You Learn More When You're Not in a Hurry: Norma Young's Interview



Norma is another person I "met" online years ago. (But neither of us are going to say how many.) She was instrumental in getting me to understand that freedom is not only important for successful homeschooling of our children, it's important in all areas of life.

That started me down the road to learning more about libertarian philosophy and I've never gone back. As a matter of fact, I've gone even further because now, I consider myself a voluntaryist.

Norma lives in Pennsylvania, a state notorious for its regulations over homeschooling families. She has been involved in helping other homeschoolers for years and she's now on the advisory board for the Pennsylvania Home Educators Association, a statewide inclusive coalition of homeschoolers from around the state.

But even though she's always busy helping people homeschool and understand the ideas of freedom, she still takes the time to just sit and observe the beauty of life unfolding...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

My husband and I never really thought about sending our daughter Jacky to school. Neither my husband or I had very good experiences in school. We had no reason to believe Jacky's experience would be any different than ours.

But she wanted to try kindergarten so she went for a short time (1991) It really did not work into our family life very well so we stopped going. Jacky learned at home all through her "school" years. We were / are unschoolers. She "finished" in 2003.


2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

Oh boy. The list is endless.

One of the main benefits is the flexibility to learn what you want, when you want, if you want.

Jacky wasn't very excited about reading on her own. We spent endless hours with me reading aloud from books we picked from the library. She told me later she was afraid if she learned to read, our reading time together would stop. With our learning lifestyle, she could delay that aspect of her education without fear of ridicule or punitive measures against her.

At age 10, she wanted to read Garfield and Calvin & Hobbes. I was busy doing something and she had to wait for me. That did it for her, in about 6 weeks she was reading at or beyond her "grade" level. She never did really enjoy reading for entertainment until about 5 years ago at age 19 and now at 24, she always has her nose stuck in a book!

The unrestricted age exposure and interaction. We got together with other families and the older children would help out the youngers with things. With Jacky not having siblings, that interaction with older kids - the kindness and helpfulness they displayed, really bolstered her confidence. That is something I doubt we could have achieved in an institutional setting.

Continuity is another benefit. We never had to stop doing something just because a bell rang or another subject was scheduled. She was able to pursue an interest until she was satisfied. And if one subject led to another interest, we could go down that path too.

Sometimes those paths would dead end but she didn't have to feel like she "failed" if her interest in something waned. I was also able to pursue something I was interested in side by side with her. She got to see first hand that learning never stops.

My husband is a contractor, we have our own business. With me not working his days were very long and tiring. If Jacky had been in school, her schedule and his schedule would never have given them time together, they would be passing in the hallway! By having the option to choose our schedule, they got to do things together. Our vacations could be when it was best for our family - vacations in the summer when he was busiest did not work for us.

We only have one child and it was very important for us to be able to develop our family relationships without limitations. To this day my husband and daughter have a loving, fun, close relationship. I do not think that would be the case had their time together been limited by school schedules.


3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

Movie Days!!

Jacky and I were just talking about this the other day and saying how much fun they were. Once a week or so, especially in the winter, we would have a Movie Day. Sometimes it would be just random movies we wanted to see.

Other times we would pick a subject (like an animal, a person, or historical event) and try to find movies that included that subject. We always tried to get an old movie and a current one to compare.

We would also get movies based on books we had read to see if they translated well. Some Movie Days would be light, happy days, other times it could be somber and thoughtful as in All Quiet on the Western Front. But we always learned something! And nothing beats being curled up with hot cocoa in our pajamas on a snowy day knowing we don't have to go anywhere!!

Another fun thing was all the people we got to meet throughout our days. Older folks especially seemed attracted to our educational choice and would engage us in discussions and show the kids things they might not share if we had been in a hurry.

When Jacky was 6 or 7, she found a luna moth in the process of laying eggs. It was injured and dying and Jacky was very distraught. We put it in an aquarium and
she laid all her eggs and died. I had no idea how to care for the eggs, or if it could even be done. When we went grocery shopping the next day, we were discussing this and an older gentleman overheard us.

