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How to Homeschool Kindergarten: Curriculum Ideas & Lessons Learned

How to Homeschool Kindergarten: Curriculum Ideas and Lessons Learned

One of my new favorite t-shirts says, “Hold on. Let me overthink this.” It’s perfect for me.

"Let me overthink this" pink t-shirt

I’ve always been a Type-A, planner-loving, I-prefer-my-ducks-in-a-row momma. I tend to over-analyze and over-complicate most things – especially when it comes to our homeschool. 

Thankfully, over a decade of homeschooling has mellowed me out a little bit. I’ve seen firsthand how powerful spontaneous teachable moments can be. I’ve witnessed my kids retain more from playing made-up games than from carefully crafted lesson plans. I’ve realized that it’s less about finding the “right” curriculum and more about nurturing relationships and encouraging a love of learning.

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Our Curriculum Choices – Year 10

Our Curriculum Choices Year 10

If time flies when you’re having fun, then we must be having a blast! 

It seems like just yesterday I was wondering if this crazy idea called “homeschooling” would work for our family. Now we’re ten years into our home educating journey and my oldest is starting high school! 

Each year I’ve shared Our Curriculum Choices and plans for the year. Read on to find out what homeschool resources we’ll be using this coming year with our 9th, 6th, and 2nd graders.

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Our Homeschool Summer Break – Year 9

Our Homeschool Summer Break - Year 9

It’s that time of year again. 

Swimsuits. Pool parties. Watermelon. Ice cream trucks. And, best of all…

… the next chapter in Our Homeschool Summer Break blog series!

Okay, maybe a blog post isn’t better than ice cream (or any of those other things). But it sure beats swatting away mosquitoes while mowing the lawn!

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Merry Christmas 2022

Merry Christmas 2022

According to the internet (so it must be true, right?), ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus is the one we credit for the saying…

“The only constant is change.”

– Heraclitus

Looking back on 2022, it’s tempting for me to agree and lament the unexpected, difficult, and life-altering changes that my family has experienced this year. 

But, while change is often a regular occurrence, it is NOT the only constant. 

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Kids Are Always Learning (Even on the Weekend)

Kids Are Always Learning Even on the Weekend

The other day my six year old asked me what we’d be doing for school that day. 

“No school today,” I reminded her. “It’s Saturday.” 

With a delighted sigh of relief, she found a comfy corner of the couch and started reading Life of Fred: Butterflies. 

Side Note: If you’re not familiar with the Life of Fred series, it’s a quirky but effective math curricula adored by many homeschooling families. We’ve used it as a math supplement over the years and all three of my kids love it. 

When her brothers picked up other books in the Life of Fred series and proceeded to read math books for over two hours… on a Saturday… for fun… the inspiration for this post was born.

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Our Homeschool Summer Break – Year 8

Our Homeschool Summer Break Year 8

Years ago, I started writing about our plans for summer breaks. I shared the educational and homeschool-y things we did over the summer each year. If you read those posts, you might remember that each year I seemed to bounce back and forth between too academic and too relaxed. 

By our 5th homeschooling summer I’d found a good balance. (Yes, it really did take me five summers to figure it out…)

But just when I was getting the hang of things… the pandemic reared its ugly head. 

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Homeschooling in the Chicago Suburbs: Co-ops, Field Trips, & Family Activities

homeschooling in the Chicago suburbs: co-ops, field trips, & family activities

As I’ve written this post, all of my family’s belongings were loaded onto a 26’ moving truck and taken to our new home in another state! 

After searching online for co-ops and extracurricular activities near our new home, I realized firsthand how helpful it is when bloggers share their favorite local homeschooling resources!

So, before my family leaves the northwest Chicago suburbs, I want to post a “brain dump” of all the northern Illinois homeschooling resources I’ve found over the years. We’ve been parenting and homeschooling here for over a decade and have collected a list of awesome co-ops, support groups, nature centers, field trip ideas, and more! 

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Kids Are Always Learning (Even When They’re Bored)

kids are always learning - even when they're bored

Kid: “Mommy… I’m bored!”

Mom: “Good!”

I think this is how I’ll respond to my kids from now on when they complain to me that they’re bored. 

No, it probably won’t go over very well with them. But boredom – free, unscheduled, unfettered time – is a GIFT in our culture today. Too much free time can become an issue, of course. But, for many of us, time to think and dream and putter around is often lacking.

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One More Day in the Life of a Homeschooling Family

One more day in the life of a homeschool family

If you don’t homeschool, have you ever wondered what it is those crazy homeschooling people do all day?

And, if you already home educate, isn’t it fun to get a glimpse into another homeschool to see other ways of doing things?

That’s why I like to do “Day in the Life” posts from time to time. You can check out other days in our life here and here. But for now, here’s a look into our homeschool on…

Tuesday, January 11, 2022

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