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Read your way to a love of math: 75+ titles for ages 4-12 (UPDATED!)

Jamie C. Martin — Thu, 24 Jul 2025 18:10:58 +0000

Read your way to a love of math (UPDATED!) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool

I’m currently updating a series I published over ten(!) years ago about math, explaining how our family decided to approach the subject in a non-traditional way, particularly in the early years.

Now you’ll get to hear my perspective looking back as a veteran homeschool mom to see if it matches what my young, naive homeschool self thought!

In these posts, we’ve explored math study from a different perspective, asking two important questions: Why do we do what we do when it comes to this subject? Are there any other valid approaches to consider?

Other updates in this math series:
* A different way to look at math
* Out of the box math inspiration

An alternative to workbook pages in the early years is the simple sharing of a book spread open across your lap. It’s one of the easiest ways to create a blossoming love of numbers and patterns in a child’s heart and mind.

Back in the day when I was an insecure homeschool mom, I would have loved a list of well-chosen math titles, recommended by someone I trusted.

I’ve tried to provide that for you here, highlighting the resources we found most enjoyable in our own family – as well as including an updated list of other popular books you may want to check out.

Enjoy the journey as you read your way to a love of math!

Read your way to a love of math: 75+ titles for ages 4-12

Bedtime Math

Who is it for? Ages 4-12

What a fun addition (get it?!) this resource is for your math-learning littles.

Check out their website or app for easy access to a daily math question, or check out one of their three published Bedtime Math books(afflinks) for an offline option.

The beauty of bedtime math is that there are questions geared to a variety of learning-levels, making it something you can use for your preschoolers all the way to your pre-teens!

Life of Fred

Who is it for? Ages 6 – High School

Since I first wrote this series, I’ve been asked the same question several times: “I’d like to approach math differently, but what can I do if I have to provide documentation for my state and/or my kids have to take a standardized test?”

My top recommendation for those in the above situation would be to explore Life of Fred Math, a curriculum that goes from early elementary all the way through high school – but in a very different way to the norm!

Used in a structured or formal way, you’d be able to approach math creatively but still be able to provide the documentation you need to meet your local requirements.

Like any resource, Life of Fred isn’t for everyone. But my kids loved it, and I loved that I could read math aloud at the lunch table!

Mathemagic

Who is it for? Ages 4-12

Mathemagic is Volume 13 of a kids’ encyclopedia series that used to be produced by Childcraft and is now out of print.

It is full of inspiring math stories, clever puzzles, riddles, and games – perfect for reading aloud or putting on the shelf for your kiddos to flip through.

Math study aside, we have always had a used set of several Childcraft volumes on our shelves, and still do!

I can’t get of rid them, because hardly a homeschool day went by in our house that I didn’t see a child with one of these tucked under their arm. Keeping them for the grandchildren, perhaps one day?!

No longer in print, check for them on Amazon or Ebay.

Mathematicians Are People, Too

Who is it for? Ages 8-12

This is a fascinating collection of short stories about the lives of the great mathematicians throughout history – often including the details about how they developed their groundbreaking theories and discoveries.

A perfect way to show our kids what passion for math looks like, this series contains two volumes.

Sir Cumference Series

Who is it for? Ages 7-11 (give or take)

The Sir Cumference books introduce foundational geometry concepts through adventurous stories – radius and diameter, data collection, perimeter, area, and pi all make an appearance in this series of 12 titles.

*****

Other titles to explore for ages 4-8 (Updated!)

Other titles to explore for ages 8-12 (Updated!)

“Mathematics, rightly viewed, possesses not only truth, but supreme beauty.”
~ Bertrand Russell

Do you know of any more inspiring titles to help read your way to a love of math?

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

This post contains affiliate links.

Out of the box math inspiration (Updated!)

Jamie C. Martin — Tue, 20 May 2025 18:00:40 +0000

Out of the Box Math Inspiration ~
Written and updated by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool

I’m currently updating a series I published several years ago about math, explaining how our family decided to approach the subject in a non-traditional way.

Now you’ll get to hear my perspective looking back as a veteran homeschool mom to see if it matches what my young, naive homeschool self thought!

If you missed the first update in this series, I’d recommend reading it here before continuing this one!

Let me continue by serving up more math inspiration for you to consider.

Several “out of the box” math inspiration examples follow, which I hope will help you develop your own thoughts and discern what may be best given your family’s current situation.

Many of these examples fueled my personal decision on when and how to teach math in our homeschool.

Out of the Box Math Inspiration

1. Just Do the Math by David Albert

David Albert shares the story of 9-12 year-olds who learned all K-6 math in just 20 hours of study. He also shares his belief that an average teen who is actually motivated to learn math, and wasn’t held back by math anxiety, could learn all the K-12 math that he hasn’t naturally picked up in life in approximately eight weeks of study.

“So, do the math. If you figure the actual math time at 30 hours a year for 8 years (accounting for the wasted time in the early years), it totals 240 hours. Lo and behold – if, at age 15 or so, you wanted to learn all the math K-12, weren’t inhibited by math anxiety, and were willing to spend 30 hours a week at it, it would take you…8 weeks!”

2. A Mathematician’s Lament by Paul Lockhart

In his book, research mathematician Paul Lockhart (afflinks) makes the case that math is an art form, and that the way we currently study it prevents kids from falling in love with and seeing it through the lens of imagination that other arts inspire.

“If I had to design a mechanism for the express purpose of destroying a child’s natural curiosity and love of pattern-making, I couldn’t possibly do as good a job as is currently being done – I simply wouldn’t have the imagination to come up with the kind of senseless, soul-crushing ideas that constitute contemporary mathematics education.

“You want to train them to calculate 427 plus 389? It’s just not a question that many eight-year-olds are asking. For that matter, most adults don’t fully understand decimal place-value arithmetic, and you expect third graders to have a clear conception? Or do you not care if they understand it? It is simply too early for that kind of technical training. Of course it can be done, but I think it ultimately does more harm than good. Much better to wait until their own natural curiosity about numbers kicks in.”

3. Research on the Teaching of Math at Trivium Pursuit

This article shares (in thorough detail) how math has been taught historically through the ages – a fascinating study! The author then suggests waiting until around age ten to begin formal math lessons.

“So to wait until age ten to teach arithmetic is actually, from an historical perspective, to advocate an early start. It is only from a decidedly modern perspective that waiting until age ten would appear to be a late start.

“Depending upon the child, upon the method, and upon the subject matter covered, there exists the potential for developmental harm from the formal teaching of arithmetic before age ten.

“Small children cannot understand many arithmetic concepts at an early age. We can teach them to perform the process, but we cannot make them understand the concepts. The child learns to hate learning. The child’s understanding develops along the wrong lines. He may actually develop mental blocks to arithmetic – actual physiological blocks in the brain.”

But how can someone actually begin the formal teaching of math at age ten? Laurie Bluedorn suggested one possibility in a follow up to the above:

“At age ten we start the child in formal math with a 6th grade math textbook. I give the child two math grids, and they are allowed to use them when doing their math lessons.

At age eleven I take away the addition/subtraction grid. The child should have the addition/subtraction facts memorized by then. If I think that he doesn’t have them memorized then we would drill on them till he does have them memorized. At age twelve I take away the multiplication/division grid.”

4. Louis P. Benezet’s Study…as told in Free-Range Learning

In 1929 Louis P. Benezet, the Superintendent of Manchester, New Hampshire schools, tried an experiment within his system. He trialed having some of his classes wait until seventh grade to introduce formal math study. Before then he encouraged naturally occurring math learning, but had teachers make reading, writing, and reasoning the focus in the early years.

“I feel that it is all nonsense to take eight years to get children through the ordinary arithmetic assignment of the elementary schools. What possible need has a ten-year-old child for knowledge of long division? The whole subject of arithmetic could be postponed until the seventh year of school, and it could be mastered in two years’ study by any typical child.

“Due to pressure from some school principals, children were started on a math book in the second half of sixth grade. All sixth-grade children were tested. By spring of that year, all the classes tested equally. In other words, those children exposed to traditional math curricula for part of the sixth-grade year had mastered the same skills as those who had spent years on drills, times tables, and exams.”

