As a teacher, I wish we didn’t have to give grades! I also like to emphasize critical thinking/creativity versus rote memorization. I love that you also do this!
I did not do grades. If they did something wrong, we went back over it. Then they corrected the paper and maybe we added some additional work to reinforce that task.
As a Jewish educator this was fascinating. One of the reasons my parents took me out of private Jewish school (Solomon Schecter) was because I came home at 6 years old and told my mom "I can't play with you because you aren't really Jewish!!". (She is an atheist who lived a Jewish life out of respect for my dad) The second reason I left Solomon Schecter was because I was terribly bullied.... physically and verbally. I was always a short chubby girl and my dad was a brown skinned Sephardic immigrant. I was bullied because of my weight (just how G-d made me!) and my dad's identities. After the physical bullying started, I was immediately put into public school. I was emotionally and verbally abused there for years and years but not physically. I was an excellent student with a passion for theater, poetry, and literature. I wish I had gone to more diverse schools where not everyone was white and Christian. I loved going to college in a huge east coast city where I could finally meet people of different races, cultures, and religions. I majored in Anthropology and my career involves working with immigrants.
The more I watch of your channel I’m like man….what an inspiration! Your journey to conversion must not have been easy, I’m sure you had eye rollers or some who questioned your decision, but you decided to pursue the life that felt true to you and you met your husband through that journey, and now have 4 awesome kids, and I love love love this version of not micromanaging your kids and how you educate them! This encourages me to continue going after my own dreams and goals too and live the life that I want. Love this glimpse into your life, thanks for taking the time to show us. Much love and greetings from a fellow Texan! ❤️
Awesome! I hs my 3 who are now in 20s / 30s and did it your way, with a co-op for a few years added in, and they have gone on to excel both academically, in their own businesses, and most important to me, their characters and personalities.
congratulations! this is the most precious gift a parent can get to his/her child,no money can buy this wonderful education which let self confident children ready to take life as it comes!!The best decision ever made!!
I have been homeschooling for (cough, cough!) 30 years 😉. I pretty much didn’t do all the things you mentioned either. I don’t regret it! I am so glad I did it the way I did and have the relationship with my adult children that I do. We are a very close, Christian family and I attribute a lot of that to the relationships built through spending time together all through their lives. God bless you on your journey ❤️
The no library was a definite shocker but I completely understand. Little ones in the library are not always a good combination, plus if you have your own home library it’s easier to work through that. This was way more encouraging than I thought it was going to be, thanks so much for sharing. It’s easy to forget that we have the freedom to make our homeschool our own.
I am so glad you found it encouraging!!! That was my goal :) It's definitely hard sometimes to feel like the lone homeschooler who does X, but there is no one right way to homeschool. It's so hard these days to realize that with all the pressure of Pinterest and Instagram. But we are all in this together and we will do amazing homeschooling our kids! Thank you so much for watching and commenting!
I love your attitude on home schooling! Many years have passed since I home schooled my children. I still think that it was one of the greatest gifts I gave my children. I haven't an ounce of regret. My attitude to teaching was very much like yours 😁 If some teaching tool I bought wasn't working - I nixed it regardless of the money I spent on it! My kids were never graded by me but the state demanded testing at the end of the year. They passed with flying colors but it really had no bearing on our school. Thank you for another great video 👍✌
I homeschooled for 2 years and I never co-oped at all. Guess what? My daughter has made all A’s and B’s her first year of high school. I think the consistency of daily instruction, especially during the first year of Covid gave her a serious advantage.
Chana, I'll be there for Monday, I'm going back to your Home School, make room.... sounds fab. I was once told by a teacher our education starts outside the gates. That's exactly what you are doing. Wonderful start to education. There are so many books out there for children, I love children books 📚 😍. So see you Monday... lol
My life is like living with Rainman. I get you on the library. I made my own here. Plus we have lived in multiple states as well an another country. I was raised among immigrant family. I have learned other languages sink or swim style. I had to. My husband of 2 decades left us. We got this!
I think baby Firefly has put a hold on your co-op idea😁😁 It sounds like your kids are very lucky to have you, as it is clear that you are providing your children with a well thought out, well rounded, and enriching education. And I totally agree that self-care is extremely important.
Yes I enjoy your videos! I think it's amazing that you can nurture all day and go with the flow, creating your own rythm. It seems from the comments of other homeschooling mothers who have done it that your approach is successful. Wishing you your family and everyone health and true happiness!
I wish you were my neighbor! I just started homeschool the year and I want to cry regularly... Thank you for the grace you have given me! I'm so overwhelmed and only 6 weeks in. I've been binge watching your videos so that I can prepare for next week when we start up again (on a week long break...).You've given me such great ideas and I'm totally borrowing them! I love your idea for a co-op... I don't want all the work but fun and none offer that. The co-op would be just for friendship in my humble opinion. I was watching your other video and saw you go for daily walks in the morning... Im going to try to incorporate that although we live in Houston, Texas and the heat and humidity is definitely an issue. Thank you for your videos as they are calming me down. God placed you on this platform for me to find as I'm struggling to find my footing. You're a BLESSING to all us new homeschool mamas trying to figure this out and wanting to pull out our hair. Thank you once again. God Bless
I wish I could give you a big hug! We are five years in and I feel like I’m just now figuring it out. Hang in there though, it’s worth it! Also, we haven’t been for a walk yet either :) It’s too hot and humid here for me right now as well! Do what’s right for you :) I’m so happy to hear that so much you found here has been helpful! You’ve got this!
I home schooled my sons for 8 years when we lived in the Middle East, and it sounds like we did things very much like you do. My sons are adults now and those 8 years were the best of my life so far.
@@MINKYGIRL1 my eldest son is a hydraulics mechanic and my youngest son will graduate university this year as an electrical engineer. They both did very well in school but I don't recall exact exam marks.
My favorite part of homeschooling was the field trips. We did ALOT of them. My son was a hands on kid. Less bookwork and more experience worked for him. Your version of homeschooling and my version is eerily similar. 😊 btw my son is graduated and owns his own business.
I love this! Our oldest is about to start his pre-k journey and we have decided to attempt our rural public school but have homeschool as our back up. this made me feel so much better about even thinking about doing homeschool for our kids, our struggle is figuring out the how to with us both working full time outside of the home.
I’m glad I’m not the only homeschool mom who doesn't have a schedule or a bedtime. Its almost impossible for us to have a set schedule because of my husband’s work schedule. It is different every week and can change with no notice from one day to the next and so anytime hes off, especially if hes off two days in a row we stop whatever we’re doing school wise for family time. This was one of the biggest motivators for us to homeschool.
I love all these no bedtime mamas coming out of the woodwork! I always felt like the only one lol No bedtime was in large part to my husband's schedule too. The kids wanted to stay up to spend more time with him, and how could we say no :) I love how you made family such a priority
My kids are grown up and in The Netherlands homeschooling is not common. But if I had the possibility then I would do it your way. So great to hear you say several times It fit’s for or family or that’s the way it works for our family ❤️❤️ I love that!! It’s not that only one way is the perfect way, you choose the way that fits the best with your family. Love watching your videos and how you inspire people. I love to learn more about different cultures and different religions and your videos are so nice to watch and learn about your way of life. Thanks for sharing Chana and lots of love from The Netherlands 🇳🇱
We also do not take off the same “breaks” as schools around us. We love the flexibility in scheduling stuff. We go year round, and all of my kids would like to graduate at 16 😬 they are 6,8,10, and 14 and I think it’s absolutely possible!
Kids need a lot of sleep, but they usually have a different rhythm than adults do! Later to bed and later back up sounds a-okay to me, they are lucky to have home school!
I read out loud to my sin until he was 18. We read Dickens, Shakespeare, the Brontes, etc. He still loves to read. Sometimes we would find the movie version after we finished a book. Then we would discuss similarities and differences. I miss those days. Enjoy your journey. 💖
Andrea Ruiz thank you so much! That sounds so lovely! We too have enjoyed the movie after a few of our books, it’s such a treat to celebrate with popcorn and movies! I adore that you read that much with your son 💜💜💜 What a great mama!!!
