This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: From Overwhelmed to Encouraged with Suzie Lubbers.

Everyone needs a little encouragement sometimes! That’s why we invited homeschool/life coach Suzie Lubbers to share ways to go from overwhelmed to encouraged. (You can catch Suzie’s interview with Vicki on Near Still Waters podcast.)

Suzie is a “graduated homeschool mom”! The youngest of her seven homeschool graduates will be getting married soon. She and her husband live in Ontario, Canada.

Her oldest son has a chromosome disorder. Although he is very high functioning, he experienced challenges with learning.

Then, her last two children were born eleven months apart. With the entire package of seven homeschoolers and some special needs, Suzie noticed that she was becoming worn down. When her youngest two were elementary-aged, Suzie became ill and was bed bound for almost a year.

In working through her illness, she learned to read her own body and care for her needs- even while caring for the family. (As opposed to the “care for family and not myself” mindset that sometimes happens.)

She also adjusted some of her homeschooling methods. It might have been a different type of homeschool than she wanted, but it was realistic for her family. AND it worked! Her children grew up and are living their adult lives!

Here are some of Suzie’s tips for finding peace and balance:

Suze works with homeschool moms so they can comfortably read themselves and understand if they don’t take care of themselves, it’s going affect their homeschool. We homeschool moms want to take care of everybody and do all of the things, but sometimes we think that requires not paying attention to the signals of our bodies.

After all, our human bodies are human and they don’t last forever. We must take care of them!

Make sure you have time to relax every day. It can be difficult, but each mom will find that individual time (whether it’s like getting up fifteen minutes earlier or settling the kids for the morning and then trying to take fifteen minutes.

Suzie highly encourages moms to journal, because journaling helps you express yourself. Simply open a page in the journal.  Then write one whole line every single day. At the end of thirty days, you have thirty entries and it has not taken you more than five minutes!

Everybody has their own thing when it comes to organizing. However, if you are feeling overwhelmed and unorganized, pick ONE thing and work on a plan to start organizing that one thing. Maybe it means maybe making a meal plan. Or maybe it means take turns with a friend watching the kids so you can organize one room.

But remember: in homeschool life:

You’re not gonna have a Pinterest home!

So manage your expectations. Don’t expect to have a Pinterest home or Pinterest organization in everything!

Suzie always encourages moms to foster the relationship with their homeschoolers.  It is more important to be concerned about the relationship more than they are about the academics. It is not healthy to think you have to accomplish everything.

An remember:

You are not homeschooling to school like the schools school your kids!

You’re homeschooling to educate in the ways that are best for them. Follow what works for you and your family.

If you want something for your homeschoolers that you cannot give them: delegate! Our homeschoolers can have part of their education delegated out: to co-op, umbrella schools, and online courses or online schools (like our friends at FundaFunda Academy). You are doing what is best for them.

Suzie sees herself as a Titus 2 woman (the older women helping train and support younger women). As a certified Christian coach, she works with homeschooling moms who are feeling overwhelmed to get to their place of encouragement. If you are not feeling happy about where you are in your homeschooling journey, talk to Suzie or another homeschool coach. They can help.

In coaching, Suzie helps homeschool moms define what needs to get better and set realistic goals. She meets with her coachees monthly or every other month, according to their needs.

As a coach she also provide homeschool moms with helpful accountability (if they would like to have that kind of support).

With coaching, Suzie’s homeschool moms are going from overwhelmed to encouraged!

Website: NearStillWaters.ca

Podcast: Near Still Waters

And thanks to our friend, Teresa Wiedrick of Homeschool Mama Self-Care, who connected us! And to Seth Tillman for editing this podcast episode!

The post From Overwhelmed to Encouraged with Suzie Lubbers appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast, we talk about: Cinema Studies for High School ELA.

Movies can make literature come alive! Homeschool high schoolers need to develop literature analysis skills, but who said they can only learn these skills from reading books? How about learning literature analysis with movies?

Storytelling is storytelling. And good storytelling is good storytelling.

When Sabrina was teaching literature in our homeschool umbrella school classes, she wanted the teens to be able to think about stories. In her opinion, the literature analysis portion of high school ELA was about finding all sorts of rich, wonderful learning within good storytelling.

She knew from her love of movies that literary analysis can be practiced with a movie. Students could analyze the storytelling that was presented on a screen, just as well as the storytelling presented in a book. Yeah. So that’s where Cinema Studies for Literature Learning came from. The teens LOVED it!

Sabrina first created Cinema Studies for Literature Learning individual guides for movies (a la carte)!