Adorable Elijah (age 9) – now 20!

5. What I thought (and wrote) then – 10 years ago:

In some ways it’s difficult to explain exactly what we do in our family – because it is, has been, and no doubt will continue to be completely different for each child. There’s no formula, but we have followed the advice mentioned above about waiting to introduce formal math.

This decision comes from our deep belief in the importance of our young children having a full and thorough Core Phase, which does not include a focus on early academics.

Two of my three children are now in the second phase of learning, Love of Learning, and recently math emphasis has crept into our lives more regularly. But it is still highly individualized and based on each child’s needs and strengths.

I have one who is naturally gifted with numbers, who has played with them over the years and by doing so has picked up quite a lot. I have two children who learn very differently to the traditional classroom style and who appear to have their geniuses (at this stage) in other areas.

Of course this doesn’t mean that math won’t be a part of their lives, but it means that I introduce concepts when I believe maturity and readiness are present so I can set them up for success.

6. What I think now – 10 years later:

When I look back on teaching math, I marvel at how God in his wisdom directed our paths to what our children would need for their future. At the time I first wrote this, I didn’t have full clarity of my daughter Trishna’s and my son Elijah’s special-needs (both on the autism spectrum, with several other diagnoses).

Yet this individualized approach ended up suiting all three of my kids and what mattered most for each of them.

I would have experienced so much wasted time and frustration if I had tried to push structured math onto my special needs children earlier. It would have negatively affected their self-concepts, and my self-confidence as a teacher.

One of them reached about eighth grade level of math before graduating, and that fits perfectly with their needs. The other struggles greatly with math concepts, and is around first grade level, even after several years of diligent focus and lessons in their teens. This child is learning workarounds to help them function in this area for what they’ll need in life.

My son Jonathan used Teaching Textbooks for math and finished through Algebra II, enough for him to get into the colleges of his choice. His job as a Lighting Director and Designer uses a lot of math and it’s been interesting to see how proficient he’s become in that on-the-job setting.

So see? It all worked out!

I do want to honestly mention that at times it was challenging for our younger kids in certain social situations when math tasks came up that they had not mastered yet. This could be mitigated by mastering addition/subtraction earlier but waiting for the rest.

I also want to say that it is possible to teach math as a structured homeschool subject if that’s best for your family’s needs. This out of the box math inspiration and approach is not the only “right” option!

If you approach it with flexibility and the understanding that there is more than one way, you can make regular curricula work for you as opposed to you working for it.

Keep in mind the long-term perspective: Not every child needs to love math, but it would be nice if so many didn’t hate it!

So if you decide to get out of the box when it comes to math, what can you do in the early years to prepare and play with numbers instead? I’m glad you asked!

Come back soon for the next update in this series. I’ll have a list of specific resources so you can create your own math playground.

“Mathematics should be taught as art for art’s sake. These mundane “useful” aspects would follow naturally as a trivial by product. Beethoven could easily write an advertising jingle, but his motivation for learning music was to create something beautiful.” ~ Paul Lockhart

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

A different way to look at math (Updated!)

Jamie C. Martin — Wed, 16 Apr 2025 13:25:33 +0000

A Different Way to Look at Math ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool

Like many of us, I have a complicated relationship with math.

I like math.

But I don’t always like how it’s taught.

I naturally excelled at math in school. The subject made me feel powerful, and eventually I was offered the chance to skip 7th grade math (which I ended up declining – those 8th graders looked so scary!).

You’d think since I had a “positive” experience with math in school, I would have been eager to replicate that in our home.

But my heart (and my children) steered me in a different direction.

I see now that the main skill that led to my math success wasn’t understanding math; it was the ability to memorize. From an early age I used that skill to people-please my way into my teachers’ hearts, to form an identity for myself, and to cover up deep-rooted feelings of insecurity.

(See?! I told you it was complicated!)

And as the years passed, I had that familiar sense so many of us identify with when it comes to this subject: Boredom.

Nagging questions rang through my head: “What’s the point of all this?” and “When am I ever going to use it?”

I wanted something different for my kids.

I saw the value of studying numbers, patterns, and shapes – because God built those into our world. Therefore they must be interesting, useful, and worth learning about!

Yet I dared to imagine a different timeline for this subject. Because when I looked at the math scope and sequence, especially for elementary school kids, one thing appeared drastically lacking:

The principle of relevancy.

A Different Way to Look at Math

Children naturally want to learn and conquer things that are relevant to their lives.

I saw this with my own as littles when it came to a love of and interest in words. In our home my children were surrounded by reading and writing–therefore they showed interest in both (still on their own unique timeline, mind you.)

With math, the process felt different.

Some parts were relevant – the ones that appeared in our daily lives.

This included writing numbers, counting, basic adding and subtracting, temperature, fractions as related to cooking, telling time, measuring, the concepts of multiplication and division (but not complicated calculations with them early on), decimals as related to money, etc.

But math that didn’t naturally arise in our daily lives didn’t get our focus early on because it requires a different process: Abstract thought.

The ability to reason and think abstractly doesn’t come in the early elementary years–it develops closer to the age of puberty.

“Piagetian experiments have shown repeatedly that cognitive maturity may not come until close to age 12. Interestingly, the ancient Orthodox Jews, known over the world for their brilliance, provided little or no formal schooling until after age twelve for girls and thirteen for boys when children were considered able to accept full responsibility for their actions.”
~ Dr. Raymond Moore, The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook, pg. 44

The traditional approach to math study, whether done at school or at home, creates a hate of math in many kids. It makes plenty feel stupid at a young age – an internal lesson hard to unlearn later. Others (like I did) begin to measure themselves by their positive performance instead of their inner value.

All of the above is the opposite of what I wanted for my own children. Instead of making my kids fit the system, I created a new system to fit my kids.

It included a different way to look at math.

I will not for a second suggest that this was always simple to do. But in some ways, it was easy. I lightened my load considerably by allowing the principle of relevancy to guide our math learning.

My own mental battles ended up being the hard part when it came to choosing something so counter-cultural – and sticking with that decision in the face of opposition. When I started to panic (and you should know I did many times), those mental battles were usually the reason why.

We had to step way outside the grade level box to follow our family’s personal convictions in this area, and that took courage. But believing we were doing what was right for our children made the choice worth it.

If you feel at peace in your homeschool choices when it comes to math, please keep on keeping on! As always, there are a million ways of creating a successful homeschool, and zero ways to create a perfect one.

My method here isn’t “right” and others “wrong,” it’s all about discovering what works for your family and your kids.

But if you’ve hit a wall in your study of numbers, if you or your students have or are experiencing math burnout, or if you’ve ever wondered “Is this the only way?” – then know that you’re not alone.

Perhaps you just need a different way to look at math.

Over the next month or so I hope to bring a little thought-provoking inspiration across your path in this series on looking at math differently from my perspective as a now retired homeschool mom of three. Stay tuned!

“The tantalizing and compelling pursuit of mathematical problems offers mental absorption, peace of mind amid endless challenges, repose in activity, battle without conflict, “refuge from the goading urgency of contingent happenings,” and the sort of beauty changeless mountains present to sense tried by the present-day kaleidoscope of events.”
~Morris Kline, Mathematics in Western Culture

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

Simple Homeschooling 101: What to Teach, When to Teach It (UPDATED!)

Jamie C. Martin — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 17:45:41 +0000

Simple Homeschooling 101: What to Teach and When to Teach It ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool

More than once during my 15 years of homeschooling, I wished I could find a resource that would simply list the basic subjects we needed to cover as well as give me ideas for how and when to prioritize them.

I found plenty of conflicting and over-complicated descriptions, but here, in the name of “Simple” Homeschool and as a veteran/retired homeschooler, I have created for all of you what I once wanted and needed.

Prefer to listen instead? Look for episode 62 of the SH podcast!

To begin Simple Homeschooling 101, here is a list of the four basic subjects:

Language Arts: Includes reading, writing (handwriting/spelling/grammar/composition), and literature
Math
Science
History

Then depending on your child’s age/grade, you might add in things like:

PE/Health, Foreign Language, and electives, centered around your kids’ interests, future goals, and your family’s priorities

Below, I’ll share how our family covered these subjects in an outside-the-box way through the years.

