10 Minutes to a Better Homeschool

In this episode, host Pam Barnhill talks about the rise of homeschooling in the US and why more and more families are choosing to homeschool their children. From customized education to flexible scheduling, safety concerns to religious beliefs, homeschooling offers many benefits to families and their children. But what are some of the reasons why families are choosing to homeschool? And how can yo...

In this episode of The 10 Minutes to a Better Homeschool Podcast, Pam Barnhill speaks with Alicia Hutchinson, the founder of Learning Well Community and Learning Well Journal, about the importance of print magazines in today's digital age. Alicia shares her two-fold mission behind the quarterly print magazine, which covers four topics: home, homeschool, faith, and family. She also explains how eac...

Nature groups can provide an enriching communal experience for homeschoolers, offering the opportunity to cultivate relationships with like-minded peers. That's why our friend Joy Cherrick is here today to talk about how she started her group and how it helped her to grow and find support as a homeschool mom. By creating a nature group (or any other kind of group), homeschoolers can build a suppor...

In our final episode of our Managing Multiple Kids series we are chatting with homeschool mom of ten Heather Tully. Heather has taken the popular concept of a loop schedule in a new direction -- instead of looping her subjects, Heather loops her kids! In this episode we break down why she teaches this way, how she plans the loops, and the results she gets in this unique method of managing multiple...

Charlotte Mason homeschooling mom Jeanette Pasqua has found success using her strict 10-minute increment schedule to manage the activities of her four children, ages five to 12. She builds in buffers like snack time and restroom breaks and adjusts the schedule if they start late to ensure each lesson receives its allotted time. Time blocking is an effective time management strategy to help adults...

This content provides tips on effectively managing homeschooling multiple kids, utilizing curriculum, and creating a routine. By combining subject areas, having a plan in place, and utilizing spiral notebooks, curriculum, and busy work ideas, parents can better manage and provide an engaging learning environment for their kids.

Today I am joined by my good friend, homeschool mom, and author Sarah Mackenzie. Sarah is the host of The Read Aloud Revival podcast, and she is also a brand new children's book author. On today's episode, we talk about Sarah's dream of writing a picture book, how she got the idea for her first book A Little More Beautiful , and her adventures in starting her own boutique publishing house Waxwing...

One of the trickiest part of the homeschool day is the transition -- this is the time when you are changing from one activity to another in your homeschool. It is also the time you are most likely to lose a kid and have a hard time getting people back on track. You can set yourself up for success by thinking proactively about where you might have problems and actively seek out solutions. For full...

Mystie and Sweep and Smile and how will it help you Podcast Intro/Show Notes With the high standards of 'perfection' presented by popular media, such as HGTV and Pinterest, it is almost impossible to attain true satisfaction in house cleaning. Instead, it is more important to maintain realistic expectations and create manageable routines. Mystie Winckler is on today's show to talk about how subtle...

In last week's episode, I promised you that I would give you the lowdown on how I keep my house clean in the second part of our cleaning series. If you like to peel back the curtain and see how other people do things, this episode is for you. I must say that I mostly feel like I do house cleaning poorly. My baseboards are usually dirty. Come learn Pam's favorite housekeeping habits and routines. ...

Homeschooling and housekeeping can be difficult to juggle. Hiring help, prioritizing tasks, and utilizing systems such as the Fly Lady and Clean Mama systems can be helpful when trying to keep your house clean while homeschooling. In this episode Pam breaks down some of the popular systems and offers tips for asking for help and knowing what to prioritize.

Homeschooling can be difficult due to the distraction of cellphones. Pam offers a number of tips on how to eliminate distraction while still be available to people who need you and while honoring the fact that sometimes you just want to have a little fun on your phone -- without guilt. With discipline and organization it is possible to stay focused while still having some freedoms and applying the...

It is important for parents to be consistent in their homeschooling efforts to ensure the process runs smoothly. One way we can do this is by using a concept Pam coined called "Honoring Your School Day." Pam breaks down the concept, tells why it's important, and gives some tips for making it happen in this episode of the podcast. With Pam's help, parents can overcome any struggles they have with h...

Pam Barnhill is here to tell homeschoolers that the answer to their homeschool problems is not a perfect curriculum or the best homeschool method. Instead, an effective homeschool depends on consistency - doing the work each day and showing up regularly. Consistency makes it easier to tweak what doesn’t work, and makes homeschooling easier with less pushback. However, this can be hard to achieve d...

Today I get to talk with a dear friend of mine. Long before Sarah Mackenzie was author-extraordinaire and fabulous podcast host of The Read Aloud Revival, she was my buddy Sarah. It has been so much fun watching her grow and share her skills over the past year. And yes, it was her nagging encouragement that made my own podcast a reality. Actually, her delight for the medium is just so infecti...

Today I am talking with Janice Campbell from  Everyday Education . Janice is an author, entrepreneur, curriculum developer, and most importantly, a homeschooling mom. In this episode we talk about homeschooling her four boys through graduation, the ins and outs of their homeschooling days, and why it is important for moms to model a love of learning for their kids.

How do you choose the best curriculum? Cathy Duffy is a well know curriculum expert who homeschooled her own three sons through high school. She has since researched and written about curricula for home education since the 1980s. Since Cathy is an absolute legend in the homeschooling community, I asked for her thoughts on selecting the very best curriculum. 

The Holiday Season is a great time for slowing things down a bit in your homeschool and enjoying the season. These tips and tricks will help you get rid of overwhelm and really enjoy the holidays with your family. 

A sure way to identify a homeschooler in the wild is the slight hesitation when you ask them what grade they are in. It's not that they aren't smart enough to know, but it's that they don't care. Arbitrary grade levels mean very little in their lives and even when told what grade level they would be in if they went to school, they often don't use the knowledge often enough to remember it. So if ho...

As busy homeschoolers it is so easy to get caught up in checking the boxes of those ever-important skill subjects. When we do that, though, we are missing out on the opportunity to enrich our kids learning in a variety of ways. My guest Rachel Figg explains how adding enrichment subjects enhances skill subjects enhances the skill subjects and easy ways to add them to our days -- even if we don't k...

Do you ever feel like you can't measure up to all the other homeschool moms on social media? Their kids say the funniest things. Their houses are so lovely. They always do the coolest science experiments. Meanwhile your kids just fight and you still haven't taken the shrink wrap off the science curriculum. Social media can be a comparison trap for homeschoolers that only makes us feel bad about ou...

One of the hardest things about homeschooling your kids is having to feed everyone three meals a day (Plus snacks! Oh the snacks!) day after day after day. The hunger never stops and making all the meals can easily overwhelm. In this episode Pam has three tips for helping you take control of the meals in your home so that no one goes hungry and you stay sane. 

What if you have kids who have a particular creative talent? How do you go about nurturing that talent or just creativity in general in your kids? Today I'm joined by beloved children's author S.D. Smith to chat about the keys to encouraging creativity in our homeschool students. We touch on your role as a parent and also tips for what you can do if you don't feel like a creative person yourself. 

For the mom who struggles with her own ADHD, she may wonder is it even possible to homeschool my own kids? Fortunately there are resources available that make it very possible. Today I am joined by ADHD coach Patricia Sung who has a few actionable tips and ideas to help ALL moms pull it together and be successful at homeschooling. Enjoy! 

Want your kids to become independent learners? It's totally possible, but you won't get there overnight. Today I am joined by Dennis DeNoia from Mr. D. Math and author of the book Teach: Creating Independently Responsible Learners. Mr. D breaks down two of the steps we can take to move our kids towards greater independence in our homeschools and the world beyond.