Parents and teens can choose from literature learning guides for favorite or classic movies like:

Then parents asked for a bundle of Cinema Studies for Literature Learning guides, so we created a bundle.

Next, parents asked for a full ELA credit with Cinema Studies for Literature Learning as the focus. So we created: A Full Year English/Language Arts Cinema Studies for Literature Learning (a good fit for 9th or 10th grade).

There are so many choices because there’s not ONE right way to homeschool high school!

We found that studying literature analysis through movies was good for several kinds of homeschool high schoolers.

Our teens who were not confident readers loved cinema studies. They gained confidence in their literature analysis skills and worked happily on their ELA credit! Learning these skills in a fun way helped increase their confidence!

The high schoolers in our classes who love reading also loved adding to their literary analysis skills through movies. These guides added some variety and “sparkle” to their literature experiences. Learning these skills in this way helped buffer the overachievers from burning out.

So, Cinema Studies for Literature Learning was a  benefit and a joy to everybody.

This ELA course is a bundle of literature, writing, and public speaking guides. It also includes study aids (like Grammar Granules for grammar review), suggested syllabus, and information for parents.

The course is set up for a traditional academic year: thirty-two weeks (two semesters).

The syllabus includes ideas for adapting the course to different kinds of schedules and different levels of rigor. (Because there’s not one right way to homeschool English in high school.)

Fifteen movies for inspirational learning!

The writing projects include:

Teens need some exposure to public speaking. We include a couple of fun, nonthreatening speech activities to get them started.

Don’t loose these! It helps to have the answer keys handy.

One thing that we get asked all the time is, does this cover all the books high schoolers need to read for the year? And the answer is no. Teens still need to be working on their actual reading skills. However, they do not need to do further study guides, they can read for joy, information, or towards the credit for another class.

Yes, you can! Arrange the guides in whatever order fits your priorities for the year!

It’ okay if there are movies in there that you say, “I don’t want my kid to watch this.” We encourage parents that if there are movies that you are unfamiliar with, do a quick Google search and get a feel for the movie and whether it is a good fit for your family.

We think your teens are going to love Cinema Studies for Literature Learning! Join Vicki and Sabrina for this conversation.

BTW- Don’t forget to join 7SistersHomeschool Facebook Group, where you can get and give advice on homeschooling high school!

Thanks to Seth Tillman for editing this episode!

The post Cinema Studies for High School ELA appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Discover Human Development Self-paced, Online Course.

We are so excited because one of our very favorite courses is now online. Human Development from a Christian Worldview now has an option video course to accompany the textbook!

Vicki employs her human development training in her job as a licensed professional counselor, as well as in her own home as she was raising and homeschooling her five kids. When her homeschoolers reached high school, she wanted her teens to know about human development as well. That’s how the Human Development curriculum came about.

Human development is the study of how people grow and change from the womb to their senior years. As humans, we change physically,  emotionally, cognitively, and even socially.

Teens are at the phase of life when they are often interested in the question of “why?”

Human Development helps homeschool high schoolers develop perspective-taking and self-awareness skills.

Teens have been asking for a video component to add to the Human Development from a Christian Worldview textbook. So we got busy and created Human Development Self-paced, Online Course on the Teachable platform.

The online course accompanies the textbook which includes the questions and the chapters tests, plus enrichment activities for teens who want to level-up to honors.

Generally any teen can read and enjoy and listen to the lessons and enjoy the material.

There are meaningful activities in the textbook that teens can use to level up in a meaningful way so that they get that honors credit that they want for their transcripts. Because there’s not ONE right way to be a teenager and there’s not ONE right way to homeschool high school.

We want everybody to have a chance to love human development.

This course is not required for graduation. However, teens do need electives and so this is a Social Science elective. And a life preparation elective. This is an elective that is good for helping teens in understanding themselves and other people!

For more on why teens benefit from studying Human Development, check out:

Early Childhood Education is a course that builds on the learning in Human Development. 7Sisters’ Early Childhood Education e-text:

While you are at it, join us and all the 7th Sisters at 7SistersHomeschool Facebook Group because there are so many awesome 7th Sisters! BTW- There are six of us, 7Sisters: Vicki, Sabrina, Kim, Marilyn, Allison. and Sarah. So who’s that 7th Sister? YOU are!

Also, find lots of encouragement, how-tos, and fun at:

It’s lots of fun!

Join us for a chat about 7Sisters’ Human Development Self-paced, Online Course.

AND thanks to Seth Tillman for editing the podcast.

The post A Self-Paced Online Human Development Course for Teens appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Helping Teens Manage Anxiety with Kimberly Bennett.

