The Homeschool Briefing

Money is landing in real accounts. Texas deposited the first round of funding into nearly 73,000 Education Freedom Accounts this week, with homeschooled children receiving 100% of a $2,000 annual award up front and a 54,000-product marketplace now open. We unpack what it means for your family, why a $200 electronics cap points you toward books instead of gadgets, and how the Charlotte Mason instin...

The Homeschool Briefing for Thursday, July 9, 2026, with host Silas Penn. Today: what England's new homeschool-approval law signals for American families, why the same philosophy is surfacing in US statehouses, and a simple Charlotte Mason nature study you can start this afternoon. In this episode: - England's Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act now lets local officials block families from homesc...

Arizona just made life easier for homeschool families who use Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, settling a lawsuit over the paperwork required to buy everyday supplies like books and pencils. Then we turn to the summer in front of you: a new National Literacy Trust survey shows reading for pleasure rising for the first time in years, and Sweden's reversal on classroom tablets offers a lesson every...

Texas launches the nation's largest day-one school choice program, and homeschool families receive their full Education Freedom Account awards up front. Then a practical Charlotte Mason nature-study rhythm you can start in your own backyard this week. In this episode: - Texas Education Freedom Accounts: nearly 73,000 accounts funded July 1, with eligible homeschoolers receiving their full $2,000 a...

On July 1, nearly 73,000 Texas Education Freedom Accounts received their first funding, with homeschool and other nonpublic families getting their full $2,000 award up front. The same day, the TEFA Marketplace opened with 54,000-plus approved products. Host Silas Penn on what the money can and cannot do, and a wisdom filter for spending it: fewer, better tools used faithfully. In this episode: - T...

Texas turns school choice into real dollars for homeschool families, and a beloved literacy curriculum sunsets. Here's what it means for your kitchen table this week. In this episode: - Texas Education Freedom Accounts: nearly 73,000 accounts funded July 1, with homeschool students receiving their full $2,000 award up front (Texas Comptroller, June 30, 2026). - Rooted in Language, a Science-of-Rea...

On July first, Texas homeschool families approved for the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program receive their full two-thousand-dollar award, deposited into a secure Odyssey digital wallet. Silas Penn walks through what the deposit means, why stewardship comes before spending, and a simple summer read-aloud plan to keep your kids sharp through the season. In this episode: - Texas Education Free...

Two deadlines, one timeless habit. Iowas Students First Education Savings Account application closes tonight at 11:59 p.m., and Tennessees ESA enrollment-selection cutoff is also today. We weigh the fresh Iowa auditor report on where ESA dollars actually go, why government money tends to invite government strings, and how to count the cost before you sign. Then we head to the kitchen table with a...

The Texas Education Freedom Accounts program sends its first round of funds on July first, and approved homeschool families receive their full two thousand dollar award at once. Meanwhile, Iowa and Tennessee education savings account deadlines fall on June thirtieth. Then we head to the kitchen table for a Charlotte Mason summer nature study you can begin in the next ten minutes. In this episode:...

Texas homeschool families get their full $2,000 Education Freedom Account on July 1 — but a July 15 confirmation deadline (and the fine print) demands careful stewardship. Plus, a Charlotte Mason summer nature-study rhythm you can start in your own backyard today. In this episode: - Texas Education Freedom Accounts: homeschoolers receive 100% of their $2,000 award on July 1, 2026, with a hard July...

Arkansas Educational Freedom Account families are speaking out this week about reimbursement delays of more than six weeks, with the state blaming its payment vendor, ClassWallet. We unpack what that means for homeschool budgets, ground it in Luke 16:10, and turn it into the one practical habit every school choice family needs: disciplined record-keeping. In this episode: - Arkansas EFA reimbursem...

Silas Penn brings you today's Homeschool Briefing: a courtroom fight over Florida's school choice programs, the God-given authority of parents to direct their children's education, and a restful summer rhythm that fights the slide without burning anyone out. In this episode: - EdChoice Legal Advocates files to intervene and defend Florida's Family Empowerment Scholarship and education savings acco...

Texas homeschool families face a July 15 deadline to opt into the state's new Education Savings Account program, which offers homeschoolers up to $2,000 a year, but state money can come with strings. Then a practical, do-it-today Charlotte Mason method for beating the summer reading slide. In this episode: • Texas's new ESA program and the July 15 opt-in deadline, with a caution to read the fine p...