I love that you’re teaching your children to be critical thinkers. I love poetry tea time! Do you entertain guests for poetry tea time? As a retired college teacher I would just encourage you, if you see post secondary education in your kids’ future, to incorporate some structure as you think the kids are ready. For example, I remember several teachers having a problem with a cohort of students who didn’t understand handing assignments in on or before the due date. Turned out the school board had decreed that high school teachers could not penalize students for missing deadlines. Some of these kids failed because of that. So, longer term, when they are ready, introduce some of the skills they will need to succeed in post secondary education. Demanding students observe deadlines is not teachers just being mean. In the lingo of our provincial guidelines, it is an essential employability skill. (I’m in Canada)
I get so much shade for how we homeschool. But I constantly say; “we aren’t doing public school at home, or is our homeschool!” Watching your video made me feel so understood and like I’m not alone! My oldest goes to the library for us because it’s a few blocks away and he’s old enough to go for us IF and when we want anything.
We homeschool very similar and I love that Texas gives us the freedom to do it how ever we want to. We do have a bedtime but it's not a super strict one and it's there mostly so that hubby and I get some time together or time to do our own thing (such as video games for him and i get to read) before we go to bed. We definitely don't have a schedule. I tried that and we were both miserable so now we Starr once we have eaten breakfast and we usually go until lunch time or until my son (he's 6) shows signs that he is just done and anything after that becomes a fight. We don't go to the library much either. I will sometimes look at their events schedule to see if there is anything that sounds interesting but we don't go just to go. I'm always looking for books second hand or I buy books that go along with topics we are learning so we have a decent library of our own. I also don't follow a super planned out curriculum. I chose to use mostly Blossom and Root b/c of how open it is but it does give me a basic guide to follow. Then I add in units I find from Harbor and Sprout and I'm using the free LA and Math from the Good and The Beautiful. We don't do a co-op, mostly b/c it's hard to find a secular one and we aren't Christians. We did sign up for a forest school, Barefoot University, and we have really loved that. My son loves to be outside, he's learning without him really knowing he's learning, he's made and friends and so have I. We are definitely a go with the flow, take breaks as we need/want to, try not to get to stressed about school kind of family.
@jaroffireflies we love it! There are groups all over DFW so there is likely one near y'all. It's a secular organization which I like so we don't have to worry about other beliefs being taught/pushed. Our group in Arlington is a great mix of background, beliefs, homeschool styles and everyone is very accepting. I like that all the kids from small to big do the activities together, I think it's good for kids to learn to be around all different ages. Our group is very laid back and we go with the flow if an activity needs to be rescheduled or if the kids are just having a blast playing in the rain lol. Some groups are a little more strict about the activities, each group is different or course.
@jaroffireflies enrollment ends on June 30th for the session starting at the end of Aug/beginning of Sept. It's a weekly meet through May of next year.
I have been binge watching your vids and it does really facinates me. And this video about home schooling ur kids inspired me alot...Ur way of explaining things can be really interesting!! Love from shillong 😊
Nikki Wickham I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for watching and commenting! I’m a little jealous that y’all love the library 😂 I wish my kids would actually explore the books instead of camping out in front of the iPads our library sets out 🤷🏼♀️ Maybe one day lol
Well I either homeschool right or wrong because we don't do all these things too!! And our 13yr old daughter of bright, curious, well spoken and always on to her next project!! So I think we've done well!! I love she's become a self motivated learning she wants to learn and develop concepts.
I say you’re doing it right no matter how you’re doing it! We all have our own way to do things :) that’s the joy of homeschooling! Your daughter sounds fantastic so you’re obviously rocking this homeschool thing :)
Listening to this in spurts so I still have more to go and I'm sure I'll comment more. We also have no bedtime, no schedule lol!! This is so validating! I totally understand the library chaos. Sometimes my kids tantrum from one end to the next lol. :)
JewishEducationatHome hooray for validation!!!! We can all homeschool in our own way and all be RIGHT! But I love it when I find my people 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 Oh my gosh the library! All my kids wanted to do at the library was use the iPads 😂😂😂 I was like “but the books!!! The books!”
When I look back on my children’s school life I wish I could have been able to homeschool. It’s seems so much better than a rigid schedule with focus on grades. It seems you are able to focus on activities that’s important to learn, reading, math etc. children don’t have the same stresses as they would in regular school.
Hi Chana. I'm a Christian, but I've followed your channel with great interest for the past several months. Just by chance I also recently discovered that I live in your area. Your suggestion of having weekly checklists and inbuilt flexibility truly resonated with me. I am disabled, as is my significant other. As a result, we often cannot accomplish our goals and plans as fast as we would ideally prefer. That realization would often leave us feeling depressed and under accomplished, which is why the notion of having more room to be flexible will help us both to develop the motivation to press on and keep trying. The pandemic and its effects have made some things even more difficult, since we are both at very high risk for complications from the virus should either one of us get sick. Because of our health complications and other factors, it isn't unusual up find us in bed by 11 pm one night and up past 3 am the next, so holding ourselves to "daily' goals and tasks is usually unrealistic; as such, I think taking stock of one's progress on a weekly basis and holding accountable to that instead is a better solution. Thank you; I don't think I realized how much the feelings of being unable to do as much as we wanted to were weighing on us (me especially). The weekly frame of reference should help us a lot, and I don't think I realized just how much I needed to shift my way of thinking. May your family be blessed with love, health, safety, strength, and prosperity now and always.
I love this video. As someone who has a teaching credential, this was so refreshing! My kids are grown, but they did not thrive in a traditional school setting. If I were going to home school, this is exactly how I would do it. I love the fact that it's so organic. Your kids will, most likely, enjoy learning way more than those in traditional school. AND I believe they will learn more. With all the horrible things going on in the public school system right now, I am so glad my kids are grown; otherwise, I would have to pull them out. One final comment I'll make is that your kids don't have to wear masks. I know this is a controversial subject, but forcing children to cover their faces is child abuse, imho. Kudos to you, for following your heart, listening to you kids, and not stressing out over a schedule.
@@jaroffireflies You are SO welcome. You put so much work into your videos, you deserve the kudos. I get tired just watching them! HA! I love your strength of conviction, and your positive outlook on life. When you say you're an introvert, I totally 'get' it, because I am one too. Keep up the good work : )
I have had 0 real life exposure to homeschool, don't plan it for my future, and it's not really a thing in my country (I THINK it's only allowed for kids who cannot go to school for medical reasons, if they're healthy they should go to a regular school), but I love the way you talk about your experience. It did remind me a lot of waldorf pedagogy and I wonder wether if you're familiar with it.
Oh yes! I love a lot of Waldorf ideas! I thought I’d start out that way and have made many a Waldorf doll, but as it turns out it wasn’t a good fit for our family so we have opted for Charlotte Mason instead which is working wonderfully for us :)
I homeschooled our youngest from eighth grade through junior year of high school. He worked on a project for senior year and, as far as I'm concerned, is done with school. He's decided he's done too but also wants to complete the GED. Apparently, a diploma from Mom isn't the same. 😄 I had a hard time starting homeschooling but I had a wonderful friend who told me exactly what you just outlined. Forget the school part, focus on the home. If the curriculum isn't working for you - stop and change it. I asked if she was sure about that - it didn't seem right. LOL Thanks for reinforcing to all the new homeschoolers out there! I will say he learned so much more being homeschooled than he did in traditional school. We were heading to my mom's one day because some creosote oil has spilled in her garage and we were going to move a dolly it had ruined. I told my son what happened and he asked why grandma had creosote oil - she doesn't have railroad ties. ?? How did you know what the oil was for? "You see, Mom, this is the great thing about homeschooling... I actually learn something and then, whoa, I retain it." That last bit was sassy, let me tell you. LOL
We do not go to the library either. We have tons of books in our home and if we want new ones, we buy them so we have them forever. We don’t co-op either. Our local one is for those using a specific curriculum that we don’t use.
I know nothing about homeschooling so this is really interesting. Will you homeschool all through high school? How do they apply for colleges? That may be a dumb question, but will they have all the learning objectives to pass an ACT or SAT? I really admire how into it you are.
