When I opened an in-person nature-based homeschool program for the residential and local multi-age kids at Heathcote Intentional Community in Freeland, Maryland back in 2010, we spent HOURS per program day outdoors. Granted, it was super easy and enticing to be out in nature on 112 acres in a beautiful wooded valley complete with a … Read more
Way back in 2010, I joined a homeschool Open Classroom program, or classroom without walls, as an apprentice to the program facilitator, Dana. Dana told me during the first month, I would deschool. At first, I wasn’t sure what that meant. I found out quickly. At first I was more of an observer of the … Read more
Learn why you as a homeschool parent should adopt math and science unit studies.
MathArt student, Josh, showing his tasty tessellation cookies. Do you get all worked up about math? I believe that no other school subject gets parents worked up in a fevered sweat like math does. Our modern public education systems insists on students completing a rigorous no goshbegone nonsense math curriculum. Unless you have a natural … Read more
“What we want to see is the child in pursuit of knowledge, not knowledge in pursuit of the child.” George Bernard Shaw What are you doing now that fosters the pursuit of knowledge rather than forcing knowledge on your child? Your child was born a learning machine. Have school or schoolish ways at home knocked … Read more
Let’s do some educational myth busting. Mainstream thought around child education sounds like this: Children need to be forced, prodded and made to learn. Children will not learn on their own most of the time. They must have an adult over them instructing them at all times. What if children can truly be trusted to … Read more
Many of you in the homeschool community are familiar with the Discovery Channel’s Shark Week. Did you know it’s been airing every July since 1988? It’s pretty sensational. I have created a real goodie for you either before, during, after Shark Week or whenever, whether you watch Shark Week or not. Let’s dive into this … Read more
NatureGlo at Wild Roots Intentional Community in North Carolina, summer 2010. Yes, that’s my mug. It was the summer of 2010. I was feeling wild, free, and very close to nature. I had spent a week living off-grid with a small group of amazing people at Wild Roots intentional community in North Carolina. What’s an … Read more
Creating a homeschool marine biology unit study isn’t for the lackadaisical researcher. One needs to LOVE research and study when going the unit study route of education. Which style type of unit studier are you? The Done for You (DFY) – no fault of you’re own, you just don’t have the time to create in-depth … Read more
Have you ever considered the wonder and beauty of the honeybee’s honeycomb structure? Just look at the beautiful honeycomb below. My professor in college used to say, “busier than bees and wax.” Can anyone be truly as busy as drones building their community’s honeycomb? Yes! Homeschool parents! They’re all made up of, you guessed … Read more