The high school years can carry so much stress for teens! That’s why Vicki asked her friend, homeschool mom, and fellow counselor, Kimberly Bennett to talk about helping teens manage anxiety.

When Kimberly took her first Psychology course in high school, she knew that it would be her career. In college she earned a graduate degree in Applied Psychology.

She started her career in juvenile justice in Atlanta. Kimberly has a heart for teenagers. She even had a rocking chair in my office in “Juvie Hall”.  When the teens would get upset, they would come in and she would have them just rock. Eventually, that soothing motion would kick in and they would calm down.

After a few years, Kimberly moved on to serving as a guidance counselor in middle school for about seven years. However, when the recession hit in 2008, her district cut the guidance counselor jobs. That’s when she started a private practice in the Atlanta area.

She also married, and after eleven years, had her first child shortly after they were relocated to Texas. She put her counseling career on hold to enjoy being mom to her son.

Because she was home with her son,  she started to notice that “he was doing things his own way”. In other words, she was seeing little bit of developmental delay. That is not unusual with babies who are born prematurely, and fortunately with all her work advocating for teens and middle schoolers, she knew the skills for advocating for her own child.

She pushed the pediatrician until she got my referrals for occupational and physical therapies. This made a huge difference for her son. Then, when he was almost three years old, he was diagnosed with Developmental Coordination Disorder, more commonly known as dyspraxia. He was also diagnosed with sensory integration dysfunction.

They were able to get him the interventions he needed that helped him make huge strides.

Initially Kimberly’s son attended a private pre-K and a private kindergarten. While he was at school she was researching.

Kimberly highly advocates for parents doing research about their young person’s diagnosis.

“Read everything you can get your hands on. Try not to get caught up so much on the label, just educate yourself.”

When it came time for first grade, Kimberly felt that the Holy Spirit just said, “No, this is not right for you.”

So I panicked and I did. I pulled him out before he ever started his first day of class and learned, did a crash course, if you will, for learning how to homeschool in a month.

In the meantime, God kept putting fellow homeschool moms in her path. She would run into them in the grocery store or the park and run into homeschool moms. them in the park. The first real ambassador was a homeschool mom that she met in her son’s occupational therapy office. Kimberly watched her with her children and was impressed. That homeschool mom poured into her, allowing Kimberly to ask her anything.

After homeschooling your her son for almost a decade, (and during the pandemic) she felt like God was nudging her:  “Why don’t you start these groups on Facebook, a podcast and a website.” Everyone was homeschoolers whether they wanted to be or not during that challenging time. Kimbelry wanted to help.

Then Kimberly met a very, very dear friend, Natalie Mack.

BTW- many of you know our friend and Cousin Natalie Mack, she’s a one of the world’s most helpful people- and provided a lovely TEDx talk about homeschooling! Check out our chats with Natalie Mack:

Natalie, who is also a trained counselor, reminded Kimberly of her training and the needs in the homeschool community during that time of health crisis and the needs of parents who are homeschooling teens with challenges. She encouraged Kimberly to jump in and help!

with the goal of finding providers who specialize particularly or have experience in working with homeschooling families.

Many teens (and adults) experience some level of stress or  anxiety because there’s anxiety in the world. Teens are also wrestling with puberty and phase-of-life stressors.

Anxiety can serve a purpose for us. We have a limbic system for a reason. We have an amygdala for a reason (the parts of our brains are leftover from the times when we were caveman, running from dinosaur and saber tooth tiger.) If we ever are actually running from saber tooth tiger, we want our amygdala and our limbic system to do its job.

We need to be able to run faster from the saber tooth tigers.  That’s one job of the limbic system and amygdala.

The problem is when it sends the “alert” but the alert is not needed.  When that happens we need to retrain our brain. Here are some ways to calm and retrain our brain.

Bonding tells the limbic system and amygdala that they can calm down. Bonding can include spending a moment of pleasant time together. A gentle way to do a little anxiety-lowering bonding is to smile at your teen (their instinct is to smile back). This moment together creates a little bit of bonding.

The first recommendation for reducing anxiety that Kimberly makes is to take the fear out of feelings. Give yourself and your teen permission to identify and notice their feelings. Feelings are not something to be ashamed of.

The second thing Kimberly recommends is to give your teen language. Ask your teen to name the feelings: “What are you feeling right now?”

Next, ask your teen why they are feeling that way? Feelings are there for a reason: Is there a saber tooth about to attack? No? Maybe a math test, maybe a disagreement with a friend, or maybe PMS?

Then, discuss what can be done about it? If they are overwhelmed, help them do some math test prep, or brainstorm how to talk to the friend, or do some self-nurture for PMS. (For more on this, check out the 3Ws practice with this freebie journal.)

