409 | The Only Voice You Need To Listen To (Sean Allen)

We meet hundreds of parents every year at homeschool conventions across the country. We are often approached and asked what advice or counsel we might give regarding difficulties many of these parents may be facing with their children. Sometimes we feel like we have a very clear answer to give, but more often than not, the best advice we can offer them is also, perhaps, the most obvious. In this episode I'll discuss what this bit of advice is and, despite it being hidden in plain sight, why it is ultimately superior to any counsel I may be able to offer. About Sean Sean Allen is the founder of The Well Ordered Homeschool, husband to his beautiful bride Caroline and a proud father of eight. He has a bachelor of fine arts in graphic design and is passionate about creating materials to assist parents in the incredibly challenging, yet surpassingly beautiful, work of schooling and training their children at home. Resources The Well Ordered Homeschool Planner Connect Sean Allen | Instagram | Facebook | Website Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website Thank you to our sponsors! Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions? We hope to see you there! For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show. View full show notes on the blog.

As convicted as many of us feel about schooling our children at home, all too often it can feel like drudgery. Wrestling with young ones over their math homework for the umpteenth time in a month can drive even the most dedicated homeschool parent to despair. In these moments, we rely on our sense of duty to propel us forward, but we really shouldn't operate on that plane for too long. This episode serves as a reminder that, much more than a job or a duty, homeschooling our children is our God-given mission.

About Sean

Sean Allen is the founder of The Well Ordered Homeschool, husband to his beautiful bride Caroline and a proud father of eight. He has a bachelor of fine arts in graphic design and is passionate about creating materials to assist parents in the incredibly challenging, yet surpassingly beautiful, work of schooling and training their children at home.

Resources 

Find a Great Homeschool Convention near you!

Connect

Sean Allen | Instagram | Facebook | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

In this episode Jessica shares two recent reads that have profoundly impacted her work around the home. To put it simply, she is excited to clean bathrooms! If that isn't worth noting, what is?!

About Jessica

Jessica is a wife, homeschool mom of three, author, and blogger. She lives in sunny North Carolina on a big family farm with chickens, goats, cousins, and lots of mud.

Resources 

Eve in Exile

Simplified Organization

HSS 392 | Overcoming Overwhelm (Jessica Smartt)

Connect

Jessica Smartt | Instagram | Facebook | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

Behind the scenes banter with real homeschool parents. Get some homeschool dad insight from an interview with Mr. Hifalutin. Then listen and laugh along with a comical rendition of a homeschool marriage court deposition over some common everyday struggles and trials.

About Damien

Mr. Hifalutin—Damian Cabrera is the husband of Jennifer Cabera, the Hifalutin Homeschooler. He is not only a good humored participant in this episode, but a once reluctant, and now staunch advocate for homeschooling. His day job as a cardiothoracic surgical PA keeps the family fed, but his life position of husband, father, educator, and leader is his life’s greatest work.

About Jennifer

Jennifer Cabrera, the Hifalutin Homeschooler, is the writer of homeschool truth, humor, and inspiration.  Jennifer lives in Salado, Texas with her husband and three brilliant boys.  She is a licensed Physician Assistant/MPH, but set aside that career for her ultimate life's work.  She is also the author of Socialize Like a Homeschooler: A Humorous Homeschool Handbook and Revolting Writing, a hilarious writing, vocabulary, and illustration journal for reluctant writers.  She is a featured speaker with Great Homeschool Conventions and her memes and witty insights are widely shared on social media.

Connect

Jennifer Cabrera | Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

It's that time again—time for your homeschool to hit a figurative wall. You might feel like your school days are dragging on. You might notice more complaining than usual. And you might be looking at your calendars longing for spring. It's the messy middle and it tends to show up every year about this time. Thankfully, there are some things you can do to show it the door. In this episode we'll look at some practical ways you can fight the messy middle and ensure a strong push to the finish line. 

About Sean

Sean Allen is the founder of The Well Ordered Homeschool, husband to his beautiful bride Caroline and a proud father of eight. He has a bachelor of fine arts in graphic design and is passionate about creating materials to assist parents in the incredibly challenging, yet surpassingly beautiful, work of schooling and training their children at home.

Resources 

The Well Ordered Homeschool Planner (Pre-Sale)

Connect

Sean Allen | Instagram | Facebook | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

Have you ever begrudged your family for under-appreciating your homeschool efforts? If so, you then probably felt guilty for feeling neglected. For the love of homeschooling and our families, we do all we can to show it. Having these thoughts and emotions could be homeschool burnout. Or could you be overdoing it and wearing out your audience? 

