We are the Madison family and homeschooling in our family is a bit unconventional. I am a single mom with two teenage daughters and although we are almost at the end of our homeschooling journey, it is anything but typical. Both my girls deal with acute trauma, and although we don’t allow such things to define us as people or as a family, it does affect the way we cope with every day normalities.

Our Morning:

Today is Monday. We have no therapy on Mondays but we do have cleaning. Alarm clocks are not utilized in my house. We wake up when we wake up and deal with it later. Today I wake up at 10:30 am and begin the morning rounds.

Round one: Knock, knock on Ellie’s door. She is 15 and dead asleep, but after some gentle prodding she pokes a blurry hand out of the covers for me to hold. I take her hand, sing the Good Morning song, and leave for daughter number two. Knock, knock on Kris’ door. She is 17 and also dead asleep, but no amount of singing or prodding will garner a response. That’s fine, it is only round one.

Shower, hair, teeth, dress, make bed.

Round two: Knock, knock on Ellie’s door. She is not in bed. She is up dancing with headphones in front of her mirror. I wait in the doorway until she spins and sees me. (This is my favorite part.) Ellie gasps, clutches at her chest, and scolds me for scaring her. I did knock. “I am making breakfast,” take suggestions if any are offered, and go to daughter number two. Knock, knock on Kris’ door, sing the Good Morning song, shake the bed (she’s in a loft bed piled with a menagerie of stuffed animals so I can’t actually see her), receive a groan and a roll. “Get up. We have to clean today.” Another groan. “I am making breakfast,” and I leave to make breakfast.

Round three consists of setting the table, dishing up breakfast and bellowing up the stair that it is done. Ellie will respond and come bounding down the stairs to eat. Kris will not be down for at least another half hour and is more than happy to eat stone cold eggs and bacon.

Our Afternoon:

Since morning bleeds into afternoon, we do not have lunch, but we do manage to get out of the house to clean by noon or a bit later. Ellie dances ballet at a pre-professional school and we clean for them for a scholarship. Everyone has a job to do and we do them well and quick.

In a half hour we are debating a trip to Target for stuff or nonsense, whatever. Today we don’t go mostly because I don’t want to and we don’t NEED anything really.

Back home and we assess brain function for the day. If anyone is wigging out, we apply any one of many calming techniques and reassess. Then the negotiations begin. School is ordered and begun.

This year the girls wanted to try something new with their work. Instead of doing a bit of everything every day, they wanted to do one subject in its entirety and move on to the next. Being it is the end of the school year, both girls have math and science left (because they love them so much). They can do up to seven assignments daily and Kris has gone so far as 15 in one day in history, but at least one assignment must be completed each day so that I feel good about myself. (Just being honest here.) Some days nothing gets accomplished. So, due to the loose-goosy way we approach school, we have no set end date to the year. Anything not finished just rolls into the next year. It does make for fun encounters when people ask what grade the girls are in school. We all look at each other and say, “Ummm…”

Anyway, back to Monday. Ellie has two hours before dance begins and I have three hours before work begins, so go!

Our Evening:

Most evenings Ellie is in ballet class and I am working retail, which leaves Kris home in the quiet to do school or create fantastic art.

I get home around 10:00 pm. While I make a quick dinner (or sometimes they do) we all sit together and talk and laugh and plan the next day.

I try to get into bed by 11:30 pm so I can savor just a few chapters of the latest book I am enjoying, but the kids come in and out still chatting, sharing their work, and whatever.

We all crash about 1:00 am.

Just for Fun:

We are very blessed to be in this stage of our journey. Just a few years ago we had eleven therapy sessions a week helping to stabilize my girls after some seriously traumatic life events. School was laughable back then. Now, I have two almost grown girls, responsible, full of life, really contributing to the family as a whole, learning and growing. We only have two therapy sessions a week and school is getting finished. We still have seasons (days, weeks, sometimes months) when nothing academic is getting accomplished, but a whole lot of brain integration and maturing is going on.

Kris is really developing as a fantastic artist and Ellie continues to excel in dance and discover intriguing, life-changing ideas. (Like being a model and moving to Japan or recently she found a ballet boarding school to the tune of $58,000 per year!) I get to practice not flipping out and instead learn to say things like, “That’s a great idea! Why don’t you find out if they give out scholarships.”