We plan to homeschool as long as it works for our family :) As far as SAT and ACT, well we are a long way off from that. But in general, homeschooled kids who want to go to college study for those tests just like kids in brick and mortar schools, and do just fine. :) and Thanks, I super love it :)
I don’t homeschool because my twins are 18 months but a couple of UA-camrs I follow have high schoolers and the parents have to keep transcripts for what they’ve done in high school and I think each state has requirements for what needs covered but the homemade transcripts are what homeschoolers use to apply for college, similar to regular students.
So interesting , I thought all your points would be about educational stuff but it sounds like a lot of the stuff you don't do relates to homeschool 'culture' in America. Here in Australia homeschooling is still on the fringes (though I've read since covid lockdown forced at home learning here now there's increasing numbers switching to permanent homeschooling). It sounds like you really enjoy the freedom and autonomy to teach your children in a way that matches your family's unique identity and needs. It's beautiful you can do that and enjoy your kids in the process!
I’m a retired teacher ( I retired early when we moved to Switzerland). I agree with your goals of being thinkers, communicators. To be excited about what they’re learning. But the bedtime? Oh that wouldn’t work for me. My son is now 34. I was a single mum and started nurse education when w He was 18 months. Shifts meant scheduled bedtime was harder but I made it work. I needed that time in the evening to collapse and recover
I'm a night owl too. It's actually midnight right now. My mom would let us sleep in as late as we wanted on weekends and summer break. My grandma on my mom's side was also a night owl, I think I took after her. We don't know what she did, this was definitely pre-internet. Actually if it weren't for my one medication I might miss a lot of sleep.
Taking little kids to the library is hard! I'm always trying to find a time that works with multiple nap schedules and around meals but at least one kid always ends up cranky and/or crying 😥
The closest we are to a co-op is that one of my daughters was invited to a friend’s who also homeschools for an American Girl History Book Club where she is 1 of 4 girls.
A lot of your list surprises me lol. I love your channel and learning about your way of life. Can I ask what will happen if your children want to go to a public school? Or if they get a job that’s outside of your community?
My kids are welcome to get any job they would like. Most people I know do now work “within the community” like as a rabbi or at the school etc. Most people I know work in the medical field, at law firms, real estate, etc.
I loved all this. # 10 was definitely a great reminder. It seems we have a very similar approach...I'm a traditional catholic mama to 9 (soon 10) who loves Charlotte Mason.
I am so glad you enjoyed this!!! Thank you so much for watching and commenting :) Your family sounds beautiful!!! I always wanted a large family!!! And I was raised Catholic too! I have only recently discovered that Charlotte Mason is my jam, and only after I realized I was basically already doing it lolol Funny how life works like that sometimes isn't it :)
ERinaa I am! And I do! It’s just a matter of finding time to film it. I can’t get a sitter these days, and with three small kiddos finding time to film that has been hard. But I’m working on it!
@@jaroffireflies Amazing! I would be so interested in hearing about that! Plus I really love your homeschool videos as I have a toddler who I will be homeschooling, so I will be subscribing!
One other thing, because my daughter was going to be going to a traditional high school this year, I felt that I had to be much more structured. Still though, I think, based on her grades in a traditional setting, I did pretty well.
I think teaching kids to think critically is the foundation of education, and it is not something that too many traditional schools focus on. Asking kids to discuss the content of a book, or as in the example you gave about how it would feel to live in ancient Rome, what would be good and what wouldn't, opens the imagination to knowledge that memorizing names and dates would not. As for the surprising thing, I see that your kids are still very young but as they get older, IMO they might need to have some structure. It's wonderful to have that freedom in homeschooling but there might be outside classes or opportunities that do have structure.
are there other Jewish homeschoolers in your neighbourhood? when it’s safe to do, maybe have a weekly homeschool group where the kids and parents meet up and homeschool together and you can take turns doing lessons and projects. have one parent teach math, another one teach history, etc. it would be cool to see how another parent teaches a lesson and how they interact with the kids.
There really aren't any other jewish homeschoolers in my neighborhood (YET lol). But I have plenty of friends who homeschool and we have built a lovely community through our wild+free group. I am happy with how things are. Though those extracurricular activities would be so nice for social and fun!!!
Sounds pretty great to me - will you continue through High school ( I know I’m thinking way ahead ) I personally hate keeping a rigid schedule however I’m not sure I would have been a good organizer ( obviously I’m past that stage )
I don't have children I have a question about homeschooling though. I like that home schooled children aren't exposed to information they aren't ready for and can linger on a subject until they truly understand. My question is "is there any loss of social skills or coping with peer pressure?" Children are exposed to a lot unfortunately, is it harmful to development to shield them from so much? I think the exposure to everything is harmful. I wish I could sit and have a conversation with you. I feel you understand a real interest without judgement and would talk to me without getting angry.
My kids are very social. Think about it like this, kids are school are told all day to sit still and stop talking to their neighbor. Whereas my kids are all day having conversations with me and their friends and their friends siblings and parents and the zookeeper and the store clerk and countless other people. Homeschool kids are amazingly socialized :)
@@jaroffireflies I never thought of that, thank-you. Those interactions are most likely more advantageous than recess talk. It is also exposure to people outside the manipulated and regulated confines of "school". Thanks for the answer.
@@jaroffireflies oh yes for sure lol. Motherhood forced me to let go and surrender to my kiddo's rhythm vs trying to force an unnatural schedule. way easier!
Interesting pattern-- the open no schedule schooling part. I am wondering. As the kids enter the world of jobs, colleges, business, everyday interaction w the vast most of their culture which has been raised in a structure of schedules, time sensitive projects, etc, how will they both identify with and be able to interface with such a different experience? 1 6 24 ... I'm fairly new to this channel and so first seeing this podcast...😉💕
Hello and thank you for your question! Not having a rigid schedule allows us to have the comfort of home alongside the thrill of learning. We naturally fall into a rhythm. My kids know they have certain obligations and responsibilities each day, and they have to schedule themselves to get those things done. It teaches them a lot more real life skills them me giving them a schedule ❤️
It's basically a group of homeschoolers and their parents who get together to form classes. The parents all have jobs like teaching or assisting or planning or paperwork etc so basically everyone is pitching in to give the children a classroom experience :)
Hello Chana, book learning is educational but I feel that life lessons are more important and incorporate maths, English literacy, and family values. Learning SHOULD be fun for children or else they will be put off and resistant to it.
I like that you have a very clear idea of what you are trying to achieve through homeschooling. It would be a better world if mainstream education also encouraged critical thought. But, to be honest, I don't know enough to comment about homeschooling in general. In fact, I'm pretty ignorant about it. However, I am a teacher...of sorts...because I teach ESL (English as a Second Language). Is it safe to assume that you see your children going through mainstream education at some point in the future? If that is the case, then my only comment would be to ensure that they become competent at using a computer. They could make great use of their critical minds while gathering information on the internet!
In addition to homeschooling your children in general education, do you also teach them the Torah or does your husband handle that end of their education? You might’ve done a video on it, I really have not looked at your list, I just watch what pops up on my homepage unless you happen to mention particular video, so please excuse me asking if you have done a video on your children’s religious education.
Hi Sarah! Thank you so much for watching! I have two videos where I go over our curriculum choices and how we do Judaics and what I’ve bought to helps us: ua-cam.com/video/EHJz-qyY5Vw/v-deo.html and ua-cam.com/video/1kj5YwDYe2w/v-deo.html
This is SO much us! Except that we are Liberal rather than Orthodox - what one of our rabbis calls ‘Liberal Frum’ - observant, practising Liberal Jews with a lot of emphasis on our children’s Jewish education. Loving the channel :-)
Emma Sadeghi home libraries rock!!! I’m curious what you mean about being liberal frum, would you mind elaborating? Do you mean liberal as in political views? Genuinely curious :) We have a lot of liberal (politically) religious Jews in my neighborhood. We are all a little out of the box around here in our own way lol Thank you so much for watching and commenting! I’m so glad you are enjoying the channel!