He turned out to be a retired entomologist and gave Jacky great instructions on luna moth care. We did a lot of research ourselves using resources this gentleman had given Jacky. That turned out to be one of the coolest things we ever did. We must have raised and released hundreds of luna moths over the next several years. That led to butterflies and preying mantis and to this day, Jacky has a knack for observing and appreciating things that require patience to really see.

One of the benefits for myself was the exposure I had to so many unique individuals with wonderful, exciting ideas and thoughts! I was able to see my daughter surrounded by other adults who were interested in nurturing children in a non judgemental, non competitive manner. I was (and still am) continually stretched and challenged to learn new things and look at life through many different eyes.


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

Jacky was about 7 and used to go to my parent's house to spend time with my mom. My dad's office was in their home and she would sometimes sit in the office playing while my mom was finishing up some work.

After spending a day with my parents she came home concerned about my dad.

"Mom, I think there is something wrong with Grandpa. All day long he kept telling people to sign their John Hancock! And that wasn't even their name! And doesn't he know John Hancock is dead?"

Having Fun Hanging Out With Her Kids: Dawn's Interview


Photo taken at De Young art museum, San Francisco


Dawn and her family live in the state of Washington and she blogs at Renaissance Mama. (Geez, I always have to look up the spelling of that word. You'd think I wouldn't have so much trouble with just 4 letters, huh?)

But enough about my spelling skills, let's learn more about Dawn and her family...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

I've been homeschooling for five years, since my daughter started kindergarten.

2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

The longer we homeschool, the farther away from the traditional model of school we seem to get. It's more of a lifestyle...learning can happen anytime, anywhere.

3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

Museums, the zoo, travel, going off on long "rabbit trails" when the interest is there, cooking together, and lots of time spent outside in nature are the first things that come to mind when I think of what's fun about homeschooling.

I also think it's fun to hang out with my kids on a daily basis. They're fabulous people and I genuinely enjoy their company.


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

I think it's funny to see how the books I read out loud to my kids are brought to life through their imaginations. With my five year old son, I see him re-enacting stories with his toys. My ten year old will often turn the stories into plays, recruiting and directing her little brother and his friends to act out the parts.

Memorizing is Best Done In Your Underwear: Lisis Blackston's Interview



This is a picture of Lisis' son,
who shows his mom how to have fun.

Once, when she asked him to memorize stuff
He didn't get mad or raise a big huff.

He laughed and said "Sure! Heck, I don't care!"
Cause he knew he could do it in his underwear.


Lisis and her family live in Georgia and since her interview includes some poetry from a children's book, I just couldn't help writing a rhyme as an introduction. I guess I'm kinda like that penguin in the movie Happy Feet.

Anyway, back to Lisis. I found her when I went to the Zen Habits blog and read a post Leo Babauta wrote about education.

Lisis lives in Georgia and blogs at Quest For Balance, where she's on a "personal quest to find the balance between the things I need to do and the things I want to do… or finding happiness amidst the challenges of life.."

I'd say she's doing a fine job with that task and her son is lucky to have someone who will be showing him all about the balance needed in life. But in the meantime, he'll certainly be showing her what can be done with the freedom and flexibility of homeschooling and making sure they both have fun on the journey...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long didyou homeschool)?

We started in the middle of Kinder and have just begun third grade... only one child.

2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

This one is HUGE for us because we love to travel ALL the time. My family lives in Costa Rica, California, and New York; so homeschooling allows us the freedom to visit them during the non-busy (cheaper) travel times.

We also love to take road trips and just bring the materials along. Every moment is a learning opportunity for us. Just recently my son learned all about the Great Lakes, Canada, and the Adirondacks when we visited Niagara Falls.


3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

Almost EVERY day of homeschooling is fun in some way. If we aren't having fun I figure something is wrong, either with my mood or his, so I take a break. When we come back to it later we usually can get right back to the fun of learning.

One of the funnest times we've had was blowing bubbles in the rain. It has to be just a light rain (no lightning or thunderstorms) but, if you do it just right, the bubbles get thicker and bounce on all the surfaces... the roof, the plants, the driveway, even the rose bushes! We must've looked crazy to our neighbors, but had the BEST time ever!


