by Kelsey K.

Homeschooling is absolutely a very personal journey and decision for everyone. My experiences may not reflect yours, but this was our journey about how and why we got started. 

A little background, my husband and I have 5 children ages 8 down to newborn, we had our 5th shortly into our homeschool journey. We are both blessed to be able to work from home for the time being. 

Two different backgrounds

My husband and his siblings were homeschooled growing up. He often tells me about his experiences growing up, and made homeschooling sound pretty doable. We would have talks with his mom and how she did everything, all while holding down a full-time job. I was the type of person that thought homeschooling was very attractive, but just never had a reason to take the plunge. I also came from a family that is biased in the homeschool stereotype category: “weird, unsocialized, unqualified” were words often spoken to me when I mentioned my possible desire. 

When it was time for my first child to enter preschool, I had a choice to make: continue teaching through my home, or put him in preschool. At the time, my aunt was teaching preschool, and I couldn’t compliment her methods and preschool enough. I saw the way my kids thrived through her and I knew a school environment was best for my kids. After having two kids go through preschool, and then enter Elementary School, I noticed my son “being a boy” and just wanting to play, play, play. His grades weren’t terrible, but not where his teacher expected him to be at that point. Every parent’s panic moment. 

Insert COVID here.

By now, my oldest was just about to finish Kindergarten, and my second was finishing up her Kindergarten year. The beginning months of COVID school at home were hard. Our teachers didn’t have a good setup. Lessons were on Zoom. Isolation. Nothing positive was happening in the learning department at our house. Everyone was just kind of holding it together the last few months of school, just hoping to get it over with. I knew this was not an environment I wanted my kids in long-term. 

My kids remained enrolled in their charter school, and it was a complete mess. Every week, we would get a new email of what to expect going forward. Which “hybrid” program we wanted to jump into. My daughter got accepted into one of the programs while my son would be on a different one. Mask or shields. Plexi-glass between the desks. School shutdowns when there were positive cases. Everything. The only thing I can remember about that first COVID summer was DRAMA. How am I supposed to help my kids process through all these unfamiliar, abnormal measures? How am I supposed to retain the last bit of normalcy I can for them as a mother?

Making the Choice to Homeschool

Well, that was the push we needed. My first thought was obligation. I needed to do this for them. Of course homeschooling for us was the answer. I would get to decide how school was done and when it’s done. My kids were going to be home with me at least half the time. It just made sense for us.

I had recently picked up a part-time job and was 8 months pregnant at the time. More family judgment. It’s hard to go against the grain. I have 5 sisters who all sent their kids back to school while I did the opposite. I don’t want to paint a picture of making this decision as some easy, perfectly-made decision. For us, it was really hard. All the feelings of inadequacy flooded my brain. How do I do all this with a part-time job as a mother of 5, including a newborn? What if I’m not enough? What if they resent having to be with mom all the time? We just kind of got to a point and said this is what we’re doing; don’t look back.

One Year Later

I know there are so many people that this situation is all too familiar for. Every parent during COVID is having to adjust their expectations for school. Just know, I was a “never homeschooler.” I loved the idea, I loved what it could do for my kids, but no, not for me. And here we are, almost a year into our first year, and it’s been nothing but positive. My son has one-on-one learning time. Our schedules are flexible. We have so much time to learn through play and exploring. They have flourished in their learning. We set our 1st grader in the same level as my 2nd grader, and they learn and progress so well together. It’s hard. But it can be done

Everyone who decides to homeschool comes to that decision differently. For us, we needed a little push, and we are so glad we took the chance when we finally did. For others, it was no-brainer that they would homeschool their children. Whatever your journey, it’s okay! This was ours. 

Tell us in the comments about your decision to homeschool! Was it an easy decision for you to make? Do you have family doing it with you? We’d love to hear about your unique story!

Written by Jodi

This past year has seen a large number of students transitioning from the public arena to the home classroom. Many have done so out of necessity, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced prolonged school closures, and others have chosen to forge this path on their own. Regardless of your promptings, we’re here to encourage you along the journey!

Types of Homeschooling

First, did you know there are many different ways to homeschool your children? Yep! I, personally, am an unschooler (a what?!), but I’ll get to that in a moment. I have been homeschooling my children since 2000. One has graduated, is happily married, and has a successful career in kitchen design. The other two are in high school and are too quickly marching toward similar independence. We worked with several popular methods over the years before finding our niche. I suggest you experiment a little to find what works best for your family too.

Below are a few of the most common homeschooling methods. There are many others!

1)    Classical approach: Teaching children how to learn for themselves by introducing the five tools of learning (known as the Trivium)—Reason, Record, Research, Relate and Rhetoric. 