If you are noticing a frequent pattern of  sleep disruption, difficulty focusing, their ability to concentrate, and worrying, you may want to get more support for your teen.

Start with teaching them deep breathing and have them practice several times each day. (Deep breathing instruction is included in 7Sisters Health curriculum. Also, you can download some instructions for progressive relaxation, a fun kind of deep breathing.)

A good basic deep breathing skill includes:

Take a deep breath while you count to five, hold that breath for the count of three, then breathe out slowly to the count of seven.

Teach them how the care of their body helps manage the hormones of anxiety: hydrating, healthy food, getting enough sleep and exercise (exercise is GREAT for burning off stress hormones).

Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a helpful tool for helping teens lower their anxiety. You can get in touch with Kimberly with ideas and support at the Homeschool Counseling Network I interview, which was created to bridge a gap between homeschooling families and professionals.

Kimberly’s goal is to bring free and reduced cost resources to you in the form of directories, podcasts, articles, and even digital video content to homeschooling families.

Join Vicki and Kimberly Bennett for ideas and resources on helping teens manage anxiety.

Thanks to Seth Tillman for editing.

The post Helping Teens Manage Anxiety with Kimberly Bennett appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Teens Who Don’t Like to Read- What to do! Special Replay.

Many parents can relate to having a teen who doesn’t love reading, but let’s get one thing out of the way from the state – this is not a character flaw, but rather a part of their individuality. If you’re homeschooling teens who don’t like to read, you can embrace this in a whole new way instead of trying to force it. Let’s explore how we can support and encourage our non-reading teens on their educational journey. 

We often feel pressure as homeschoolers to raise book-loving kids, but that’s not always the case. It’s essential to recognize that there is room for all types of learners in the homeschool universe, including teens who don’t love reading!

Just as there are kids who love everything about school, there are also those who don’t find joy in reading. And that’s okay! 

It doesn’t mean they are flawed or lazy; it simply means they have different strengths and interests. 

Instead of viewing a teen’s lack of love for reading as a character flaw or a sign of laziness, let’s consider it as an opportunity to explore alternative ways of learning. 

We need to redefine what success with reading means. We often fall into the trap of measuring success by the number of books our teens read. But teens reading shouldn’t be the measurement of success; success should be evaluated based on a broader perspective. 

It’s not about the number of books read, but rather the ability to comprehend and apply what they read. The goal is to ensure they can comprehend and apply the information they encounter, even if it’s not through traditional reading.

By shifting our focus from the quantity of reading to the quality of learning, we can alleviate the pressure on our non-reading teens and homeschool moms.

We sometimes need an outside perspective to help us navigate challenges. Consider seeking input from trusted friends, youth group leaders, or co-op teachers who can offer insights into your teen’s strengths and potential. 

Seek input from trusted friends or mentors who can provide a fresh perspective on your teen’s unique qualities. 

Remember, God has a plan for each young person, and it may not align with our expectations.

Sometimes, others can see the growth and progress that we may overlook. This feedback can be invaluable in helping your teen gain confidence and recognize their unique abilities.

If your teen doesn’t enjoy reading, don’t despair. Education is not solely confined to reading books. Today, there are countless resources available, such as audiobooks, read-alouds, discussion groups, and even movies, that can help engage non-reading teens. 

So if your teen prefers learning through the internet or watching educational videos, that’s okay! Encourage your teen to explore these alternative methods of acquiring knowledge. Whether it’s watching informative videos, engaging in online research, or pursuing hands-on activities, emphasize that learning can take many forms.

Focus on their individual growth and the areas of their strengths or skills, and help them develop those further. 

By broadening the definition of success, we empower our teens to embrace their individual learning styles and interests.

You’re doing a great job as a homeschool parent, and your child’s worth is not determined by their love for reading.

In the homeschooling community, it’s easy to fall into the comparison trap. We hear stories of other teens devouring classic novels and feel as though our own children are falling short. 

It’s crucial to remember that each child has their own unique path. 

Comparing our teens to others only leads to self-doubt and unnecessary pressure. Instead, focus on your teen’s growth, progress, and individual strengths. Celebrate their accomplishments, regardless of how they align with societal expectations.

So take a deep breath and embrace the journey. Homeschooling is about nurturing your child’s individuality and helping them become the best version of themselves. If you have a teen who doesn’t love reading, remember that it’s not a character flaw or a reflection of your parenting. 

By shifting our perspective and embracing lifelong learning, we empower our teens to thrive and succeed in their own way.

We’re here to support you every step of the way. Check out 7SistersHomeschool for free resources, literature study guides, and career exploration tools. We’ve created these resources based on our own experiences and the success we’ve seen in our own homeschools and co-ops. 

