FEBRUARY HOMESCHOOL UPDATE | SECULAR HOMESCHOOL | 2022

[@OdetoAbode]

I really appreciate you being honest about seasonal depression and how the weather can really affect our mental health. It's so true! And I think it is extra intense for homeschool families, maybe? Props to you for still getting outdoors and for looking at all the good that your family was able to do during a rough time.

[@jessicaTX964]

Isn't it like the most amazing thing when you realize your kid isn't just learning to read, but she IS a reader, and YOU did that? It's like the best thing ever.

[@CandiceMi5]

I loveeee your videos! I'm going to homeschool my 3 oldest kiddos next year for the first time! So I'm binging your videos right now. Love your energy!

[@alyssamurchie483]

Your homeschool sounds so fun! I love all the Magic Schoolbus study! We actually read through Heartwood Hotel thanks to your recommendation and my girls adored it. I am currently picking up book 2 from the library! We school year round. We will end most of our curriculum May 12, then will take a solid 2 weeks off and then will do "light school" for 3-4weeks and then jump back in full force for the next grade. We do well not stopping 100% and it helps us to stay in a consistent routine.

[@elizabethdirks6533]

I am thankful to you for sharing the Heartwood Hotel series AND the Wishingtree! My two girls also really loved Heartwood Hotel. They constructed their own Heartwood Hotel out of a ton of cardboard boxes (took up half of their bedroom!) and they found my childhood beanie babies to act out each character. After we read the first book, we read the Wishingtree, which we also adored. They were a perfect fit as this year's homeschool theme is Botany and we have been focused on trees for the past two months. I HIGHLY recommend Can You Hear The Trees? By Peter Wohlleben. As the children's edition of his adult work, The Hidden Life of Trees, there are beautiful images, engaging questions, and sprinkled with fun experiments or nature observation challenges. Wrap this up, just thank you. 😊

[@Sona.LS.]

We still do year round schooling but just not as heavy in the summer and we still take plenty of random breaks (such as for camping, beach days, etc).. I think it’s doable esp with reading and child-led science.. the summer is such an awesome time to learn about the science of nature, life cycle of bees, butterflies, the sun, human body and it’s need for sunscreen/hydration/what is sweat/ and the list goes on and on.. looking forward to your next video and a review of history quest :)

[@OdetoAbode]

I love that you are using Magic Schoolbus for science! I feel like we keep hitting walls with science, and I may need to simplify it along these lines.

[@jaallen420]

Michigander 🤚 and the mud. So. Much. Mud. We are dying to get out in our backyard. Maybe the end of March lol but I can't wait for spring!

[@BoldSchool1]

THE MUD! Yes, the backyard looks inviting, BUT it is a trap. I've got beach towels stacked by the front door and two mud rugs....it still gets in the house!

[@opticalillusion301]

We fell into schooling all year round as the kids are always interested in finding out things. We use Summer Brainquest books too. Different seasons of homeschooling bring different types of learning. Certainly more outdoors and relaxed learning during the Summer.

[@BoldSchool1]

We love the Summer Brainquest Books... I think year round might also take the pressure off of finishing things 'on time'. We spent so much of the fall outside that I've learned we may need to school year round because we don't really feel like 'buckling down' until it gets cold.

[@daisydaisy0121]

My 11 year old is suuuper into the human body and once she started having endless questions about puberty I knew I had to find her The Care and Keeping of You. Namely, the early 00's edition... it was a huge friend to me back in the day. 😂Well... she devoured that thing! I agree, the American Girl non-fiction series aren't perfect, but I find them to be a pretty amazing reference for the pre-teens. Big shoutout to AbeBooks... it's been an instrumental resource in my homeschool and bookworm life in general! I love your channel! Thank you for being here! Yes... that seasonal depression is real!

[@BoldSchool1]

My daughter can't stop talking about the AG book! I'm so glad they've made a 'younger' girl edition. She spent that night at a friends house and kept talking about 'her book' and that's why she has to brush her teeth twice a day! Hahahaha

[@daisydaisy0121]

@@BoldSchool1 hahaha I totally relate to that 😂😂

[@elizabethdirks6533]

Also, we homeschool year round and I have found that it gives us grace to take days off as needed throughout the year. Plus the backslide is gone, hooray! 🥳😊

[@OdetoAbode]

Dude. The Emo far side part and side swept thing... I had it. Hahaha! Married to my straightener for way too long

[@HomeSweetHomeschoolLife]

When my son was younger, we used the Magic School Bus for Science. It was so much fun.

