Homeschool Humuhumu (Page 6)

Sign in Subscribe

Wanda, seven years old, explaining a math problem to Tom the Dog, a small stuffed animal.

Rubber ducking, and Tom the Dog

I introduced Wanda to the old programming trick of “rubber duck debugging [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_duck_debugging].” In short, when you’re stuck on something that’s just not working, you try explaining it to a rubber duck. By talking it through step-by-step, you see it with

A mother and child bird nuzzled together on the ground.

Connection

In these how-I-homeschool posts I’m going to steer clear of things that are really how-I-parent thoughts—too much preachin' to the choir. But this one’s such a biggie, and so critical to our homeschooling, that I’m including it even though it’s obvious. Connection is ev-er-y-thing.

Close-up of salt crystals

A grain of salt

Homeschooling can seem overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. It can be simple, it can be involved, it can be whatever you need.

Neon sign that says, "USE YOUR BRAIN"

Growth mindset

Growth mindset is about shifting emphasis from achievement to effort. It’s good for everybody, but it’s particularly critical for “gifted” kids. Growth mindset and connection (which I’ll post about on another day) are the bedrock all of our homeschooling is built on. Lurking under the surface of

A child pointing to a globe of the Earth

Collaboration

I try to model our school interactions on how I experience great working relationships, and focus on building collaborative skills. Example: say Wanda jumps up to go get our globe when a book we’re reading mentions a country she recognizes. In a traditional classroom setting, that’s a big

Open books in front of a window with a view of evergreen trees

Our curriculum

By far, the number one question I get asked about homeschooling is what I use for curriculum. It’s not an easily answered question, so I’m writing it all up here. Given the current state of things, I thought some folks might find it relevant. This is what I

Schedule planning with Tick Tick

For planning our days, I use a to-do app called TickTick [https://ticktick.com/] . I hunted high and low for the just-right to-do app for our homeschool life, and this is it. It's calendar-based, and lets you set up recurring items. For instance, every day we do math,

Sign that says "When life gives you lemons," topped with a lemon at the top of a ramped chute.

Puzzlements

There’s a teacher in Portland who sends out an email each Friday of “puzzlements”—a handful of cool links to get kid’s noggins a-churnin’ on the curiosities of the world. This was in this week’s email, an absurdly good Rube Goldberg machine. It’s a fun watch,

Covers of ten Science Comics books.

Book recommendations

Book recommendations

Up to your ears in kids? Want something to keep your kids independently engaged for a bit, OR something to do with them? Wanda has selected these non-fiction books to share with you. These are great for all ages—even adults, I swear. I've snapped pics of the