Thank you to Richie Soares with Homeschool and Humor for writing this blog post and to Seth Tillman for editing the podcast.

The post Teens Who Don’t Like to Read- What to do! Special Replay appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: What Happens to Us When the Last Homeschooler Graduates?

The six of us 7Sisters are Omega Moms. That means that we have graduated our youngest homeschoolers! So, we know what it’s like to suddenly face life after the last homeschooler graduates. (BTW- there are 6 of us 7Sisters, so who’s the 7th Sister? YOU are!)

Recently several of the moms in our 7SistersHomeschool Facebook group were talking about lives as post-homeschooling moms. What happens? So we thought we should have discussion on the podcast!

We homeschooling parents been doing this homeschooling thing with all of our intention and all of our energy for years! Then, all of a sudden things are changing. Your last teen will graduate…and then what on earth happens?

The first thing you need to know is there’s not one kind of homeschool graduate and there’s not one kind of homeschool mom, so there’s not one experience that you are going to have. However, we have learned some common themes and helpful ideas over the years.

Questions for this last senior year:

A word of advice: Have fun with this senior year. Try to make it as much fun as you can!

We have learned from experience to remember the homeschool mom’s version of Proverbs 16:9:

A mom’s mind plans her way, but the Lord directs her steps…

We could plan out our whole future for when our teens graduate. However, if we commit our works (plans) over to God and trust him, he will start showing us next things little bit at a time (or, maybe, all at once). However he decides that he’s going to do it. (That’s Proverbs 16:3)

Keep that in your mind. In Christ, there is a next thing.

Make a habit of practicing self-awareness with the Three Ws.

When you respect your feelings and why they are there, you can CHOOSE what to do with them. It’s nice to be in control of SOMETHING!

BTW- for more on homeschool mama self-care, check out our friend and Cousin Teresa Wiedrick and her work.

It helps to make up your mind: “I am going to show my teen that I can and they can adapt to change!” (I’m going to model that I am a resilient person because they will catch that from me.)

Teens learn by watching you that although they have never been here before, but they will figure out how to handle life and will believe that God is directing their paths.

You may feel weird because you have never been here before. All of a sudden, you just launched into a different phase of life where you are now the mom who cares, but not the mom who is in charge. What a strange place to be after all those years!

We homeschool moms tend to put our heart, body and soul into homeschooling. Then, you get to that last teen launching into life.

So, if you need a moment, you are allowed to cry. Give yourself some tears. Then take a deep breath and  go make some good things happen.

Good things will happen.

You treasure the sweet memories of all those homeschooling year. You hold them in your memory. But don’t pitch your tent there. God has more plans for you.

So stay aware of God, pray, and keep those three Ws going. (What am I feeling? Why am I feeling that way? What am I going to do about it?)

If you have other Omega Moms in your circle, get together for coffee or breakfast. Talk about all the good times, what you are grateful for, and what you hope for in the future. Do some celebrating together.

We were blessed in our homeschool community. Every year, our umbrella school had an informal Omega Mom brunch. It was great for us to process this transition point together.

God didn’t check out of the universe just because the last one graduated. He is still there. (I know, I sound like a broken record, but this “last teen graduating” is a THING for many of us!) Hang in there!

Our 7Sister Marilyn has always said that God is an economist. He does not just work in one person’s life. He is busy on everyone, everywhere, all the time. If he is blessing your youngest graduate, he is working on blessing and guiding you, too.

If we leave our hearts open, as long as we keep rolling our works on him, he will direct our path (Proverbs 16:3).

We 7Sisters have noticed in recent years, that doors have already started opening many of our Omega Mom friends.

Whatever God gives us to do is good and right.

Some of my Omega Mom friends have not worked for pay in many years. Then, suddenly, they need to bring in a little income. They sometimes worry because they feel they do not have a resume showing work experience.

I always say, “Oh, yes ,you do! You have a WORLD of experiences! You create an “experiential resume”! It really works!  7Sisters has an experiential resume guide to help you with that.

Click image for full description.

For some moms, they have spent years making sure everything and everyone was okay. Then, the last one graduates and does not need so much practical and emotional support and caring. The weird thing is, sometimes moms are so used to making sure everything is okay, that it’s hard to let go of. It can be easy to you catch yourself giving unwanted or unasked-for advice to your new work team or friends. (Now, once they ask, they ask for it.)

The same thing can happen to your graduate. It can be easy to overly advise them or tell them what to do. Instead, they just need to be loved.