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

I don't know if it would be funny to anyone else, but we laughed and laughed one time in first grade when I was trying to get him to start memorizing things... anything, so it wouldn't be intimidating.

He was reciting a poem from one of the Skippyjon Jones books, in his underwear, and jumping around the bed as he did so...


"Muchas gracias, Skippy-dippy-dango;
bye bobble-ito, boogie-woogie tango.
Muchos poochos, licky-sticky mango.
Gozo-bozo, chimi-chimi-chango!!"

At the end he would throw himself on the bed and laugh, then get up and do it all over again!

I remember thinking how much FUN memorization was for him that day, and I've never had any trouble getting him to memorize the "more academic" stuff after that.

Still Hanging In There: Becky's Interview


Becky lives with her family in Oregon and has a blog called Life Without School. She's also posted in the past at another site with a similar name, The Life Without School Blog, and you can see her posts here.

Becky's online life has slowed down lately as she is very busy with other ventures, but when it comes to homeschooling/unschooling, they are still hanging in there...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

Eight years and still hanging in there.

2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

My kids are free to pursue interests on their own timetable. Having never been to school, they are not accustomed to being told what to learn and when to learn it. What we call freedom, they call life.

3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

Staying home in our PJs for most of the day, wandering through virtually empty museums and attractions when "everyone else" is at school, exploring the world and our own community in our time and on our own terms.

4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

While walking home from an art class one day, my son began telling about an experience he had earlier that day. When he attempted to explain that some of the kids he was referring to were schooled kids, all he could think of to call them was "real" kids. "You know, Mom, real kids...like those who aren't homeschoolers." We still laugh about that one a lot.

Traveling Whenever They Please: Bonnie's Interview

In This Photo: Husband, Doug fishing with their 3 children in Altensteig.


Bonnie and her family currently live in Germany and have traveled to many parts of Europe. Mom reports that one of the best things about this freedom to roam is the exposure to many varied cultures.

And as you'll see if you read on, her son has found at least one, umm, common feature in all of the momma's he's met on his travels...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

Since the children were born. Hunter is 8 and Raleigh and Cloe are 5. None of my 3 have ever been in school.

2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

This freedom has allowed us to travel whenever we please.

We currently live in Europe, specifically Germany. The children have been to Ireland, Austria, Netherlands and several parts of Germany. We are able to pack up and go whenever we want. We were also able to attend a conference in Dallas, Texas together as a family.

Since we have no time constraints, we are able to pack up and go whenever it suits us. As a result, the kids have been exposed to many different cultures and a wide variety of people.


3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

We enjoy our time together as a family.

We love to explore different places while everyone else is in school and it isn't crowded. They especially loved the Nemo science building with the tons of hands on activities in Amsterdam and were especially impacted by Anne Frank's house iwhich has led to books, videos, and really deep discussions. My son Raleigh said he thinks he figured out who turned them in. :)

I'm constantly looking on the internet for things to do which they might enjoy and we take off!


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?
 
This doesn't really have to do with homeschooling per se, but a couple of weeks ago, my children met some twin girls and their mother later told me that my son, Raleigh (age 5) came up to her asked are you a momma? She said yes and he said all mommas have big boobs! Thank goodness she had a sense of humor.

Cooked Egg Never Comes Out of the Driveway: Edie's Interview

This is Edie Burkhalter, who homeschooled 4 boys and lives to tell the tale. She now resides in Seattle, but began homeschooling while her family lived in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma is where they cooked the egg on the driveway of course. In Seattle, the egg would probably just float down the driveway in the rain. Let's see what other adventures she had with various foods, animals, musical instruments and assorted chemicals...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

When I look back at what we did, we actually began homeschooling before my oldest started school, we just didn’t know it – or at least we didn’t call it that. One of many reasons we took him out of school was a gradual realization that we were doing all the teaching at home, but after “real” school, when he was tired.

So unofficially we started homeschooling in 1978 when my oldest was born. Officially we started when we chose not to send any of the other kids to school, in 1984.

My youngest started college when he was 15 so I guess that’s the official end of our homeschooling years, 2002. But he convinced his advisor to let him do a good many of his classes as independent study so he kind of partly homeschooled himself through college. He even designed and taught a class as an undergraduate teaching assistant.