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Ellie has written a blog about her scoliosis journey. She just had spinal fusion surgery last December. She would love to share her experience with other kids with scoliosis.

Ellie’s Scoliosis Diary

Kris has an art gallery on Instagram under toasty.kat.draws.

Hey! My name is Stephanie and we are a homeschooling family. Our daughter and son, 10 and 7, are finishing up school this next week. Yay!! We also have a super energetic three-year-old who keeps us all on our toes! We love the flexibility of homeschool because we love going on adventures. We are so thankful learning can be done anywhere.

Our Morning:

After the kids eat breakfast, we do our Bible story.

Then, we do Spelling You See. If the toddler is quietly playing, I will read a book aloud or we do science or history. Afterwards, I assist my son with Math U See and reading.

While I prepare lunch, my daughter will do reading on her own and Teaching Textbooks Math

Our Afternoon:

After lunch, the toddler takes a nap. Sometimes, I rest, too, and the older kids have quiet play time. They also love to watch Youtube videos on legos.

We have a daily chore list and they do their chores during the afternoons, as well.

Three days a week, we go to the gym so Daddy and I can workout and the kids play at the playground or swim.

Our Evening:

We have family time in the evenings and watch TV or a movie together.

At bedtime, we pray and often play a game called “Animal Kingdom.” The older kids pretend to be an animal who has just been born. I get to guess the animal and name it. The kids love this game!

Just for Fun:

We love camping, going to the beach, swimming, dance, and LEGOS!!

Hey there! We are the Scott family. There are 10 kids total. Yes TEN. Two are grown and out of the house, 6 still live at home, and 2 are in Heaven.

Life is never dull around here. Daily life for us is often chaotic yet organized, messy but beautiful, exhausting yet amazing, demanding yet rewarding, ordinary yet spontaneous, hard but simple, and always loud. We live out in the country in a small Texas town on an 800 acre farm. Technically it is a ranch, but farm just sounds more like us. We have an array of animals from cows, pigs, and chickens to our boys’ pet snakes, frogs and lizards. And almost as many dogs as we have kids.

We have been homeschooling our kids for the past twelve years and absolutely love it. It is by far challenging me to my core, but so much fun to get to be their mommy and their teacher.

Our kids are the light of our lives. They are all so funny and keep us on our toes daily. Every single one of them is strong-willed and challenge us in their own ways and they each add so much joy to our lives with a uniqueness that make each of the individually special.

Our daughter, Taylor, graduated last year and is still a little undecided on a career choice. She lives about an hour away from us now. Her little brothers and sisters are always looking forward to a visit from her. She is such a big help when she is home. Taylor is the perfect girl preceding 5 younger brothers. She loves spending time outdoors – swimming at the lake and fishing. This fall Taylor is due with our first grandbaby.

Tyler is our oldest son. He is such a hard worker. He is a huge help around the farm and also works as a ranch hand at our local dairy and a nearby ranch. Baseball is his passion and he is really good! Catching is his main position, but he is also one heck of an outfielder. He would love nothing more than to continue playing baseball into collage. He will graduate in 2018 and plans to become a fireman. He is such a good kid with a heart of gold. He spends a lot of his free time hunting and fishing, but is also a very gifted photographer.

Tucker is my nature boy to the core. He doesn’t just love nature, it is a part of who he is. He has such a free spirit and enjoys exploring the outdoors. Our house has become more of a zoo than a farm all thanks to our Tucker boy. He has a passion for animals and is practically a walking animal encyclopedia. Fishing is also a hobby of Tucker’s – he has carried bass around since he was old enough to walk. He taught himself how to fly fish and on his free time creates his own flies. Dyslexia has challenged Tucker in struggling to read and write, but it has not slowed him down from learning. He is constantly self-teaching himself something new.