So much of this phase is letting go and letting God. Remember that they have their own paths to take, and God needs to direct their paths. If they do things differently or don’t do it right. Our adult kids don’t ever outgrow the need for our listening ear. Our most important job is to pray for them! (Check out this interview on parenting adult kids with our friend and colleague, Stacey Lane Clendaniel.)

You can do this! You’ve trusted God through transitions before, you will do it wonderfully! Join Vicki for more on what to do when the last teen graduates!

Even more wisdom about what happens when the last homeschooler graduates from veteran homeschool mom: our friend and Cousin, Natalie Mack.

The post What Happens to Us When the Last Homeschooler Graduates? appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Homeschool Life as Story Collection, Not a Novel.

In this episode Sabrina and Vicki talk about some cool metaphors that they hope you are going to think are cool, too.

We love a good metaphor. It just makes our whole day! Sometimes, if you have a good metaphor, it can help you calm down and frame your life in a healthier or happier way.

Sabrina stumbled across a metaphor recently in a collection of essays that I was listening to. The essay made little impact on her. But this one line, this metaphor, changed her life!

What if the story of your life turns out to be not a novel, but a collection of short stories on a theme?

Sabrina said, “It just knocked my socks off because I was used to the idea of one long life story, a fairy-tale novel! Not a series of short stories with beginnings, endings, and things not making narrative sense necessarily like one long, clear storyline.”

What would somebody’s life be if their metaphor, their life was a novel, just one novel, what would that be like?

What’s the difference if your life is a collection of stories?

When we look back to times before World War II, we think in terms of a single life narrative. Sabrina’s Grandmother experienced different major events that happened that shifted her circumstances. However, she remained a stay-at-home mom of a whole bunch of kids who facilitated a multi-generational family. They all shared one house. She never had a career or more than an eighth grade education. She was loving, gentle, quiet, and stabilizing for all the people around her.  Her life centered around a single residence.

Her story arc stayed on that line. She had the blessing of ONE life story.

Today, we are understanding that the world we live in is more episodic. We have a few years where we are doing this and a few years where we are living here. Then we go and do something entirely different, which ends up preparing us for things that are very important to us.

When Vicki was a young mom and newly in the faith she was told her story arc:

You’re gonna be a stay at home mom and your life is gonna be like this…

But somewhere along the line it became necessary for survival to have an extra income. That disrupted the story arc!

When Vicki realized that she was going to have to get a job, she wondered if she had doing something wrong. After all, wasn’t her life story the story of being a stay-at-home homeschool mom?

But by faith, she has come to see that this was what God was doing. He has given her an almost thirty-year career as a counselor WHILE homeschooling. She has loved it. There was a short story about only homeschooling. Then there was another story about being a homeschool working mom.

Sabrina’s life certainly took a change from being a married homeschool mom to being a divorced and remarried homeschool mom. There were several short stories (phases) of that time in life. God gave her strength to believe He was still at work- even when her life did not seem like the fairy-tale novel we like to dream about!

Sabrina and Vicki know so many homeschooling families. Rarely does it seem like any real family’s life is a fairy-tale novel. Rather, homeschool life is about adapting to changes and writing a new story.

This is especially if mom’s the one who becomes ill and has chronic illness. A chronic illness changes everything and requires writing lots of new stories. These stories are about being flexible and gracious toward oneself and the whole homeschooling family. (BTW- Journaling can help with this. Our friend, Lisa, created a journal for moms with chronic illness that she asked for us to share with other homeschooling moms.)

Start with an understanding of purposes. (Of course, 7Sisters is all about discovering purposes and exploring them!)

This may sound cheesy, but it really helps clarify your purpose for this phase of life! Sabrina created a guide for writing your personal mission statement (teens can do this, too) and another one for writing your homeschool mission statement.

However, you will want to hold those mission statements loosely because God’s got more going on in the universe than you are necessarily fully aware of in any moment…and you are part of it!

God has more going on in the universe than the particular pieces of it that you are able to perceive and understand and you’re placed in it.

That’s the lovely thing about it is our lives are often a collection of short stories. We are all part of the stories that God is writing in the world!

The primary theme that runs through all of the stories is Jesus, of course.

Then, hopefully the secondary theme that runs through is you! You are the same person all along, even though what you are doing, what you are saying, how you are dressed and what the circumstances are, look different in each short story.

Another theme is our children, especially our teens. Teens need to know about phases of life, but that God has purposes for them!

Sometimes, societal pressures give teens the sense that they have to find a SINGULAR purpose and know know exactly what steps are in fleshing it out. and that they better get moving. That’s a lot of pressure!

