Everyday Educator

Listen this week as Lisa and Rachael Moriarty continue their discussion on assessing.  This episode explores the practicalities of assessment as well as the lifelong benefits.  Join the conversation to learn how to discover how to make assessment the snapshot of your year, not the whole picture!   Tools for Transcripts Online Conference- www.classicaltools4change.com

What is assessment? When do we need to assess? What's the connection between Sabbath and assessment? If these questions resonate with you, or if you just know you need to practice assessment within your homeschool even if you don't want to, this episode is for you! Join Lisa as she gleans wisdom and new ideas from veteran homeschool mom and classical educator Rachael Moriarty. This is the first in...

Join Lisa and guest Kelli Wilt for some easy ideas for practicing memory work, whether Memory Master is your family's goal or not.  Find out how much fun preparing as a family can be, and what lasting benefits are realized by students who sharpen their skills of memorization.   Mark your calendar for the 2025 National Commencement, May 16-17, 2025, in sunny Southern Pines, North Carolina! This is...

Burning questions need answers!   Today on the episode Lisa answers some recent questions posed by listeners, from beginning this awesome/scary/new journey to keeping "finished early" teens plugged in.       Mark your calendar for the 2025 National Commencement, May 16-17, 2025, in sunny Southern Pines, North Carolina! This is a time for Classical Conversations families from around the nation to c...

Please enjoy this special holiday re-run of one of our most downloaded episodes.  One of the more profound lessons "from down the road" may well be that there is more to homeschooling than academic pursuits.  Join veteran homeschool moms Shelly Stockton and Lisa Bailey as they discuss building character, spiritual habits, relational maturity, and practical life skills while living and learning at...

Merry Christmas from the Everyday Educator Podcast family!  We hope you will enjoy this collection of Christmas thoughts and read alouds,  and hope you might share it with your family. May the power and beauty of Christmas be yours this season.      

If Christmas is feeling a little flat at your house, maybe you need to take another look at the "old familiar story".  Join guest pastor David Bailey as he shares ideas on reconnecting with the wonder of Christmas by thinking about the story in fresh ways.   Classical Learning Cohorts help CC Directors, Tutors, and Parent-Teachers grow in confidence and competence with the classical tools of learn...

The homeschooling journey may look different for every family; it may indeed be like a kaleidoscope, changing the view as you "change the filter"!  Sometimes it helps to hear from others on the same path.  This episode introduces you to Charity Brown and Delise Germond, two homeschool moms on different ends of the journey.  Listen, and be encouraged.    Life is busy! Download audio versions of the...

Looking for a great family read aloud this Advent season?   Or a family-friendly movie to take in?   Listen in to this review of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever !   A favorite read for years, a new version of the movie is in theaters now.   A few faithful fans (and CC moms!) have some heartfelt reasons to recommend it to your family!     Kick off the Christmas season with a heartwarming story that...

As we dive into the holiday season, we're all looking for ways to simplify our routines, celebrate memorably, and welcome guests warmly.  Join Lisa and guest Amy Jones for some practical (and inspiring) ideas on how to draw everyone into your holiday rhythm.   Life is busy! Download audio versions of the articles from the Catalog and listen while you're in the car, working out, or forward an episo...

Does the idea of pursuing Foundations Memory Master intrigue your family or intimidate your family? Whether you're on the fence, or rarin' to go, this episode of EE podcast will encourage you. Kelli Wilt joins Lisa to discuss how the Memory Master opportunity can be a stretch and grow opportunity for the whole family.    Classical Learning Cohorts help CC Directors, Tutors, and Parent-Teachers gro...

Is assessing ever a blessing??  According to guest Kelli Wilt, that depends on your perspective!  Join host Lisa Bailey as Kelli shares how Blue Book exams can be a celebration of what we know, and an opportunity to indulge in some deep conversations.  Parents, you'll hear some helpful tips for preparing for Blue Books all semester long;  directors, Kelli gives some great practical ideas for makin...

Conversations, wonder, art, patterns…does this sound like math time at your home?  If not, maybe you'd enjoy math more if you made the switch to The Math Map!  If you are wondering about this classical, one-room-schoolhouse approach to math, listen as Curriculum Assistant Babs Harrell gives us an inside look at an amazing new resource:  The Math Map.    Life is busy! Download audio versions of the...

