5 (surprising) things you need to know about homeschooling high school ~
Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

For seven years now, I have been sharing our homeschool journey here on Simple Homeschool.

My oldest was eleven at the time. My youngest was eight.

It’s been a wonderful, crazy, joyful, stressful, sometimes devastating, sometimes rewarding, always worthwhile seven years.

Today, I find myself helping one child graduate high school, and the other prepare to begin it. My oldest only has six weeks left in his educational journey with me. My youngest has six weeks plus the next four high school years.

Prefer to listen instead?

I think because my oldest is preparing for life after high school homeschool, I find myself reflecting on what I know now about the high school years (that I never would’ve thought possible back when we started).

The truth is, most of the past four years feel like blur. They went by so much faster than his younger years homeschooling. They went by faster, but they were also, frankly, so much more fun.

Our days have became equally interesting for all of us. Because they are older, their interests more closely resemble my own. Our discussions about current events, history, and art are far more engaging than I thought possible.

It’s hard to think about it coming to an end, at least with one of them.

With this in mind, I wanted to share the things I wish I’d known about homeschooling high school before we were actually homeschooling high school. If I could go back in time to the mom I was seven years ago, this is what I would tell her.

5 Things You Need To Know About Homeschooling High School

1. Homeschooling High School Doesn’t Have To Be Totally Different From The Younger Years.

When we were preparing for my oldest to begin his freshman year, I thought it would be totally different.

I mean, this is high school right? Doesn’t it need to be more rigorous and less, well, fun?

Turns out, my son’s high school years looked a lot like every other year: interest-led, hands-on, project based learning.

At the end of his senior year, I can honestly say that it worked. We had already figured out how he learns best. I am so glad we didn’t change that to fit some idea of how high school is supposed to be!

2. Don’t Be Afraid Of High School Transcripts and Course Credits.

I was terrified of the transcript at first. It felt formal and threatening.

Turns out, it wasn’t really that hard. In fact, after I figured out how I wanted to do it, I actually looked forward to completing his transcript each semester. It felt like an observable measure of progress (something that can be really hard to come by as a homeschool mom!).

This post by Kara, really helped me relax about my son’s transcript.

3. Your Role Will Change Over The Four Years (and that’s OK).

I was a little taken aback by how quickly my role began to change as my son progressed through the high school years.

I went from being the one in charge of all of things to the one who needs to buy all the things and drive him to all the things. It was a little disconcerting at first, but it was exactly what needed to happen. My son developed a sense of engagement in his learning and independence that we had never seen before.

It’s worth being the accountant and the driver, instead of the teacher sometimes.

4. Your Child Will Have More Opinions (and that’s OK).

Of course it’s okay, right?

I know this to be true in my heart, but I can tell you that when my son had a very strong opinion about applying to four year colleges (he wanted to, I thought it was not a great fit for him) – I missed the years of him pretty much learning the way I thought he should learn.

Homeschooling high school is also just parenting a high schooler. It includes letting go when it’s time (cue tears).

5. The Memories Are Irreplaceable.

Oh my goodness, this one also makes me tear up a little, but it’s true.

The memories we have created together, especially as my son has become more and more of an adult, are precious to me in a way that is quite different from the younger years.

I am not sure I can put it all into words, but this is what I know – these high school years are when homeschooling and being with my kids all the time really started to get good.

I wouldn’t trade the memories we’ve made these past four years for anything.

There is so much more I could share.

I could tell you how impressed I was with my son’s college essays. I could tell you how worried I am about the giant step he is taking in heading off to college in the fall.

But I won’t. What I want to tell you is this – homeschooling high school has been one of the greatest experiences of my life and I am so grateful to be able to do it all over again with my youngest.

Maybe check back in four years. I will let you know how it goes.

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!

Interest-Led Learning When Your Child Only Likes Video Games ~
Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

I was on the phone with another homeschooling mom last week.

She was trying to work through how to best teach her twelve-year-old son without the resistance that was a daily struggle last year. “Have you tried an interest-led approach to learning?” I gently asked.

Frustrated and discouraged, she replied, “How can I take an interest-led approach when his only interest is video games?”

I understand her concern.

We tend to view video games as a sort of enemy of education and learning, especially in the homeschool community. I used to feel the same way.

But over the course of the past few years, as my boys have matured into teens and I have had to find new ways to connect with them, I have come to see video games not as a threat, but a tool that we can use to help our kids learn.

