Every podcast episode appearing on the HomeschoolingiRL podcast radio show.
We love episodes that are created in response to listener questions and feedback. On this episode of Homeschooling in Real Life, Fletch and Kendra respond to a listener who asked about the best way to respond to her skeptical and non-supportive spouse.
Answering in a way that provides both the practical and the hopeful, we think you'll be encouraged to seek God and listen for what He has in store for your family.
Read MoreAlthough we've tackled the topic of homeschool burnout on a previous episode, this time we're talking more about the practical side of the issue by answering some common questions we've received: How do we avoid homeschool burnout in the first place? How can we deal with feeling exhausted and burned out when the school year has barely begun? What can we do to assure that we can be in this for the long haul?
We give ideas for helping a mom or dad to not feel as if she or he is shouldering all of the burden on her or his own, suggestions for ways to tweak and change the way things are being run at home, and doable breaks for the mom or dad who is parenting and homeschooling 24/7.
Read MoreRecently a listener wrote in and asked if we would expound upon the idea of giving our high schoolers more freedom in their senior year in order to help them launch better into adult life. We're talking about curfews and chores, girlfriends and youth events, and how we help our high school seniors learn to juggle all of the opportunities that lay before them.
Read MoreMoms don't generally want to lose control of their mouths, but sometimes the chaos of parenting and homeschooling can cause a mom to blow her top. And then what?
Join us as we get into the nitty gritty and share our own struggles with yelling, shaming a child, and other forms of parental frustration. What then? How can we learn to control our tongues and speak life to our kids?
Read MoreIn this second installment of our two-part series, Why the Rise in African American Homeschooling?, we welcome Belinda Bullard into the studio to talk about her experiences growing up black in America, watching her kids as they progressed through the public school system, and then ultimately bringing them home to homeschool them.
Belinda has written an inclusive curriculum that celebrates the African American heritage and aims to strengthen and empower the African American student and their family.
As with our part one interview with Dr. Ama Mazama, we want to encourage you to listen even if you're not an African American parent. We found our eyes opened to real issues of racism and culture, and hope that we and our listeners can begin to be a part of the solution to the reality of racism and inequality everywhere.
Read MoreThere has been a distinct rise in the number of African American parents choosing to educate their children at home, and on this episode of Homeschooling in Real Life, we're exploring why.
Dr. Ama Mazama, professor of African American Studies at Temple University and homeschooling parent, joins us for an important discussion. Even if you aren't African American, this is a highly informative episode worth hearing and thinking through.
Read MoreCome celebrate our past 50 episodes with us! We're taking a brief tour through the best of the Homeschooling in Real Life podcast. It's fun, deep, interesting, and will bring a smile to your face.
If you want your friends to know why you love the podcast, share this episode with them. You'll either get them hooked or scare them far, far away from the biggest homeschool whack jobs you know - Fletch and Kendra, of course!
Read MoreAre you homeschooling a child with special needs? Fletch and Kendra are, too, and on this episode of HomeschoolingIRL, they'll be discussing the unique challenges and joys that homeschooling a child with special needs adds to the homeschool setting.
Wendy Hilton of Hip Homeschool Moms joins us for a touching interview that we hope will encourage parents of kids with special needs and give insight into the life of a family with exceptional learners.
Read MoreFor the past 44 episodes of Homeschooling in Real Life, we have been telling the stories of other homeschooling families and talking about shifting our hope to anything but the hope of the gospel, the real hope of Jesus Christ and what He has accomplished for us.
Now it's time to tell our story. In the summer of 2008, we found our 7-week-old baby in a coma, an event that led to a massive overhaul in our marriage, our parenting, and ultimately, our faith in Christ. That sickly baby boy was just the beginning; there would be harder trials and far more refining ahead.
If you are wondering why your own faith feels stagnant or the Christian life joyless, join us as we share what unlocked the self-made prison doors and caused us to lose our religion but find a deeper, more glorious faith in the power of the cross!
Read MoreHomeschool conventions! You either love 'em or you hate 'em.
On this episode of Homeschooling in Real Life, Fletch and Kendra tackle homeschool conventions head-on, discussing both the pros and cons of attending one. You'll find that many of the points made resonate with you, and you might be surprised to discover ways in which you are able to minster or be ministered to at your nearest homeschool convention.
Read MoreIt's a lament we hear often: "I'm the homeschooling mom who makes sure we do all the stuff we have to do, and then dad gets home and the kids are all over him with joy because he gets to do the fun stuff."
And while we love that our kids are thrilled to see dad (or mom, if the situation is reversed), it can sometimes feel crummy to always be the "have to" parent.