I discovered for myself, when I started graduate school last year that I already know most of what I am supposed to be learning in my classes so even I have been homeschooling.


2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

When I ask the boys what they liked best about homeschooling, the first thing they always talk about is our daily routine. We got up and ate breakfast together every morning, then got dressed, made beds, tidied up. And then I made hot cocoa, and we gathered in the living room to read aloud. If the weather was cold and wet, which it often is in Seattle, we’d build a fire in the fireplace and read there. Whenever it’s cold and wet, we all miss that time together. And we all make a point of reading in front of the fireplace with hot cocoa after work on cold, wet evenings.

The other thing we liked was being able to be to set aside our plans. If the weather was lovely, we’d go biking for the day. Once, when the boys were obsessed with dinosaurs, we took a day to drive down to Glen Rose, TX to see dinosaur footprints. We also planned our family vacation that year around great fossil sites.

When my youngest had to be in the hospital with asthma, the other boys spent their time at home looking up information about asthma – and they made him some clay turtles to keep with him in his hospital room. To this day, he collects all kinds of turtle art. He says turtles make him calm when life gets stressful.

We tended to take vacations off-season so we avoided crowds and got better rates on everything. We followed the boys’ interests when homeschooling, so this naturally carried over into trips we took.

We drove cross country every other year to visit my parents in Seattle, and every year to visit my husband’s parents in Illinois. One year we stopped at as many dinosaur spots as we could, another year we explored cliff dwellings and petroglyphs, another year it was some amazing Indian mounds. We visited historic sites, like Lincoln’s hometown, the Hermitage, and Mansfield, MO (Laura Ingalls Wilder’s home). One year we stopped at artist colonies all across the country. A good deal of the art on the walls of our home (and the walls of my kids’ homes) was purchased at art fairs in remote places.

The boys all love music of all kinds. They played all kinds of instruments, some well, some very badly. And they made their own when they couldn’t find one with exactly the right sound. They never locked themselves into one genre and didn’t seem to need to follow the whims of their friends.

Now my oldest writes reviews of independent and unusual music performances. He wants everyone to get over their fear of “different” and allow themselves to be moved and changed by music that doesn’t ever make the charts. Another son writes and records his own music, another sings with three different choirs.

All of the boys loved bird watching. We lived in a great place for unusual birds and often drove out into the country to see them close up. They also loved snakes but had a harder time convincing a squeamish mother to go on snake hunts. I did cave often enough that their snake needs were at least somewhat sated. I refused to let them have a pet snake but there were two bull snakes that frequently wandered into our back yard. The boys named them (I think they named pretty much any wildlife that ventured close enough to be seen) Lucky and Rover.

Our large back yard allowed them to have other “pets”, like turtles, frogs, cotton-tail bunnies, and only once, a skunk. The skunk was a pet but only from a great distance (in the house with all the doors and windows closed!). An armadillo wandered in once, too. The boys named it Tank.

Once we moved to Seattle, we spent many lovely summer nights laying out in the backyard stargazing. Most of our Oklahoma stargazing was in winter. Nighttime insect-life made summer stargazing too itchy.

My third son is autistic. Homeschooling gave us the freedom to allow him to grow and develop at his own rate and in his own order. Today he is attending graduate school in Illinois studying informatics and library sciences. He is specializing in serving marginalized populations.


3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

I think that biking around town, our weekly trips to the library, the hand-on science we did, all the reading the boys did were all so much fun it’s hard to remember the occasional struggles with math or handwriting.

One of our favorite things to do was to go to the various festivals nearby – like the Rush Springs Watermelon Festival, the Frederick Art Show, Marlow 4th of July, and lots of others. We particularly liked checking out – and sometimes buying – local art. We also spent a lot of time hiking in the mountains. When I took my kids to a nearby park, playground equipment became space stations and pirate ships and a very large cedar tree with branches all the way to the ground became a permanent rebel outpost on Tatooine.


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

We did a lot of hands-on science. My husband is a chemist, and while he’s very serious about what he does, he’s never gotten over his delight in the “cool” factor.

