It is true, that you learn together. I thoroughly enjoyed being refreshed, in so many subjects, while homeschooling my children.
Biggest lesson for me as a homeschool mom.... no education is perfect! I put so much pressure on myself in the early years and constantly felt like a failure. Now I am just trusting that my kids’ education (I have five of them) is a process just like everything else in life. Also, it’s important to give ourselves permission to change things up if something is not working. Lastly, this homeschool mom gig is an incredible life lesson in refining my own character as much as it is for my children 🥰
I’m not a parent yet but watching your videos makes me strongly consider homeschooling my kids! The flexibility, the efficiency, and the time you get to spend together seems priceless! I went to public school and my FH went to private.
I'm so glad I found your channel. You are lovely. I'm glad we've stayed consistent with math. It is definitely a subject that needs daily practice. What I wish I had known about homeschooling - it's OK to quit. In fact, quitting is for winners. It takes a lot of courage to quit what isn't working for your family.
I also learned to add non curriculum things like ethics and mindful training. Spending time together discussing current topics while playing games or hiking.
I wish all schools taught mindfulness because it was so hard to concentrate in class. I came to it a few years ago.
I admire and respect all of you home schooling parents. I do not home school but I am a preschool teacher and preschool director and have taught children with developmental delays as well as typical children for many, many years. The one thing I would add is to be sure to consult a professional if you have concerns about the development of your child as it relates to their education because early intervention can be important.
Absolutely! Couldn't agree more.
No matter how much we prepare, we are never ready until we get first hand experience.
That is so true.
Whilst that’s true, it’s also true that more preparation more knowledge accumulation on a particular thing helps you make less mistakes. You’ll prevent avoidable mistakes. Yes you’ll still make mistakes but you just avoid some.
Oh those are truly words of wisdom.. I think we can apply that philosophy to SO many milestones in life.. growing up, getting married, becoming parents, pregnancy, .. anything 😮😮
Holy cow! Just discovered your channel today and I’m in love 😍 I have a 3 year old and 20 month old and I’m still figuring out homeschool preschool, and homemaking in general! THANK YOU for your representation of educated, dedicated homemakers. We need more examples in the world like you!
I was very blessed when my son was 3 to have wonderful older homeschooling mom friends who taught me the importance of letting younger children explore and love to learn without having to cross off tasks
That's so great... I know. It's key!
#6 is real life homeschool! We are deep down a rabbit hole of filmmaking right now. My 7 year old is taking foley art and set design classes. I love the flexibility of homeschooling.
#1) Find curricula, books, topics and other learning resources that you, the parent, also want to learn. I started studying Shakespeare with my first grader this year and it just totally lit me up as I had always wanted to study his works and my son loved it too. That is now this totally special thing that we share. For next year I found a history curriculum I’m really excited about and another curriculum that is full of books that are new to us with diverse characters from around the world and we are both so excited we want second grade to start now! I think when a parent is genuinely interested in the topic that that energy rubs off on the child. And that excitement keeps me loving homeschooling, even when something like the tedium of phonics makes me want to go to sleep.
2) Not only be okay with going away from the curriculum or off on a rabbit trail, but being okay with taking what might have been a week-long subject and turning it into a month, a semester or more. Originally, we were going to do one Shakespeare play a month, that wasn’t nearly long enough, so we did 1/2 the year on A Midsummer Night’s Dream and half on Twelfth Night. The same went for folktales. We were going to read folktales and listen to traditional music of one country every month. We started with Ireland and there was just so much richness and beauty there that my son didn’t want to stop, so we didn’t. We did a half a year on that as well. I believe that general knowledge about a lot of topics is wonderful, but through this experience I learned that it is also enormously valuable to have a greater knowledge of a few things than perhaps a shallow appreciation or understanding of multiple topics. And even though we do use curricula in our homeschool, I have learned to follow my child’s lead within that. And in that way I can have my cake and eat it too, so to speak, by allowing child-led learning while also getting to utilize some of the truly amazing curricula out there.
I love this video! I found your channel through intermittent fasting, but I’m loving everything about it! I love learning along with my kids, and how homeschooling opens up a world of possibilities. We’re on our 5th year. Thank you for sharing your thoughts! 😊
Thank you! Welcome!
I loved this! We’re finishing up our first year of homeschooling (kindergarten) and we used Abeka Academy. I don’t plan to buy their whole package again in the future, but I’m thankful we had some video instruction for some of the lessons since I was really nervous about teaching (I didn’t want to mess things up & not teach correctly or what my son needs to know). But after having this year under my belt I feel a lot more confident in hand-picking a curriculum for next year & not relying on the videos. But I’m so thankful that was there for our first year! So, I’m totally with you- never say never 😂
Each year you get more confident!