2)    Traditional homeschooling: Utilizing a set curriculum, tweaking a set curriculum to customize it to your children’s needs, or piecing together your own curriculum, and working within a (relatively) set schedule and timeframe each day for a specified calendar term. 

3)    Unschooling: Teaching children based on their interests rather than by utilizing a set curriculum. The children’s passions, talents, and personal goals influence what they study.

4)    Roadschooling: Taking your preferred method of instruction on the road. These families travel and learn as they go, often living in an RV. The world is their classroom!

5)    Online or virtual school: Utilizing the public school curriculum in the comfort of your own home. The public school district regulates attendance and assignments and also keeps records. 

6)    Distance learning: Using a set curriculum from an established school, often a private school. The overseeing school sets the schedule, assigns work, and keeps records for you, but you have the flexibility to work at your children’s pace and customize the work as needed.

7)    Umbrella school: Registering with an established school, often a private school, having the option to use some of their materials in your curriculum or none at all while letting them keep your records for you. You maintain complete control over your schedule.

As I mentioned, I am an unschooler, and that’s what we’ll explore today!

We began homeschooling in the year 2000, when my oldest child started Kindergarten. The concept, although not new, was certainly novel to me. In our first few months, we “did school at home.” Why is that in quotes? Well, because we didn’t homeschool; we made home look like the schoolroom. That’s not necessarily bad, but it is definitely not necessary. The joy of homeschooling is catering to your child’s educational needs and abilities. If we simply mimic what we’ve determined to leave behind (whatever school system you’ve chosen not to abide by), we’re not really doing things differently. We’re just doing them in a different location. We quickly found out we don’t have to be up at a certain time, classes don’t have to run by a timer, and we don’t even have to get through everything each day. We found that our school worked best when it worked for us and with us, and not when we worked for it. 

After some time, we noticed that the most work was accomplished when the children took interest in the subject matter. As they got older, these interests turned to passions, and now, they are becoming life pursuits. 

So how is this accomplished? 

Children learn naturally. I have often noted that even on our worst days, the ones that seemed least productive, my kids learned something. That’s because they’re curious; they naturally want to know things and better understand their world. With unschooling, parents facilitate this learning with real-world support. Parent-instructors don’t force required readings, don’t enforce lengthy studies, don’t stack textbook upon textbook. In fact, unschooling parents think outside the textbook! Learn plant anatomy by pulling weeds. Practice fractions and learn chemistry by cooking and baking. Discover biology with a fishing pole, architecture in the wood shop, economics with an etsy store. Many of my kids’ skills have been self-directed, and the knowledge has been more deeply absorbed, because it was something they wanted to know and not just something somebody said they should do. 

The unschooler’s mantra may be similar to Cinderella’s (from the live-action movie), “Just because it’s what’s done doesn’t mean it’s what should be done.” Just because public school looks a certain way (or private school or traditional homeschooling or whatever familiar style you want to plug in here), doesn’t mean it’s what has to be done by everyone. Unschooling allows freedom to be creative! By providing rich experiences such as hiking a nature preserve, visiting theme parks, exploring hands-on museums, traveling, reading books aloud, crafting, allowing play time, and investigating possibilities that extend beyond curriculum, unschoolers have virtually unlimited resources to help them pursue their passions. 

Do keep in mind that unschooling does not mean turning your kids loose to do whatever they please! Unschooling parents teach, direct, and instruct, and they enjoy the wonder of the world alongside their children, providing loving guidance along the way.

Are you an unschooler? Do you have questions about unschooling? Would you like to know more about other homeschooling options? Let us know in the comments below!

Art is a great subject to inspire learning. It morphs creativity with other subjects like science, math, and history! Miacademy offers some fun online art lessons for kids!

 In the Art Around the World series, you will find video tutorials for creating art projects inspired by different countries around the world. So far, we have:

 *Aboriginal Inspired Dot Painting (only available to members)

 *Chinese Watercolor

 *Crazy Creature Flip Book

 *Indonesian Inspired Batik

 *West African Printmaking

There are so many fun art projects you could do at home. Check out the Chinese Watercolor lesson on our Youtube Learning Channel! 

To keep it simple, most of the necessary items are things you probably already have at home so your children can easily gather them and complete these projects on their own. 

Have fun creating!

Guess what? Miacademy has a Facebook group for member parents, teachers, and those interested in learning more about Miacademy!