So the kids got to make their own slime, see what hydrochloric acid does to concrete, make rockets out of soda bottles and film canisters, and cook eggs on pavement (this really does work in Oklahoma – but cooked egg NEVER comes out of the driveway!!!)

When the boys were young, a popular toy was slime that came in a little container that looked like a plastic garbage can. They always begged for some, I always said, “no." I pictured the stuff permanently turning into plastic in my carpet (it does).

One day my husband came with us when we were shopping, and the boys began begging for slime as usual. I said, “no," as usual, so they went off to find Dad. I wasn’t worried, Dad could always be counted on to say “no” to anything that might cost money.

He looked at the stuff and said, “Are you kidding?? Why would you waste your money on that stuff (I was breathing a sigh of relief until he went on…) when I can make a gallon of the stuff for free at the lab!!”

I was proud of myself -- I didn’t lose it right there in the store in front of everybody. A few days later he took the boys into the lab and they made a much smaller batch together.

And I learned to accept a world that is not always as tidy as I like it.


This photo of Edie's boys was taken at Aaron's wedding. In order from left to right, Christopher, Daniel, Aaron and Benjamin. Mom reports that their usual attire consists of jeans, t-shirts and sweaters but they sure look great all spiffed up too don't they?

Life Learning: Wendy Priesnitz's Interview

In this photo: Wendy and daughter Melanie

I feel like traveling outside the United States today, don't you? Good, come with me, we're going to Canada!

Today we meet Wendy Priesnitz, another mom who has done a lot for homeschooling through her journalism efforts. She believes in the power of learning from life and has really set the example herself!

She lives and works in Toronto, Canada but also has an office in New York State. You can learn more about Wendy and all she is involved in (which is a lot) here.

I first met Wendy when she told me she spent way too long reading part of my book. I love meeting parents who've also learned from their kids how valuable it is to be silly just for the sake of being silly...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

Our daughters Heidi and Melanie began learning when they were born in 1972 and 1973 (or perhaps a little before that). We were “radical unschoolers” before the term was coined; I prefer to think of it as “life learning.” They are both still life learning: Heidi is a self-taught novelist and graphic designer and Melanie is a self-taught conservation horticulturalist who runs a native plant botanical gardens at a university.

2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

When the girls were three and four, my husband and I started a home business publishing books and Natural Life magazine with the side effect that we could both be at home with them. (We were self-taught and very naïve publishers – he was a plumber and I was a failed school teacher.)

Although we worked long hours, we were there to answer questions, read a book, do a puzzle, spell a word, explain equations, help identify a bird in the backyard, and so on. And, as the business grew and we added staff, the girls had more adults around to answer questions, read a book, do a puzzle… In fact, the girls were always part of the interview team when we hired, our reasoning being that the employees needed to be comfortable with life learning as part of their job description…and the girls had to feel comfortable with the employees.

We traveled a lot with the business – both locally to typesetters (those being the archaic days of no PCs), printers and other services – and farther afield to trade shows and conferences. Because Heidi and Melanie learned from life, they were free to accompany us on all those trips, soaking up information about the world in the process.
1978 Natural Life Magazine Staff Photo: Wendy and husband Rolf on the left, daughters Melanie and Heidi in front.


No doubt inspired by our example, both Heidi and Melanie had their own businesses when they were children. Heidi produced a newsletter called KidsStuff for other home-educated kids across the continent from the time she was 8 until she turned 13 or so; when Melanie was about 7, she had a craft business making and selling stuffed toys.


3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

Every day was fun – well, except when truant officers visited or bill collectors phoned! I think most parents with kids in school miss the fun times because their kids are so stressed out from school and detached from the ability to initiate activities. However, since my philosophy of education involves children learning without being taught, I can’t categorize the fun that was a result of “homeschooling” and the fun that happened for other reasons.

We baked; we danced, sang, drew and sewed (some of us better than others); we explored cities, towns and forests; we snuggled with our books into a massive Yucatan hammock strung from corner to corner in our spare bedroom; we baked bread and Melanie and I got flour everywhere, much to Heidi’s disgust; we made yogurt and then ate it even though it was unbearably sour; we stayed up late and watched the stars; we were silly just for the sake of being silly (they taught me how to do that). We lived our lives together as a curious, creative, working, learning family.