Remember: Personalization is the goal, and your homeschool doesn’t have to look like “school” to inspire real learning.

This is not at all a “Homeschooling 101” formula to follow, as you don’t need that! There are a million ways to run a “successful” homeschool, and zero ways to run a perfect one.

Don’t seek to follow my plan or anyone else’s – adapt everything (yes, even that official looking curriculum!) to suit your family’s needs.

I originally divided this article into the traditional categories of elementary, middle, and high school, only to realize that most of my recommendations for middle and high were the same, so I’ve switched to two categories instead: one covering ages 5-12, and one for teens.

Simple Homeschooling 101: What to Teach and When to Teach It (Updated!)

Early Schooling (ages 5-12)

Our family’s main goal during this time was to have our children make tiny, incremental progress in core subjects, while maintaining their love of learning. The traditional system tends to overemphasize a child’s progress while often doing away with the love.

A child’s brain is wired to learn best through play during this time, so keep that in mind as you think about the subjects that you hope to cover. This is especially true for ages 5-9, with slowly increasing maturity as they hit double digits.

Learning to Read – We only did this officially when we felt like each child was interested and ready, and not all children need formal reading instruction – some teach themselves!

If you do need or want to introduce this, I would recommend All About Reading, Reading Eggs, or simply a BrainQuest workbook (afflinks), and start out small – five minute lessons with lots of praise (and/or bribery) as needed.

Learning to Write – When you feel they’re ready, teach your child to form capital and lowercase letters (any basic workbook can help with this, or you may not even need one).

Once they have mastered them, begin doing copywork – copying a few words or a sentence each day. Use their name, inspiring quotes, or passages from their favorite book!

This sets the foundation for spelling and grammar later on.

If you want to add in formal spelling, I recommend All About Spelling – but remember those super-short, high-motivation lessons are key! 5-15 minutes is plenty, and only as a formal practice after your child has a beginner’s grasp on reading.

For grammar, we used Mad Libs, not diving into anything more formal until the tween/teen years.

Literature – We read, read, and read aloud some more during this range, enjoying the natural conversations that would arise through that time together, not trying to force “narration” or anything too schooly. Substitute audiobooks if reading aloud isn’t enjoyable for you.

What should you read? Use a guide to help you discover classics, like my own book (for a global lens) Give Your Child the World, Honey for A Child’s Heart, or The Read-Aloud Family, as well as adding in books that interest you and yours!

We also used audio stories from Sparkle Stories a lot at this age as a “slow media” alternative to excess screentime – they gave us a break and occupied many car rides, too!

Math – We read math books in the early years and enjoyed Bedtime Math, mixed with a little gameschooling for good measure. Later we introduced an online curriculum when it seemed like the kids were ready for more, allowing them to dip in and out as they wanted.

Science – We enjoyed informal nature study, read-alouds, and an outdoor wilderness program for science, not doing any formal curriculum until the teen years, but just what interested each child when it came to this subject. (Long-time readers will remember my son’s intense meteorology phase.)

History – Likewise we covered this mainly through read-alouds and videos during this age range, and it worked so well that my kids fell in love with history and wanted to study it more deeply as teens.

If you want to take it further, begin a history timeline. And if you feel memory work is important in this subject or any other, look for play-based resources (songs, etc) to help you accomplish that.

Interests – Everything Else! This is where we dove into my own interests, family priorities like Bible, and the interests of the children. This is what we emphasized the most during this age range.

Teen Schooling (ages 13+)

Don’t be afraid of homeschooling middle or high school! Generally speaking, 120 hours spent on a subject (including a student’s personal reading, documentaries, online courses, and formal work) or 75% of a textbook completed equals one credit.

Once you get familiar with the process, it’s not scary, and sites like FastTranscripts.com make it a breeze to quantify your teen’s learning in a way that colleges can understand.

Our family’s homeschooling goal during the teen years has always been to meet the minimum requirements for graduation, and then allow tons of extra time to pursue areas of interest and passion!

Language Arts – Here are some of the resources that worked well for us, which we adapted to each child’s interest level and ability:

Sonlight (literature/history/Bible)
TJEd High (online mentoring in literature and leadership)
Wordsmith Craftsman (after searching for AGES, this thin guide contains everything your high schooler needs in order to write well!)
All About Spelling – We only taught spelling after age 10+, when I could tell whether or not my children were natural spellers. At older ages they progressed quickly and were motivated, too.
Grammar: Both Fix It Grammar and Life of Fred Language Arts worked well for us!

Math – Using online resources for math allowed me to outsource this subject, which I loved! We mainly used Teaching Textbooks as a key component in our homeschooling 101.

Science – We tried a variety of higher level science options, but the best fit for us ended up being the courses from All in One High School. (Bonus: They’re FREE!!!) We loved it because it was self-sufficient for my child to complete on his own, and was just right for a student who needs a solid overview of the subject but isn’t planning to go into a science-related field.

If your student might want to explore a STEM-related field in their future, the online classes from My Fun Science are highly reputable and recommended!

PE/Health – Our outdoor wilderness school, C25K and Calm apps, and a basic health textbook

Foreign Language – A combination of Duolingo, All in One Spanish, and private tutoring worked perfectly for us!

History – Sonlight, lots of reading (both fiction and non-fiction), Big Fat Notebooks, and the occasional workbook

Current Events – Watching and discussing CNN10 and The World from A to Z led to incredible discussions over the years (sometimes we still watch and discuss these together!)

Electives: This is where teens can focus on areas of interest – it’s where homeschoolers can thrive in ways that teens in traditional school just don’t have the hours for!

Also use electives to focus on your family priorities, like Bible Study, Life Skills, etc. Some of the specialized courses we created for my high schoolers included Drawing, Music Theory, Film Studies, Animation, Lighting Design Technology, and more.

We have seen this interest-led approach go on to serve the children well as they continue to slowly enter their post-homeschooling phase of life. When Jonathan applied to colleges for Lighting Design, he was told that his current level of skill was already similar to that of a college graduate in the field, so they weren’t sure he would “fit in.”

He appreciated their candor and opted out! (Though he did get in to both places he applied.)

Instead of college, he ended up getting hired by a variety of A-list celebrities within a year of high school graduation, and is currently touring worldwide with various artists.

This was never our intention, plan, or goal when we let him pursue his interest through high school, but it is remarkable to see that what one does for love and interest can go on to translate into a satisfying work life!

I hope this list has served as a helpful Simple Homeschooling 101 for you – simplifying your thinking about what to teach and when to teach it!

When we lean into the freedom and flexibility homeschooling has to offer, we can craft a beautiful and highly individualized education that suits each child best, and sets them up well for wherever life may take them.

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

This post contains affiliate links, which means my family receives a commission off certain links.

8 things I’ve learned about education in my 20 years of motherhood (UPDATED!)

Jamie C. Martin — Wed, 06 Nov 2024 16:35:13 +0000

8 things I’ve learned about education in my 8(20!) years of motherhood (UPDATED) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin – find updates in blue

Education wasn’t exactly my top concern when I first became a mother. Unless it was my own education–I had a multitude of lessons to learn, mistakes to make, and love to give.

The learning curve continued dramatically when I began considering homeschooling.

Now I look back shocked to see that ~~eight~~ twenty whole years have passed. (Um, #howdidthishappen)

I have plenty of new questions I need answers to (still true!), but I’m also far enough down the road, of both motherhood and homeschooling, to feel like I’ve gathered a few lessons under my belt.

I feel far more secure and confident now – in myself, in my mothering, in our choice to homeschool. (No regrets, 20 years later!)

Here are eight things I’ve learned about education in my ~~eight~~ twenty years of motherhood.

I thought about updating this article to 20 things I’ve learned in 20 years…but I don’t have the energy for that LOL, and you probably don’t have the energy to read something that long.

8 things I’ve learned about education in my 8 (20!) years of motherhood

1. It’s not rocket science.

The idea of homeschooling absolutely petrified me at first. Education seemed like some obscure, foggy, unattainable concept. A topic so complex and complicated that only experts could figure it out.