Trevor is probably my strongest-willed. He is my sweetest and meanest. He has a comeback for everything and never backs down from a fight! He is also full of compassion and adores his little brother. Trev is absolutely hilarious! You never know what is going to come out of his mouth! He is as smart as a whip, but detests schoolwork. He enjoys sports and the outdoors like his brothers and is in a fierce competition with Tucker in everything he can. Trevor is extremely ambitious and does not take loosing well. He is my gamer. He’d play video games nonstop if I would let him. But it’s not just video games. He loves board games, card games, and is always up for a good Nerf or Airsoft battle. He collects coins and critters and loves music.

Taralyn Grace is the perfect mix of a tomboy and girly girl. She is the most well rounded little girl I have ever met. She can hang with her brothers stomping around the farm chasing chickens or catching frog or she can play princesses and dress up all day with her little sister. Tara loves tea parties. She is way beyond her years, and the most independent little girl you will ever meet. Tara takes her role as a big sister very seriously and is very protective of her siblings. She is full of energy and we are constantly having to remind her to talk a little softer. She’s a social butterfly and does not like playing alone. She thinks she needs an outfit for every occasion and is very opinionated on her style. She is our sweet and sassy girl.

Trulee is our Hope girl. She is such a wild and free spirited little girl. She is quiet by nature, but if she’s mad everyone knows it! She is pretty even tempered and extremely loving. She would sit in my lap and let me cuddle her all day and be perfectly content. She is a girly girl and loves wearing dresses – the fancier the better! She changes her outfit at least a dozen times a day. Trulee’s happy pretty much anywhere. She can spend hours playing all alone or an entire day playing make-believe with her sister. She loves babies and smothers her little brother on a regular basis. She is a little mama at heart and the bravest girl I know.

Tellan is the baby of the house and definitely the boss! He rules the roost and we wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s a little guy with a big heart. Tellan is the most loving baby ever. He loves to love. And oh, his love is the sweetest! Tellan was diagnosed with hypotonia (low muscle tone) and works hard daily to meet goals which are typically easy or natural for the average kid. He is no average boy though – he is a fighter and overcomer. His struggle is a daily reminder that we shouldn’t take anything for granted. Although, he is a big mama’s boy he is crazy about his brothers and tolerates his sisters constant affection. And he is quickly becoming pretty attached to his daddy.

Truman Lee is our forever three-year-old boy. His smile will melt your heart and you will get lost in those bright blue eyes. His little giggle is one of the most joyous sounds you’d ever here. But don’t let that cute little face deceive you. This little guy is full of mischief and orneriness, winning the award in the Scott house for the biggest mess maker. Painting his daddy’s bass boat is in his resume of trouble-making. He idolized his daddy and brothers and loved his mama something fierce. His pitter-patter running through our wood floors is deeply missed. And his absence has made Heaven all the sweeter.

Yeas ago I would have bragged about our simple country life, homeschooling a half-dozen combination of “his,” “mine” and “our” children – which we worked hard at making one solid family unit. We were far from the Brady Bunch, but we were living a life we truly loved. Then tragedy struck our family when our son, Truman, had an accident the day before our tenth wedding anniversary. We found ourselves walking through a dark valley together, living a life we did not choose. We have come to understand the true gift of the cross like never before and are all the more determined to take advantage of the precious moments we have with our children who we still get to wake up to every morning and are so thankful for the memories with have with the ones waiting for us in Heaven.

Our Morning:

Every day for us is different. We work around farming, therapy, co-ops, sports, and the list goes on because it seems like there is always something interrupting our “normal.” So more than a schedule we have a routine – what I like to call our “Grace Plan.” I start my day with the top 3 things I have to absolutely do (and this changes from season to season) and then we just do the next thing.

Typically we start school no later than 10:00 am. If it’s any later than that we usually just wait until after lunch. Most mornings we have cold cereal (especially during the summer), but we also have a home-cooked breakfast like eggs, biscuits and gravy, pancakes, etc.

We use a variety of curriculum (Sonlight, Brave Writer, Teaching Textbooks, Elemental Science, and Timberdoodle). I love using Timberdoodle’s hands-on to create a fun learning environment for the kids to explore on their own or together.

Chores are rotated monthly – each kid has 1-2 chores in each room as well as on the farm. Then we will have a family cleaning day one day a week. Chores are done in the morning and evenings. We try to instill a work-before-play motto. Once chores are done and they’ve had breakfast we start school.

