Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Honest. Quirky. Real. Practical tips, candid reviews, and stereotype-smashing humor for homeschooling families.

Honest. Quirky. Real. Practical tips, candid reviews, and stereotype-smashing humor for homeschooling families.

Strength-Based Homeschooling: 5 Reasons Why It Really Works

By Shawna Wingert

Working to your child’s strengths can improve retention and build a love of learning. Discover the benefits of strength-based homeschooling.

Written by Shawna Wingert of Not the Former Things.

Before I was a homeschooling mom, I worked in corporate training and development. My job was to help companies identify talented individuals within their organization and teach them to leverage an individual’s strengths for better performance.

One year, I was asked to attend a training session at Gallup. This multi-day intensive was all about using individual strengths to improve overall ability and performance. Based on their book StrengthsFinder 2.0 and a ton of Gallup research, the key takeaway was: Teaching to an individual’s strengths exponentially increases productivity and learner satisfaction.

Surprisingly, I also learned that when a person is allowed to progress in a way that is ‘strengths-based,’ her overall capabilities and performance increased, even in the areas that were weaknesses.

5 Reasons Why Strength-Based Homeschooling Really Works

After completing the training, I saw the research prove itself again and again in a corporate setting.

Then, I started homeschooling my boys. [Read more…]

5 Creative Ways to Use Leftover Homeschool Supplies

By Sara Dennis

At the end of the school year, your homeschool space may be a chaotic mess, littered with broken crayons, nubby pencils, and partially-used notebooks. Check out these tips for culling through the leftover homeschool supplies.

Written by Sara Dennis of Classically Homeschooling.

At the end of the school year, our learning spaces can look like the aftermath of some kind of school supply tornado. Everywhere are broken crayon bits, stubby colored pencil nubs, eraser-less #2 pencils, half-filled notebooks, and random sheets of looseleaf paper.

What do you do with all of those leftover homeschool supplies at the end of the year?

5 Creative Ways to Use Leftover Homeschool Supplies

You don’t have to live in chaos or just close the schoolroom door until August. Try these tips! [Read more…]

How to Make Your Kids Want to Write (or at Least Grumble a Little Less)

By Kris Bales

If motivating your children to write seems like an impossible dream, try these tips to tone down the writing-related grumbling in your homeschool.

“My kid hates to write!” How many times have you said those words or heard another homeschooling parent say them? Reluctant writers are the entire reason we started sharing monthly printable writing prompts.

But, even with writing prompts, how do you get a reluctant writer to like writing…or, at least, not grumble about it quite so much?

motivating your children to write

Try these tips to make writing more agreeable to the pencil-twirlers and corner-doodlers in your house. [Read more…]

15-Minute Homeschool Lessons: The Perfect Busy Day Solution

By Chelsea Gonzales

Even when life gets busy, school doesn’t have to suffer with these quick and easy 15-minute homeschool lessons. They’re perfect for busy days.

Written by Chelsea Gonzales of Wonder Wherever We Wander.

In a perfect world, we would all be on our A-game 24/7. We would always have fun ideas to keep our homeschools fresh and exciting. We would spend several hours a day engaged in active learning with our kids.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the reality for most of us. Life gets busy. We get wrapped up in trying to survive each day, and sometimes homeschooling falls by the wayside for a bit.

15-Minute Homeschool Lessons

When this happens, many homeschool parents are quick to assume they’re no good at this homeschooling thing. While it’s easy to feel that way, it just isn’t true. Believe it or not, your kids will keep learning even when you aren’t actively engaging them.

Still stressing? Take heart! There are some super-short, simple educational activities you can use to keep your learning momentum going. [Read more…]

Let Them Read: Giving Your Kids the Freedom to Choose

By Sara

There are plenty of homeschool reading tips out there, but Sara offers one of the best in the following article: let your kids choose what they read. Freedom to choose increases engagement.

Written by Sara Jordan Panning of Heart and Soul Homeschooling

I recently had a conversation with a reading specialist who has encouraged excitement for reading in hundreds of kids. He relayed to me how frequently parents come to him complaining that their kids only want to read graphic novels. His response: “They’re reading, aren’t they?”

It’s so easy, especially as homeschoolers, to get all caught up in and obsess over what our kids are reading. We convince ourselves that if our child doesn’t fall in love with Tom Sawyer or Little Women, he’ll never be true lovers of books. This thinking simply isn’t correct.

Studies have shown that when parents and teachers give children the freedom to choose what they read, they are much more likely to read more often and for the pure pleasure of it.

homeschool reading tips

I confess I used to be a literature snob. I read all the classics and vowed that my kids would read them, too. While we do read classic literature, I give my daughters the freedom to choose what they like to read based on their interests. Within reason, of course, but this has not been a problem so far.

My oldest daughter is 17 and has developed a taste for good books of all kinds, even if they aren’t the best according to Charlotte Mason twaddle standards. Sometimes a good story is just a good story and enjoyable to read. All three of my daughters like to read for fun, so I count that as a win. [Read more…]