We are the brand of homeschoolers that have permanently rejected the public school model.  There are homeschoolers who prefer homeschooling to public schools, but make their educational choices year by year. For a variety of reasons, and a couple of big ones, we’ve ruled out public education entirely for our family. I have two big [...]

I’m at a youth retreat with my daughter, and I’m posting this from my phone. Isn’t technology great? Anyway, your getting meat, not fluff, but it isn’t my meat. I’m reading Charlotte Mason’s Original Homeschooling Series Volume 6:Towards A Philosophy of Education, and I’m pretty sure I’ll end up highlighting the whole book before I’m [...]

Next year, my oldest child will be in 8th grade, which means I have one year to prepare to homeschool a high school student. Homeschooling through high school brings up all sorts of anxieties, not only because of the challenges of high school, but because you also have to prepare both your child for college–mentally, [...]

Jon Acuff  is a big encourager.  That’s what he does professionally. He writes and speaks on how to dream big and accomplish your goals. It’s pretty cool. One way to encourage people is through stories and analogies. Like this one. Did you read it? It’s a great story to illustrated a point: set crazy, outside [...]

A few months ago, I reviewed the curriculum, “Economics for Everybody,” a thoroughly biblical study of economics.  Now the publishers have condensed the 12 hours of video presentations by R.C. Sproul, Jr into two hour presentation called “Economics Has Consequences.” It is being streamed for free on Youtube and Vimeo for this month only. (You [...]

The outrage du jour is news from a small Texas town of shenanigans going on in the local high school: students dressing up in burkas, calling the 9/11 terrorists “freedom fighters”, and the Tea Party patriots (of 1773–not the new guys) terrorists. I saw the story posted on facebook by several of my homeschooling friends [...]

A few days ago there was a rather disturbing report that U.S. schools would be encouraged to replace books like Catcher in the Rye and To Kill a Mockingbird with more practical informational texts like Recommended Levels of Insulation by the the US Environmental Protection Agency. (Okay, I’ve never been a huge fan of Catcher [...]

For the next two years, we’ll be studying American History using a literature approach. Next week we’ll be studying pirates, specifically their activity along the North American coast. We’ve plundered the library of pirate books and commandeered “Muppet Treasure Island.” I’m ready with maps, and crafts, and buried treasure. Look, I even have my own [...]

Not far from where I live, the school district of Allen, Texas has constructed a gargantuan sports stadium.   Allen, like a lot of cities in this area, has experienced explosive growth in recent years. Obviously outgrowing it’s small town roots, the Allen School District needed a new sports stadium.  So in a down economy,the voters [...]

The human body is a marvel and thanks to Science! and technology (“Technology!”?), we are becoming aware of how much more marvelous it is than we had ever imagined. The complexity of the design truly is awe inspiring. Mathematician Alexander Tsiaras recently gave a TED Talk presenting human life from conception to birth. It is [...]