Our routine changes based on the season but this summer we start with one of my older boys doing math while the other has 1:1 time with the toddler while I do school with their little sisters. Then they switch.

Our Afternoon:

Typically in the afternoon we do our read-aloud with a snack, followed by language arts (Brave Writer).

Then lunch. We have a very simple lunch menu and try to stick to it (sandwiches, hot dogs, salad, pasta).

After lunch the toddler takes a nap and the little kids have a quiet time while we do a state study, followed by history and science.

Our Evening:

Once school is done the kids go outside to play. I try to take a break and sit outside with them for a while.

We love to go pick peaches off the peach trees and then go down to our lake.

We usually eat a pretty late dinner (7:00 – 8:00ish). During dinner we all share the best part(s) of our day.

Just for Fun:

All of my boys play baseball. The younger two play for our community league but my oldest son plays for an HSAA & we absolutely love it!

I try to limit any extracurricular activities. We used to be a part of a homeschool co-op but we are not currently attending one. We try to not get sucked into “busy” so I try to limit what we commit to.

I lead a small women’s Bible study group one night a week.

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This is so fun and it just so happens our family recently did a Day in the Life video session with an amazing photographer.

Bonjour! I’m Leah, a stay-at-home mom who loves art, food, and great books. My husband is a craftsman and pastor; two full-time jobs keep him busy every day of our week so our kids and I love adventuring to pass time.

Grant and Vera live for the outdoors but slow down to draw and watch a good movie.

We live in Montana where hiking, heading to a lake and working in our garden are a part of our routine… Traveling to other states and countries keeps us excited and hungry for more learning…

Our Morning:

A typical school day starts with eggs and toast and some music to set the mood.

Because Grant and Vera are younger, we focus on art projects, science experiments, and a stack of books that looks like the leaning tower of Pisa!

I’m implementing French daily because we’re hoping to head to Europe next spring and, well, I’m a Francophile at heart.

I absolutely love Singapore Math and The Reading Lesson is hands-down the best. The Thinking Skills section on Timberdoodle is my go-to for games for school, fun and gifts. Learning should be exciting and finding that balance for each child can be tricky, but it’s incredibly rewarding when you get it right… Case in point, most days my kids don’t want to stop working!

Our Afternoon:

We do a picnic for lunch every single day because they are so much fun! If the weather isn’t conducive, then I throw a blanket down in the living room.

Our afternoons are spent outside with an hour long respite afterwards for naps or quiet activities… my saving grace!

Our Evening:

I love cooking and planning dinner. We eat around the table every evening and talk as a family… and this is something I hope will continue for years to come. We’re pretty healthy and do have a restricted diet, but thankfully savory foods full of protein and veggies are our norm.

Evenings are really the only time Grant and Vera can spend time with their dad, Eli, so we rarely have the TV on… actually we don’t even have channels, just the Netflix and PBS apps. I highly recommend unplugging your cable.

Bedtime is a sweet time, to settle in, talk, and so I’m pretty strict about maintaining our routine and protecting it. It’s good for our kids and great for my husband and me!

Just for Fun:

We’ve found ballet classes and soccer teams for the kids through our local community which is awesome. There are quite a few homeschooling families in our remote corner but no co-op and so this fall, along with another mom, I’ll be starting one that facilitates field trips, workshops and gatherings. I believe that supplementing the education of local children and bringing support to parents that homeschool is vital to a well rounded learning experience. I’m excited and also a little nervous about this task we are taking on but feel that I must for my son and daughter.

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leaheash

Hi! We are Edward and Rebecca and our seven children ages 2-15.

We have a little farmhouse with a mini farm in a lovely small town.

We have lots of young artists blooming with sketches, designs and photographs filling our home. We are also readers and farmers, cooks and bakers, and athletes.

Our flock of chickens provides us with eggs and our faithful pup keeps them safe.

Our Morning:

We are a pretty laid-back family. The Daddy is up and off to work before dawn and the Mommy sees him off.

The rest wake up gradually, starting around 8:00 am. The little lady is usually up first, reading or drawing in her bed. All the boys trickle down one by one, but a whistle summons those who lay abed too long.

