Community is something so special about homeschooling and sometimes all it takes to keep you going with a smile is hearing some encouragement, advice and success stories from fellow homeschool parents, who have been exactly where you are.
We asked our vibrant community of homeschool parents for their best advice for fellow homeschool parents and their proudest homeschooling moments.
They have shared some amazing advice, encouragement and success stories that you are going to love! Here are a couple of our favorites (shout out to everyone who commented, we loved all of the comments!)
Tips For Encourgment & Advice For Success
Explore & Play
"Don't focus on grades, or "Where they should be" focus on the child and their progress! A study was done that showed even if a child has no formal education until 3rd grade they catch up to their peers in just one year. Little ones are meant to play and explore and Play!
No one ever asks in a job interview if you were reading chapter books by age 8, don't sweat it!"~Iris Deanna
Don't embrace guilt. You really are doing better than you think.~Charity Ford
All Progress Is Progress
"Each step forward is a step forward. Progress, even slow progress is still progress."~Heidi Petry
Never Give Up
Don't give up. Never give up. You'll be fighting and fighting to help your child with a lesson crying, feeling like a failure, then suddenly a light clicks on in their minds and they get it. Homeschool isn't teaching the children concepts its teaching your children to learn.~Charlene Brandon
Remember Why You Started
"Remember why you chose to educate at home. Give yourself so much grace and don't forget to bestow the same on your children. Learning comes in many forms, and sometimes that means making mistakes and learning from them."~Jeannie Mershon
Hobby & Interest Based Learning
"Allow them opportunities to be curious and explore ideas/concepts/hobbies on their own. Support their interests as much as possible by also being interested in their interests and letting them teach you. This is the best way to foster a love of learning that won’t require coercion or persuasion, which can exhaust parents and students. If students enjoy learning they will carry themselves through life, without assistance."~Heather Freedom
Adaptable Learning
"No matter what you see others doing you have to do what works best for your family. And the only way to figure that out is to be flexible and experiment within your home. Kids are resilient and adaptable so don't be afraid to switch things up if it's not working for you and try something new. No matter what, you got this!"~Julie Hodos
Homeschool Isn't One Size Fits All
"Do what works best for you and your child. No two homeschool days/schedules look the same between different families. Let go of the stigma that there's one right way.~Ashley Allen
life is education
"Homeschooling can be anything and anywhere. Go to the park and read, go on a field trip, let them paint on their own, watch a YouTube video, you can even do workbooks in the car. Watch a movie and discuss it, point out logical fallacies, talk about lyrics in songs, or go on a walk and talk about what you see. Show them that life is education".~Meagan Dion
Celebrate Curiosity
"Find your flow state! This is a sacred time to celebrate your love for your family. Celebrate curiosity and a sense for adventure! Trust your kids process and innate capacity for learning. Not every day is going to feel productive but that’s okay because rest is essential for integration. So go lightly and have fun."~Christine Baade
Proudest homeschooling moment From The Community
Interest-led Learning Success
When my kids finally take off with their own interests and bury themselves into wanting to learn something and all I have to do is give them the time.~Diane Robertson
Homeschool Pride
When people ask why he's not in school today and he says " I'm homeschooled". with a big grin on his face.~Kathie Hodson
Safety Learning
Seeing the kids work so Hard. My 7 year old mastered our address and was able to tell me what to do in a fire and applied it and was able to show me how to call 911 we did a mock call and I asked her typical questions they would ask. And she was able to answer them. She taught me something I didn’t know about fire safety. Pretty impressive.~Amber Dunn
"When someone tells me that they enjoy being around my kids because they are so kind."~Katie Kalla
Proud Homeschool Grandma
When someone compliments my granddaughters on how well they can read or do math, (or whatever they're talking about) and they say, "I learned it from my Grammy."~Sherry Elliott Siu