@@TheDailyConnoisseur I’m so glad to hear that! ❤️
I used to be a first and second grade teacher of ABeka and the video modules did help when I wasn’t with my kiddos in the classroom.
@@MorenitaBonita19 that’s good to hear! I’ve been very impressed by the teaching 😊
Love tip #6! I've got a boy who loves airplanes and mountains, and will spend hours learning about them. We just picked up a few books on the library so he could explore those topics more. Our history lessons on WWII may not be reaching him deeply right now, but he could certainly list the top 5 tallest mountains in the world. We will remember what interests us.
My mom is a retired middle school math teacher. She said her biggest frustration was that the school district switched curriculum every couple of years, giving the kids holes in their learning. It was not an outcome based decision, it was about spending grant money to justify requesting more.
I grew up before there was homeschooling. My mother would have been wonderful as she loved learning and did not finish high school until my brother graduated in 1970 and she got her diploma the same year thru night school for a GED. She made us read books on summer breaks and often she read to us and I know you read to your kids and that is such a gift. Happy this was good experience for your family. I think in the future kids will have many options for learning as this year taught us the changes for families and love to hear the stories of how they adapted. Thanks for sharing.
We homeschooled this year and I’m feeling the tug. I’d love to hear more about this from you. It’s hard to make the leap without homeschool friends or connections yet. I’d love to hear your reasons why you made the choice.
I am a public school French teacher and enjoyed watching this video. I think it would have been great to home school my 3 children but it’s not allowed in Germany.
I wished I knew consistency was the key of parenting. I wished others told me when I was a new mom. But it is not too late to learn no matter where I am in my parenting's journey. And I am glad to figure that out a couple months ago. And it has changed everything. Can't agree with you more on the first tip "Consistency is the key". Thanks again for sharing!
Okay, I’m loving this so far. Had to stop after your first point to say- YES on consistency. One of my favorite things from the 2019 Amblesideonline conference was the secret to success with that curriculum guide: “Just do it!”. Simple but transformative!
Merci! This Babbel sponsorship came at the perfect time for me, as I've finally decided to just go for it and and learn...French! I've learned some Spanish over the years but French has always seemed difficult. I hope Babbel will make it easier! I just completed Lesson 1 Course 6.
"Mantenga la calma, y mantenga la clase!"
I’ve been homeschooling for 8 years. I NEVER planned to and most people were surprised I was taking it on. It’s been the best thing for my daughter. We’re preparing for high school next year....a whole other ballgame!
Dear Jennifer! I thank you for posting videos on homeschooling.
My experience about regular public school is that kids do not have the opportunity to learn one on one if they do not understand from the get go because teachers have to teach other children so they just keep going. I also believe that they do a lot of extra work that is unnecessary. (Aso called" homework").
I amgoingto share one of the greatest tips I learned from a seasoned homeschooling mom.
Well, we have 6 kids and currently homeschooling 5 at the moment.
Since it is expensive to buy each one of them books we stick to one curriculum and everyone gets to use the same book. We just pass down the grade level to the next child and so forth. What we do is this: We use transparencies and a wet erase marker. This saves us money, paper, storage, etc.
I hope that this tip can be helpful to you or your audience. 😉
I was waiting for this one! Yes and amen to all these tips! It has taken me 5+ years to learn these, but I'm happy about the journey. As many of my fellow homeschooling friends have said, we as the teacher or rather lead learner redeeming our own education through teaching our children. And the biggest takeway from the journey is, that we are truly teaching the Whole Child. Great video! Thank you. Also, could you tell me what you used for the Minecraft Science class? I have two boys and a young daughter that really enjoy Minecraft. Thanks!
Hi Jennifer, Consistency is the key to learning! Yes, the 3 R’s 😉 are essential. Learning to dig out information has taught our children to not be afraid of doing hard work; other than prayer, I believe it’s the key to our children starting their own businesses after graduation from our homeschool. Thanks for the shout out for my tip; busy-work can drag down children’s enthusiasm and desire to learn! Do share your new curriculum soon! All the best. Julie 🌷
My daughter is 11 yo and I started my own deschooling when she was just an infant, which isn't to say I have it all figured out.. no no no. :) But that my own learning is life-long. There is always more to learn about child-rearing, natural learning, etc. Our homeschooling journey is great fun and great growth for both of us. I couldn't ask for a better teacher!
Hi Jennifer, I just wanted to recommend Teachers Pay Teachers as a supplement to any curriculum you are using. They have wonderful teacher created lessons, crafts, and worksheets you can purchase. I treasure all your videos. Thank you and God Bless you and your family.
I love all your tips! I’m a very new homeschooling mom and would love to know what curriculum(s) you have chosen for your kids and your opinions about how effective you believe those curriculums to be.