Interest-Led Learning When Your Child Only Likes Video Games

The more I have learned about my sons’ interest in gaming, the more convinced I have become that we are missing real edcuational opportunities with our kids.  Here’s why –

Not All Games Are Created Equal

I think the fear is that our children will be locked up inside a dark room all day playing violent, degrading games. While some of those types of games exist, there are many more that actually provide very real educational learning opportunities for our children.

For example, Minecraft has been a mainstay in our homeschool since I learned that signs can be created throughout the game. We use these signs to practice sight words with my struggling reader.

Another example in our home is Battlefield One. In this war game, my son has learned more about WWI than any textbook was ever able to teach him.

Video Games Provide Opportunities To connect With Our Children On Their Level

Just as our kids love to show us their latest art project or trick on the skateboard, they also enjoy showing us their skills in a virtual world. Knowing what they are playing, asking why they enjoy it, and providing positive reinforcement creates an environment of mutual respect. This respect is the foundation of interest-led learning.

We respect our kids’ interests and allow them to drive our approach to their education. Video games can absolutely be as valuable in interest-led learning as my youngest son’s interest in animals. We just have to take the time to learn about them, with our child as the guide.

Video Games Can Help Lead To Strength Based Learning

I have shared before how passionate I am about using our children’s strengths to drive their learning.

What has surprised me is how video games have actually revealed some of my boys’ natural gifts and strengths. For example, my youngest is a wizard at three dimensional thinking and building. It serves him well in video games, but I am also learning ways to incorporate this strength into our learning away from the screen.

The relationship between interests and strengths is quite significant. In fact, the combination of the two is what allows me to create strength based learning plans for my sons and for other families.

I have created a worksheet to help parents get started with this type of approach. It is available for free to Simple Homeschool readers HERE.

How To Use Video Games In Interest Led Learning

I want to leave you with some practical examples of how to incorporate video games into your homeschool.

Get Involved

My first recommendation is to participate in as much conversation and game play as possible. I don’t ever actually play games, but I do sit with my boys while they play. I ask them why they enjoy it and have them show me all their skills.

Use As A Starting point For Lessons

Last week, my son mentioned Russia was a location in the game he was playing. We got the map out and found it. We did a google search together to learn more about it. And then, we went back to the game and compared what we learned to what we saw on the screen. Was it an accurate depiction? Why not?

Another example in our homeschool is how we use mobile games. There is a Harry Potter mobile game that my son loves to play. He wanders the neighborhood, looking for magical creatures in the game. He gets a little exercise and fresh air and then we come home and practice reading aloud using the Harry Potter book series.

Use As A Check For Understanding

Some of the more creative video games, like Minecraft, easily serve as a kind of quiz to see how your child is retaining the information he’s learning. For example, my son created a Medieval Village in Minecraft to reflect what he had learned as part of our Medieval History unit study. It worked beautifully, almost like an online version of our old shoe box dioramas.

Overall, I have found video games to be a very useful part of our learning. The more I learn about the games my children play, the easier it is to find ways to incorporate this interest into our homeschool.

* Find more of Shawna’s inspiring posts on Simple Homeschool!

Do your kids play video games? Have you used them as part of your homeschool?

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!

Am I doing enough in our homeschool?
Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

After ten years of homeschooling, there is one thing I know to be true.

I am most likely to doubt, question and fear my own ability as a homeschool mom in the middle of the night.

Last night was no exception.

Having some trouble getting back to sleep, I began to go through the previous day in my head.

My son’s resistance to writing.

The video we watched on YouTube instead of doing the actual history assignment.

The to-do list left undone at the end of the day.

As I tossed and turned, one familiar question haunted me.

Would you rather listen to this post?

Am I doing enough for these children?

I know I am not alone in asking this, nor is this a new question. Over the past decade, I know I have asked it hundreds, if not thousands of times.

It’s a question that comes up at every homeschool get-together and in every homeschool mom Facebook group.

We carefully ask other moms what they think. We worry they don’t really understand our realities when they tell us we are doing well and it will be okay.

We wonder, when we hear about a new curriculum or book list.

We whisper it to ourselves on the days when things don’t go as planned.

Am I doing enough?

One of the most challenging aspects of being a homeschool mom, for me, is feeling like I never really know how well I am doing.

At all my other jobs, I had a boss. I had performance appraisals. I had a sense of what right looked like and how well I was doing.

Homeschooling gives us none of that.

And yet, the longer I educate my own children, the more I am finding ways to answer this question, when it rears its ugly head.

Am I doing enough in our homeschool?