Listen in this week as Academic Advisor Emily Martin shares practical tips and   wisdom for enjoying the science fair project as a family.  What exactly will your student learn?  How can you be the best advisor and lead learner for this segment of the Challenge A journey?  Don't give up—listen in!   Curious about homeschooling? Want to see Classical Conversations in action? Visit an Open House, wh...

When your children are very young, what does homeschooling look like?  Is there a schedule?  Do I need lesson plans?  What curriculum do I use?  Parents who want to know how "getting started" should look will love this episode!  Amy Jones joins Lisa to share some thoughts worth remembering and some encouragements that will start your journey off on the right foot.  Practical ideas shared with love...

If shepherding your Challenge student through unfamiliar assignments has you scratching your head, this is the podcast for you!  Experienced mom and CC director Deborah Switzer joins Lisa to talk about making learning together a blessing.  Bonus:  get all the inspiration and practical help you need to make the Art Grant Proposal (Challenge II) a favored assignment.   Celebrating together! Has your...

What's the best part of a treasure hunt, the prize or the hunt?  Listen in as Lisa and guest Jennifer Courtney explore how the best education is the treasure hunt your family makes through God's creation.  The simple yet profound process of "echoing  in celebration" is explored, and the catechesis wheel comes to life as these experienced homeschool moms recall some lessons that shaped their unders...

Reading, 'Riting, "Rithmetic…we all know we want our kids to know the basics.  But surely that's not all, and certainly those aren't the most important "basics"!  Listen to some thoughts from veteran homeschool moms Brittany Lewis and Kelli Wilt as they talk to Lisa about planting the seeds of some more important fruits of knowledge.    Mark your calendar for the 2025 National Commencement, May 16...

For parents with multiple kids, homeschooling can feel like a juggling act!  How can we make the ideal of the one-room schoolhouse come alive at our houses??  This week's guest, Denise McLain, offers encouragement and practical tips for larger families who want to learn together.  Bonus: hear how The Math Map has revitalized her family's math education! Curious about homeschooling? Want to see Cla...

It's the ultimate crossover episode . . . Delise and Ginny are joined by CC legend and host of the  Everyday Educator  podcast Lisa Bailey! Lisa recently became a grandmother, so in this conversation, she chats about parenting versus grandparenting. As a parent, she was often so focused on doing everything right that she missed out on opportunities to enjoy the small, simple moments of her childre...

Why is having a conversation so hard?  Maybe it's just certain conversations… or certain people…!  What IS a good conversation, anyway?  Listen in this week as guest Daniel Shirley helps Lisa define a good conversation, a good conversationalist, and some really good ways to encourage good conversations at home and in community.  It'll be good, we promise.   Take control of your homeschooling journ...

What IS morning time?  How do I "do it"?  What do I need?  Can I do it with ALL my kids?  If these are your questions as you begin the new homeschool year, this week's Everyday Educator guest will bless you.  Amy Jones joins Lisa to talk about a way to connect your family as you begin your homeschool day, setting the tone for a lifetime of learning.  With practical ideas for little ones, older one...

As Foundations communities gear up, families gather supplies, expectations, and sometimes worries!  If you're wondering how to get the most out of your Foundations experience, this week's guest will give you the answers.  Courtney Bradshaw, Foundations Academic Advisor, shares the tips and truths that have brought her family through 11 years of Foundations. Learn more about the Copper Lodge Librar...

As the new academic year begins, we offer families some encouragement from a couple of moms who may be farther along the journey than you are now.   Join Lisa and guest Kelli Wilt as they share the lessons that a look in the rearview mirror has revealed to them—lessons about their children, about their schedules, their assumptions, and the hardest job you'll ever love.   The Secret Garden  is a be...

As you and your student approach the Challenge years, you may be considering all the changes ahead.   Maybe you are wondering how to navigate all the new responsibilities, and assignments, and even a new schedule.   But you may not have recognized the bigger challenge of Challenge!   Join Tim Knotts   as he sheds some light on how parents and students can continue the journey together and meet the...