It was so, so interesting to meet with Cyrielle from Unschooling and Thriving to talk about the way creative practices support our well-being.

What a delight to have Sue Elvis from Stories of an Unschooling Family and April from Modern Homeschoolers join to talk about mathematics and the various and interesting ways that skills and knowledge are developed.

In this conversation, Anne from @obytheby and Eclectic Kids and Kendel from @spark.to.flame.homelearning, join in to discuss how interesting and authentic online connections can be.

Some time ago Hayley had the idea of discussing online community as an episode topic and at first we wondered if it might be part of a Community conversation, but we had far too much to talk about relating to in-person community so we’ve recorded not one, but two (next one coming soon) conversations about virtual connections and how they can begin to develop into relationships and community.

Following our Episode 32, Being Intentional for the Holidays – Finding a Fit for our Families, we continue the theme of deepening our understanding of what works for us, this time as a new year begins.

We return this season to the topic of Being Intentional about the Holidays and thinking about what will best fit our own individual crew, including ourselves.

We returned to finish our conversation about Hayley’s blog post of the same name as this episode. We recommend listening to Part One first as it will give context to the conversation, but of course if jumping in here suits you, there is still lots to be gained.

We gathered to discuss Hayley’s blog post by the same name as this episode. Her post is written as a metaphor – the captain and crew symbolize the parent and child. In this conversation we talk about the idea of our lives together being a voyage and explore thoughts about what leadership and guidance mean in the context of the parent-child relationship.

One of the things that’s been important to each of us at the Virtual Kitchen Table is community, both for the sake of all and also as a way to better support educational options for families.

Have you ever thought about what it looks like to learn science in an organic way? To really celebrate it and live a life where you and your kids are interacting with it through passion and practicality? To see it linked to or naturally occurring in so many other things in your days? 

Have you ever wondered whether your child is learning enough? Or maybe you suspect there’s more than meets the eye to what they’re taking in through outdoor play, online gaming, the stories they tell, the things they are making or any other number of things?

Have you heard of strewing? Is it something you actively do? We really enjoyed having Kendel from @spark.to.flame.homelearning join us for a conversation about the more nuanced aspects of strewing. There was a lot more to discuss than we first imagined. We’d love if you’d have a listen!

The time of year leading up to the conventional school year can include mixed emotions. We’re surrounded by back to school focus, fellow home educators talking about their plans and maybe even wondering how we might get to our family’s own aspirations and ideas. Please pull up a chair and listen in as we talk about moving through the fear of missing out. 

Often when self-directed learning or home education in general is discussed, the focus is on skills that are considered academic or subject-oriented such as reading, writing, mathematics, science, history and others.

The middle-age years can be a challenging time but could they be full of promise and opportunity as well? We loved having Missy Willis of Let ‘em Go Barefoot and Sue Elvis of Stories of an Unschooling Family chat with us about midlife and what the possibilities are if we approach this life stage with an unschooling mindset.

A few months ago, Teresa Wiedrick shared her experience of her coaching work with homeschool moms and supporting women to get “out of their own way” and it struck a chord.

Have you ever thought about your identity as a homeschool parent? We discuss our identities as home educating mothers and the role that home ed plays in how others see us, how we see ourselves and even how our children might see us and themselves.

We had a really interesting conversation about the concept of ‘emotional labour,’ both in the context in which it’s being described in Emotional Labour by Rose Hackman and other writings and podcasts (see Resources), as well as our own concept and ideas about how we see it within family life. Please join us as we come to understand what the term means, how it plays out and the choices we make around it. 

If you’ve been in the homeschooling world for long, you’ll likely have come across the word ‘deschooling’ and may understand it in the context of children having time and space to get in touch with their natural curiosity and learning.

If we’ve been in the world of home education for some time, we are likely accustomed to a variety of terms that might not be familiar to others, but even then, we often interpret things differently. Join as we explore words such as deschooling, unschooling, strewing, gameschooling, project-based learning and more and dig into what they mean to each of us.