If you struggle with this same sense of not knowing, I want to encourage you today that you are not alone.

In fact, I have never met a homeschool mom who didn’t wonder, at least sometimes, if her efforts would be enough to successfully educate her children.

When this question creeps up, this is what helps me most.

Stop Asking, “Does this count?”

It is so easy to feel like I am not doing enough in our homeschool when I am concerned about what “counts” as learning and what doesn’t.

For example, it’s easy to feel like my son taking a quiz or completing a worksheet “counts,” because it looks more like the public school model that so many of us grew up in.

But what about the Batman graphic novel he was obsessed with all day, or the Geography Now YouTube video we watched, with its tongue in cheek look at what defines the 50 states? Do these count?

While I am still prone to worry, I have learned that if I am asking if something counts, it usually does.

Learning is an element of almost everything we do, in life and in homeschool. It’s easy to see it when I take a step back and really think about the skills my children are practicing.

The graphic novel allowed him to practice reading and think about story. The video sparked an interesting conversation about northern states and political divides.

I could go on and on, but essentially, instead of asking if something counts as learning, I ask, “What did my children learn from this activity?”

Establish a daily minimum.

This has evolved considerably over the past few years, but it is genuinely making a difference in our homeschool.

At the beginning of the school year, I define what I think are the most important things we need to accomplish everyday (and not just academically). This list of no more than five things becomes my minimum expectation for our days.

Below is my “even if nothing else happens, I will consider this enough” daily list for this year for my youngest son.

1. Audiobook and read to mom
2. Sensory activity or rock climbing
3. CTC Math – one 5 minute lesson
4. Current events discussion
5. One item from weekly list

In addition to our daily plan, I create a weekly list of ideas and activities to add to the above. We only add an item from the weekly list if we are in a good place and able to take on more (which, if I’m honest, is about 50% of the days).

Here is a picture of my plans for last week.

The daily list of requirements helps me start the day with a sense of things being doable from the start, instead of behind before we even get started.

Most important, it feels like enough.

Accept that resistance will come.

It is really, really hard to not take my sons’ resistance to learning personally, especially when I have worked hard to prepare an activity or define our plans for the day. Their resistance often triggers guilt and leads to be me being up in the middle of the night asking if I am doing enough.

But the truth is that resistance and not wanting to do something that is required of us is a part of learning. It is a part of homeschooling.

Accepting this reality helps me feel like what we are accomplishing, even in the midst of some resistance, matters.

Know that it all adds up.

I have to remind myself of this over and over again, but I know it to be true.

After all these years, I can see that all the small decisions, the seemingly unfocused afternoons, the audiobooks listened to in the car, the visits to the zoo, the conversations over the dinner table, the rock climbing lessons and yes, the worksheets and math lessons done on the computer – it all adds up.

It all adds up to a well-rounded and effective education.

It adds up to more than enough.

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!

What Happens When Homeschooling Ends? ~
Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

A note from Jamie: This is Shawna’s final post on Simple Homeschool, after sharing her thoughts and experience with us in this space for nearly seven years! I’m so grateful, as I know you are, too, for her authentic voice, her beautiful writing style, and her vulnerable heart that she’s opened up so freely to us for so long. We love and will miss you, friend!

My son filled out his college dorm room questionnaire yesterday.

He responded with the times he prefers to wake and sleep, how much quiet he needs to study, and his general interests.

As he typed away, I sat in the corner, musing about how this happened so fast, admiring how sure of himself he was in answering the questions, and wondering what happens next.

We started homeschooling ten years ago because of this child – his needs, his intellect, his struggles.

This month, it comes to an end.

What Happens When Homeschooling Ends?

Four years ago, many of his friends made the decision to stop homeschooling and return to public high school.

Their families all had different reasons, but the result was the same. Transition, letting go, learning a new way, loss, and gain.

I’ve been thinking about those homeschooling moms a lot lately.

Was it strange, waking up that first day in September, knowing your child will be taught by so many others, but not by you?

How weird was it, the first time you saw a curriculum ad or an Instagram post about homeschooling? Were you relieved or sad?

Most of all, what happened to your relationship with your child?

I could ask all of these questions and more, but I won’t. That’s the thing about homeschooling. We all do it differently, and I’m realizing that we all get something different from it.

As my son’s homeschooling years dwindle down into days, I am flooded with emotion.

Relief, fear, excitement, concern, grief – they swirl around each other in my mind as we order announcements and put down deposits.