Big people have coffee and everyone eats, fixing either cold cereal, eggs or oatmeal.

One of the fellows wipes down the toilet, each on his day.

Once everyone is done, we read God’s Word and then read history literature along with The Mystery of History, Volume 3. Next is Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day. We are in the last chapter.

The animals are let out and fed and we discovered two more young hens have begun to lay!

The little ones read to Mommy and sing “the Phonics Song” while bigger guys work on Math-u-See and their writing/spelling (assigned by Mommy).

Then it’s time for lunch!

Our Afternoon:

After lunch the dishwasher is emptied by three workers, the top rack, bottom rack and silverware. Then a couple of bigger guys load, one does dishes and the other loads the silverware.

In the afternoon we watch a DVD lesson of either Physics 101, or Visual Latin. Once a week we will see a lesson of “cover Story” writing.

Meanwhile, a load or two of laundry has been completed and brought to fold.

There is often time for free reading or art and play time, but today we also enjoyed a visit with our dear friend from church.

She admires drawing and injuries and the family lizard. Then she heads home to cook her dinner and we likewise start up the pots and pans.

We tidy up and sweep before the Daddy comes home.

Our Evening:

Dinner tonight is spaghetti, meat sauce and corn from our friend’s garden. We usually have pasta on the second work day and Mexican on the third, but we had appointments this week that mixed us up and we swapped them for convenience.

The Daddy is as handy about the house and garage as he is at the machine shop and he and the big boys head out to repair the mower. Some volunteer and some are volun-told.

Our high points were the visit with our friend and new egg layers!

The low point would be the littlest fellow coming down with a fever.

We all listened to an Audible book, usually a car activity but the suspense was too great.

Then around 8:30, it’s off to bed.

Just for Fun:

Our one routine activity outside the home is our weekly library trip. We take a list of books to look for, and some we have already reserved, and bring home our treasures, new and old favorites. We usually pick an afternoon in the second half of the week and make sure chores are done before we head out. The library is a great incentive.

Once a week, when the schedules permit, just the Mommy goes out to meet a fellow homeschool Mom for a cup of something and to catch up and encourage each other.

The children get comfortable in the living room and listen to their eldest brother read from the Chronicles of Narnia until the Mommy returns.

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Rebeccafrancesa (Pink rose avatar)

Hi! My name is Taylor and I’m a first time homeschooling mom.

My 4- (almost 5-) year-old son Abel is starting kindergarten. His most favorite things are story time and bike riding with his friends.

His 3-year-old-sister Lily is a social butterfly who enjoys in-depth conversation and soccer.

My husband is our hard-working provider and gentle giant. He is a paint technician at a local window manufacturing company.

Recently we added a new member to the family, a white and orange cat named Sugar.

All five us enjoy a nice outdoor adventure. If we aren’t home working, we’ve gone fishin’!

Our Morning:

I believe a close family, real world experience, and top notch education are vital. Homeschooling allows us to teach our children these values and essential experiences. We started our journey just three days ago, and it’s so wonderful.

I wake up at 6:00 a.m. and prepare the materials from our Timberdoodle Elite kindergarten curriculum for the day’s lessons. An hour and a half earlier Dad left for work. Twelve hour shifts.

At 7:00 I wake up my little kindergartener Abel and for breakfast we have either pancakes, eggs, bacon, yogurt, fruit among other options. (Lily gets up according to her own biological clock)

After we eat and dress we are ready to start the school day around 8:00-8:30. It takes Abel about 4 hours, give or take, to complete all assignments. Lily will often join in the discussions and join in on the activities. I can easily tackle household chores during block and art time. I don’t worry about chores much during class time though. I have all afternoon to catch up.

Our Afternoon:

For lunch have anything from sandwiches to pasta to pizza, whatever we all decide on having. The kids like to help prepare the food and after eating we clean off the table together.

After all lessons and chores are done, some days we drive out to trails and hike.

Most days until dad gets home we are home riding bikes, playing soccer, shooting hoops, doing obstacle course activities.

On rest days we love to do art crafts, puzzles, singing and dancing. We are quite an active bunch!

