{"id":32719,"date":"2014-06-16T06:57:06","date_gmt":"2014-06-16T10:57:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/simplehomeschl.wpengine.com\/?p=32719"},"modified":"2026-02-11T15:05:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T20:05:20","slug":"navigating","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/navigating\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigating the path ahead: Using your homeschool compass"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post contains affiliate links.<\/em><\/span>
\n\"Navigating<\/a>
\nJamie Martin, editor of Simple Homeschool, also blogs about motherhood at Steady Mom<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

This post is part of an ongoing series<\/em>
\n about the educational philosophy Leadership Education<\/em>
\n (also known as A Thomas Jefferson Education.)<\/em>
\n Find the other posts in the series here.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

L<\/span>ast Monday I described for you the process of creating a homeschool compass<\/a>–a plan your children ages eight and older can use to help direct their own learning with you serving as a mentor and guide.<\/p>\n

In that post I walked through the questions I asked my own kids–about skills they’d like to conquer, books they want to read, and even what they feel their mission and purpose on this earth might\u00a0be.<\/p>\n

Today I’d like to explain how we finished off the compasses and how we are actually putting them to use in our day-to-day homeschool life.<\/strong>
\n<\/p>\n

What are other kids studying?<\/h4>\n

\"compass3\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After my kids had completed their<\/em> part of the compass, I needed to get to work myself.<\/p>\n

I looked through the corresponding book from the Core Knowledge Series<\/a> for the grade each of my children would be in, and made a list of the various topics kids in that grade typically study. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Within overarching subjects, I made note of specifics that I thought might be important or might interest a child–so roman numerals or telling time within math–for example. I also jotted down specific curricula or resources we already have that teaches that subject–practical ideas on how we could approach each line item.<\/p>\n

Then I sat down with my kids one-on-one\u00a0and read over the list with them. In Leadership Education, we follow the principle “inspire, not require<\/a>,” which means we don’t have required academic subjects in our home. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Instead we read through the list, discussed it, and I made note of the items\/subjects they said they’d like to learn more about in the next six months.<\/p>\n

Afterwards I was left with plenty of work and research to do later on to find resources they need that will both whet and satisfy their appetites for learning.<\/p>\n

Now what?<\/h4>\n

\"homeschoolcompass2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Now that we’ve completed these compasses, what should we do with them?\u00a0Where do we go from here?<\/p>\n

First, I’m thinking about getting\u00a0in on the action and creating a compass for myself<\/a>–<\/strong>-then reading it aloud to\u00a0my kids.<\/p>\n

After all, showing<\/em> rather than telling\u00a0is one of the most important steps\u00a0we can take\u00a0to create an atmosphere of learning in our homes.<\/p>\n

Second, I plan to review the compass\u00a0with the kids about once a month<\/strong>–read through it, remind ourselves of what we’re working on, use it\u00a0in making\u00a0library lists, and so on.<\/p>\n

Third, I wanted a practical way to make use of this information in our day-to-day homeschool lives.<\/p>\n

I took an index card and wrote down the specific resources each child can choose from during their daily lesson with me–this varies\u00a0depending on their unique compass.<\/p>\n

Trishna’s card reads\u00a0like this:<\/p>\n