20 years later, I still agree that learning doesn’t have to be rocket science when relationships are at the center. And by that I don’t mean that relationships are always rosy, far far from it!

I mean that pursuing wholeness in all forms (not solely academics) gave my children an (eventual) foundation of safety that allowed their minds to open to learning, according to their unique strengths and weaknesses.

2. Children are born with a natural curiosity and desire to learn.

2004 – Oh, baby Jonathan, my heart melts to look at you (2024: I still miss that baby version of my boy/man!)

I am far from sending my kids out the door to graduation (um actually, I blinked and we finished homeschooling!), but having seen all three of my little people (currently ages ~~9, 8, & 7,~~ make that 21, 20, & 19) through the infant/toddler/preschool phase of life I can adamantly say that they each entered the world with a deep desire to learn.

Kids start off naturally curious – and they remain that way unless burnout kicks in.

Burnout can have many causes, not just stress, anxiety, and overwork but also trauma, abuse, and neglect. We have dealt with that our entire homeschool life (and still do) because of what my oldest and youngest went through before they joined our family via adoption.

If you have a child who is no longer curious, it doesn’t mean that it’s your fault or it can never be remedied. Just explore paths to reconnect them with that curiosity and to heal what is at the root of the burnout. This will be a gift for the rest of their lives, and is definitely a long-term project.

3. An absolute wealth of homeschooling and educational resources exist to choose from. (#understatement)

Gone are the days of home learning in isolation. Homeschool groups and co-ops currently multiply like wildfire across the United States, not to mention the vast selection of curricula available as well as incredible, high-quality online educational programs like Khan Academy, TED talks, and so much more.

Check out Simple Homeschool posts about co-ops here.

I have no doubt that this trend will continue (#overwhelm), but:

4. You don’t need much to homeschool successfully. A growing home library of well-chosen books works best. (And it’s so fun to have an excuse to buy books! )

I tend to look for complex formulas or strategies to implement because lofty plans give me a temporary feeling of security. But as is often the case, simple is often the best. And the easiest. (Yes, still agree! And yet, simple can feel awfully challenging in a society that tends to complicate things.)

I want my children to think of books as friends. Because a child who loves reading is primed for a lifetime of learning.

Sept 2024 with my now 19-yr-old Elijah

While I still believe this, not every child is going to have the same type of relationship with books that we tend to think of as “loving reading.” And that relationship with books is going to change as they become adults and start lives of their own, and as screens naturally become a part of that life.

While I consistently encourage you to follow your children’s interests in learning, I do want to mention the difference between off-screen interests and on-screen ones. There are a myriad of healthy ways to handle screens. Please be intentional about it, however, as the addictive quality of screens and their impact on the brain can dampen the natural in-built curiosity that leads to learning.

Use screens, for sure. They are an amazing tool, and a horrible master! Don’t be afraid to set limits and boundaries. For ideas, you can see what we have done here.

5. My children give clues when they are ready for something new.

Jonathan did it as an infant by weaning himself from breastfeeding. He clued me in by his continued lack of interest in nursing. In spite of all my efforts, at nine months he was ready for something new.

My kids still provide these clues: By a new interest in a subject, by asking to learn something, by their enthusiasm, or even by physical changes like losing teeth.

If I pay attention, I can work with these clues instead of against them.

Yes! And following those clues makes your job as homeschool parent so much easier.

6. Waiting until they’re ready saves a ton of time – and tears (theirs & mine).

Summer 2012

Each child has his own timetable of development–his own repertoire of strengths and weaknesses to consider.

It is nothing short of ludicrous to expect each five-, six-, nine-, or twelve-year-old to tackle the same skills judged solely by the date of their birth. My children need an individualized education that matches their readiness so we both avoid frustration.

I still agree! But I’d also add that if there’s something that you feel you must cover at a specific time (either because of regulations or your own anxiety levels!) then find a way to do what’s required while also getting your child to buy in (so you don’t hate your life – cue intentional bribery).

7. Enthusiasm matters in education–especially mine.

If I want to invite joy in learning in my home, I must show that I find joy in learning.

If I want my children to choose learning, they have to see me choose it first. Yes! And the beautiful thing is that this gives you permission to invest in YOU even while you’re inspiring them.

I’d rather inspire them to choose it themselves than use compulsion and force because:

8. Self-education matters most.

September 2012

I agree with educational pioneer Charlotte Mason that “self-education is the only possible education.” A person–no matter what their age–who is internally motivated is unstoppable.

By teaching my kids how to learn for themselves, I’m giving them the freedom to become who they were born to become.

Yes, and my post about redefining success may help you aim in the right direction!

I hope these 8 things I’ve learned about education have given you some encouragement. I’d love to hear some of the lessons you’ve learned if you’d like to share.

* Click here to read more updated posts from Jamie, Then and Now

Now those babies are young adults!

What lessons have you learned about education during your years as a parent?

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your type needs most!

9 Educational Philosophies Defined (UPDATED!)

Jamie C. Martin — Wed, 05 Jun 2024 16:20:33 +0000

9 Educational Philosophies Defined (UPDATED!) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin, editor of Simple Homeschool and Introverted Moms

Hi friends! I’m here again with another installment in my new Simple Homeschool series, in which I’m updating past content to keep it fresh and useful for all of you.

This post was one of the most popular back in the early days of Simple Homeschool; it gives a helpful overview to the many educational philosophies out there.

Originally this was Part I of a two-part series. As part of my update, I merged them and added several updated links to help you learn more about any method that strikes you as interesting.

Feel free to pin it or bookmark so you can come back to it anytime – enjoy!

*****

When I first started to research homeschooling, I didn’t even realize there was more than one way to “do” education. Growing up in the traditional system, like most of us, I assumed that homeschooling meant duplicating that system at home.

Imagine my surprise (& joy) as I discovered the plethora of educational methods and philosophies out there. That’s when I realized how amazing a home education could be – so many possibilities and options existed that could be tailored for each child!

The downside of having so many choices is wading your way through the information. If you’ve recently felt overwhelmed by all that’s out there, this article is just what you need.

Here are nine educational philosophies defined to get you started.

9 Educational Philosophies Defined

1. The Traditional Method Defined

This is what it sounds like–taking the classroom model and translating it into your home. Typically this method revolves around textbooks, worksheets, and tests to determine if your child is mastering the material.

Some children love plowing through a workbook and thrive on it. For those who don’t, you can always use these sparingly or on a child’s own terms. We have a shelf of workbooks that our elementary-aged children can work in if and when the mood strikes them.

Many families may use the traditional method in one subject, like math, while using different methods for other subjects. Large families may find it helpful to use some textbooks if it provides an easier way to follow up with several children.

2. The Unit Study Method Defined

The unit study method seeks to combine several subjects under one unifying theme.

If your son loves trains, you would use that subject to look for books about trains (literature), write about trains (English/handwriting), study the history of trains (history), develop word problems about the speed of trains (math), and so on.

Photo by woodley wonderworks

A homeschooling mom or dad can compile a unit study on any subject that interests a child, but some publishers take the hard work out of unit studies by putting packages together on a variety of topics.

Unit studies often incorporate multi-sensory approaches to a subject, making it ideal for kinesthetic learners. The downside is that these lessons may require extra preparation time on behalf of the parent.

3. The Charlotte Mason Method Defined

Charlotte Mason pioneered amazing educational changes in Great Britain. Living in the late 1800’s, she revolutionized the educational system at that time – aiming to prove that children of any class had the ability to learn and enjoy it.

Her methods have seen a resurgence within homeschoolers of our generation–a wonderful thing as her teachings offer much to families and children.

Key aspects of her philosophy include nature study, short lessons, narration, real “living” books as opposed to textbooks, and the development of good habits.

4. The Unschooling Method Defined

The word “unschooling” may sound frightening, especially if you are new to homeschooling.

Terms with essentially the same definition, but that may be less intimidating include delight-directed education, relaxed homeschooling, or interest-led learning.

Photo by Jesse Millan

Unschooling advocates believe that children are born with a natural curiosity and love of learning, and that this desire to learn will continue to grow and develop if it isn’t stifled.

