Home/Roadschooling

We get asked a lot if we homeschool. Obviously this questions comes while we are out and about with school-aged kids.  It also takes some explaining.  There are so many forms of homeschooling that no 2 families look alike.  We take a position in the middle of traditional homeschooling (with printed curriculum) and unschooling (using their interests and environment to learn).  Travelling makes this a lot easier than while stationary, in my little bit of experience.

These are some of the common questions we get about our schooling choices.

Did you always want to homeschool/how did you get started?

I grew up in Florida, where to my knowledge, there are plenty of free options for preschool.  When our oldest, AJ, was preschool aged we were stationed in Omaha, Nebraska.  Most of my friends had their children enrolled in preschools in the area.  After some discussion, we decided not to enroll AJ and to start a simple curriculum at home with him to see how we liked it.  Some of the reasons were: 

• I quit my job to be at home with our kids, so I really wanted to have the kids at home with me as much as possible.
• We also felt the expense was a bit unnecessary for us. I felt equipped to provide the basics for AJ, initially.  We would surely send him to school later on.
• It wasn't required to send him to preschool.
• I found a free/low-cost preschool curriculum that I loved.

After that first year I just continued.  When we hit the road, we really didn't have any other options but to homeschool, so we embraced it. Yes, there are days I think about enrolling them in public school, but that fades quickly with a cup of coffee and a quick prayer for patience.

Short answer, no I didn't plan to be a homeschool mom, it kind of just happened. Now, I wouldn't have it any other way. 

How long will you homeschool?

I cannot possibly answer this question.  I love teaching my children.  I love watching them learn and being there every time they discover something new or a new ability they didn't know they had. I love watching them light up when they find a new passion, and I love being able to customize their learning to run with their passions. I see us homeschooling for the foreseeable future.  I really can't imagine a reason that would make me stop.  Ask me in a few years when they hit their preteens and I may have a different opinion.  Don't get me wrong, there are days.  Like today when I had to just walk away before I lost it with my oldest.  He loves to test me.  I try to remind myself that this will be a good characteristic when he is older.  Stubbornness now, as long as it is healthy, will be determination and refusal to settle when he is older.

AJ found an interest in everything George Washington,
so we took the family to Mount Vernon to learn more about him.

What curriculum do you use?

As with many homeschoolers this is never a one word answer.  We mix and match. When able, we participate in a Classical Conversations community.  It is a classical based curriculum for a one-room schoolhouse style of teaching.  This works so well for us because I can review the material with all 3 kids and then focus on their abilities to dive deeper, when needed.  It uses a lot of song, repetition and hand motions to memorize facts and details that they will learn more about when they are older.  When we are in one location for a longer period of time we can join a community that meets once a week.  We do a science lesson, fine arts lesson and then new grammar (memorization of math facts, history sentences, science information, English and Latin.)

Exploring a Crayfish at CC Community Day.

Learning about being a Blacksmith in the 1800s

At home I use multiple curriculum for the kids. AJ uses Explode the Code for grammar, Bob Jones Press for math and we do book reports after a trip to the library.  Right now we are using First grade level subjects but primarily just reading as much as possible to improve his reading skills.  LJ is only 4, so we do a very relaxed schedule with him.  He too is using Explode the Code, he likes it because it is like a puzzle for every lesson.  We were using Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, but it wasn't really fitting well with LJ (AJ successfully completed it last year).  I also picked up a Kindergarten book from a discount store that covers letters, numbers, less/more than, time, money, phonics and patterns that he seems to enjoy.

My favorite curriculum of all are our travels. These kids can tell you all about the US, Bison, Pronghorn, Presidents, State Capitols, Bats, Caves, Mountains, trains, budgeting, priorities, schedules, and so much more.  The opportunities our lifestyle provides will be the richest education I can give my kids.
 

One of our campgrounds was covered in chestnuts. They taught me how to open
them without getting poked because they had already been playing with them.

   

How do you make sure your kids are socialized?

First of all, we live at campgrounds.....that is where kids go with their families for vacation. They are around kids ALL THE TIME.  A snarky remark a lot of homeschool parents use is, "You socialize your dog, you educate your children."  The truth is, my kids have met so many people from so many different backgrounds.  When they are around other kids AJ is a standard bossy oldest, LJ is forever in his shadow and Baby A finds the other girls and admires their sparkly shoes and shows off hers.  You know what else my kids do when they are around other kids, they protect one another. At home, AJ is LJs nemesis, on the playground AJ is LJs bouncer.  They praise each other, and honestly that makes my heart happier than any other behavior they may show.

I'll never forget how AJ struck up a conversation with a commuter on the train leaving Boston.  I just sat and acted like I wasn't listening, but he told her all about our day to include the Boston Tea Party reenactment we did. She told me after the conversation that she was so impressed by, not only his ability to converse with her, but his comfort in conversing with her.  He had his normal, "you're a stranger" apprehension at first, but then was very willing to chat with her. He was 5 at the time.

We have a hundred different opportunities every day for our kids to be around other people, their age or not. We hike with other families we meet along the trails, we chat with other families about homeschooling and RVing (because there are a lot of us to run into), we have cousins and family friends everywhere that we meet up with.  I personally think that our lifestyle enables them to experience more diversity in people than anything else could.

The short answer is, I don't.  It doesn't really cross my mind if they are getting enough "kid time", because the way we live they are meeting and socializing with so many people of different ages, backgrounds, experiences, etc.  I asked AJ what his favorite thing about RVing is and he said, "I get to see all of my friends and cousins and travel around."

(Least favorite thing, for those that are curious, "I don't get to ride in the RV while we are driving." Haha)

 

 

 Do you have any questions for us about home/roadschooling?  Leave them in the comments and I will answer them.