Liberal Judaism is a Jewish movement here in the UK. Similar to Reform here (the two movements share a rabbinical college)... although UK Reform is probably closer to US Conservative. So egalitarian, patrilineal descent is recognised, not fully shomer shabbat or kashrut (but many of us do have our own version). But the preconception often is that Reform = signed up but not really practicing, whereas we keep Shabbat and the festivals in our way, go to services every week, teach our kids Hebrew and are generally really observant...just not in an Orthodox way :-)
I did not grade my daughter either. I did hold back math. She was fast in reading and very delayed in math. So 10th language arts and 2nd grade math again was a thing😂 but thats ok❤
Thank you for your fast response. What are subjects include in you curriculum. Just of curiosity. My kids are going to public school ages from 7 years old to college level.
I cover that all in this video: ua-cam.com/video/RvBINiWHo0k/v-deo.html I have a homeschool playlist as well that may answer more of your questions if I wasn't;t clear in that video: ua-cam.com/play/PLqxZU_RTv3pvPu--yWZOCygxii8hjK75A.html
Thank you so much! My husband and I met at a Shabbat dinner :) It’s a fun story that we tell often, I need to include it in a video sometime though! So glad you are enjoying my channel! Thank you for watching! 💜
As the children get older, do you think there will be any subject that you're not familiar with or don't care for? How will you handle this? For me, my subject was science. I did not have a lot of science education during elementary school, so I always struggled with it in high school.
skipping art projects?! (clutches pearls) well i never! no schedules?! but how do you back to school shop?! i think you have an awesome system going! art projects aside 😉
@@jaroffireflies i had years in my education where i had several art classes a day, and then some years i did not have any. i am very much a fan of making your education your own. i do believe that kids who are given the responsibility of their education just do light years better. so go y'all!
@@bluemayim I totally agree :) Every year I sit down with my kids and listen to them about how things are going and what they liked and didn’t like so we can figure out adjustments:)
@@jaroffireflies i started out in private schools. kindergarten was a nightmare that still freaks me out 45 years later! hello dyslexia...should have failed but i guess they hoped i just had a slow start or something. the next few years were not much better and an undiagnosed hearing disorder began to manifest however when i said i could not hear i was told i just wasn't paying attention. later on down the line, having been held back a year and all...i loved math and always wanted something more challenging. i had dreams of going through high school and taking Calculus, Geometry, Trigonometry. i told so many teachers that i was bored, wasn't challenged, and wanted more and they all brushed it off and told me i was not ready. i am a big fan of homeschooling , glad my parents didn't do it with me, but i am a big fan of it! you punk rock in my book!
@@bluemayim wow ya that’s what I love about homeschool too. I can have a kid who can’t read but is doing 2nd grade math (my daughter) or an insatiable reader who is years beyond his reading level but struggles with math so much (my older son) but I can meet them both exactly where they are at :) I’m so sorry you had those experiences in school. That’s the problem with big box education. We just aren’t all the same.
Definitely! I love everything we are using for my second grade son. You can see the curriculum choices I picked for him here: ua-cam.com/video/EHJz-qyY5Vw/v-deo.html . And for PreK I love Blossom and Root. They have two pre-K levels to choose from. I have done both with my daughter. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Not to sound rude but if you don't stick to they curriculum and structure how will the pass exams if they haven't learnt the knowledge of subjects and how will they learn routines of being on time and waking up at an appropriate time etc. This is a genuine question and in no way meant as judgemental or criticism so I do apologise if for any reason my question comes across that way. Thank you 😊
They don’t have to pass exams :) They will learn what they need to learn in their own time :) It all works out. Thank you for the kind way you asked your questions 💜 Our curriculum is so vastly different from what is taught in public schools to start with.
@@jaroffireflies Thank you so much for replying. I would like to Homeschool my 2 Boy's but am scared I will set them up for failure. I have found your videos really positive and fascinating. Thank you for sharing and thank you for understanding my questions was from a genuine place with no offence intended. 🙂
@@MINKYGIRL1 check out the Brave Writer (Julie Bogart). She has a UA-cam channel and a book called The Brave Learner. I find her stuff very inspirational and helpful for homeschooling
Where I'm from, before parents can be granted a licence to home-school their children, they need to undertake to follow the set state-based (government-provided) curriculum, using the stated set textbooks, & completing tests/exams/gradings at the required stages. If parents do not do this, they may lose their licence to home-school & they may have to send their child to a local government school. Does your government provide you with a set curriculum which, as a home-schooling parent , you need to follow & have your children complete gradings at the required stages, to prove they are receiving an adequate education? Or can you chose to just educate your children the way you see, as being appropriate?
Oh wow that’s very different from how things are here! We have the freedom to educate our children as we see fit in Texas, with no testing or government oversight.
Im crazy...i like structure and following curricula. Home schooling sounds like a nightmare to me. #please don't kill me for feeling so, its just my opinion/perception....not scientific at all
What surprised you the most on my list? 😁😁😁
Jar of Fireflies definitely no bedtime 😂😂glad it works for your children tho :)))
Селия Бенсон 😂😂😂 I always forget how shocking that one is to pretty much everyone 😂😂😂 It totally works for us though!
No bedtimes
@@saraiaddy6918 It surprises a lot of people :) But it totally works for us!
No library?! We are there all the time. The overdrive app let's you borrow and download books. It's great when we are on the road :)
“The whole world is your classroom”.. Love that!!
It’s a way of life!
It is so refreshing to see that you understand the learning concept of exposure and not skill and drill! Bravo💕
As a teacher, I wish we didn’t have to give grades! I also like to emphasize critical thinking/creativity versus rote memorization. I love that you also do this!
Thank you so much! That means a lot coming from a professional 💜
We had too many hard projects, and too much homework on top of a full day of learning.
I did not do grades. If they did something wrong, we went back over it. Then they corrected the paper and maybe we added some additional work to reinforce that task.
@@aspenenglish4976 exactly!
As a Jewish educator this was fascinating.
One of the reasons my parents took me out of private Jewish school (Solomon Schecter) was because I came home at 6 years old and told my mom "I can't play with you because you aren't really Jewish!!". (She is an atheist who lived a Jewish life out of respect for my dad)
The second reason I left Solomon Schecter was because I was terribly bullied.... physically and verbally. I was always a short chubby girl and my dad was a brown skinned Sephardic immigrant. I was bullied because of my weight (just how G-d made me!) and my dad's identities. After the physical bullying started, I was immediately put into public school. I was emotionally and verbally abused there for years and years but not physically. I was an excellent student with a passion for theater, poetry, and literature. I wish I had gone to more diverse schools where not everyone was white and Christian. I loved going to college in a huge east coast city where I could finally meet people of different races, cultures, and religions.
I majored in Anthropology and my career involves working with immigrants.
Thank you for sharing your story!
The more I watch of your channel I’m like man….what an inspiration! Your journey to conversion must not have been easy, I’m sure you had eye rollers or some who questioned your decision, but you decided to pursue the life that felt true to you and you met your husband through that journey, and now have 4 awesome kids, and I love love love this version of not micromanaging your kids and how you educate them! This encourages me to continue going after my own dreams and goals too and live the life that I want. Love this glimpse into your life, thanks for taking the time to show us. Much love and greetings from a fellow Texan! ❤️
Thank you Ana!
Awesome! I hs my 3 who are now in 20s / 30s and did it your way, with a co-op for a few years added in, and they have gone on to excel both academically, in their own businesses, and most important to me, their characters and personalities.
That is amazing!
congratulations! this is the most precious gift a parent can get to his/her child,no money can buy this wonderful education which let self confident children ready to take life as it comes!!The best decision ever made!!
I have been homeschooling for (cough, cough!) 30 years 😉. I pretty much didn’t do all the things you mentioned either. I don’t regret it! I am so glad I did it the way I did and have the relationship with my adult children that I do. We are a very close, Christian family and I attribute a lot of that to the relationships built through spending time together all through their lives. God bless you on your journey ❤️
Thank you so much! I appreciate your encouraging comment!
The no library was a definite shocker but I completely understand. Little ones in the library are not always a good combination, plus if you have your own home library it’s easier to work through that. This was way more encouraging than I thought it was going to be, thanks so much for sharing. It’s easy to forget that we have the freedom to make our homeschool our own.
I am so glad you found it encouraging!!! That was my goal :) It's definitely hard sometimes to feel like the lone homeschooler who does X, but there is no one right way to homeschool. It's so hard these days to realize that with all the pressure of Pinterest and Instagram. But we are all in this together and we will do amazing homeschooling our kids! Thank you so much for watching and commenting!