I dont see anyone else commenting so I'll chime in. We use Mother of Divine Grace. It is Catholic but you don't have to be Catholic to use it.
They use a mix of their own curriculum along with outside resources.
It is is classical approach.
We love it. It is also a satellite school, so if you enroll (which is super affordable) your children receive an accredited diploma & transcripts, and also a consultant who helps along the way. We love it. We are in our third year.
As a beginning homeschooling mother, I felt overwhelmed with the options out there. They are truly infinite. And I was not a professional teacher before-- so combining curriculum of the different subjects one by one seemed impossible for me.
That's when I started looking at a complete curriculum that have been compiled and tried. I do add special interests as they arise but I know for sure the basics are covered, and I just have to follow the list of tasks for the day. (This sets them up for independent learning later too, when they can follow the list themselves!)
Anyway we love Mother of Divine Grace, check it out if you're interested !
This was a very informative and helpful video, Jennifer~a great resource, not only for new homeschooling folks, but for those who have been doing it for some time! Thank you. 🌸
Thank you for this! I'm currently "supplementing" my kindergartener's public school education with Charlotte Mason's "riches," because I fell in love with her method while I was research homeschooling during COVID. If I could ask, what method(s) or curriculum(s) do you follow with your homeschool?
Thanks for the requests!
Great video, gracias por mencionar mi humilde canal ! ❤️ I completely agree with consistency being #1. I have also enjoyed adding more poetry in, no doubt thanks to your influence and helping me appreciate it more.
Wonderful, Karen! Let's see how my Spanish goes, haha I hope many people find your great channel! xx
Thank you so much for sharing your tips! I would love to see more homeschooling videos.
Thanks for the video. I’m a new homeschooler this year and we actually now plan to homeschool the kids through high school:)
Please share more on homeschooling.
I'm 55 and I can still remember the most of the Longfellow Poem. Someone must have made that really fun when I learned that because my kids did not memorize it.
Both of my children went first grade through graduation in a tiny schools in Pownal, Maine and Gray/New Gloucester H. S., Gray, Maine. In the first through 8th grade they were in class with 12 to 14 kids, most of whom were together for the whole 8 years. It was the most amazing education. If something was strange, the teacher would call and ask if their dad just left on deployment (we were a Navy family, but we lived away from the base, because my husband wanted the only sailor he saw to be in the mirror.).
My daughter's second grade teacher did a week long study of Puerto Rico, with food and maps so the children could learn about the place Melissa's dad was in.
They had an amazing music teacher who actually recognized that my son could call out the key and hum music the first time he saw it. She had him tested and we found out he was highly gifted in music. So she has him join the Maine Children's Choir which he did until his voice changed. He could literally hit Celine Dion's range in "My Heart Will Go On). Ironically he's a deep treble, almost bass now.
I think homeschooling is fantastic if the parent is educated enough to be able to teach/learn the curriculum. We had one at church who thought grocery shopping could be the entire math class in a week or watching movies could serve as geography. While that's not a bad thing in conjunction with an appropriate curriculum, these poor kids grew up under their mom's coattails, horribly unsocialized, and had never been told they were wrong, because when they made a mistake she just corrected herself before she sent it to wherever.
I'm sure you are an amazing teacher. My best friend had two degrees, one in Russian studies and the second in Political Science. Her husband had a Masters in English, and they homeschooled their three kids, mostly her because they were in the Navy, too.
Their daughter graduated high school at 16, started college at a
junior College the first year and then went on to graduate from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Electrical Engineering at 19. She could not even rent an apartment because she wasn't of age, and probably would have been their best tenant and made mad money working for the Corps of Engineering in Vicksburg, Mississippi.
That's the level of homeschooling mom I would imagine you are.
@Campari Soda thanks for your comment. That comment needed addressing! God bless you for being objective and not idolizing degrees.
Fun fact: your intro music sounds like hillbilly car chase music at 1.5 speed.
I need to try that!
I had to try this
What?
Hahahaha
Now you've got everybody trying this. 😂
I am a homeschooling Mother of four as well. I'm curious how you manage time to teach all four, exercise?, make these videos, etc...? Two of my four have health issues, and I'm trying to manage homeschooling, exercise, getting healthier by losing 15lbs, and find time to even prepare lessons. I'd love to get your thoughts.
Que bien que estás aprendiendo español ♥️
Voy a comprar tus libros, me inspiran muchísimo.
Great video!! I have always loved the Longfellow poem ...I was probably in 4th or 5th grade when I read it for Social Studies . This was in public school in the late 60's.
I love your advice and your style. Thank you for sharing things with us.
I would love to learn more from you on the topic of homeschooling---curriculum and such.