The Facebook Group is fun and full of helpful information. It’s a great place to look for answers and ask some questions. Here are just a few things you can expect to find in the group:

•  An introduction video by one of our content developers (and future videos to come)
•  A freebie printable available to group members only
•  A group of other parents and teachers, like you, who are using the site with their children and students
•  Information about our latest additions to the site
•  Answers to your questions from both our customer support team and other parents and teachers 

Click here to join!

This is not just a group where we can give you valuable resources. It’s also a place where homeschooling parents like you can interact and support each other’s journeys with your children’s education. 

Miacademy can’t wait to see what your children are learning!

Hola, Bonjour, Hallo!

If your children have ever bounded into the room and excitedly greeted you in a foreign language, you know how much fun it can be for them to discover familiar words in a new language.

Miacademy recognizes how much kids enjoy language learning and they are proud to offer over 60 fun foreign language lessons covering vocabulary in Spanish, French, German, Chinese, and Classical Languages. The colorful, pictorial games keep kids coming back for more!

Check out this sneak peak of our Spanish lessons!

And, if that’s not enough, there are plans in the works for adding to this category for next school year. Several teaching videos in the areas of pronunciation and simple conversations will be added which will compliment the current line-up. 

All of this language learning is included in Miacademy’s membership. Sign up and encourage your child to learn a whole new way to connect with others and express themselves! They are favorites among our members!

If you don’t have access to our lessons, there are a ton of free printable resources online to get your children introduced to some foreign language vocabulary! You could print out pictures of different nouns in color or even turn it into a fun activity and have your kids color them in! Then turn them into fun, colorful flashcards so they can easier relate them to the objects as they walk through life. You can find some fun Mandarin printouts here.

Whatever way your children are learning a new language, Miacademy encourages them and celebrates their learning!

 Auf Wiedersehen!

Do you ever need some help explaining a new concept to your kids? Then you’ll want to check out the Miacademy Learning Channel on Youtube!

This channel contains almost 400 learning videos covering all subject areas! It’s a one-stop shop for educational video content online. Children can learn about math, history, writing, and more. 

It’s a great place to get some extra help in certain areas and reinforce learning! This channel is also an easy way for Miacademy parents to find certain lessons they want their kids to watch again!

Make sure you hit Subscribe (in the top right corner) so it’s easy to find, and you don’t miss any new videos – we are always adding more!

Is it cold in your part of the world? Are your kids experiencing the winter blues? Miacademy can help!

The engaging science content on Miacademy is a great way to keep kids entertained (and learning) indoors!

There are several learning videos and accompanying lessons in the science section of the site! Members are enjoying newer lessons like Gravity 1 and 2, States of Matter, and States of Matter and Thermal Energy.

A Screenshot from the “Gravity 1” Lesson, showing the materials needed for the experiment!

Screenshot from the “Intro to States of Matter” lesson, showing the transition from a liquid to a solid.

In addition to videos and practice work, new simulations and printable activities have been added to really boost curiosity. The materials needed for the experiments are things that families likely already have in their homes, making the lessons an easy choice for indoor fun. Children can also take an assessment to test their knowledge! 

While the experiments in the science lessons are great, science experiments can be done anywhere, with nearly anything! Just follow the steps of the Scientific Method (More information on the Scientific Method can be found Here) to make sure your kids are engaged AND learning!

The 5 simple steps of the Scientific Method.

Some questions you could ask are:

• Will a crayon color after it’s been melted and then hardens again?
• What do squirrels eat?
• Do different sugars make cookies taste/look different?

There are an endless amount of questions to ask about the way the world works. Try out the scientific method for some fun, indoor learning!

Miacademy works hard to make sure their science lessons are educational and fun. Hopefully these lessons and questions inspire curiosity while many feel stuck indoors.

This past December, Miacademy was able to launch their new, user-friendly parent portal.

Though these improvements had already been in the workings, they heard the needs of the growing homeschool community and got to work to release this update early.

The new parent portal is much more powerful. 

• It has the ability to schedule an ENTIRE school year in advance. This makes it easier to plan ahead and track progress. It also requires less routine maintenance, so parents won’t have to log on and schedule new lessons as often. Check out this video on how to use the new scheduling tool to see just how easy it is!

• Parents can choose the school year, or any other learning period “start” and “end” dates and edit them whenever they would like.

• The learning path automatically adjusts itself according to chosen subjects and automatically reschedules lessons to keep students on track to finish by the end of their “school year.” This makes it easy to stay on track in case of sick days or any other unplanned event!

• Parents can now choose which days are school days, and which subjects their kids will be assigned each day. 

• The new, intuitive design also makes it even more user-friendly!

The New Parent Portal is a step towards creating the ultimate user-friendly space for parents to educate their children. Miacademy’s hope is that this update makes schooling at home more enjoyable for the whole family.