Deschooling During Summer & All Year: Myths & Tips
We often hear from parents who are planning to use the summer break after their child exited traditional school to deschool them. This seems like a good idea -- in theory. Summer is a long break, during the longest days of the year, with friends and opportunities all around to allow children to relax and have fun. Deschooling during summer seems like the perfect time to get them ready to homeschool, right? Well, maybe not. Myth: Deschooling is Perfect to do in Summer Fact: Su
Free Homeschool Curriculum & Learning Resources: a Living Document
Homeschooling doesn't have to be expensive! We personally feel that new homeschoolers should not invest in an expensive curriculum until they have been homeschooling for a while and have determined what they actually need. We would suggest that you look through the free resources below to see if any will work for you. If you are exciting a traditional school to homeschool, you may want to take some time to deschool as a family, this will give you time to connect with each ot
Help Your Children Learn to Swim Without Lessons: An Unschooling Approach to Swimming
Swimming goes with summer like leaves go with fall. And if you have younger children, your desire to make sure they are water safe becomes a big priority in summer. Many parents diligently rush to sign up their kids for swim lessons, but this year they may find class options and access to swim instructors is a bit limited. So, what is a parent to do, besides be at their young child's side, insert them into unwieldy inflatables where they can't move much, or simply limit thei
4th of July Movies for Teens & Tweens
Between the fireworks and other festivities, sometimes we just want to relax on the couch with a movie. From our homeschooling experience, this is especially true with teenagers! What better time than the 4th of July to watch films related to the holiday, that help explain our country and our complicated history, as well as patriotic films about important events in history --or even just important events in summer moviegoing? We've included some Americana classics, and some
CDE Prepping Changes to Independent Study by Executive Pressure Rather Than Legislation?
Last week I was trying to research exactly how many schools in our state will be impacted if our Governor is successful in negotiating with our Legislators to adopt his proposed changes to our state’s 1976 Independent Study (IS) Laws. I emailed the Independent Study (IS) Department at the California Department of Education (CDE) inquiring if they had the number of IS schools in our state. To my surprise I received a very concerning out of office reply from the CDE that stated
Newsom Budget Bill- The New Threat to all Independent Study Programs Across the State
As part of Governor Newsom’s May Budget Revision he is proposing a rewrite of the 1976 legislation authorizing independent study (IS). His proposed changes will decimate IS across our state. These horrific changes apply to district, county office of ed, and charter school IS programs. Policymakers have concerns that “Distance Learning“ didn’t work well for many students, and that students should be back in classrooms. I think that this is a legitimate concern but those progra
