Are Homeschooled Kids Smart Enough?

Last summer at a family reunion, as I sat talking with a distant relative about homeschooling, she asked me a series of questions that were a bit difficult to answer. 

I don’t want to insinuate that she asked with any malice; she was genuinely interested and simply had never been exposed to a homeschooling family before. However, several of her inquiries threw me for a loop- one in particular:

How do you know if your kids are smart enough?

Homeschool Holiday Stress? The Solution Is Within Your Reach!

As the holidays seemingly arrive with astounding speed this year, it can be quite easy to be overcome with the stress of knowing that not only has the Christmas season appeared with little warning, but as a homeschooling parent, you are still responsible for educating your child during this time.

What to do?

Although many families attempt to trudge through like the troopers they are, quite a few realize after a brief time that it just isn’t going to work. How can it with all of the busyness that often accompanies this time of year?

There’s shopping and baking to be done, relatives to visit, carols to be learned, scarves to be knitted, and trees to be decorated. Where does homeschooling fit into all of this? 

Homeschooling 101: Do I HAVE to Teach My Kids for 5 Hours a Day?

Some habits can be really hard to break. 

Let’s take the notion of what education is “supposed” to look like, for example. Most people likely wouldn’t consider the assumptions about learning that have been ingrained in them since early childhood as a “habit,” but that’s exactly what they are.

Taking a look at the population as a whole, I think it’s safe to say that most people have been brought up in a traditional school setting. They sat at desks while a teacher lectured in the front of a classroom. They raised their hands to go to the bathroom. They read textbook chapters and answered section review questions, possibly without ever wondering why things were done that way in the first place.

Which brings us to where many homeschooling parents are today- stuck in those classrooms of so long ago. 

8 Practical Steps to Homeschooling a Child with ADHD

Homeschooling and ADHD.

Can the two go together? As the mom of one child officially diagnosed with ADHD and a few others I suspect may have it, I’m going to answer that question with a big, resounding YES.

Not only can they go together, in fact, but I truly believe that it is the absolute best option for any child with this condition.

Let’s face it. The traditional school setting simply isn’t set up for children who have excess energy. As it happens, it just may be the antithesis of what these children need. 

7 Surefire Ways to Make Your Kids HATE Reading

When it comes to homeschool stereotypes, one of the most common is the notion that all homeschoolers love to read.  I’ll have to admit that sometimes even as a home educator myself, I often find myself assuming it’s true, as well.

But it isn’t. I’m here to tell you today that not all homeschooled kids enjoy reading- and that’s okay. What you do want to be careful of, though, is pushing your kids to hate reading.