This method of education isn’t about neglect – many households pursue an intentional type of unschooling lifestyle and find that it brings joy to their families.

Even if you believe you must cover the “basics” in certain subjects, you can still implement part of this philosophy by allowing your children as much freedom as possible in other educational areas.

As a mom who went from thinking unschooling was the most outrageous, scary concept I’d ever heard of–to a mom who loves relaxed homeschooling and implemented it as much as possible, I encourage you to check out the following links.

5. The Classical Method Defined

Classical education has its roots in classic civilizations–much of it based on ideas with a Roman or Greek foundation.

The classical method focuses on the Trivium–three distinct stages children work through as they develop. Young children begin with the grammar stage, proceed through the logic/dialectic stage, and graduate to the rhetoric stage close to adulthood.

Key aspects of this philosophy include the importance of reading and discussing classic, living books and the study of classical languages like Latin or Greek.

6. The Literature-Based Method Defined

Oh! My babies!!

Literature-based homeschooling families use high-quality literature as the backbone of their curriculum. Many of the philosophies we’ve covered address the importance of using living books as a vital part of the educational experience.

Serious literature-based schooling advocates take it a step further and try to accomplish as many subjects as possible within the outline of a good story, believing this helps a child’s mind assimilate information.

Many companies publish reading lists by grade and age level. Other literature-based publishers organize the entire curriculum for you – making it easy to purchase and have delivered to your door an entire school year’s worth of learning and reading.

7. The Montessori Method Defined

This educational method was developed by Maria Montessori (1870-1952), an Italian physician. In a Montessori setting, older and younger children learn alongside one another, which gives it a natural crossover to a homeschool setting.

Teachers give guidance and support, while providing access to a large array of learning materials. Children choose their activities and learn through seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, touching, and movement. Knowledge is internalized in a natural, self-paced way.

8. The Leadership Education Method Defined

Leadership Education has become more widely known as a homeschooling philosophy. Also called Thomas Jefferson Education or TJEd, it centers around the idea that children learn differently in different stages of life.

Drawing on the work of Jean Piaget and other educational philosophers, three main phases of childhood learning are defined and implemented: Core, Love of Learning, and Scholar.

Because this is more of a philosophy than a method, it’s easy to adapt many of the Leadership Education principles into any curriculum you may use. TJEd is one of the philosophies that resonated with me the most and characterized much of our family’s homeschool!

9. The Eclectic Method Defined

Few homeschooling families fit within the constraints of one method or philosophy, and that is one of the strengths of home education!

As I shared in this post on our journey, my family merged inspiration and ideas from Charlotte Mason, Literature-Based, Leadership Education, and Interest-Led Learning/Unschooling.

Don’t be afraid to pick and choose. The beauty truly unfolds as you find and discover what works for you and your children.

And as homeschooling parents, we get to watch the whole process. What an amazing privilege!

Is having these educational philosophies defined a help? Which of these methods have you implemented in your homeschool? If you’re just getting started, do any of these philosophies resonate with you?

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your type needs most!

7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education (UPDATED!)

Jamie C. Martin — Tue, 07 May 2024 14:32:00 +0000

7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education (UPDATED!) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool

Welcome back to my newest Simple Homeschool series, in which I’m going back in time to share my thoughts as a retired homeschool mom after 15 years of active duty.

This month I decided to revisit this popular post from the very first year of Simple Homeschool; I wrote it in 2010!

Obviously I have a lot more experience and thoughts of my own to share now, so I’ve updated the post below with them. Look for the red headings to easily spot those.

Let’s learn a bit more about Charlotte Mason education together:

Prefer to listen instead?

*****

If you’ve been homeschooling for long, you’ve undoubtedly heard of Charlotte Mason.

Her educational principles, which she developed in 19th century England, offer much to home educating children and families alike.

But what exactly is a Charlotte Mason education? How can you know if it will work well for your family?

Use this overview to help you decide.

7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education

1. Habits

Charlotte believed that the development of good habits within a child provides the foundation for early education. She wrote, “The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days.”

For this reason Charlotte advised delaying formal academics until age six, instead advocating play and work within the gentle boundaries of the family unit.

Charlotte saw good habits as so crucial that she recommended putting all else aside if a bad habit appeared, and working with the child (in a friendly way) to reconcile the issue before it could develop further.

Jamie’s thoughts on habits today:

Keep in mind that Charlotte Mason worked with children in schools, and was not a mother herself. Please have no guilt if you find that instilling good habits in your children is a lifelong endeavor – it is!

I agree with the delay of formal academics (in most cases), and that is what worked well in our family. However, I can remember feeling guilt over the fact that my kids did have bad habits, and this can feel even heavier to those of us who have children with a variety of diagnoses and special needs.

Habits are a big priority, but they are not our ONLY priority. Success in this area can take a decade or more to observe!

2. Style of Lessons

Charlotte Mason style lessons are short, especially for young children. The goal is to train the child to focus fully on their work, but only for the amount of time they are developmentally capable of.

For early elementary-aged children this often means only 5-15 minutes per subject. In older grades the duration extends to 45 minutes or more.

Photo by D. Sharon Pruitt

When a child becomes restless, Charlotte advised changing the lesson to a different type of subject–maybe moving from handwriting to music study, or from math to handicrafts.

Short lessons means that more subjects can be incorporated into a school day. This fits with the Charlotte Mason philosophy of introducing many topics to children and allowing them to delve deeper into the ones that spark their interest.

Jamie’s thoughts on style of lessons today:

Yes! I 100% agree that short lessons are the best lessons, especially for littles, but boy did my Inner Taskmaster find it hard to stop without reaching the “official” end.

I felt like I didn’t get my closure and gold star! Looking back though, I would try to work with a timer/clock and mark where we leave off so we could return and begin the next time.

3. Living Books

Living books are the opposite of textbooks–quality literature (either fiction or non-fiction) written by an author with a passion for the topic. The writer’s passion and expertise breathes life into the book, as opposed to a textbook that gives impersonal overviews of many topics.

Living books present inspiring stories that engage the minds of children and adults alike, providing characters our children can look up to and emulate.

Jamie’s thoughts on living books today:

Yes, especially for younger ages, living books are the way to go! However, for those of us with a proclivity toward insecurity, please remember that this does NOT mean that you must only choose books that are 100 years old or were on Charlotte’s official reading list.

You’re looking for books, new and old, that have that spark of life to them that captures your own imagination and that of your child. You get to create your own list as you go!

4. Narration

A Charlotte Mason-style education uses narration as one of the central methods to evaluate a student. The goal is to teach a child to think and express themselves clearly.

Up until the age of 10 or 11, Charlotte advises teachers to use mainly oral narration with a child. After listening to a short passage of a book, the child will tell back, in his or her own words, important aspects of the story.

Letting a young child do this orally helps them develop analytical thinking skills without getting stuck by the physical mechanics of handwriting.

At around age 11 Charlotte Mason teachers begin having children do written narrations, which lengthen and become more in depth as children get older.

Jamie’s thoughts on narration today:

I experienced a ton of pressure in this area that we weren’t “doing it right.” It’s essential to remember that life with a classroom of students must be organized differently to life at home with a handful.

When I asked my kids to repeat back what they had heard…it often resulted in that deer in headlights look, left me feeling disappointed, and took away from the enjoyment in what we were reading. But there were other times when the kids were so excited about something they had read that they couldn’t wait to come and tell me every. single. detail.

This is narration at home, in the context of real life. The same way that we might summarize a book for our adult friends! So experiment with narration to see how or if it works for you, but feel free to allow it to naturally happen as opposed to forcing it.

5. Dictation

Dictation exercises introduce and reinforce spelling and grammar concepts.

Charlotte recommends using inspiring quotations or Scripture for dictation. The child studies the passage until they are certain of the spelling and punctuation. Then the teacher dictates the passage slowly while the child writes it down.

Formal grammar study is usually delayed until age 10 or 11 in a Charlotte Mason education.

Photo by Wonderlane

Jamie’s thoughts on dictation today:

I definitely agree with the concept of delaying formal grammar study as a general idea. Aside from Mad Libs and chatting casually about grammar mistakes in real life (as an English major and author, grammar is very important to me!), we delayed this formally even longer than Charlotte.