Instead, lean into the idea that your teen’s life is going to be probably a collection of short stories on a theme- not one single story. That way teens can concentrate on getting to know Jesus and getting to know themselves. Then they can have faith that they will recognize those threads running through the different episodes in their life stories.

Our teen’s stories might morph next semester. They might morph four years from now. There is no need to think that changing one’s mind about a career or lifestyle is a waste of time. It is simply another story in the collection.

The truth is, homeschooling is gonna come to an end at some point, no matter how many children you have at one point. Then you become a homeschool omega mom.

That short story will finish. Then the next one is gonna begin. However, it’s still Jesus, it’s still us and it’s all good. SO, enjoy this year’s stories!

The post Seeing Your Homeschool Journey as a Collection of Stories appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Homeschooling High School with Twins with Ticia Messing.

Sometimes we meet a new homeschooling mom who is concerned that she won’t be able to handle high school with twins. Homeschooling twins is its own thing, for sure! However, we have got good news! You can do this!

This week on the podcast, we talked with our friend, Ticia Messing from Adventures in a Messy Life, about her experiences with homeschooling high school with twins! She homeschooled her kids all the way through graduation, so she has some good advice.

Ticia has three kids, twenty months apart. She started off with twins. That was a big surprise because twins did not run in her family.

Ticia and her husband started homeschooling with preschool, just to see if they would like it. They loved it and homeschooled all the way through.

Ticia says that she is “very ADHD, really messy and engaging”. Fortunately, her kids were also active, so they kept a very active homeschool. (She also had short lessons with her kids because I had a short attention span, too.)

Her family loves reading, so their high school years included lots of reading, and whenever possible, a book and a movie (here’s how Ticia does books with movies).

Ticia kept a reading list for her teens to choose from:

Her teens had dual enrollment for courses that caught their interest at the local community college. Dual enrollment was also useful for courses that Ticia did not feel comfortable teaching.

In fact, her daughter enjoyed her dual enrollment courses so much that she had enough credits to graduate from high school a year early. She was able to start her four-year college as a junior.

One of the best things about homeschooling high school was helping her teens explore and develop interests. One of her sons was interested in business. He started working at a local Taco Bell. By the time he graduated from high school, he was a manager.

Then his twin was interesting in serving in the military. He spent time during high school exploring the branches of the military and preparing body and mind for service. He enlisted in the army after graduation.

Her daughter had interests in several areas. She could explore these areas by various volunteer projects and awards projects:

Homeschooling high school with twins (and even, three teens) CAN be done!

For Ticia, doing as many subjects together (with all three teens at the same time) was a life saver! They especially enjoyed woring on English/Language Arts and History together. One project they worked on together was learning to be comfortable with timed essays.

Include lots of field trips! It’s a great way to earn credit by logging hours.

Work on some projects together, such as one of Ticia’s favorites: Mummifying a chicken.

Giving  them independent projects for what they were interested in was important for her teens to develop self-confidence skills.

So, really, homeschooling high school with twins is not a lot different than homeschooling middle school or homeschooling elementary school. It’s work but it’s worth it!

Ticia says that one of the joys of homeschooling high school is we do not have to do it a certain way. We do what’s best for our teens!

Homeschooling high school: you can do this!

You can find Ticia at Adventures in a Messy Life, or on Instagram @TiciaM.

Join Vicki and Ticia for a rollicking conversation about homeschooling high school with twins!

The post Homeschooling High School with Twins with Ticia Messing appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Cinema Studies for ELA Credit in High School.

When we taught English/Language Arts in homeschool co-op and umbrella school, we had all kinds of teens in our classes. We had teens who LOVED literature and teens who were not fans of reading.

The teens who did not enjoy reading sometimes felt overwhelmed with BOTH reading and literary analysis assignments. They would roll their eyes and say,

“It’s too much, it’s too hard. And it takes me so long just to read ’cause I’m a slow reader and then I have to think about all these things.”

Sabrina thought, “Storytelling is storytelling. And good storytelling is good storytelling. Literature analysis skills can be learned with any good story- even stories on a screen.”

So, so we ended up with Cinema Studies for Literature Learning Full-Year ELA Bundle. One of the cool things about the curriculum is that was so cool is that it leveled the playing field for students in the classroom. Students who loved literature and those who did not, all enjoyed participating in literature analysis because the story was accessible.

Click image for full description.

Also, we noticed that the Honors-level teens who were burning themselves out could have a more fun, but still Honors-level course for their transcript!

Even the included syllabus is a “suggested syllabus” with suggestions for adapting it to different kinds of schedules and different levels of rigor.

Because there’s not ONE right way to homeschool English in high school.