[@ProjectHappyHome]

I’m glad everything is going so well! Really enjoyed your update.

[@teresanorris4769]

We keep a simpler review of past skills schedule during the summer and take breaks whenever we go out of town. Our kind of rule is if dad goes to work we do some school. To be honest we don’t have a lot going on when dad works so it gives us structure to our day to do something.

[@BoldSchool1]

I feel the same... when dad's not home we need structure! Otherwise time can drag and things get crazy.

[@stxschoolhouse]

I noticed that taking 2wks off is the max we can do before I notice a brain slide haha we love taking breaks here and there. Last summer we did LA and Math and 1 extra and that was it daily. Lot of water hose and playing at the beach otherwise. Morning time consisted of just reading our favorite - kids choose chapter books - and I did not have a curfew for coming inside in the evenings. 👏🏻

[@BoldSchool1]

Your description of summer has me feeling hopeful! We'll get back to more structured learning...eventually!

[@OdetoAbode]

We definitely do not stick to a school calendar. I feel like when we take breaks changes all the time, and it will again this year hahaha

[@LoveLearningEveryday]

I love listening to your updates! Do you have a schedule video or anything? We just have similar aged kids and we just moved so I am looking at setting up a new routine.

[@StephanieMT]

our school year this year is may through a couple weeks into janaury. we will take a break to order new stuff and organize and such. then start back up again in spring for new school year

[@leahsabel1509]

We do year round school. This past year I tried 6 weeks of school, 1 week break. Our breaks sort of lined up with some of the breaks in our county school system. When my kids heard "year round" my youngest was not happy about it. But it is what it is. It allows us to take the days that we may be on the struggle bus, to take break and not feel the rush that we're getting behind. Plus I'm trying to instill in them the love of learning and that there are no breaks in learning 💗

[@katharinalarue9590]

Love watching your videos! We’re from Missouri so I completely understand the seasonal depression. We have actually found out recently that we may be moving to southern Indiana next year! Super excited to keep following your journey. From a homeschool momma of a 4 year old and 2 year old 😊

[@StephanieMT]

my kids love going on walks and to the park, they never complain, i on the other hand do

[@kayegenin123]

I wondered if you would go to History Quest! It’s on my list for sure.

[@BoldSchool1]

We are really enjoying it!

[@WhimsicalFamilyLife]

I've considered doing year round homeschooling, but cannot bring myself to do so. Our weather is so seasonal in Nova Scotia that the idea of not enjoying the summer to the fullest breaks my heart. However, we do school into July and start later in September. I find that works the best. We always have something on the go though, as I am mindful of what still needs "work/progress." The form & presentation is different and obviously way less.

[@amandamellen6937]

We moved from IN to FL a few years ago and my seasonal depression is GONE! I feel for ya, it sucks.

[@karasuthedreamer6353]

If you’re looking for a read aloud book that has perspectives of both male and female characters, I HIGHLY recommend The Girl Who Drank the Moon. It’s a fantasy novel about a girl who gains magical powers after receiving moonlight as a baby. It’s very creative and features a variety of point of view characters.

[@BoldSchool1]

Thank you for the suggestion! My daughter loves fantasy and science fiction novels.

[@lawnerd80]

We keep it going year around. We take breaks when needed, and like you we take random days off to play outside when it's above zero degrees... We took off 3 weeks in February to travel and we are traveling again this week, but I have Math and Reading with us on this trip. My state doesn't have a requirement for the numbers of day we need to school. Last year we did school from September through July. Then we we took time off, except we kept doing AAR1 almost daily. We started the current school year in September and plan to go through August. We also do school work 5 days a week but not necessarily Monday through Friday.

[@TashasCreativeJuice]

I’m considering schooling year round. Giving us the ability to take more small breaks throughout the year. However, my son was first public schooled and I’m a little scared that he might revolt without a summer break. lol I have told him we will be doing some things over the break, but it won’t be full school. Depending on how that goes this year it might give the push to finally go year round.

[@stephroblejo]

We homeschooled last summer for the first time and what I did was treat it like a summer camp. We gave each week a theme chosen by her and did unit studies while we took a break from our main curriculum.