Many of you homeschool in the midst of daunting circumstances. I get it. My husband was diagnosed with brain cancer when our boys were 7 and 9 years old. Our family has endured surgeries, treatment, and side effects alongside of him. At first, I seriously considered putting them in “school”… But then I realized what a gift it was that we were able to homeschool during this time. We could more easily keep an eye on their hearts — which was most important, right? And we could navigate the academics on our own terms. They are both doing well in college now, and my husband is a longterm survivor 🙏🙌🏻

My husband (who ironically doesn’t even like to read 🤷🏻‍♀️ ) wrote a book about our experience, and our sons and I each wrote a chapter as well. Much of it details how we homeschooled through crisis. You can find it here on Amazon.

If you are in that same boat and need tips or encouragement, please feel free to contact me here. As always, I offer low-stress evaluations in lieu of testing, because I understand that sometimes life is just hard 🤍

During the exponential growth of homeschooling in 2020 and 2021, I noticed a couple of interesting trends:

• Some families simply did the “school at home” that their local school offered, or used one of the public school online options such as K12. With only a few exceptions, these experiences were not overwhelmingly positive. Most found that their children were sitting in front of computers for hours a day, tied to logging on at certain times and following rigid schedules. It did not help that the normal activities enjoyed by homeschoolers were not available (co-ops, field trips, park dates, even family vacations, etc.). Understandably, their impression of “homeschooling” did not improve, and they were eager to get back to the classroom. 

• Other families, who may have begun reluctantly, found themselves pleasantly surprised at how much they enjoyed the freedom they had to tailor their children’s education to their own needs as they eschewed the public school system. In some cases, parents were startled at the gaps they were seeing in their children’s knowledge. Other times I fielded questions regarding accommodating learning styles, or what curriculum simply might be more enjoyable. Many were elated to find out that they were “allowed” to let their children pursue their individual passions in learning. I watched these families go from asking, “Can I really do this?” to enthusiastically declaring, “I can really do this!” These families slowly but surely blossomed into “homeschooling as a lifestyle” — not just “school at home.” 

HSLDA recently released a wonderful little video entitled “Make the World Your Classroom.” If you’re still not convinced that homeschooling is right for your family, take just a few minutes to watch and be inspired. https://hslda.org/get-started/discover-homeschooling/ 

I can hardly believe it myself, but it's true! I started providing evaluations for Colorado homeschool families way back in 2010. My sons were 8 and 10 at the time, and are now college age. Wow! It's safe to say I've learned a few things along the way :)
I've made a handful of changes in my services too, including providing streamlined in-person meetings (often taking as little as a half hour of your time), a super convenient online option, and transcript guidance for your older students. 
If you're starting to think about year-end requirements, I hope you'll consider letting me work with your family! My approach is thorough yet not intimidating, and works well for all homeschool students. I'm looking forward to meeting you!