Join us as we chat with Rachael and Davis Carman about being "have to" and "get to" parents. The Carmans know how sometimes there seems to be imbalance as they've homeschooled and raised 7 children in their home.
Read MoreWe did it again!
Taking your questions, we're answering with what we hope is helpful insight and humor, too, of course!
Tune in to hear these questions answered and more!
Read MoreHow long have you been homeschooling? Long enough to make you feel like you've been through the wringer? It's time to talk this one out, because a burned out homeschooling parent is not a healthy human being. There's rest and grace and joy to be found, so let's go after it!
Read MoreLast week HomeschoolingIRL listener Derek Anderson contacted us and asked: Would you talk about the challenges of owning a home business as a homeschooler?
We meet a lot of homeschooling parents who dream of owning their own business. The freedom and flexibility and the ability to introduce your homeschooled children to your job and the world of business seems like a perfect fit for homeschooling families.
We want to pursue the truth behind homeschooling with a home business, because while the benefits are there, the truth remains: owning a home business as a homeschooling family comes with challenges. Balancing time, the isolation many feel as solo businesspersons, and maintaining an income flow are all daily, weekly, and monthly challenges for homeschooling families who own and operate home businesses.
Join us for this episode of HomeschooingIRL To Go as we invite guest Derek Anderson to join us in a quick and honest discussion about owning a small business as a homeschooling family.
Read MoreRelationships. Is this the hardest part about having our kids at home all day long? Probably, because people aren't perfect and we're seeing our kids' - and our own - sin laid bare before us each and every day.
But relationships are the means by which God grows us in so many directions, too. As crazy and terrible and fabulous and infuriating and delightful as living in relationship can be, this is the reason homeschooling is a marvelous tool. It's in relationship with our kids that we can see our need for a savior and point each other to the only One who saves our souls.
Join us for a poignant discussion with author Karen Campbell.
Read MoreOn today's inaugural episode of Homeschooling In Real Life - To Go we are answering a question from one of our listeners. Martha asks, "How Do I Make My Homeschool More Fun?" We loved this question, so both Fletch and Kendra take a stab at answering. As you have come to expect, their answers line up perfectly with the "have to" parent and the "get to" parent. What does that mean? Listen to find out!
Read MoreSometimes our most meaningful episodes are created because our listeners are asking tough questions. What if your child is the black sheep, the one the other homeschoolers won't play with, the one who never feels part of the group?
It's a tough topic, and one that requires an extra dose of the gospel and grace. How do we help our black-sheep homeschooled kids, and how do we love the black sheep homeschoolers in our own community?
Read MoreKimm Crandall was the model homeschooling mom: she had her curriculum chosen for its strong Biblical core, her children lined up quietly and obediently in the church pew, and her home-ground wheat bread delivered piping hot from her oven.
She was doing it "right". And yet, God seemed angry with her, as if nothing she did or produced would appease Him. As she polished up the outside, she was dying on the inside, bound up by her good works and suffocating under the lack of grace within the homeschooling community surrounding her.
It's a poignant interview, peppered with humor and self-effacing realism. But the golden nugget here is that Kimm boldly and bravely points us back to the One who redeems every mess, every moment, and every bit of chaos.
Read MoreIn the beginning, we choose to homeschool for academic reasons, or for a chance to impart our faith, or because we can't afford the private school options, or because we live jetsetter lives that take our kids around the globe. Okay, maybe not that last one, but there are any number of reasons parents choose to educate their kids at home, and in the beginning, we set out like gangbusters.
And then reality sets in. Maybe it's the lesson planning or the day-to-day drudgery that gets us. Or maybe we realize that we just aren't the best teachers. Now what?
Join us for the last in our "I Love Homeschooling But . . ." series as we discuss what it means to homeschool when we aren't the best teachers around. How to improve? Where to get help? What to do now? It's an episode full of encouragement and grace.
Read MoreSome of us are born organizing our diapers and wipes, lining up the stuffed animals in order of size, and constructing the perfect play schedule between siblings. Others of us find ourselves tripping over paperwork we thought we'd lost, buying that art curriculum again (where did I put that???), and wondering when we'll ever get our acts together. Throw homeschooling on top of it all and even the most organized home can be sent into a tailspin. It's just overwhelming at times, isn't it?
If you're the homeschooling parent who feels as if you'll never get organized, this episode is for you. Will we whip you into shape by the time we're done? Likely not. But we will open the discussion and talk about embracing your strengths and finding help for the areas that are pulling you under.
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