In all of it, I am also more passionate and sure about this simple fact – making the decision to homeschool was the best decision I’ve made in my lifetime. It has radically changed everything I think about education, about my children, and about my own sense of self.

I’ve learned more in our homeschool than I did in college, academically and practically. My children have learned more in our homeschool than I did in college, academically and practically.

Homeschooling was a gift, and, honestly,  it was really, really difficult.

I was sure for the first five years or so that I was doing it all wrong. I felt certain that if I just found the “right method” or the “right curriculum” or the “right planner” I would somehow figure it out and my boys would be fine.

I spent the last five years realizing that I was figuring it out, not because of any method or curriculum or planner, but because I began to lean into what made my children unique. The more I embraced my kids’ interests and strengths, the more they learned.

The more they learned, the more I leaned into their interests and strengths.

It became a circle of learning and of life.

What I want you to know now, as my eldest’s homeschooling journey ends, is this.

Homeschooling my children is, by far, the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

And, as my son moves into his dorm and whatever comes next, I want you to know that I am so grateful to have had the opportunity.

The good and the bad, the fun and the messy, the tears and the joy – it all added up to an education.

More than that, it added up to a childhood, a motherhood, and a life.

I wouldn’t change a thing.

Have you experienced what happens when homeschooling ends? Click here to leave a comment or reply to this email to share your experience–we’d love to hear it.

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!

Shawna’s homeschool day in the life ~
Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

This is my seventh year detailing our homeschool day in the life.

My oldest son is turning eighteen in just four days. My youngest is reading now, despite a very long, hard struggle.

Our homeschooling days are less hectic, and my boys work much more independently than ever before. I love it but, after reading my past day in the life posts I must admit, I also really miss being so much a part of their learning.

This particular day is only Day 2, back from a long and lazy holiday break. We are still trying to get back into routine. We are still a little cranky. We are doing our best.

Shawna’s Homeschool Day In The Life

Morning

I wake up before the rest of the house, on purpose. After so many of years of barely making it through a cup of coffee in the morning before the needs of my boys took over, I have grown to love the peace of a quiet house each morning.

I sip coffee, read, and begin to put together my to-do list for the day in three categories: work, homeschool, and house.

The list is too long. We are only in our second day back after break. The house is a disaster and I am anticipating some resistance from my youngest today (by anticipating I mean pretty much planning on it).

I decide to let most of the house stuff slide in favor of stabilizing our homeschool routine.

My youngest comes downstairs, dressed and a little grumpy. He cuddles his dog while I make some oatmeal. We talk a bit about the day before, about a favorite song he listened to on Spotify before getting up, and then I set-up our plan for the day.

He is unimpressed, but willing. So far, so good.

My husband comes down next. Since he is working from home now and for the foreseeable future, our mornings are much slower.

His departure for work was a kind of signal that my boys and I needed to begin our day. Without it, we all sort-of putter around a bit longer than I would prefer.

My oldest calls for me and I head into his room to discuss the day (I bring him an iced coffee every morning. I’m afraid I have instilled in him my love for coffee and, I love sipping coffee together as he begins his day).

For the final semester of his senior year, he is taking online classes through a local private school. He begins a government class this week, a requirement for graduation.

Once he has his coffee and schedule for the day, I head back downstairs.

My youngest is watching a YouTube video about poisonous substances with my husband, so I decide to get ready for the day just in time for lunch.

As I go back into my room to get dressed, I pull laundry out of the dryer for my oldest to help fold (life skills!). I put it on my bed so I will have to get it done before I can sleep tonight.

Afternoon

After lunch, my husband heads upstairs. He is working late tonight and I am grateful he was able to spend the morning with us.

My oldest logs into online school for government, a student meeting, and language arts.

I try to rally my youngest to get started on his learning for the day.

We begin with reading (his choice) a few pages from Harry Potter (his choice).

We then move into an ongoing, hands-on anatomy study (afflink – see top photo) we have been completing off and on throughout the year.

Because it is interactive, but not baby-ish, he is all in. (I take back what I said about resistance. He’s doing quite well…)

We then take a break, in the form of rock climbing.

His Christmas present this year was building his own rock climbing wall in our backyard. It was my Christmas present too, in many ways. This activity is a perfect way to help him move, relax, and get back on track for the day.

When we come back inside, I try to get him back onto the computer for math. His brother also comes downstairs, finished up for the day, and they both decide to watch a few Modern Rogue videos. I let the math go in favor of interest-led learning.

I make a cup of tea and pay some bills.

