20 Years of Homeschooling: What I Wish I Knew at the Start...

When I first started homeschooling 20 years ago, I set up a dreamy little classroom right in our home.

It had everything—an adorable child-sized table, a cozy reading tent, high-quality wooden manipulatives, educational posters lining the walls, shelves full of carefully chosen books, puzzles, and even a computer station. I was putting my college education to good use, and it felt like everything was perfectly in place.

But then… we actually started homeschooling.

And just a few days in, everything changed.

We gravitated to the couch to snuggle and read stories.

We took nature walks.

We visited the library for story time.

We met up with friends for field trips and picnics.

We baked in the kitchen and learned fractions as we measured ingredients.

We played board games and counted to 100 without a worksheet in sight.

We read classic literature and soaked up rich vocabulary just by listening.

We wrote letters and practiced handwriting without calling it “Language Arts.”

We mapped out trips on paper maps and called it geography.

We slept when we were tired, ate when we were hungry, used the bathroom without permission, and learned to read our own body signals.

We talked about science while driving in the car.

We learned through play.

We learned music by attending symphonies, concerts, and taking violin and piano lessons.

We found freedom.

The “school room” went mostly unused.

The posters came down.

The toys were put away for playtime.

The tiny furniture was sold.

The computer station was closed because I realized how little I wanted screens involved.

I left behind everything I was taught in college about how education “should” be.

Instead, I began looking at my children as individuals.

They needed time with wise, caring adults.

They needed to experience the real world.

They needed space to follow their interests, because that’s where true learning comes alive.

I learned to prioritize:

✨ Relationship over rules

✨ Connection over curriculum

✨ Education, not just textbooks

✨ Real-life learning over teaching to a test

We built our homeschool around life. Around home. Around each other.

If you’re just beginning your homeschooling journey, here’s my heartfelt encouragement as a mom who’s taught every grade, graduated children, and made all the mistakes:

👉

Home is the most important part of homeschooling.

It’s not the books or the lesson plans or the Pinterest-worthy setup.

It’s the togetherness, the everyday moments, the learning that happens when you least expect it.

If I could go back, I honestly don’t think I’d choose college again.

I worked two jobs to pay my way through. I nearly made myself sick trying to avoid debt.

I have had, and still have strong convictions about not having debt or asking other people to pay for my own responsibilities.

What I learned most wasn’t in the textbooks—it was how to persevere. The only small debt I had that I had not worked off myself was my Bible classes from North Central University, which my husband lovingly paid off the day we were married.

And that’s the lesson I carry with me now.

That’s what I pass on to my kids.

That’s the heartbeat of our homeschool.

Lifeschool together.

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