West Virginia's Hope Scholarship hits universal eligibility as the full-funding deadline passes, and a small mountain town reopens a shuttered school as a Bible-centered community micro-school. Silas Penn unpacks what both mean for your family, with a Deuteronomy 6 reminder of who really holds authority over a child's education. In this episode: - West Virginia's Hope Scholarship reaches universal...

West Virginia just opened its Hope Scholarship education savings account to all homeschool families for the first time, with a full award of $5,435.62 per student. We weigh the gift and the strings. Then, with America's 250th birthday two weeks out, we turn the semiquincentennial into a ready-made founding unit study you can run from your own kitchen table. In this episode: - West Virginia's Hope...

Texas Education Freedom Account funds begin reaching nearly one hundred thousand approved families on July 1, and Iowa universal ESA applications close June 30. We cover what homeschool families need to know about the deadlines, HSLDA cautions on public funds and oversight, and a simple Charlotte Mason narration habit you can start tonight. In this episode: - ESA money lands: Texas releases first...

Silas Penn brings homeschool families the news that matters this Monday, June 15, 2026. In this episode: - West Virginia's Hope Scholarship full-funding deadline is TODAY (June 15). Eligibility is now universal, the award is about $5,267 per student, and more than 20,000 students have applied since the program broadened. We frame the school-choice question through Deuteronomy 6: a scholarship can...

Education savings accounts are spreading fast, and so are the strings attached to them. Today we weigh the promise and the price of public funding for homeschoolers, then step outside for a Charlotte Mason summer of nature study. In this episode: • The 2026 ESA "guardrails" debate - FutureEd is tracking 201 school choice bills in 36 states, EdChoice warns against burdensome regulation, and Connect...

Silas Penn covers a now-or-never Tennessee Education Savings Account deadline and EdChoice's 2026 Share report showing homeschooling has become the fastest-growing form of education in America, with a practical narration-and-copywork lesson you can run in ten minutes. In this episode: - Tennessee reopens its ESA application for 2026-27 (Chapter 1069); window closes Friday, June 12 at 4pm CT, with...

A New Mexico school district told a homeschool mom her daughter would be marked absent until she completed paperwork state law never required. HSLDA stepped in and cleared the illegal hoops. Plus, EdChoice's new end-of-school-year survey shows bullying and anxiety, not academics, now drive parents to switch schools, and parents rank work ethic and real-world experience far above a four-year degree...

It's deadline week for education savings accounts. West Virginia Treasurer Larry Pack reminds families that June 15 is the last day to apply for 100% of the Hope Scholarship award (about $5,435 per student), now open to all WV students in grades K-12, including homeschoolers who were previously ineligible. And Tennessee has reopened its ESA application window through Friday, June 12 at 4 p.m. CT a...

Connecticut becomes the first state in the modern homeschool era to regulate home education, and HSLDA is weighing legal action. We break down exactly what House Bill 5468 requires, who is grandfathered in, and how families can respond with both diligence and conviction. Then we head to the kitchen table for a restful, Charlotte Mason approach to summer: nature study you can start in ten minutes t...

Connecticut becomes the first state in the modern homeschool era to roll back homeschool freedom. Governor Ned Lamont signed HB 5468 into law, adding an annual intent-to-educate form and a child-abuse-registry check for parents, and HSLDA has pledged legal action. Then a hopeful turn: AmblesideOnline celebrates 25 years of its free Charlotte Mason curriculum, and we share a narration habit you can...

Connecticut just became the first state in the modern homeschool era to require a parental background check before families can teach their own children, and HSLDA has promised legal action. We unpack what House Bill 5468 does, why the authority question at its core matters for every family, and the encouraging counter-trend in states that are expanding homeschool freedom and funding instead. In t...

On today's Homeschool Briefing, host Silas Penn breaks down Connecticut's new homeschool law (HB 5468) and what it means for families, then turns to a practical, biblical strategy for keeping your kids learning all summer long through the simple power of reading aloud. In this episode: - Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont signs HB 5468, adding annual intent-to-educate forms and a one-time DCF background...