Evening

Because my husband is working late, we pick-up Chipotle for dinner.

The boys come with me, to get out of the house, and listen to music together while I run inside.

We eat in front of the TV, watching a nature documentary about the jungle at night (their choice, but I’m into it as well).

After a few more YouTube videos, we all head up to bed.

I see this…

I decide to put it all back in the laundry basket.

I tell myself it’s because I want my son to fold them with me and that I am a really good life skills teacher.

The truth is, I want to climb into bed and watch my own show.

There will be plenty of time for laundry, and for more learning, tomorrow.

My, how the days have changed:

• 2020: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 14- and 17-year-old)
• 2019: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 13- and 16-year-old)
• 2018: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 12- and 15-year-old)
• 2017: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with an 11- & 14-year-old)
• 2016: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 10- & 13-year-old)
• 2015: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with an 8- & 11-year-old)

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!

Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

I used to give up somewhere around December 8th or so.

The Thanksgiving rush seemed to drift into a chaotic mix of Christmas decorations, more complicated meal plans, and way too much wrapping paper.

When my children were younger, it was easier to just stop homeschooling until after the New Year. I loved it!

Would you rather listen to this post?

But as my boys have become teenagers, their need for consistency and structure has increased. They rely on more than just my presence for stability (I miss those younger years!).

Now they seem to do best when we keep our daily routine for as long as possible. This means I’ve had to figure out how to homeschool through December.

It works for them.

Not always so much for me.

By December, I’m tired. I’m ready to cozy up with hot chocolate and read. I prefer to wrap presents at 3 PM instead of 8 PM. I want to grocery shop for holiday meals during the day, on a Tuesday, when my introverted self can avoid the people-y-ness of the holiday season.

In order to make this time of year work for all of us, I have come up with tips and tricks that not only help me hold on to a shred of my sanity, but also keep my boys on track until Christmas Eve.

If you have decided to do the same (though remember: taking the month off is fine, too!), here are four ideas on how to homeschool through December that might help you like they’ve helped us.

How to Homeschool through December and Stay Sane

1. Incorporate Project Based Learning

For some reason, planning one big project per child in the month of December is easier than trying to stick to a schedule of our usual subject rotation.

My youngest is setting up a blog all about Harry Potter as he re-reads the books, and my oldest is working on an audio set-up for his computer. Both “count” as learning, and give me a little extra time to get things done while they happily focus on their own interests.

2. Accept Limitations

2020 or not, I did all my shopping online again this year. It’s the easiest way to get the job done.

I purchased gifts that I knew would be either fun or useful, and did not overthink any of them. (There were more gift cards than usual.) While I deeply enjoy giving gifts to my loved ones, I also realize that this is not the year for anything elaborate.

Because I am trying to treat my role in our homeschool like a job, I need to protect most of our daytime hours for “work.” So I accept my own self-imposed limitations for the season and move on.

3. Make It Fun

Although my boys still crave routine and structure, they are just as excited as I am about the holiday season. This time of year is perfect for incorporating fun activities into our schooling (just like one would in an actual classroom at school).

We do even more hands-on learning than usual, and also incorporate movement and sensory activities into our days as much as possible.

This year, I’ve asked my boys to come up with a budget for the gifts they’d like to give. I’m calling it math.

4. Wind Down Slowly

The closer we get to December 24th, the more we begin to relax the routine. By the last week, we will almost exclusively use our school time for Christmas related activities.

Here is what we have planned:

Baking Christmas Cookies

Cutting out and hanging snowflakes

Watching a classic Christmas movie and discussing the different characters

Drive around with hot chocolate, look at Christmas decorations and listen to audio books

The holidays and homeschooling don’t have to be in conflict with one another. In fact, by incorporating the season into our learning plans, I’ve found both become much more enjoyable.

I wish you a holiday season filled with both love and learning!

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!

The difference between a homeschool plan and homeschool planning ~
Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

My oldest son has always been fascinated with history.

It began with Ancient Egypt when he was four and last week, he excitedly ordered a book on World War Two info-graphics.

I love it because I love history too, and because I learn so much from his interest.

Last week, he came in, book in hand, looking a little perplexed and read the following quote to me.

“In preparing for battle, I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” – Dwight D. Eisenhower

We talked through the difference between the two and what Eisenhower was expressing in this statement, then he left the room satisfied.

I however, could not stop thinking about it, especially as it relates to the homeschool planning I am doing right now in preparation for the new school year.