I love your attitude on home schooling! Many years have passed since I home schooled my children. I still think that it was one of the greatest gifts I gave my children. I haven't an ounce of regret.
My attitude to teaching was very much like yours 😁 If some teaching tool I bought wasn't working - I nixed it regardless of the money I spent on it! My kids were never graded by me but the state demanded testing at the end of the year. They passed with flying colors but it really had no bearing on our school.
Thank you for another great video 👍✌
Thank you! And thank you for sharing about your homeschooling experience! So fun!
I homeschooled for 2 years and I never co-oped at all. Guess what? My daughter has made all A’s and B’s her first year of high school. I think the consistency of daily instruction, especially during the first year of Covid gave her a serious advantage.
You sound like an awesome mom and homeschool mom!
Yes, I'd love to see a video of 10 things you DO do! Thanks for this video!
4yoyou I’m so glad you enjoyed this one!!! I just put the 10 Things I Do on my calendar! So be on the lookout for that video in a few weeks ❤️
Chana, I'll be there for Monday, I'm going back to your Home School, make room.... sounds fab. I was once told by a teacher our education starts outside the gates. That's exactly what you are doing. Wonderful start to education.
There are so many books out there for children, I love children books 📚 😍.
So see you Monday... lol
I have a great collection of children’s books now :) I love how imaginative they all are!
My life is like living with Rainman. I get you on the library. I made my own here. Plus we have lived in multiple states as well an another country. I was raised among immigrant family. I have learned other languages sink or swim style. I had to. My husband of 2 decades left us. We got this!
I think baby Firefly has put a hold on your co-op idea😁😁 It sounds like your kids are very lucky to have you, as it is clear that you are providing your children with a well thought out, well rounded, and enriching education. And I totally agree that self-care is extremely important.
Thank you 😊
We used to go to the library often but at 12 my daughter said she was done. So we have a massive home library and she loves it❤📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚
Yes I enjoy your videos! I think it's amazing that you can nurture all day and go with the flow, creating your own rythm. It seems from the comments of other homeschooling mothers who have done it that your approach is successful. Wishing you your family and everyone health and true happiness!
Thank you so very much 💜💜💜
I wish you were my neighbor! I just started homeschool the year and I want to cry regularly... Thank you for the grace you have given me! I'm so overwhelmed and only 6 weeks in. I've been binge watching your videos so that I can prepare for next week when we start up again (on a week long break...).You've given me such great ideas and I'm totally borrowing them! I love your idea for a co-op... I don't want all the work but fun and none offer that. The co-op would be just for friendship in my humble opinion. I was watching your other video and saw you go for daily walks in the morning... Im going to try to incorporate that although we live in Houston, Texas and the heat and humidity is definitely an issue. Thank you for your videos as they are calming me down. God placed you on this platform for me to find as I'm struggling to find my footing. You're a BLESSING to all us new homeschool mamas trying to figure this out and wanting to pull out our hair. Thank you once again. God Bless
I wish I could give you a big hug! We are five years in and I feel like I’m just now figuring it out. Hang in there though, it’s worth it! Also, we haven’t been for a walk yet either :) It’s too hot and humid here for me right now as well! Do what’s right for you :) I’m so happy to hear that so much you found here has been helpful! You’ve got this!
You’ve unlocked the treasure chest of what’s most important ❤️being able to think,💙asking questions💚love of reading
😊😊😊 we love homeschooling!
I home schooled my sons for 8 years when we lived in the Middle East, and it sounds like we did things very much like you do. My sons are adults now and those 8 years were the best of my life so far.
Amazing! Thank you for sharing!
What are your Children's careers now? What marks did they get on their exams?
@@MINKYGIRL1 my eldest son is a hydraulics mechanic and my youngest son will graduate university this year as an electrical engineer. They both did very well in school but I don't recall exact exam marks.
My favorite part of homeschooling was the field trips. We did ALOT of them. My son was a hands on kid. Less bookwork and more experience worked for him. Your version of homeschooling and my version is eerily similar. 😊 btw my son is graduated and owns his own business.
Love that! Especially that your son is now an entrepreneur! That’s my goal for my kids too :)
I love this! Our oldest is about to start his pre-k journey and we have decided to attempt our rural public school but have homeschool as our back up. this made me feel so much better about even thinking about doing homeschool for our kids, our struggle is figuring out the how to with us both working full time outside of the home.
I’m glad I’m not the only homeschool mom who doesn't have a schedule or a bedtime. Its almost impossible for us to have a set schedule because of my husband’s work schedule. It is different every week and can change with no notice from one day to the next and so anytime hes off, especially if hes off two days in a row we stop whatever we’re doing school wise for family time. This was one of the biggest motivators for us to homeschool.
I love all these no bedtime mamas coming out of the woodwork! I always felt like the only one lol No bedtime was in large part to my husband's schedule too. The kids wanted to stay up to spend more time with him, and how could we say no :) I love how you made family such a priority
We had no classroom. I bought a special wooden desk and chair set that would adjust to grow with her and where ever that was placed we did school😊
My kids are grown up and in The Netherlands homeschooling is not common. But if I had the possibility then I would do it your way. So great to hear you say several times It fit’s for or family or that’s the way it works for our family ❤️❤️ I love that!! It’s not that only one way is the perfect way, you choose the way that fits the best with your family. Love watching your videos and how you inspire people. I love to learn more about different cultures and different religions and your videos are so nice to watch and learn about your way of life. Thanks for sharing Chana and lots of love from The Netherlands 🇳🇱
We also do not take off the same “breaks” as schools around us. We love the flexibility in scheduling stuff. We go year round, and all of my kids would like to graduate at 16 😬 they are 6,8,10, and 14 and I think it’s absolutely possible!
Kids need a lot of sleep, but they usually have a different rhythm than adults do! Later to bed and later back up sounds a-okay to me, they are lucky to have home school!
I read out loud to my sin until he was 18. We read Dickens, Shakespeare, the Brontes, etc. He still loves to read. Sometimes we would find the movie version after we finished a book. Then we would discuss similarities and differences. I miss those days. Enjoy your journey. 💖
Andrea Ruiz thank you so much! That sounds so lovely! We too have enjoyed the movie after a few of our books, it’s such a treat to celebrate with popcorn and movies! I adore that you read that much with your son 💜💜💜 What a great mama!!!
I love that you’re teaching your children to be critical thinkers. I love poetry tea time! Do you entertain guests for poetry tea time?
As a retired college teacher I would just encourage you, if you see post secondary education in your kids’ future, to incorporate some structure as you think the kids are ready. For example, I remember several teachers having a problem with a cohort of students who didn’t understand handing assignments in on or before the due date. Turned out the school board had decreed that high school teachers could not penalize students for missing deadlines. Some of these kids failed because of that. So, longer term, when they are ready, introduce some of the skills they will need to succeed in post secondary education. Demanding students observe deadlines is not teachers just being mean. In the lingo of our provincial guidelines, it is an essential employability skill. (I’m in Canada)
I get so much shade for how we homeschool. But I constantly say; “we aren’t doing public school at home, or is our homeschool!” Watching your video made me feel so understood and like I’m not alone! My oldest goes to the library for us because it’s a few blocks away and he’s old enough to go for us IF and when we want anything.
We homeschool very similar and I love that Texas gives us the freedom to do it how ever we want to. We do have a bedtime but it's not a super strict one and it's there mostly so that hubby and I get some time together or time to do our own thing (such as video games for him and i get to read) before we go to bed.
We definitely don't have a schedule. I tried that and we were both miserable so now we Starr once we have eaten breakfast and we usually go until lunch time or until my son (he's 6) shows signs that he is just done and anything after that becomes a fight.
We don't go to the library much either. I will sometimes look at their events schedule to see if there is anything that sounds interesting but we don't go just to go. I'm always looking for books second hand or I buy books that go along with topics we are learning so we have a decent library of our own. I also don't follow a super planned out curriculum. I chose to use mostly Blossom and Root b/c of how open it is but it does give me a basic guide to follow. Then I add in units I find from Harbor and Sprout and I'm using the free LA and Math from the Good and The Beautiful.