About Jennifer

Jennifer Cabrera, the Hifalutin Homeschooler, is the writer of homeschool truth, humor, and inspiration.  Jennifer lives in Salado, Texas with her husband and three brilliant boys.  She is a licensed Physician Assistant/MPH, but set aside that career for her ultimate life's work.  She is also the author of Socialize Like a Homeschooler: A Humorous Homeschool Handbook and Revolting Writing, a hilarious writing, vocabulary, and illustration journal for reluctant writers.  She is a featured speaker with Great Homeschool Conventions and her memes and witty insights are widely shared on social media.

Connect

Jennifer Cabrera | Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

Want to learn one simple thing you can do to lower stress and guard the atmosphere of your home? In this episode, Janice talks about the one thing that was most helpful for her family as they tried to cultivate a comfortable, positive atmosphere for learning. Perhaps you'll find it helpful, too!

About Janice

Janice Campbell, a lifelong reader and writer, loves to introduce students to great books and beautiful writing. She holds an English degree from Mary Baldwin College, and is the graduated homeschool mom of four sons. You’ll find more about reading, writing, planning, and education from a Charlotte Mason/Classical perspective at her websites, EverydayEducation.com, Excellence-in-Literature.com, and DoingWhatMatters.com.

Resources 

Have you Heard? Noise Can Affect Learning from Education World

Keep it Down (and Rediscover Silence) excerpted from Choosing Civility by P. M. Forni

Path to Quiet from Hearing Health Quarterly

Noise, Acoustics, Student Learning, and Teacher Health from The National Academies Press

Daily Noise Pollution: Its Effects and What You Need to Know from Zen Soundproof

Does Noise Affect Learning? from Frontiers in Psychology

Noise Pollution Clearinghouse

Education by Design, Not Default by Janet Newberry

Connect

Janice Campbell | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

Have you ever done a media fast? I did one years ago and am planning another one this year. Here's a bit on why to do them and the good things that happened when I did. 

About Janice

Janice Campbell, a lifelong reader and writer, loves to introduce students to great books and beautiful writing. She holds an English degree from Mary Baldwin College, and is the graduated homeschool mom of four sons. You’ll find more about reading, writing, planning, and education from a Charlotte Mason/Classical perspective at her websites, EverydayEducation.com, Excellence-in-Literature.com, and DoingWhatMatters.com.

Resources 

Ad Fontes Media

All Sides Media Bias Chart

Connect

Janice Campbell | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

Like anything in life, homeschooling presents us with A LOT of questions. What math curriculum to use? Should I join a co-op? What should be in my morning time basket? and on and on and on. The only thing that exceeds the number of questions we have are the number of answers that get thrown our way (often without permission). The truth is, of all the voices vying for your attention, there's only one you actually need to listen to. It's the voice of the Holy Spirit, and though the Lord may speak to us in many different ways (through other people, through experiences, etc.), he never contradicts himself. We just have to quiet down and listen. He's more than willing to point us in the right direction.

About Sean

Sean Allen is the founder of The Well Ordered Homeschool, husband to his beautiful bride Caroline and a proud father of eight. He has a bachelor of fine arts in graphic design and is passionate about creating materials to assist parents in the incredibly challenging, yet surpassingly beautiful, work of schooling and training their children at home.

Resources 

The Well Ordered Homeschool Planner

Connect

Sean Allen | Instagram | Facebook | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.

In this episode, Jessica chats with Amy Frank about how her family has adopted holiday traditions that are based in the liturgical year. In addition to some Advent and Epiphany traditions, they discuss some ways to celebrate throughout the rest of the year.

About Amy

Amy Frank lives in Grove City, Pennsylvania with her family. She is a longtime homeschooling mom who loves family traditions.

About Jessica

Jessica is a wife, homeschool mom of three, author, and blogger. She lives in sunny North Carolina on a big family farm with chickens, goats, cousins, and lots of mud.

Resources 

Celebrating the Christian Year by Martha Zimmerman

Memory-Making Mom by Jessica Smartt

Connect

Jessica Smartt | Instagram | Facebook | Website

Homeschooling.mom | Instagram | Website

Thank you to our sponsors!

Medi-Share: an affordable Christian alternative to traditional health insurance

Tuttle Twins: children’s books to help you teach your kids how the world really works

Have you joined us at one of the Great Homeschool Conventions?  We hope to see you there!

For more encouragement on your homeschooling journey, visit the Homeschooling.mom site, and tune in to our sister podcast The Charlotte Mason Show.

View full show notes on the blog.