Toolbox for Learning Podcast

Fire and tornado drills are a normal part of the traditional school environment. But they are commonly ignored by homeschool families. In this podcast, Chaz and Christie will be discussing why disaster preparedness is important, and how to prepare your child for a disaster using their own experiences during the 7.1 magnitude earthquake that hit Southcentral Alaska in 2018. 

They will be giving specific ideas for helping your child prepare for the next emergency, whether it being something as minor as the electricity going out or a flat tire, to tornado's, fire and other more extraordinary disasters. 

Subjects that will cover include:

• The need for your child to understand the disaster's cause, history and scientific advancements
• How to not strike fear into your child while practicing disaster preparedness
• Helping your child gain the skills needed to handle an emergency as it occurs
• Making sure your child knows what to do and expect after a disaster
• Teaching how they should respond if you are not in the area when a disaster hits
• Involving your child in an emergency preparedness plan
• Training yourself to stay calm and manage yourself when a disaster occurs
• Displaying your confidence in their ability to handle an emergency if it arises

As a veteran homeschool mom and a former homeschooler, Chaz and Christie have a unique perspective as ones who have been where you are, both as a teacher and as a homeschooled student. They look forward to sharing this podcast with you and reading your response.

You know you want your child to grow into a financially wise adult. But, for that to happen they must be trained. As homeschool parents, it falls on us to make sure they have the financially literacy they need. So, when do you begin teaching them these important skills and what is it they need to know.

Today Chaz, a certified public accountant (CPA), will be discussing with you, what it takes to be financially literate. He will also be discussing how his parents taught him how to be financially responsible during his homeschooling years.

Chaz and Christie are uniquely qualified to teach you these principles due to the combination of their experience in the field of finance, being a homeschooler and being the mom who taught him. We invite you to listen to their practical advice and suggestions for what worked in their homeschooling experience.

They will cover subjects such as:

• What is personal finance.
• When to begin teaching finance to your homeschooler.
• Banking
• Investing
• Debt
• Insurance
• Financial Planning
• Identity Protection
• Much more

You know that play is important and that children need plenty of it, but do you know what play really is? In this episode, Chaz and Christie will define play and share with you research that has been done on this very important subject, along with how you can incorporate play into your homeschool.

Using many personal experiences they will:

• Discuss how to recognize true play
• The value of both structured activity and unstructured play
• The loss of playtime in the U.S.
• The gift of boredom
• Tools children use to play
• Being an example to your kids 
• How to play with your child without taking over

As a bonus, learn about how Chaz and his brothers explored learning through a simple game of "Squirrels Get Ready for Winter".

You know you want to homeschool, but don't know where to begin? In this podcast Chaz and Christie discuss a step by step approach to starting your homeschool adventure and sharing with you how to access their free  Getting Started in Homeschooling Guide.

They will be discussing:

• How to discover your states regulations and educational standards.
• Home School Legal Defense Association
• Budgeting and scholarship opportunities
• Picking your homeschool resources
• Free and low cost homeschool materials
• Picking a school calendar
• Evaluating where your child is academically
• Discovering your child's learning style
• The importance of also discovering your own learning style
• Common teaching methods
• Importance of an active homeschool group
• Setting up your classroom
• Organizing and preparing for the school year
• Consistency in your homeschool/ flexibility and how to achieve both effectively.

We look forward to sharing this invaluable resource for both the new and seasoned homeschooler.

Are your parents excited that you will be homeschooling their grandkids? I know mine weren't thrilled. So, what did I learn about from the experience of winning the grandparents over to homeschooling? That is what we are discussing in this podcast.

We will be covering topics such as:

• Why grandparents may not be positive about the homeschooling experience
• Things you can do to help them see homeschooling in a more positive light
• Specific ways of involving grandparents in the homeschool experience
• Things grandkids do that help grandparents know homeschooling is the right choice for your family

Do you have dreams of adding excitement into your classroom by making your own curriculum. You know you and your kids would love it, but don't know where to begin?  In this episode, Chaz and Christie will be sharing their own curriculum building experiences.