We don't do a co-op, mostly b/c it's hard to find a secular one and we aren't Christians. We did sign up for a forest school, Barefoot University, and we have really loved that. My son loves to be outside, he's learning without him really knowing he's learning, he's made and friends and so have I.
We are definitely a go with the flow, take breaks as we need/want to, try not to get to stressed about school kind of family.
How do you like Barefoot University? I’ve not heard of that but it looks really cool! And definitely something we might be interested in.
@jaroffireflies we love it! There are groups all over DFW so there is likely one near y'all. It's a secular organization which I like so we don't have to worry about other beliefs being taught/pushed. Our group in Arlington is a great mix of background, beliefs, homeschool styles and everyone is very accepting. I like that all the kids from small to big do the activities together, I think it's good for kids to learn to be around all different ages. Our group is very laid back and we go with the flow if an activity needs to be rescheduled or if the kids are just having a blast playing in the rain lol. Some groups are a little more strict about the activities, each group is different or course.
It sounds lovely! I was checking out their website and may try to check out the group nearest me :)
@jaroffireflies enrollment ends on June 30th for the session starting at the end of Aug/beginning of Sept. It's a weekly meet through May of next year.
I am a retired teacher. Your way sounds so natural and I love it. Blessings.
I have been binge watching your vids and it does really facinates me. And this video about home schooling ur kids inspired me alot...Ur way of explaining things can be really interesting!! Love from shillong 😊
Thank you so much for your kind words! I really appreciate you and I’m so glad you’re here!
I homeschooled my son and loved it! It be was so awesome to be able to guide his education and we had lots of fun!
Love that! We adore homeschooling:)
I love this so much! Very encouraging for when we start our homeschool journey.
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you so much for watching and commenting 💕 Enjoy your journey! So exciting!
All of this is us except the no library thing, we're library obsessed!!! Love the video!
Nikki Wickham I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for watching and commenting! I’m a little jealous that y’all love the library 😂 I wish my kids would actually explore the books instead of camping out in front of the iPads our library sets out 🤷🏼♀️ Maybe one day lol
Well I either homeschool right or wrong because we don't do all these things too!! And our 13yr old daughter of bright, curious, well spoken and always on to her next project!! So I think we've done well!! I love she's become a self motivated learning she wants to learn and develop concepts.
I say you’re doing it right no matter how you’re doing it! We all have our own way to do things :) that’s the joy of homeschooling! Your daughter sounds fantastic so you’re obviously rocking this homeschool thing :)
Listening to this in spurts so I still have more to go and I'm sure I'll comment more. We also have no bedtime, no schedule lol!! This is so validating! I totally understand the library chaos. Sometimes my kids tantrum from one end to the next lol. :)
JewishEducationatHome hooray for validation!!!! We can all homeschool in our own way and all be RIGHT! But I love it when I find my people 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 Oh my gosh the library! All my kids wanted to do at the library was use the iPads 😂😂😂 I was like “but the books!!! The books!”
When I look back on my children’s school life I wish I could have been able to homeschool. It’s seems so much better than a rigid schedule with focus on grades. It seems you are able to focus on activities that’s important to learn, reading, math etc. children don’t have the same stresses as they would in regular school.
Bravo mom! My kiddo is homeschooling and it is the BEST!
Hooray for homeschooling!
Hi Chana. I'm a Christian, but I've followed your channel with great interest for the past several months. Just by chance I also recently discovered that I live in your area. Your suggestion of having weekly checklists and inbuilt flexibility truly resonated with me. I am disabled, as is my significant other. As a result, we often cannot accomplish our goals and plans as fast as we would ideally prefer. That realization would often leave us feeling depressed and under accomplished, which is why the notion of having more room to be flexible will help us both to develop the motivation to press on and keep trying. The pandemic and its effects have made some things even more difficult, since we are both at very high risk for complications from the virus should either one of us get sick. Because of our health complications and other factors, it isn't unusual up find us in bed by 11 pm one night and up past 3 am the next, so holding ourselves to "daily' goals and tasks is usually unrealistic; as such, I think taking stock of one's progress on a weekly basis and holding accountable to that instead is a better solution. Thank you; I don't think I realized how much the feelings of being unable to do as much as we wanted to were weighing on us (me especially). The weekly frame of reference should help us a lot, and I don't think I realized just how much I needed to shift my way of thinking. May your family be blessed with love, health, safety, strength, and prosperity now and always.
I’m so very glad that was helpful for you! You’re so kind to take the time to tell me :) thank you!
Reminds me of Montessori 💙. But I loved the library as a child.
You are amazing! ♥️
I love this video. As someone who has a teaching credential, this was so refreshing! My kids are grown, but they did not thrive in a traditional school setting. If I were going to home school, this is exactly how I would do it. I love the fact that it's so organic. Your kids will, most likely, enjoy learning way more than those in traditional school. AND I believe they will learn more. With all the horrible things going on in the public school system right now, I am so glad my kids are grown; otherwise, I would have to pull them out. One final comment I'll make is that your kids don't have to wear masks. I know this is a controversial subject, but forcing children to cover their faces is child abuse, imho. Kudos to you, for following your heart, listening to you kids, and not stressing out over a schedule.
Thank you so much Ann!
@@jaroffireflies You are SO welcome. You put so much work into your videos, you deserve the kudos. I get tired just watching them! HA! I love your strength of conviction, and your positive outlook on life. When you say you're an introvert, I totally 'get' it, because I am one too. Keep up the good work : )
@@akp0226 💖💖💖 Thank you! You made my day!
I have had 0 real life exposure to homeschool, don't plan it for my future, and it's not really a thing in my country (I THINK it's only allowed for kids who cannot go to school for medical reasons, if they're healthy they should go to a regular school), but I love the way you talk about your experience. It did remind me a lot of waldorf pedagogy and I wonder wether if you're familiar with it.
Oh yes! I love a lot of Waldorf ideas! I thought I’d start out that way and have made many a Waldorf doll, but as it turns out it wasn’t a good fit for our family so we have opted for Charlotte Mason instead which is working wonderfully for us :)
I homeschooled our youngest from eighth grade through junior year of high school. He worked on a project for senior year and, as far as I'm concerned, is done with school. He's decided he's done too but also wants to complete the GED. Apparently, a diploma from Mom isn't the same. 😄 I had a hard time starting homeschooling but I had a wonderful friend who told me exactly what you just outlined. Forget the school part, focus on the home. If the curriculum isn't working for you - stop and change it. I asked if she was sure about that - it didn't seem right. LOL
Thanks for reinforcing to all the new homeschoolers out there! I will say he learned so much more being homeschooled than he did in traditional school. We were heading to my mom's one day because some creosote oil has spilled in her garage and we were going to move a dolly it had ruined. I told my son what happened and he asked why grandma had creosote oil - she doesn't have railroad ties. ?? How did you know what the oil was for? "You see, Mom, this is the great thing about homeschooling... I actually learn something and then, whoa, I retain it." That last bit was sassy, let me tell you. LOL
I LOVE everything about this comment!!!! Thank you SO MUCH!!!!
@@jaroffireflies You are quite welcome! I so enjoy your videos!
@@sandyb34 😊😊😊
We do not go to the library either. We have tons of books in our home and if we want new ones, we buy them so we have them forever. We don’t co-op either. Our local one is for those using a specific curriculum that we don’t use.
Awesome! Love all of that :)
I love your ways.
This was fascinating! Bravo !
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoyed ❤️
I am considering homeschooling so thank you for sharing
Absolutely! Homeschooling has been an amazing choice for our family :) I’m so excited to keep continuing the journey!
I get so much shade for how we homeschool. But I constantly say; “we aren’t doing public school at home, or is our homeschool!”
I know nothing about homeschooling so this is really interesting. Will you homeschool all through high school? How do they apply for colleges? That may be a dumb question, but will they have all the learning objectives to pass an ACT or SAT? I really admire how into it you are.