One thing that we get asked all the time is, does this cover like books for the year? And the answer is no. Teens still need to be reading actual reading material. That’s why the Cinema Studies for Literature Learning ELA Bundle includes several fun books.

However, most of the Bundle is movies! In fact, this thirty-two week, two semester curriculum will cover fifteen different movies.

Teens will watch the movie. Then, they will watch it again (not the same day) with their cinema studies guide.

In that second viewing, students discover that they can get hold of the ideas and richness of the story. The real literature analysis begins and makes the movie so much more meaningful. Finally, students finish up their guides with any additional activities listed in the guide.

Here are steps for parents when you purchase the bundle:

One final thought is that these are movies. Just like books, every parent needs to decide what movie is a good fit for their family. It’s okay if there are movies in there that you say, “I don’t want my kid to watch this.”

That’s a really good choice that you need to make for your family. You should not just assume that these are all gonna be a good fit because 7Sisters chose them. If there are movies that you are unfamiliar with, just do a IMDB search and see if it will be a good fit.

And so the decision of when to expose them to those things in literature as a very personal decision, and that is up to each parent. So I just encourage you to, to take, take point on that and make sure that you’re, that you’re feeling comfortable with everything on the list. Why we’re homeschooling to do what’s best for our kids and our.

So, if your teen needs something a little bit different for English/Language Arts and you want to give something with movies a try, Cinema Studies for Literature Learning ELA Bundle would be a wonderful thing!

Don’t forget to join our very active 7SistersHomeschool Facebook group!

The post Cinema Studies for ELA Credit in High School appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

This week on Homeschool Highschool Podcast: Inspiring Teen Conservation Project with Nathaniel Mack.

Photo used with permission from Nathaniel and Natalie Mack

This episode of Homeschool Highschool Podcast will inspire your teens to believe that they, too, can do things that make a difference! Natalie Mack and her son Nathaniel join Vicki to discuss his project for the Maryland Conservation District.

As most folks know, Natalie is our 7Sisters’ Cousin and friend. She helped military homeschool association and podcast. Natalie has done a TEDx talk. She has helped military families on behalf of HSLDA. The list goes on and on.

Natalie has been homeschooling for more than twenty years. She and her husband have five children, so four have been homeschooled to college. All of those are now college graduates. Now, her youngest (Nathaniel) is starting 12th grade.

Natalie’s family is a military family so they have lived all over the world.

Nathaniel got interested in conservation and just environmental science in general during middle school. He was noticing that environmental issuer were often on the news. This got him interested in what he could do in his community.

For example, when he was elementary age, Nathaniel and Natalie were at the commissary (grocery store for military families). The bagger at the checkout asked, “Do you want plastic or paper?”

Natalie answered that she wanted plastic bags. Nathaniel gasped and said, “Mom, you know where the plastic goes!”

So, his parents noticed his interest and helped him get started in several organizations that practice conservation and environmental science. Nathaniel explored his environmental issues with camps such as like Camp Woods and Wildlife,the Youth Conservation Corps, 4H Camp, and Boy Scout summer camp.

Then in 2023, he got started with Youth Conservation Leadership Institute, which is part of Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District. In that program, Nathaniel worked with advisors, parents, and others in their county to select s a project that they wanted work with.

In preparation for the project, he attended training sessions on Zoom and had some books to read on the basics of conservation practices, environmental science, and pollination processes. He also learned how to network, oversee projects and people, build communication skills, motivational skills, fundraising skills, and how to advocate with authority figures. Nathaniel worked with his neighborhood board to earn permissions to carry out the project.

He was granted permission to install environmentally-safe erosion control netting along the Potomac riverbank and flood plain in his community park, as well as permission to plant milkweed for monarch butterflies.

He created flyers to post around the community to tell about the project and invite involvement. Nathaniel also shared information on social media. His local homeschool friends and Scouting troupe joined him for park cleanup, the netting installation and milkweed planting. Folks from the local community helped with the work and feeding the volunteers, as well.

At the end of the year-long institute, Nathaniel made a poster presentation for the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District at his graduation ceremony for the program.

Nathaniel has learned how to invest in an interest and cause. He has learned valuable organizational, leadership, and soft skills. Not only that, he has added some powerful credits to his high school transcript, as well as building powerful things to talk about on his college application essays.

Nathaniel believes that what you might be interested in right now, is a good thing stay with for a while. Your interests are likely to change in the future. However, you get so much from investing in interests for a good while.

Good advice from a wise and inspirational young person!

Join Vicki, Nathaniel, and Natalie Mack for an inspiring teen conservation project discussion.

The post Inspiring Teen Conservation Project with Nathaniel Mack appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.