They will lead you step-by-step through the process of curriculum building by bringing you through the process Christie went through while planning an election series for Chaz and his brothers. Some of what will be discussed include:

     - Determining your states standards list
     - How to determine you and your child's learning styles
     - Deciding what format to use for your curriculum 
     - Writing out the overview for your learning objectives
     - Purchasing and designing your curriculum

Including in the show notes are resources such as:
     - Educational standards websites per state
     - Learning Styles Cheat sheet
     

Is your homeschooler ready for "the real world"? Many times we assume our child is prepared,  just to discover they aren't. In this podcast, Chaz and Christie will share with you some of the skills that your child needs to function in the adult world and give guidance for how to go about achieving this goal starting in their preschool years. 

They also include a resource called "Preparing Your Child for the Adult Life Now" to help you develop a curriculum for teaching adulting to your homeschooler.

Chaz, as an adult who was homeschooled, has the unique perspective of having made the transition from homeschooler to college and professional life. His insight is invaluable in helping you focus on an intentional plan for preparing your child. 

This podcast will cover topics such as:

• Social skills
• Finance
• Daily living skills
• Emergency preparedness 
• Car maintenance
• Work ethic
• Time management and organization
• Critical thinking skills

We look forward to having you join us for this episode. See you soon!

The community should be on the top of every homeschooler's resource list. No matter the size of the community, the opportunities to learn and grow are endless. In this podcast, Chaz and Christie will be discussing specific ways of bringing your community into your homeschool learning experience. 

The podcast begins with their personal experiences homeschooling in rural Oklahoma and later in Alaska. Chaz and Christie share these stories to show you the richness of opportunities that are right at your door. They discuss everything from a bullfrog pond to exploring a boat manufacturing plant as part of their experiences homeschooling.

They follow up their stories with practical advice on how to discover your own community resources. 

We suggest you grab a pen and paper before listening to the podcast, so you can write down ideas that come to your mind as you listen.

Does your homeschooler seemed bored and unmotivated by his school day? Today Chaz and Christie are going to discuss how using your child's passions can take the school day from a drudgery to exciting and fulfilling.

Chaz and Christie have a unique perspective as an adult who was homeschooled and the mom who taught him. They will use this uniqueness to show you what homeschool can look like when a child's passions are ignited and allowed to grow both inside and outside the classroom.

Many times your child already has something they are passionate about, such as the example used in this podcast of Chaz's oldest brother, Devin, and his interest in becoming a veterinarian. In this story, their Dad finds a bird that is in need of care and a whole world of both real life and academic opportunities open up for Devin and his brothers due to this experience.

Other times daily experiences or a subject in school brings about an interest they never knew existed. Chaz tells the story of a man in the neighborhood who opened up the world of business and cattle through a brief interaction in their front yard one day. From that experience so many lessons were learned.

Chaz and Christie will give you suggestions on how to take a passion and apply it to math, science, English and other subjects for your homeschool.  They will discuss using a unit study to build on your child's passion. They will also discuss how to modify ready-made curriculum to fit your child's interest.

This podcast will be an encouragement for any parent who wants to bring excitement back into their school, while at the same time allowing their child the opportunity to explore and develop their passion.

How much should I use computers in my homeschool? What computer skills should my child have before going into college or a profession? How do I keep my child safe while on the Internet? These are all questions that will be covered in this podcast.

Chaz, as a former college student and now a CPA (certified public accountant), will give detailed insights into what colleges and the workplaces will be expecting out of your child in regards to previously developed computer skills. He will also be covering gaming and its advantages and disadvantages when considering your child's computer strength. In this podcast Chaz and Christie will provide you with information on potential resources for helping your child develop computer skills.

Finally, we invite you to download some of our other podcast. Also, watch for other episodes that will be coming out in the future. We look forward to hearing your comments. Happy listening!