Our Evening:

Today for dinner we had oven baked kielbasa and potatoes. So good!

After a busy day, per usual, and full bellies we bathe, brush teeth, potty, read a good book. Then it’s hugs and kisses and good nights.

I break out my journal and log the day. Making notes of how the day went, what was good, what can we do better. The low points are few and far between for me. I love every second of our lives and time together. I am truly blessed.

Abel can get frustrated when his handwriting isn’t perfect, but I encourage him every step of the way.

The high points of the day are seeing the wheels in my child’s head turn, the light of fascination in his eyes, the questions and interest, the yays, high fives, and look of satisfaction upon him.

Just for Fun:

So far we are not enrolled in any extracurricular activities. Everything is at home and out with friends until we get a membership at our local YMCA. They offer tons of great extracurriculars. Abel will be in the home school PE class and basketball. Lily will be in tap jazz ballet class.

Hello! We are a family of five and we live in China.

Papa runs a camp business. Mama is teacher and kid manager. Yllana adores singing and animals and many other things. Leila is a sweet and feisty reservoir of music and dancing. And Mac digs all things sport and learning.

Our Morning:

On most days, Mama is up first to enjoy the quiet, get ready for the day and cook a healthy breakfast.

After breakfast we head to Papa’s office for school, because some of our party go stir crazy being in the apartment all day.

The girls are using a combo of Easy Peasy (an online curriculum) supplemented with lots of STEM and thinking games from Timberdoodle. Since the youngest loves bookwork, he is using the elite Kindergarten curriculum from Timberdoodle.

During and after school, we spend time helping with the business, and the girls are learning to cook dishes from around the world.

Our Afternoon:

In the afternoons, we do chores, grocery shop and wait for our neighbor friends to get home from school so the kids can all play outside.

Our Evening:

We usually cook a simple nutritious meal for dinner, and like to take a walk after cleaning up.

We often end the day with showers and a show (Discovery or BBC), and always finish in bed with a good read aloud- currently working through The Chronicles of Narnia.

Just for Fun:

For the upcoming year we are looking into Chinese classes at the local international school, along with Art/Music/PE. 

Hello! We are the Whiteharts.

Dad is a city bus driver with a crazy work schedule. Mom stays home and takes care of the homeschooling which we’ve always done with our four kids, two (soon 3) of whom have graduated.

Laura is 21, graduated from college, and now studying linguistics to be able to assist with Bible translation. She spent the last year teaching at a Christian school and is quite adamant that homeschooling is a much better choice for educating children.

Annie is 19 and working on getting an A.A. degree by taking online classes from a Christian college.

Hudson, 17, is in his last year of homeschooling and planning to make cyber-security his future career.

Tucker is 14 and likes anything other than school, especially playing outside.

Our Morning:

On a typical school day, everyone wakes up individually between 6:00 and 9:00. Many times that depends on how late Dad got home and who stayed up to see him!

Most days, everyone finds their own breakfast of cold cereal, toast, or leftovers, or the first one up might make pancakes or eggs for the rest of us.

Once Bibles are read and breakfast is finished, the children plow into their schoolwork. The 2 who haven’t graduated from homeschool have a list of things that must be accomplished for the week, which is divided into days. For most subjects, they are allowed to work ahead if they wish. But no fun is allowed until the work for the day is done–unless they do something with Dad before he heads to work after lunch.

Hudson is taking a few dual-enrollment online college classes from a Christian university. Those credits are cheaper while he is in high school, but our family misses the flexibility of being able to set our own vacation times. He is also using Apologia Advanced Biology, Sharon Watson’s Writing Fiction in High School, Rosetta Stone Spanish, The Thinking Toolbox, Fallacy Detective, and Sproul’s Economics for Everybody.

Tucker’s curriculum includes a modified version of Writing Fiction in High School (some of the content in the recommended accompaniment book didn’t meet our family’s standards), Teaching Textbooks Algebra 2 alternated with Key to Geometry (he struggles with math, so easy days interspersed with hard ones seem more manageable), various ASL resources, Wordly Wise, and Spelling Power.