Every year, I spend a good portion of the summer considering different curriculum options for my boys. I make list after list for each of them. I worry about spending too much money and then I spend more money. I start the school year with a detailed list of daily and weekly activities and a basket full of books.

After a decade of homeschooling, I can tell you that it lasts for about a day and half.

What looks good on paper and in my own mind, never translates perfectly to my real life learners.

For years, it caused me great distress and guilt that we just couldn’t seem to stick to the plan. Don’t get me wrong, my boys learned. In spite of me sometimes, they learned.

But the homeschool plan itself often felt like a goal that we needed to achieve, rather than a tool we used.

Because of my perceived failure, one year, I decided not to plan much at all. We would just go into the year and see what happened.

That too, lasted about a day and half and ended with me canceling school for another week so I could scramble and come up with a plan.

The homeschool plan never worked exactly but, it turns out, I needed the homeschool planning process itself.

The Eisenhower quote is perfect summary of why.

Things never go according to plan, in battle and in life. It’s the act of planning itself that prepares us to win.

The Difference between a Homeschool Plan and Homeschool Planning

Maybe, like me, you are now getting ready for the next school year and crafting your plan.

Please, let me encourage you – the plan is not the goal, nor is your execution of it an assessment of your ability as a homeschool mom.

It is in your planning that you are preparing yourself for whatever this school year may bring.

Your curriculum selection matters. Your daily schedule matters. Your outside classes, field trips and co-ops matter. Of course they do! But not a single element of your plan will go exactly as expected.

It doesn’t mean you are failing. It means you are living a full life.

Thank goodness you did a little planning in advance!

Would you like to take a peek at how I make decisions as part of my homeschool planning?

A big part of planning, for me, is really thinking through how a curriculum will work in our actual, day to day lives.

I ask a series of questions every year to help me in my homeschool planning. You can grab a free printable list of these questions HERE.

How do you approach homeschool planning?

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!

Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

It’s June.

The end of another school year. The beginning of summer.

For my family, it means transitioning to a “summer learning plan.”

At least that’s what it means for us this year. The truth is, in past years, summer was a less than ideal season in our homeschool, especially for my struggling reader.

After hearing the same from more than one mom in my homeschool support sessions, I realize now that it was not just me.

Summer can be stressful when you are homeschooling a struggling reader. 

Would you rather listen to this post?

Looking back, I can see why summer was always such an anxiety producing time for me and my son.

I was worried about the “summer slide.” Would he forget the little progress we made this year? Should I use the summer to only focus on reading and help him finally master those sight words? Will he be able to move up a level in his reading program next year if I don’t take action all summer?

My son’s experience of summer was even worse. His mom now required him to do more of something that was a constant struggle.

Summer became synonymous with more reading practice and was not at all what either of us wanted.

I knew it was not working, but I worried and wondered what we should do instead. Even worse, we never really made much progress anyway, no matter how hard I pushed.

A resistant, anxious learner always learns a lot less. I knew this, but struggled with what to do next.

Summer and the Struggling Reader

In a moment of inspiration, or maybe desperation, I made the decision a few summers ago to completely change my approach. With every subsequent summer, I have found more and more success in helping my struggling reader.

Here’s how.

1. Add movement to reading.

For any struggling learner, movement can help with learning.

Whether a child needs sensory input, or his/her brain needs a little extra movement to get the synapses flowing, studies have shown over and over again that moving the body while learning makes a difference in overall comprehension and retention.

I have found this to be true for my son, especially with reading. The good news is, summer lends itself to far more outdoor activities that make learning fun.

We’ve created “water balloon flashcards” where I write sight words on water balloons in a bucket. He picks each one up, reads it and throws it at a target (or me if we decide to duel). I have also written practice sounds and words on a beach ball and we throw it back and forth to each other in the pool.

Adding movement to reading practice makes it far more fun and engaging. It’s a bonus that it is also so much more effective. 

2. Make it even more interest-led.

Although we practice an eclectic, interest-led approach all year long, we really lean in for the summer. One year, we did an entire “Summer at Hogwarts” with all Harry Potter based learning activities and reading practice. This summer, my boys have opted to do only science and history projects of their own choosing.

By turning up the level of interest, I find my son has even more opportunities to practice reading throughout the summer than he would with me pulling out the old flashcards. And, because he is so motivated, I find he is able to make more progress as well.

3. Focus on strengths.

When our children struggle with a certain subject, it’s easy to get super focused on what’s not working. (I am the queen of freaking out and deciding to do a whole new reading program because my child couldn’t read the word “the” in our book. Take my word for it.)