I was NEVER going to be that parent that gave their child cereal for dinner... I nearly died a thousand deaths when I did that the first time. I was sooo embarrassed, but so dang tired I couldn’t do anything else! It doesn’t happen often at all, but my child is healthy and happy and on days when I just can’t... cereal is king. Never say never!!
PS We had to homeschool for 4 - 6 months in 2020 due to covid... I am NOT that mom. I learned that I have limits too. My kid is smart but needs competition to drive her. Praise God for teachers and peers.
¡Mantenga la calma y mantenga la elegancia!
Thank you for doing this video. It is so good! Can you please put a couple of links to the online learning that you truly love (besides babble)? For instance, starfall is very good for getting started reading...
Thank you so much for posting this!
Jennifer you are such an inspiration! I am scared of the thought of homeschooling, but at the same time I am very interested and tempted. Maybe I can try some over the summer to test the waters? What curricula do you recommend?
I think they've been doing Charlotte Mason :)
I felt the same way. We are now finishing our second year of homeschooling. It has been the biggest blessing and most challenging thing I have done. I don't plan to send my children back to public school. I have a 3rd and 6th grader currently.
I pulled my children at the end of the school year then started school July 1 to try it out. I figured I would know in 6 weeks if I could do it or not. If not I could send them to public again and they would start the year with their classmates.
Each year you do get more confidant with your ability as well. I remember still feeling scared about my choice months later. You've got this!
Sometimes, when my kids don’t understand something, I will either look up a good project or will look up a CZcams video(s.)
Great video! Thanks for the tips!
Yes never say never I said I would never have any more children after my second child snd then in my 30s went on to have 2 more I also said I would never ever ever home school and here I am in my 2 term of homeschooling !!!
Never say never about anything. Love your vids.
No wayyyyy it’s Mary from the kelly rowland “stole” video ❤️.........please can you tell me where time as gone it feels like yesterday the video came out
I had to go look up the video! 😯 I had no idea she was in it!
@@ashleystroman6152 yeahhhhh that’s crazy
Great video as always Jennifer! We are doing kindergarten this year and we all love it. I am trying to figure out what math program to choose for next year and beyond because I would like to stick with it if I can! I am curious what did you end up choosing and switching to? I ask because I also love Charlotte Mason and I trust your judgement (as I currently wear the LLbean dress you recommended a few years ago- ha!). Thank you!!
How do you homeschool and have your own business? Especially making videos and writing? I love having my little ones home but it’s hard to find time for my own work! X
I tend to batch-work and we only homeschool four days a week... but we do homeschool longer throughout the year to make up for the 4-day weeks...
Hi Jennifer! how old were your kids when you started homeschooling? My daughter is almost 3 and we've been doing some type of learning activities here and there. I wonder when is the right time to formally start and have a lesson plan. Thank you.
I was just informed my membership was paused ...but I have had to cancel that credit card and am waiting for my new card and I will be re-joining. Just letting you know. My FB was not just hacked but hijacked and now someone names James Harry has got my FB account and several other accounts but my son has salvaged allot of my other things I am subscribed to. So look for my re-connect soon.
I'm sorry you're going through that, Iris! I hope it's all resolved soon.
Encouraging, thank you for sharing your experience with homeschooling.
Homeschooling is such an excellent way to educate!
I had some excellent teachers in school, but the social aspect was tough since I was an immigrant.
Efficient learning is certainly appealing. 💝
Congratulations on learning Spanish!
Thank you, Luba!
Felicitaciones por haber decidido hablar español!
You mentioned Minecraft science, where would I find that?
It was through STEM Qwest... you can find some on Outschool too..
Hi Jennifer,
My son perked up when he heard “Minecraft Science.” Would you mind sharing which site / company / program you used? Thank you for sharing. Great video!
Sure! It was STEM Qwest
Thank you!
just curious as to why you guys decided on homeschooling your kids...
Prima ! Hi Jennifer 😀 from Italy
Ciao! Thanks for watching :)
Heyy Jennifer. Thanks for this video. I was wondering if I can join the chic society.. is it available for countries out the states? I'm from Sri Lanka 💞 just that the link says it isn't available..
Yes! You have to join via computer or phone (not tablet or iPad)... thank you!
Jennifer, just wondering, why do your kids don't go to school? It's an option or you don't have schools around you? Here in Portugal we don't have that reality, we have schools. Like that, your kids don't socialize, don't have friends.... Isn't that strange? Just asking because for me is just a distant reality. As the pandemic strike we were forced to do that, sort of, and it's not going well for most families. Love your channel!
Love your channel . . . but I just have to say . . . proper grammar is "I wish I had known" . . . now, keep being awesome!
Yes never say never I said I would never have any more children after my second child snd then in my 30s went on to have 2 more I also said I would never ever ever home school and here I am in my 2 term of homeschooling !!!