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

My memory is growing dim after all those years!

I do recall one incident (probably because I’ve kept it alive in my conference talks) from when we first started Natural Life. In order to launch it, we mailed out 45,000 free copies of the first issue (told you we were naïve) to people on various mailing lists that we rented. Lacking capital, we prepared the mailing ourselves – affixing mailing labels to each magazine and sorting them into mailing bundles in our small townhouse. There were piles of magazines everywhere. When we ran out of room in the living room, we continued upstairs, eventually ending up with piles in the bathtub and on the floor in the girls’ bedroom.

Four-year-old Heidi surveyed the scene with her arms folded across her chest, huffed and puffed a bit and said, “I guess I’ll just have to help you guys if I’m ever going to have a bath and get to bed!”

And help she did. She continued to help off and on for the next 16 years, culminating in a year-and-a-half stint running the business while her dad and I lived in Eastern Europe. (Shortly after that, she moved halfway across the country.)

She Could Fill A Book: Linda Dobson's Interview


UPDATE: Since this post was published, Linda has moved her activity to a wonderful new blog, Parent at the Helm. This site is loaded with education information for all parents, not just homeschoolers. Check it out!

I had to smile when today's interviewee said she "could fill a book" in answer to one of my questions because that's just the sort of comment I'd expect from Linda Dobson. After all, she's already filled quite a few books of her own. Just go to Amazon and search under her name and you'll see what I mean. Linda has contributed several wonderful books for the homeschooling community.

Linda also recently started Homeschool Crones Cafe, an online social networking site. It's a great place to meet with many experienced homeschoolers, either to ask questions and pick their brains if you are still homeschooling, or to just hang out and talk with others who've been through the experience and are now moving on to new adventures.

But before you head on over there, let's see how Linda managed to answered my questions since she couldn't write a book here...

1. How long have you been homeschooling (or if finished, how long did you homeschool)?

My eldest of three children went to public school kindergarten. After that, all three were homeschooled; all together it was 1985 to 2001 (or thereabouts).

2. One of the main benefits of homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility it allows. Can you give us a few examples of how this freedom and flexibility benefited you (your family)?

Oh my, I could fill a book in answer to this question!

I think we were healthier as individuals and as a family because of freedom and flexibility.

The kids - and I - were able to pursue interests, or spend quiet time, or travel, or go on a picnic, or visit friends, or volunteer, or serve an apprenticeship, or entertain guests, or a million other things at just the right time because we were in charge of the calendar and the flow of days, weeks, months and years.

Growing up and learning in an environment of freedom and flexibility played a role, I'm sure, in helping the kids make choices which exercised their muscles in critical thinking, planning, prioritizing, and experimenting with a variety of roles as they moved toward adulthood.


3. Another benefit of homeschooling is the fun factor. Can you give us a few examples of some especially fun times you had as a result of homeschooling?

Mmm, the kids aren't here to say, but from my perspective the field trips and travel were the most fun. We were just starting a support group, and it was a wonderful little group of families who were always ready to seize opportunities as they presented themselves.

A local Girl Scout camp offered a Family week late in the summer, and one family took advantage of it, inviting many of us to come out and visit them while they were there.

The next summer, a few more of us spent the week camping. It grew and grew until, finally, all cabins were rented by homeschoolers, and for a week we experienced a little homeschool town. (Those really were "the days!")

We were fortunate to also do some additional traveling with my folks, including my first trip to Florida where I ultimately resettled.


4. We all have funny experiences while homeschooling. Can you share one of yours with us?

When we first began homeschooling, we were doing so "underground," so early on I tried to be careful of the timing of our public excursions (though the youngsters weren't at all aware of this).

One day, however, we were in need of a gift, so I went into town with all three children to get it. While in the store, a dear senior woman spoke with my then first-grade son, asking "Why aren't you in school today?"

He put on a great big smile and proudly announced, "Because I get teached at home!"

We talked about irregular verbs all the way home.