Our Afternoon:

On a busy day lunch may be chicken nuggets, on a cold day it will probably be soup, but our favorite lunch is taco casserole. Sometimes lunch is rushed as Dad has to get to work on time–the bus driver can’t be late!

After lunch, schoolwork is finished and chores are started.

Tucker loves building Metal Earth, so he is especially diligent if he has a new kit to complete when his work is done.

Hudson finishes his work and then typically does yard work for a neighbor.

Annie takes a break from her intensive studying to wash dishes.

Our Evening:

Dinner is often something from the Crockpot or leftovers from lunch the day before.

If the morning consisted of a project or activity with Dad, school sometimes isn’t finished until 9:00 at night. Not the ideal schedule, but we’re learning to be flexible and joyful with the work God has provided.

At the end of the day we have found answering the question, “How did God work in your life today?” to be a wonderful topic for family time.

Just for Fun:

Our family loves to square dance. That sometimes means a dance late at night which often means a late start to school the next day. But we enjoy being able to do an activity together as a family, and it is great exercise and also a mental workout.

Our family also enjoys hosting exchange students. Over the years we’ve had many students pass through our doors. It has been such a great learning experience and a wonderful opportunity to share Christ. When younger, our children used their first-hand learning to create a display about China for an international fair (see picture).

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Hi! I’m Janna, homeschooling mom of a rowdy (nearly) 9-year-old (4th grade), a spunky 6-year-old (1st grade) and a feisty 18-month-old who adds spark and sizzle to our days. Their names are Rylan, Ruby and Caleb. Their dad, Brenton, is a construction foreman, mason and all-around craftsman and super-talented, hardworking man.

I work part time typing medical records and I love to read, garden and craft in my spare time (so, not a lot).

Rylan loves all things Lego and Nerf.

Ruby is an aspiring cook and scientist who loves the Pioneer Woman.

And Caleb like to chew on things and play outside, preferably in the mud.

We live on a small farm in northeast Georgia with our cat, Duchess, 2 blue heelers, Oscar and Buster, and a small herd of cows and hopefully some goats soon.

Our Morning:

A typical school day starts out pretty laid back for us. The hubs and I are up early, around 6:00, to get ready for the day.

The kids typically make an appearance around 7:30 or 8:00. After a thunderous entrance followed by a few laps around the kitchen/living area, they settle in to breakfast, usually cereal. Yep, Supermom right here.

We try to get start on our studies between 8:30 and 9:00 and go hard at it until about noon with a little break for a snack.

We have been using Timberdoodle curriculum kits for the past 4 years and are really happy with the ways things have worked out. Many of Rylan’s studies are now independent, leaving more time to work with Ruby. However, we still do science and history together.

Our Afternoon:

Lunch is usually a simple affair for us with sandwiches, a wrap or quesadillas and some fruit, maybe some yogurt. Right now, we finish off with a Popsicle because it’s hot in Georgia, y’all!

In the afternoons, the kids work on critical thinking skills, handwriting, writing practice and reading and finish anything they didn’t finish in the morning.

Rylan’s been practicing building paper airplanes lately and Ruby likes to paint or draw sometimes. They’re also allowed some TV time while Mom gets a little work done and Caleb takes a nap (whew!).

Of course there are snacks and sometimes play time outside with a friend who lives next door.

We also squeeze in some chore time, feeding pets, taking out trash and unloading the dishwasher.

Our Evening:

Tonight is a Wednesday, so we usually pop a frozen pizza in the oven for supper before we head out to church. It’s a nice break for Mom in the middle of the week. 😉

Most days, after supper, we try to spend some time outside, playing and working around the house, working in the yard or garden and hanging out. It’s a high point of our day.

We also try to read a little together before bed, emphasis on “try.” It doesn’t always happen.

Just for Fun:

We are all involved in AWANA and love it!

We also have a great local homeschool group that plans activities throughout the year. Of course, it disrupts school but we usually manage to squeeze school in before or after field trips and when we can’t, we take a well-deserved break.

This year, Rylan will be able to start 4-H which I believe he will enjoy. He also plays baseball and basketball.

Ruby is thinking about playing soccer in the fall and she also played basketball this past year.