The problem is, when we are focused on the area of struggle, we lose sight of our kids’ natural talents and strengths. Not only is this a little sad, it also gets in the way of helping our children learn.

When I homeschool to my child’s strengths,  it not only builds his confidence as a learner, it teaches him how to learn in general. For the struggling reader, this is critical to overall success.

Incorporating what my child naturally excels at into our summer learning not only supports his reading ability, it gives him a sense of mastery and capability across all tasks and subjects.

4. Have fun!

As I look at this list, I realize this is pretty much what I have found makes a difference in our learning all year long. The only difference is that in summer, we do it at pool, sometimes with snacks, and it’s a lot more fun!

Yes, my child is a struggling reader, but he is a child first. I want him to have the same fond memories of summer that I do and support his reading skills at the same time.

The good news is, we are planning to do just that. I hope you will too.

What are your best ideas for summer reading practice?

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!

Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

I have been homeschooling now for a decade.

What began with flash cards and Bob Books has slowly, over time, become discussions of trade schools vs. community college programs and how to best use our last years homeschooling together to prepare for adult life.

It feels strange and foreign to my mother’s heart. It’s like a bit of a tug-of-war between wistfully thinking of the sweet cuddles of the early years and the intense gratitude I feel when I see how far my boys have come.

Would you rather listen to this post?

After ten years, I can tell you that the drastic changes in how we are “doing school” during this pandemic have only served to reinforce what I believe to be true about homeschooling.

At its most essential level, I’ve learned that homeschooling is an extension of parenting. 

We help our children learn throughout their lives – as they talk, as they walk, as they make neighborhood friends, as they slip on shoes, bathe – all of it on some level reflects how we help our children progress.

Homeschooling adds in more subjects, more time spent devoted to learning, more relationship, but at its core, remains true to its beginning – a parent doing what they can to help their child grow and develop.

If you are new to this or even taking on your child’s learning in absolute protest, I want to share with you something that I wish someone would’ve told me a long time ago.

If, like me, you have been homeschooling for years, my guess is you may need to hear it, too.

What No One Tells You About Homeschooling (especially now)

It’s easy to get caught up in the reading levels and the math worksheets. It’s even easier to blame ourselves when are children struggle or are resistant.

My social media feeds are filled with parents asking for help, struggling to figure out how to do all this, and a ton of memes taking a fun look at the reality we are all facing right now.

Crisis-schooling is the worst, whether you’ve been homeschooling for three years or three weeks.

Here is what I want you to know.

It matters.

Even if your child ripped up the worksheet or refused to get on the computer for an online class.

Even if you wanted to hide for most of the day in your closet.

Even if you did hide for most of the day in your closet.

Even if your child seems unfocused or lazy, disrespectful or sad.

Even if you seem unfocused or lazy, disrespectful or sad.

Just like parenting, homeschooling brings out the best and the worst in all of us. We learn as we go. There is no easy button.

My family has spent the last three years trying to manage one crisis after another. Truth be told, we are accustomed to a certain level of chaos as part of our daily life – more so than I would like.

What I know now, looking back, is that homeschooling can be part of the cure.

The togetherness, the ability to just be how we need to be, in the space we feel most comfortable – it matters.

It matters far more than any writing assignment or online class.

As you and your family move through the next couple of months and all the turmoil that may come, I want you to know that your children will be better off for the time they are spending with you each day.

Yes, it will feel like a mess, all the time.

Yes, it will be difficult and you will be sure that you are failing them.

We all feel this way.

But what I can see now, looking back, is that my children are much more capable and resilient because they have been able to weather very difficult storms in the safety and security of our family dynamic.

It’s a tragedy, what is happening in our world right now.

I am glad our children are experiencing it with those who love them most.

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!

Written by Shawna Wingert of Different by Design Learning

I’ve been looking forward to sharing this day in the life with you for a while now.

My first day in the life post here was back in 2015. Every year, I have struggled with wanting to give you a realistic look at life homeschooling two boys with special needs, while at the same time be encouraging, and keep it “light.”

I am grateful to say that this year, we are in a much better place than any of the prior years I’ve shared. We have figured out our flow. I am not beating myself up over what we are not accomplishing, and instead, focusing on what’s really working.

Best of all, my boys have made what feels like miraculous progress.

This is my day. I’m so happy to share it.

6:00 AM –

My morning routine is essentially the same as always – The Bible Recap and a little bit of yoga.