We used Fix It Grammar for a while; I loved those workbooks! Dictation is a bit like copywork, which I listed as one of the things I’d do differently of if I could go back in time.

But dictation was not a top priority for us until the teen years, and it doesn’t have to be for you to homeschool well. Try it and then decide for yourself!

6. Art & Music Study

Charlotte Mason believed in exposing a child to greatness in many forms, which is why she introduced music and art appreciation at her schools.

In Charlotte’s schools, one composer or artist was studied each term–both through experiencing the music and art, reading living books about the artist, and perhaps reproducing the style through art or music lessons.

Jamie’s thoughts on art and music study today:

Of course it is beautiful to introduce art and music to a child, yes! If this an area of personal passion for you as a homeschooling parent, then please focus on it and share your own inspiration. That always makes for beautiful memories and learning moments!

However, if it feels rote, remember that it doesn’t have to be as formal as it was in Charlotte’s schools to make an impact over your entire homeschooling years. You are spreading a feast for your kids, as Charlotte used to say, but you are NOT force-feeding them. There is a difference!

7. Nature Study

Photo by James Wheare

Charlotte thought children should spend as much time as possible outdoors, especially as young students.

Students kept their own detailed nature journals as part of their nature study and also used nature guides to discover and identify the natural world in their neighborhood.

Jamie’s thoughts on nature study today:

You do not have to spend several hours outside daily to have your kids appreciate and benefit from nature. Some of CM’s quotes suggest otherwise, and if that fills you with guilt, remember to look at the heart behind it.

Nature inspires us and is and worth getting into whenever possible, but your kids aren’t doomed to failure if they miss a day or don’t spend six hours outside in the rain LOL! We never did nature journals, but I know other families who have and have loved them.

Good and terrifying news: You get to be your own expert, on this and every other decision!

*****

Charlotte Mason’s ideas created an educational revolution when she developed them. She hoped education would open the doors of equality and opportunity to all.

She believed that, regardless of what social class they belonged to, children deserved dignity and respect. <— THIS is my biggest Charlotte Mason takeaway. Use her ideas out of dignity and respect for your individual children; don’t use them out of fear of failing your kids or getting it wrong.

Never put any homeschool philosophy or method above a precious child of God!

Charlotte expressed the hope in many a homeschooling parent’s heart when she wrote the following:

“The question is not,—how much does the youth know? when he has finished his education—but how much does he care?

And about how many orders of things does he care? In fact, how large is the room in which he finds his feet set? And, therefore, how full is the life he has before him?”

Further Links to Learn More (UPDATED):

Originally written March 2010; updated May 2024

Has your family incorporated any of Charlotte Mason’s ideas? Please share what has worked for you.

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

UPDATED: Jamie’s homeschool day (with a 7-, 8-, & 9-year-old)

Jamie C. Martin — Mon, 01 Apr 2024 19:00:09 +0000

Jamie’s Homeschool Day UPDATED (with a 7-, 8-, & 9-year-old) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool and Introverted Moms

Welcome back to my latest Simple Homeschool series, in which I’m going back in time to share my thoughts as a now retired homeschool mom after 15 years of active duty LOL.

This month I decided to do this a little differently for you – I updated the post below throughout with my thoughts from NOW so you can compare them directly to my THEN. Look for my comments in red italics below as you read about our day!

I also recorded a companion podcast episode with even more reflections about this day in the life of our homeschool journey, and for the first time ever my amazing 20-year-old daughter Trishna (homeschool graduate, uber-creative, special needs) joins me as my special guest!

Look for Episode 126 of the Simple Homeschool podcast to stream or download!

THEN AND NOW: JAMIE’S HOMESCHOOL DAY

When my kids were younger, I needed a detailed schedule to infuse our home with a little peace. Life was CHAOTIC with a newly-adopted four-year-old on top of a three- and two-year-old, and many days my head swam dizzy with the busy-ness of it all. (#understatement!)

It was good crazy, but crazy it was. As it seemed my kids didn’t have much of an attention span (because they didn’t, ha!), no activity lasted longer than 15 minutes. So for a while, I planned accordingly.

Now that season feels incredibly far away–five whole years have passed! (Make that 16 WHOLE YEARS, wow.)

And I’ve finally discovered both the beauty and the flexibility of using long chunks of time to put our days together.

All times in this post are merely a guideline – we flex as much or as little as needed. Plenty of days we call the whole thing off.

Yes, my recommendation is still to choose rhythm over schedule. Your inner taskmaster might harass you a bit that day, but over the long-haul of homeschool life it will all work out, with less stress and fear for you and the kids.

The Mama’s Day

6:15 – My writing time (I get my most focused writing of the day done here)

7:15 – I shower, dress, eat breakfast, read my Bible, & make my to-do list

8:15 – My children dress themselves, have breakfast while I read (from our current chapter book or an Oak Meadow story – oh my, I miss both of these!!) then do chores and clean up (afflinks throughout this post)

this is one of my favorite pics of my Jonathan ever – sweetly illustrates childhood homeschooling!

9:15 – Then starts what I call our “learning sections.” It’s the time of our day set aside for academic/schoolish pursuits. The children play and work in different areas of the house, rotating after 30 or 45 minutes.

This gives me a chunk of time with each child alone, during which we work on whatever might excite them that day: creating handwriting books (our current project), taking turns reading aloud, a riveting chapter book, some sewing, etc. If one child starts a project during our time together, they may continue it when they rotate to another room.

I would choose this rhythm for this age again if I went back to do it over! It served me as an introvert because I didn’t have all three kids together all the time. It served them because they had me all to themselves for a while, and because often they had a say in what we spent our time doing.

I love that they all have fond memories of this stage of our homeschool!

Like most things, however, if I went back I would approach this with a little more grace and softness, and a little more flexibility to change things up based on what I sensed that day needed. I was pretty good back then at flexing for the kids’ needs, but if I could do it over I would remind myself that it is 100% legitimate to flex the day based on my own needs as well!

10:45 – A quick morning snack; I read from this children’s Bible or this kids’ devotional.

11:00 – Finish up our learning sections for the morning

11:45 – The kids have a short recess, inside or out, while I put away the laundry

Now I wish I would have just sat down with a cup of tea for 15 minutes and let the laundry piles stay where they are!! #hindsight

Noon – Jonathan helps me make lunch, then we eat and I read to the kids from our current chapter book.

12:45 – I call this Mommy’s work time. Most days I try to do light blogging work at this point in the day–like emails, formatting posts and photos, and so on. The kids watch a video.

1:45 – It’s outside time now, and we live in the loveliest area for outdoor play. I help get everyone bundled up, then send them out with a smile. Just to clarify, they weren’t always smiling, but I was LOL

They still joke about how I forced them to go outside no matter what the weather was. And I more or less still do the same with whichever young adults happen to be home these days!

If I’m lucky, I may even get to read a chapter from my own book while they play. Then I usually head out for a bit of playtime myself (Well, that and the settling of a few sibling squabbles. ;))

2:45 – Another snack (my babes can eat!!), maybe a quick story, and then kids head upstairs

3:15 – Rest Time (which used to be nap time, but now just means you can play, read, & work on whatever you’d like in your room)

This was my introvert survival tool that allowed me to keep homeschooling for 15 years! I wouldn’t have made it without this afternoon chunk of time.

During rest time I do a bit of resting myself, then use the second half for writing/blog work.

If I could go back, I would work less during this block. My brain is usually mush by this point in the afternoon, yet I forced myself to do more. It always felt like it “had to” get done, but looking back I know now that not all of it was as urgent as it felt. Learn from my mistakes! xo

4:45 – We regroup and the kids loudly bound down the stairs. After getting everyone settled with whatever they need for playing indoors or out, I start on dinner.

After an hour or so, I’ll put on one more short video episode (Intentional Screen Time for the win!) for the kids while I finish cooking and chat with Steve when he gets home from his day.

6:15 – Family dinner, then we all clean up (By “we all,” I mean one parent doing most of the real cleaning, while one parent does the work of attempting to include three young children in the cleaning process LOL)

6:45 – Our pre-bedtime routine begins here with any children who need baths or showers starting on that process. Those who don’t need showers may listen to one or two Sparkle Stories, our favorite calming pre-bedtime activity.

