Musings on Roadschooling

Today I’m moonlighting over at Mommy Hiker with my thoughts on roadschooling with Fred and George. I hope you’ll go check it out and show Jen some love. She is one of my favorite outdoor moms and I’m so honored she’s allowed me to share our story with her readers.

Memory lane…

It’s been a wonderful trip down memory lane to write up my thoughts on our roadschooling journey. So much has been a whirlwind, especially since this wasn’t part of some grand vision I had from when they were babies.

Here are a smattering of additional random thoughts I have on the matter that have come up in conversations over the last several years:

1. No decision is permanent. You can pull them out of school and you can put them back if you need to. Obviously you don’t want to be changing that every week, but you get the idea… you have the freedom to adjust as necessary, depending on what life throws at you.
2. Trust yourself! Yes, I was riddled with self-doubt at first but give yourself time to find a new rhythm and you’ll get the hang of it. Plus, there are an amazing amount of resources available so you don’t have to create everything yourself.
3. There are a multitude of different approaches. Take the time to experiment and figure out what works for your family. Remain flexible and make adjustments as you go. Find support in local groups and communities to help you navigate this new territory and remember there’s no Status Quo with kids.Do what works… until it doesn’t.
4. As much as I advocate for giving kids the world, this is actually not for everyone. Not every personality, whether parent or child, is cut out for it. Again, pick what’s right for your child and family.
5. In my mind, road-schooling at younger ages is a huge bonus. Education is less-complicated then. Learning to do things like read and write is highly portable. As they reach upper grade levels, education becomes more complex, especially if they gain an interest in less-than-portable subjects (i.e. George and chemistry). And as they get older, developmentally they need their social network and that can be very challenging to adequately maintain on the road.
6. No, it’s not easy. In fact, it’s a lot of work. But yes, it’s worth it. When you consider the big picture of what you want for yourself and your children, nothing is easy… even sending them off to school every day.