Now, before you roll your eyes, please hear me when I say, it sounds much more elegant than it actually is. The reality? My back will hurt by the afternoon if I don’t stretch it first thing in the morning (ahem, turning 45 is no joke) and most of the time, I am fighting a dog trying to wrestle me while I do it.

After a cup or two of coffee and a little work on my blog, my youngest wakes to join me.

7:30 AM – 

I settle him onto the couch with YouTube videos about contagious diseases (his choice, not mine) and get the basics of our day together.

I put out the things I would like for us to accomplish in our learning on the dining room table, get both boys’ medicines and lunches prepped for the day and make a giant vat of oatmeal, all while wondering why my son would start his day with the Ebola virus.

We eat, chat about what “patient zero” means in disease outbreaks, and then he turns on a Minecraft video while I get ready.

9:30 AM – 

My oldest is up and agrees to “teach” his brother for me this morning while I complete an online support session with a sweet mom/client.

As I run upstairs to get set-up, I hear him tell his little brother,”Should we pick up where we left off with Stalin?” and they turn on a Crash Course History video. (YouTube is the real hero around here, y’all.)

11:00 AM – 

I head back downstairs and find them singing along to a “Top 100 Songs Of All Time” video. I totally get behind this, and sing along to Ring of Fire with them before finally turning off YouTube.

My youngest begins to read aloud, and my oldest informs me that he has homework he did not complete for his afternoon classes.

When he says he did not complete his homework, it usually means he is having trouble getting started on his homework. We are working on executive function skills and this is an area of constant focus.

I offer to sit down with him and walk him through the assignment, while his younger brother takes the dog outside to play.

12:30 – 

My oldest is super-stressed and has not been able to finish up, no matter how much I try to help. He wants there to be one right answer, but the homework assignment is a short answer essay question exploring a fictional story.

It’s asking about nuance and my son doesn’t do well with shades of grey. I encourage him to talk to his teacher instead of continuing to meltdown, and we get ready to take him to school.

1:30 –

After dropping off his big brother, my youngest and I eat lunch in the car while listening to an audiobook, and then head to his skateboarding lesson.

In the past, this would’ve been an occupational therapy appointment, but now that he’s a teenager, I’ve learned that skateboarding and rock climbing, with personalized and caring instruction, work even better for his sensory needs.

While he skates, I respond to emails.

3:30 – 

After listening to more Harry Potter in the car, my youngest and I return home, have a snack, and then complete a consumer math lesson on compound interest. I wonder why no one taught me about compound interest as we move on to our weekly lesson with You Are An Artist, I Drew It Then I Knew It. (afflink)

I read to him all about nebulae and then we turn on the lesson and get ready to create. As he watches and draws, we talk about what makes a nebula and I am able to assess how much is he has retained of our learning.

(Incidentally, adding art to traditional academics works really well for this kid. It takes some of the pressure off of learning and I find he is much better able to retain the information.)

5:30 – 

I have no idea what’s for dinner. (Dinner happens every single day. Why am I so bad at this?)

My husband picks up my oldest from school on his way home from work and when they walk in, I ask if they are cool with leftovers.

They are and boom, dinner is served.

My oldest eats dinner in his room and works on an electric guitar he is building, while the rest of us eat out in the living room.

I don’t feel even a little guilty that we are not all eating at the table. Everyone is engaged and happy – it’s more than enough.

7:30 – 

My youngest needs a very specific nighttime routine to be able to sleep well.

After he showers (which is kind-of a big deal around here) he and I both curl up on the couch and watch more YouTube. He shows me all the things for a bit. Then, just like we do every night, he turns on a Mythbusters (we’ve seen them all which makes it predictable, and it helps him settle for the night).

I hear my oldest and my husband laughing hysterically in the other room. I know they are doing the same thing – my oldest is showing him all the things he finds funny online before settling in for the night.

9:30 – 

My youngest and I fall asleep on the couch. My husband wakes us both up and we head upstairs to bed.

On my way, I pass the things I laid out for us to do earlier in the morning. We did none of them.

I leave them there. Maybe we’ll get to them tomorrow. Maybe we won’t. Either way, I know it will be okay.

My, how the days have changed:

• 2019: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 13- and 16-year-old)
• 2018: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 12- and 15-year-old)
• 2017: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with an 11- & 14-year-old)
• 2016: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with a 10- & 13-year-old)
• 2015: Shawna’s homeschool day in the life (with an 8- & 11-year-old)

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!