The absolute greatest accomplishment in my life are our twin boys.
Whatever path our lives may take, the fact we have the opportunity to homeschool our children is something I will never take for granted. These years together as a family are beyond a blessing. We work side by side as we pull in real life and make them teachable moments. Watching them grow and question things, and figure it out on their own is pure magic. The fact that they have the ability to find a subject that interests them at their core, and become masters of it while still having the lightheartedness and freedoms a childhood should have, is exactly what I dream for them. Dirt and creative play are so critical for personal growth. At any age! Boundaries in learning are taken away. Once a subject is mastered, we find what inspires them and we move on to that next exciting chapter. There are no limits. We are teaching them to become masters of their own lives, to question and wonder. Have deep conversations. And most of all, both in this moment and hopefully forever, to be wild and free.
We follow our own unique curriculum, which is tailored to our boys. While we follow more of an unschooling approach, we do require daily math, reading, writing and Spanish lessons. History and Geography are always incorporated in parts of our travels, and science is a daily part of our life as we are create a farmer’s almanac. This includes but isn’t limited to charts, graphs, measurements, and detail heavy notes that help us learn and grow here on the farm. Dinners are cooked and meals are made with measurements noted and recorded. Sheds are built, fences mended, and garden boxes designed and laid out. These are just some examples of the mathematics taught in our daily lives.
As we enter our upcoming school year, we are focusing on something we’re calling The Year of Mastery. Each boy has picked a subject they enjoy and will be meeting via FaceTime with a tutor, chosen specifically for their subject. Cooper has picked videography and Colton has picked learning the computer program Chief Architect. Together, they will both focus on their area of interest, and discover if it’s a life long passion. If not, they’re sure to gain some serious knowledge about things that light them up inside, and at the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.
One of the biggest lessons I want to teach my boys is that there are no limits to how big you can dream or how far you can go. Homeschooling is a vehicle in which they can learn these things both through words, and most importantly, through action.