We plan to homeschool as long as it works for our family :) As far as SAT and ACT, well we are a long way off from that. But in general, homeschooled kids who want to go to college study for those tests just like kids in brick and mortar schools, and do just fine. :) and Thanks, I super love it :)
I don’t homeschool because my twins are 18 months but a couple of UA-camrs I follow have high schoolers and the parents have to keep transcripts for what they’ve done in high school and I think each state has requirements for what needs covered but the homemade transcripts are what homeschoolers use to apply for college, similar to regular students.
So interesting , I thought all your points would be about educational stuff but it sounds like a lot of the stuff you don't do relates to homeschool 'culture' in America. Here in Australia homeschooling is still on the fringes (though I've read since covid lockdown forced at home learning here now there's increasing numbers switching to permanent homeschooling). It sounds like you really enjoy the freedom and autonomy to teach your children in a way that matches your family's unique identity and needs. It's beautiful you can do that and enjoy your kids in the process!
Yes! We look at homeschooling as more of a lifestyle :) everything is a learning opportunity!
Totally agree with you.
I’m a retired teacher ( I retired early when we moved to Switzerland). I agree with your goals of being thinkers, communicators. To be excited about what they’re learning. But the bedtime? Oh that wouldn’t work for me. My son is now 34. I was a single mum and started nurse education when w
He was 18 months. Shifts meant scheduled bedtime was harder but I made it work. I needed that time in the evening to collapse and recover
We all have to do what is best for our family ❤️
I'm a night owl too. It's actually midnight right now. My mom would let us sleep in as late as we wanted on weekends and summer break. My grandma on my mom's side was also a night owl, I think I took after her. We don't know what she did, this was definitely pre-internet. Actually if it weren't for my one medication I might miss a lot of sleep.
I love the quiet at night :)
Thank one for sharing.
My pleasure! Thank you for watching 💕
Totally feel the same way about curriculum
Taking little kids to the library is hard! I'm always trying to find a time that works with multiple nap schedules and around meals but at least one kid always ends up cranky and/or crying 😥
Right? And then the computers and especially the iPads set up for kids right at the front at our library to me just defeat the whole purpose.
The closest we are to a co-op is that one of my daughters was invited to a friend’s who also homeschools for an American Girl History Book Club where she is 1 of 4 girls.
A lot of your list surprises me lol. I love your channel and learning about your way of life. Can I ask what will happen if your children want to go to a public school? Or if they get a job that’s outside of your community?
My kids are welcome to get any job they would like. Most people I know do now work “within the community” like as a rabbi or at the school etc. Most people I know work in the medical field, at law firms, real estate, etc.
@@jaroffireflies Thanks for replying! Was it wrong to say “your community?” I don’t mean to offend or anything.
@@TheNo99 oh no not offensive! I didn’t mean to imply that with the “”.
Where did you get the name jar of Fireflies...I love it so much
Hi Fran! I answer your question in this video: ua-cam.com/video/8pzYkrZHtzU/v-deo.html enjoy!
I loved all this. # 10 was definitely a great reminder. It seems we have a very similar approach...I'm a traditional catholic mama to 9 (soon 10) who loves Charlotte Mason.
I am so glad you enjoyed this!!! Thank you so much for watching and commenting :) Your family sounds beautiful!!! I always wanted a large family!!! And I was raised Catholic too! I have only recently discovered that Charlotte Mason is my jam, and only after I realized I was basically already doing it lolol Funny how life works like that sometimes isn't it :)
@@jaroffireflies Wow, you're a convert? Do you feel comfortable sharing your story? FFB here
ERinaa I am! And I do! It’s just a matter of finding time to film it. I can’t get a sitter these days, and with three small kiddos finding time to film that has been hard. But I’m working on it!
@@jaroffireflies Amazing! I would be so interested in hearing about that! Plus I really love your homeschool videos as I have a toddler who I will be homeschooling, so I will be subscribing!
ERinaa Aw thank you so much!!! 😊😊😊 I’m so happy to have you here! Hoping to film the story soon, but realistically maybe next month 😂
One other thing, because my daughter was going to be going to a traditional high school this year, I felt that I had to be much more structured. Still though, I think, based on her grades in a traditional setting, I did pretty well.
I think the results you see are a clear indication you did a great job :)
I think teaching kids to think critically is the foundation of education, and it is not something that too many traditional schools focus on. Asking kids to discuss the content of a book, or as in the example you gave about how it would feel to live in ancient Rome, what would be good and what wouldn't, opens the imagination to knowledge that memorizing names and dates would not. As for the surprising thing, I see that your kids are still very young but as they get older, IMO they might need to have some structure. It's wonderful to have that freedom in homeschooling but there might be outside classes or opportunities that do have structure.
TFS your "differencies" 💖
are there other Jewish homeschoolers in your neighbourhood? when it’s safe to do, maybe have a weekly homeschool group where the kids and parents meet up and homeschool together and you can take turns doing lessons and projects. have one parent teach math, another one teach history, etc. it would be cool to see how another parent teaches a lesson and how they interact with the kids.
There really aren't any other jewish homeschoolers in my neighborhood (YET lol). But I have plenty of friends who homeschool and we have built a lovely community through our wild+free group. I am happy with how things are. Though those extracurricular activities would be so nice for social and fun!!!
@@jaroffireflies where do other Jewish homeschoolers live? We also can't find any.
Sounds pretty great to me - will you continue through High school ( I know I’m thinking way ahead ) I personally hate keeping a rigid schedule however I’m not sure I would have been a good organizer ( obviously I’m past that stage )
We will continue as long as it works for our family :)
I don't have children I have a question about homeschooling though. I like that home schooled children aren't exposed to information they aren't ready for and can linger on a subject until they truly understand. My question is "is there any loss of social skills or coping with peer pressure?" Children are exposed to a lot unfortunately, is it harmful to development to shield them from so much? I think the exposure to everything is harmful. I wish I could sit and have a conversation with you. I feel you understand a real interest without judgement and would talk to me without getting angry.
My kids are very social. Think about it like this, kids are school are told all day to sit still and stop talking to their neighbor. Whereas my kids are all day having conversations with me and their friends and their friends siblings and parents and the zookeeper and the store clerk and countless other people. Homeschool kids are amazingly socialized :)
@@jaroffireflies I never thought of that, thank-you. Those interactions are most likely more advantageous than recess talk. It is also exposure to people outside the manipulated and regulated confines of "school". Thanks for the answer.
@@feliciafisher3748 exactly :) My kids can and will talk to anyone not just kids their ages.
Super! Super! Super!
We don't have a bedtime here either...I love it :)
Saves so much grief in the evenings lol
@@jaroffireflies oh yes for sure lol. Motherhood forced me to let go and surrender to my kiddo's rhythm vs trying to force an unnatural schedule. way easier!
Interesting pattern-- the open no schedule schooling part. I am wondering. As the kids enter the world of jobs, colleges, business, everyday interaction w the vast most of their culture which has been raised in a structure of schedules, time sensitive projects, etc, how will they both identify with and be able to interface with such a different experience?
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... I'm fairly new to this channel and so first seeing this podcast...😉💕
Hello and thank you for your question! Not having a rigid schedule allows us to have the comfort of home alongside the thrill of learning. We naturally fall into a rhythm. My kids know they have certain obligations and responsibilities each day, and they have to schedule themselves to get those things done. It teaches them a lot more real life skills them me giving them a schedule ❤️
And welcome! I’m so happy you’re here ❤️
Hey Chana!! What’s a “co-op”? In the uk that’s a grocery store😂😂😂 I’m guessing it’s not the same in the US🤣
It's basically a group of homeschoolers and their parents who get together to form classes. The parents all have jobs like teaching or assisting or planning or paperwork etc so basically everyone is pitching in to give the children a classroom experience :)
I would appreciate a video of what you do in home school
I have a playlist here with all our homeschool videos: ua-cam.com/play/PLqxZU_RTv3pvPu--yWZOCygxii8hjK75A.html Lots of great info in there!
Hello Chana, book learning is educational but I feel that life lessons are more important and incorporate maths, English literacy, and family values. Learning SHOULD be fun for children or else they will be put off and resistant to it.