I would still use Sparkle Stories if I could go back – their Martin & Sylvia stories (about homeschooled siblings) were my favorite!

7:45 – Heading upstairs to tuck everyone in – I rotate spending time one-on-one with a child most evenings. Often this means I read a chapter aloud from a book that child has chosen.

(Right now I’m reading Pollyanna with Jonathan and Elijah, and Mr. Popper’s Penguins with Trishna.)

Okay, I have to admit that I would NOT do this again! Or if I did, I would surprise a child with it so that it was a special treat NOT an expectation. We phased this out pretty quickly after several months because my energy levels were just not there for it.

8:15 – I stumble downstairs sluggishly and give Steve a tired smile. I used to try to work a bit here, but my brain is generally too fried and Steve and I need time together too. I aim to be in bed by 10:30 so I can get up early again the next day for my early morning writing time.

Check out ALL of Jamie’s Homeschool Days:

Do you need a detailed routine during your season of life or a more open-ended one?

Originally posted Jan 8, 2013 ~ Updated April 2, 2024

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your type needs most!

Jamie’s Homeschool Day (w/ a 6, 7, & 8-year-old) UPDATED!

Jamie C. Martin — Tue, 05 Mar 2024 16:15:26 +0000

Jamie’s Homeschool Day, Then & Now (with a 6-, 7-, & 8-year-old – UPDATED!) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool and Introverted Moms

NOW:

How have you enjoyed this year’s 14th Annual Homeschool Day in the Life series?! In case you’ve missed any of the posts, just head here to catch up!

Since I officially retired from homeschooling last summer, I’m approaching my homeschool day in the life differently – looking back on my 15 year homeschooling career and sharing what I’ve learned in monthly Then and Now Reflections!

In Episode 125 of the SH podcast, you’ll hear me and my son Jonathan (19-yrs-old, homeschool graduate) discuss:

The details of our homeschool routine back with a 6, 7, and 8-year-old, having just moved to a house in the countryside
Our experiment having “Yes” Day on Mondays
How having greater access to nature influenced the flow of our days
When homeschool moms manage to find time to eat (& why our kids never think about this! LOL)
How bloggers with three young kids have to make sure the photos in a post are “fair”
What made this one of my favorite years of homeschooling

To subscribe and listen in, head to your platform of choice: Spotify, Apple, Google, Audible, Amazon, or stream it right here on Simple Homeschool. And keep scrolling to read about this homeschool year in our life below!

Jamie’s Homeschool Day in the Life – THEN, 2012:

When I wrote about my homeschool day last year, I had no idea that by January 2012 we would have moved to our dream house in the country.

My–how one year can change everything. I now find my children, inching ever so slowly, through the phases of learning–moving gradually from Core Phase into Love of Learning.

We have plenty of days when everything seems to fall apart. You know the ones.

But we also have golden moments, when magic happens, connections are made, and my heart swells as I think, “It’s working! It’s really working!”

This is the joy and wonder of the homeschooling lifestyle.

What follows are the nuts and bolts of how that joy and wonder play out in our home.

An Overview of Our Day

These times are all approximate–the day generally flows from one activity to another and things happen when they happen, usually around the following times:

6:15 – I’m up to do blogging work and prepare for the day
8:20 – Kids come out of their rooms, get dressed, & have breakfast while I read to them
9:00 – Learning time–I spend some one-on-one time with each child
10:30 – Snack and stories
11:00 – Kids watch video while I write
12:00 – Prepare lunch, eat, I read from our current chapter book
1:00 – Free play, outside time, more learning time as needed
2:30 – Snack and prepare for rest time; Rest time in rooms for kids/I read, study, and write (& rest!)
4:00 – Rest time finished; all head downstairs for a snack
4:30 – Free play time and begin to prepare dinner
5:20 – Kids listen to Sparkle Stories while I continue dinner prep and chat with Steve (They used to watch another video here, and I’m thrilled to have found such a wonderful alternative!)
6:00 – Dinner as a family
6:30 – Dinner clean-up, begin baths, family time, kids go completely crazy time, and so on
7:30 – Bedtime story
8:00 – Kids to bed, Steve and I congratulate ourselves for making it through another day

Weekly Rhythms

Mondays – Yes Day
Tuesdays – Baking Day
Wednesdays – Class Day (The kids take a class at a local Waldorf school.)
Thursdays – Cleaning Day (more on this soon)
Fridays – Nature Day (We try to take a hike or go to a park after lunch.)

Each item on our list is there for a reason, and fits within a few guiding principles upon which we build our educational philosophy.

Here is a snapshot of those principles:

1. Learning can happen anywhere and anytime…if we don’t stifle it.

I am always on the lookout for an opportunity to inspire, and though you don’t see it on my schedule, inspiration is the glue that holds our homeschool day together.

School time doesn’t only happen at one time in the day–school time is the day. Whenever the desire to learn appears, we roll with it, following where it leads.

2. Nature inspires learning and curiosity.

A year ago my kids spent time outside every day, but not as much as they do now. A year ago, we lived in the suburbs.

Today our backyard looks like this:

Time spent outside is not time wasted. Every moment spent there inspires, encourages, and builds a foundation for learning.

Some life lessons, perhaps the most important ones, can best be discovered under open sky.

3. Read, read, read.

Chewing mouths provide a captive audience. I take advantage of that fact by reading aloud to the children at breakfast, morning snack, and lunch times.

We get through a lot of books this way, which builds attention span, increases vocabulary, and contributes toward a love of learning.

4. Me, not them.

This is one of the seven keys of great teaching in leadership education, and I take it to heart. My kids often see me with book in hand, and as they get older, I try to share more and more of what I’m personally learning. I want to serve as a model, a mentor.

Within every aspect of our day, I keep in mind that relationships matter most. They open the door to the mind…or slam doors shut.

I am the key to nurturing these bonds in ways that strengthen instead of tear apart. As I make that my focus, I find that all the pieces of our day line up…with a little dose of magic sprinkled in to add joy and wonder.

Check out ALL of Jamie’s Homeschool Days:

Any questions about Jamie’s homeschool day or why we do what we do? Ask away!

Originally published January 9, 2012 ~ Updated March 5, 2024

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

Then & Now: Jamie’s Homeschool Day (with a 5-, 6-, & 7-year-old – UPDATED!)

Jamie C. Martin — Mon, 05 Feb 2024 14:50:25 +0000

Jamie’s Homeschool Day, Then & Now (with a 5-, 6-, & 7-year-old – UPDATED!) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool and Introverted Moms

NOW:

How often do you wish you could have a homeschool do-over? Well, now you can, and in the easiest way possible – without having to make mistakes of your own! Learn from mine, instead.

As I promised in January I plan to do monthly “Then and Now” reflections this year, looking back over my 15 years of homeschooling. I’ll be revisiting posts I’ve written in this space since 2010 and letting you in on what I’d do differently if I could.

When I originally wrote the post below I was nearly 35; now I’m nearly 48. To say life has changed around here would be a massive understatement!

Join me and my son Jonathan (currently 19, but six-years-old when I wrote the below!) on Episode 124 of the Simple Homeschool podcast as we go back in time together.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

I welcome Jonathan back to the podcast after he’s been away touring with the Jonas Brothers
my initial homeschooling philosophy of focusing on relationships rather than academics as top priority, and what I think about that now looking back
our daily homeschool rhythm from 2011 including morning routines, books, a few structured activities, “sections” time, and what Jonathan remembers fondly (or not!)
we reminisce about highlights of their 2011 days: walks, circle time, and the library
how we used screens, quiet time, and outings to make it through the days
what Jonathan thinks now about how our homeschool style has influenced him as a young adult

To subscribe and listen in, head to your platform of choice: Spotify, Apple, Google, etc, or stream it right here on Simple Homeschool! And keep scrolling to read the initial article I wrote in 2011.

Jamie’s Homeschool Day in the Life – THEN, 2011:

Are you enjoying this series on homeschool days as much as I am? There’s something quite vulnerable about getting to peek behind the curtain of another mom’s living room and see how she keeps all her plates spinning.