I agree! :)
I like that you have a very clear idea of what you are trying to achieve through homeschooling. It would be a better world if mainstream education also encouraged critical thought. But, to be honest, I don't know enough to comment about homeschooling in general. In fact, I'm pretty ignorant about it. However, I am a teacher...of sorts...because I teach ESL (English as a Second Language). Is it safe to assume that you see your children going through mainstream education at some point in the future? If that is the case, then my only comment would be to ensure that they become competent at using a computer. They could make great use of their critical minds while gathering information on the internet!
My kids always have the option of going to a brick and mortar school but only time will tell :) Thanks for your advice! 💖
Very inspiring
aidel e thank youuuuu! 😊😊😊
In addition to homeschooling your children in general education, do you also teach them the Torah or does your husband handle that end of their education? You might’ve done a video on it, I really have not looked at your list, I just watch what pops up on my homepage unless you happen to mention particular video, so please excuse me asking if you have done a video on your children’s religious education.
We include Judaic in our homeschooling. I do most of it. I have some curriculum videos on my homeschool playlist if you’re interested
What curriculums do you follow and what do you use for Jewish studies?
Hi Sarah! Thank you so much for watching! I have two videos where I go over our curriculum choices and how we do Judaics and what I’ve bought to helps us: ua-cam.com/video/EHJz-qyY5Vw/v-deo.html and ua-cam.com/video/1kj5YwDYe2w/v-deo.html
This is SO much us! Except that we are Liberal rather than Orthodox - what one of our rabbis calls ‘Liberal Frum’ - observant, practising Liberal Jews with a lot of emphasis on our children’s Jewish education. Loving the channel :-)
And yeah, not great with the library here either. We practically have one at home anyway!
Emma Sadeghi home libraries rock!!! I’m curious what you mean about being liberal frum, would you mind elaborating? Do you mean liberal as in political views? Genuinely curious :) We have a lot of liberal (politically) religious Jews in my neighborhood. We are all a little out of the box around here in our own way lol Thank you so much for watching and commenting! I’m so glad you are enjoying the channel!
Liberal Judaism is a Jewish movement here in the UK. Similar to Reform here (the two movements share a rabbinical college)... although UK Reform is probably closer to US Conservative. So egalitarian, patrilineal descent is recognised, not fully shomer shabbat or kashrut (but many of us do have our own version). But the preconception often is that Reform = signed up but not really practicing, whereas we keep Shabbat and the festivals in our way, go to services every week, teach our kids Hebrew and are generally really observant...just not in an Orthodox way :-)
Thank you so much for explaining! That makes much more sense now :)
praise the lord sister
I did not grade my daughter either. I did hold back math. She was fast in reading and very delayed in math. So 10th language arts and 2nd grade math again was a thing😂 but thats ok❤
Did you start your own co op?
Hello, what do the kids want to be when they grow up?
What subjects do you include and recommend? Thank you for yous awesome youtube upload.
You can hear all about that in this code I made: ua-cam.com/video/hb6oAnHvW-I/v-deo.html Enjoy!
Did you went to special schooling to have knowledge in homeschool?
there is no homeschooling school
Thank you for your fast response. What are subjects include in you curriculum. Just of curiosity. My kids are going to public school ages from 7 years old to college level.
I cover that all in this video: ua-cam.com/video/RvBINiWHo0k/v-deo.html I have a homeschool playlist as well that may answer more of your questions if I wasn't;t clear in that video: ua-cam.com/play/PLqxZU_RTv3pvPu--yWZOCygxii8hjK75A.html
How did you meet your husband? What state do you live in? Are you allowed to say? Very interesting channel!
Thank you so much! My husband and I met at a Shabbat dinner :) It’s a fun story that we tell often, I need to include it in a video sometime though! So glad you are enjoying my channel! Thank you for watching! 💜
As the children get older, do you think there will be any subject that you're not familiar with or don't care for? How will you handle this? For me, my subject was science. I did not have a lot of science education during elementary school, so I always struggled with it in high school.
Oh for sure! I’ll outsource as needed or learn alongside them till we both get it :) that would just depend on what the subject was
skipping art projects?! (clutches pearls) well i never!
no schedules?! but how do you back to school shop?!
i think you have an awesome system going! art projects aside 😉
😂 We are much more into art these days :) Looking back, I’m proud of myself for not taking on more then I could handle 😉.
@@jaroffireflies i had years in my education where i had several art classes a day, and then some years i did not have any. i am very much a fan of making your education your own. i do believe that kids who are given the responsibility of their education just do light years better. so go y'all!
@@bluemayim I totally agree :) Every year I sit down with my kids and listen to them about how things are going and what they liked and didn’t like so we can figure out adjustments:)
@@jaroffireflies i started out in private schools. kindergarten was a nightmare that still freaks me out 45 years later! hello dyslexia...should have failed but i guess they hoped i just had a slow start or something. the next few years were not much better and an undiagnosed hearing disorder began to manifest however when i said i could not hear i was told i just wasn't paying attention. later on down the line, having been held back a year and all...i loved math and always wanted something more challenging. i had dreams of going through high school and taking Calculus, Geometry, Trigonometry. i told so many teachers that i was bored, wasn't challenged, and wanted more and they all brushed it off and told me i was not ready. i am a big fan of homeschooling , glad my parents didn't do it with me, but i am a big fan of it! you punk rock in my book!
@@bluemayim wow ya that’s what I love about homeschool too. I can have a kid who can’t read but is doing 2nd grade math (my daughter) or an insatiable reader who is years beyond his reading level but struggles with math so much (my older son) but I can meet them both exactly where they are at :) I’m so sorry you had those experiences in school. That’s the problem with big box education. We just aren’t all the same.
You didn't discuss our blessed Texas history. 😂 My kids public school experience included 4 years of Texas history.
This was a video of things we don’t do :) We do cover the history of our Great State of Texas!
no bedtime? that would not have worked for me
My son’s are in pre-k and 2nd grade, any suggestions for curriculum ?
Definitely! I love everything we are using for my second grade son. You can see the curriculum choices I picked for him here: ua-cam.com/video/EHJz-qyY5Vw/v-deo.html . And for PreK I love Blossom and Root. They have two pre-K levels to choose from. I have done both with my daughter. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Not to sound rude but if you don't stick to they curriculum and structure how will the pass exams if they haven't learnt the knowledge of subjects and how will they learn routines of being on time and waking up at an appropriate time etc. This is a genuine question and in no way meant as judgemental or criticism so I do apologise if for any reason my question comes across that way.
Thank you 😊
They don’t have to pass exams :) They will learn what they need to learn in their own time :) It all works out. Thank you for the kind way you asked your questions 💜 Our curriculum is so vastly different from what is taught in public schools to start with.
@@jaroffireflies Thank you so much for replying. I would like to Homeschool my 2 Boy's but am scared I will set them up for failure. I have found your videos really positive and fascinating. Thank you for sharing and thank you for understanding my questions was from a genuine place with no offence intended. 🙂
@@MINKYGIRL1 check out the Brave Writer (Julie Bogart). She has a UA-cam channel and a book called The Brave Learner. I find her stuff very inspirational and helpful for homeschooling
I am so glad another homeschooling mama doesn’t go to the library! Or do co-ops. That’s just more work than it is worth for me.
Yes! Totally agree! :)
Where I'm from, before parents can be granted a licence to home-school their children, they need to undertake to follow the set state-based (government-provided) curriculum, using the stated set textbooks, & completing tests/exams/gradings at the required stages. If parents do not do this, they may lose their licence to home-school & they may have to send their child to a local government school. Does your government provide you with a set curriculum which, as a home-schooling parent , you need to follow & have your children complete gradings at the required stages, to prove they are receiving an adequate education? Or can you chose to just educate your children the way you see, as being appropriate?
Oh wow that’s very different from how things are here! We have the freedom to educate our children as we see fit in Texas, with no testing or government oversight.
I need a Jewish Charlotte Mason co-op.
That would be so nice
Yes l like to know what the top ten things you do
Here’s the video: ua-cam.com/video/ELMXJHAyp5E/v-deo.html Enjoy!
Wow, we did not have a bed time as well. It worked out fine for us.
Im crazy...i like structure and following curricula. Home schooling sounds like a nightmare to me. #please don't kill me for feeling so, its just my opinion/perception....not scientific at all
You are perfectly entitled to your opinion! We don’t all school the same and that’s ok 💖