One word of caution, however: Don’t you dare leave any of these posts in a comparison mode, thinking, “She does so much more than me–now I know I’m screwing my kids up!” Do what you know is right for your own children–that is all they need.

You won’t feel the need to worry about “more” when it comes to my family’s rhythm–I don’t do it all, I purposefully take it slow, and I focus my days on enjoying my children.

My family is unique in that there are only 22 months separating all three of my kids in age, and even less separating them developmentally. I also work 15 hours a week blogging both here and at Steady Mom, so our rhythm takes into account Mommy’s writing time.

I believe my main goal should be to nurture the relationships in our home. When relationships flourish, I find that the academic side of learning naturally springs forth in an unforced way.

Here’s what that looks like practically.

I typically wake up at 6:45 am on a weekday. I’ve written extensively on Steady Mom about my morning routine and what we do before our day officially begins, so head over to read that if you’re interested.

At 8:20, my kids come out of their rooms to get dressed. Does 8:20 sound specific enough for you? No, I’m not a scheduling nazi–but my six-year-old has a clock in his room and takes it upon himself to announce dramatically at 8:20 – “It’s TIME!!!!” That’s how I know it happens at 8:20, you see.

Early Morning

The kids play while I tidy upstairs, then I help everyone get dressed. We head downstairs, where we have our circle time, then it’s on to the breakfast table. After a quick meal the kids clean up with me.

It’s been too cold lately to do our usual morning walk, so we typically meet again in the living room for a few minutes of music and movement.

Learning Time

By now it’s 9am, and we begin what I consider our “learning time.”

The kids pick out a few books they want me to read, or sometimes I’ll have a selection chosen beforehand. We sit on the couch and read together, then move to the dining table where we do one or two of our Oak Meadow Kindergarten activities. (I intentionally start academics later and follow a better late than early philosophy, which has enabled me to more or less keep all the kids at the same level.)

After this it’s time for what my kids call sections–I can’t really remember how it got this name, but don’t try to call it anything else in our house or the kids will come after you! This time is loosely based on the idea of “centers” in a preschool–my kids rotate spending 15-20 minutes playing in different areas of our house.

The idea, from my point of view, is to follow the leadership education philosophy of structuring time, not content. It gives me the chance to make the most of one-on-one learning opportunities.

Often my older two will work on a story or project and need help spelling words. Sometimes my six-year-old son gives me a math lesson. (Yes, you read that right.) There’s also plenty of Legos, artwork, playing, and drumming that happens as well. During this time I work on laundry, meal prep, or other house organization/cleaning I can do while still being available to the kids.

Early Afternoon

After sections, it’s usually close to noon–time for lunch, then the frigid outdoors for a quick walk and playing in the backyard.

When we come inside, I put on a DVD for the kids while I work and write upstairs (for about 45 minutes). When the video is over, it’s rest time–where the kids play quietly (at least it’s supposed to be quietly!), read, draw, and rest for an hour and a half.

During this time in our day I’ll do more computer work and also try to rest or read for 30 minutes myself (Mama recharge time).

Late Afternoon

When rest time ends, it’s already 4 or 4:30 pm. Trishna, Jonathan, and Elijah play while I put away the laundry I folded in the morning. We head back downstairs where I give the kids a quick snack and we read a chapter of our current read-aloud. (Right now, it’s The Burgess Bird Book for Children–highly recommended!)

Then it’s around 5pm–time to start dinner. One of Trishna’s current household duties is dinner helper, so she comes to the kitchen with me while the boys play for a while (until they start arguing–yes, this is a real home I’m talking about!).

At that point I put on another short DVD for them while I finish dinner.

Evening

After dinner comes the usual: clean up, family time, baths, and bedtime for the kids (around 8 pm).

I usually tidy the downstairs quickly, work a bit more online, and try to unplug around 8:30 (emphasis on the try). Then I spend time with my husband, take a shower, and happily head to bed (I aim for 10 pm, but it’s been more like 10:30 lately).

Variations on the Day

This routine varies on certain days. At least once a week we go on some type of outing–to the library, a museum, or maybe for a walk in the woods.

One day a week I have a sitter in the mornings, so she follows our general rhythm with the kids at home while I head out to write. And of course we also enjoy the flexibility to change things up, so we can meet with friends or ditch the plan for the unexpected.

The Secret of a Good Day

If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s that the secret of a good day is … me. I try to keep in mind this quote by German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe:

“I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather. I possess tremendous power to make life miserable or joyous.

I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration, I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis is escalated or de-escalated, and a person is humanized or de-humanized.

If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat people as they ought to be, we help them become what they are capable of becoming.”

Check out ALL of Jamie’s Homeschool Days:

Have any questions about our day? Ask away in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer.

Originally published January 10, 2011 ~ Updated Feb 6, 2024

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

then and now Archives - Simple Homeschool

Read your way to a love of math: 75+ titles for ages 4-12 (UPDATED!)

Read your way to a love of math: 75+ titles for ages 4-12

Bedtime Math

Life of Fred

Mathemagic

Mathematicians Are People, Too

Sir Cumference Series

Other titles to explore for ages 4-8 (Updated!)

Other titles to explore for ages 8-12 (Updated!)

Out of the box math inspiration (Updated!)

Out of the Box Math Inspiration

1. Just Do the Math by David Albert

2. A Mathematician’s Lament by Paul Lockhart

3. Research on the Teaching of Math at Trivium Pursuit

4. Louis P. Benezet’s Study…as told in Free-Range Learning

5. What I thought (and wrote) then – 10 years ago:

6. What I think now – 10 years later:

A different way to look at math (Updated!)

A Different Way to Look at Math

Simple Homeschooling 101: What to Teach, When to Teach It (UPDATED!)

Simple Homeschooling 101: What to Teach and When to Teach It (Updated!)

Early Schooling (ages 5-12)

Teen Schooling (ages 13+)

8 things I’ve learned about education in my 20 years of motherhood (UPDATED!)

8 things I’ve learned about education in my 8 (20!) years of motherhood

1. It’s not rocket science.

2. Children are born with a natural curiosity and desire to learn.

3. An absolute wealth of homeschooling and educational resources exist to choose from. (#understatement)

4. You don’t need much to homeschool successfully. A growing home library of well-chosen books works best. (And it’s so fun to have an excuse to buy books! )

5. My children give clues when they are ready for something new.

6. Waiting until they’re ready saves a ton of time – and tears (theirs & mine).

7. Enthusiasm matters in education–especially mine.

8. Self-education matters most.

* Click here to read more updated posts from Jamie, Then and Now

9 Educational Philosophies Defined (UPDATED!)

9 Educational Philosophies Defined

1. The Traditional Method Defined

Further Reading:

2. The Unit Study Method Defined

Further Reading:

3. The Charlotte Mason Method Defined

Further Reading:

4. The Unschooling Method Defined

Further Reading:

5. The Classical Method Defined

Further Reading:

6. The Literature-Based Method Defined

Further Reading:

7. The Montessori Method Defined

Further Reading:

8. The Leadership Education Method Defined

Further Reading:

9. The Eclectic Method Defined

7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education (UPDATED!)

7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education

1. Habits

Jamie’s thoughts on habits today:

2. Style of Lessons

Jamie’s thoughts on style of lessons today:

3. Living Books

Jamie’s thoughts on living books today:

4. Narration

Jamie’s thoughts on narration today:

5. Dictation

Jamie’s thoughts on dictation today:

6. Art & Music Study

Jamie’s thoughts on art and music study today:

7. Nature Study

Jamie’s thoughts on nature study today:

Further Links to Learn More (UPDATED):

UPDATED: Jamie’s homeschool day (with a 7-, 8-, & 9-year-old)

THEN AND NOW: JAMIE’S HOMESCHOOL DAY

The Mama’s Day

Check out ALL of Jamie’s Homeschool Days:

Jamie’s Homeschool Day (w/ a 6, 7, & 8-year-old) UPDATED!

NOW:

Jamie’s Homeschool Day in the Life – THEN, 2012:

An Overview of Our Day

Weekly Rhythms