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Homeschool Boys

6 Boy Approved Books Which Spark the Love of Reading

May 5, 2024 | 5 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I have six boy approved books today. Also, look at my page The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter for more tips.

Not wanting my boys to be among the boys-who-hate-to-read statistics, it was a challenge in the beginning to keep my boys’ enjoying reading.

I had a LOT to learn about how boys learn.

Sharing these 6 boy approved books which spark the love of learning, I’m hoping that one or more of them will flame that ember to read in your boys.

3 Boy Mom Reading Tips

Now that I have lifelong adult son readers, I know you’ll benefit from these three simple, easy, and tried and true reading tips.

1. Quit thinking like female teachers.

I know, it sounds crazy because homeschool stats reveal that a majority of the teaching is done by moms.

It’s hard to not think like a woman when you are one.

Where am I going with this?

The point is we add to our son’s dislike for reading when we try to use the books we loved as a girl to spark a boy’s interest.

My boys didn’t connect with a lot of the books I loved as a girl.

When I started homeschooling, I felt like I had a diversified reading diet growing up, but it didn’t include a lot of topics boys liked.

6 Boy Approved Books Which SPARK the Love of Reading!! Sharing these 6 boy approved books which spark the love of learning, I'm hoping that one or more of them will flame that ember to read in your boys. CLICK here to look at this short but TRIED and TRUE List!!

Sure, some of the books were the same ones I loved like Where the Red Fern Grows and The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe.

But I had to expand what I thought were appropriate topics to read about.

2. The Hero or Heroine Matters.

Although boys love to get lost in a world of fiction too, relating to the hero matters.

It’s hard for boys who are struggling to read to relate to a sentimental girl.

At the time my first son was struggling with a love of reading, unless the girl was mischievous or a tomboy, it wasn’t easy for my boys to understand the sentiment.

Too, a lot of boys, including mine, develop slower.

Their maturity rate is different than girls.

They don’t necessarily see themselves in a place through the eyes of the character, so you have to be sure they do.

Instead of trying to read between the lines, my boys needed to understand the why of a point directly.

Finding a solution to the problem was more paramount than understanding exactly how a character felt.

A story line with male role models no matter the age was a good starting point in helping my sons identify with people who are like them.

3. Boys LOVE Pictures.

Boys are not ready to move away from pictures as fast as girls may be.

Realizing that significant fact, I was so grateful for the Great Illustrated Classics series.

True, some of the pictures are not like the comic books that boys love, but pictures are still pictures to boys.

The size of the print mattered to my first reader too.

The bigger the better in the beginning.

Until he felt comfortable and was hooked on reading, we just kept on reading most of the books from the Great Illustrated Classics series.

I never worried whether the books were abridged or unabridged until I hooked my reader.

Out of all the books I used for my boys to hook them on reading they narrowed down their favorites to these 6 choices to nurture a love for reading.

  1. Where the Red Fern Grows
  2. The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (Great Illustrated Classics)
  3. Invisible Man (Great Illustrated Classics)
  4. Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
  5. Shiloh
  6. Stone Fox

One or more of these books or series should give your boys a taste of boy approved books, but more important they’ll nurture a love of reading.

A book list doesn’t have to be long to work; the book list needs to be focused on what boys can relate to.

I’ll be sharing more book lists that have worked for us through the years.

Does your son have a favorite book or series that worked to fan that tiny ember to a raging love for reading?

6 Boy Approved Books Which SPARK the Love of Reading!! Sharing these 6 boy approved books which spark the love of learning, I'm hoping that one or more of them will flame that ember to read in your boys. CLICK here to look at this short but TRIED and TRUE List!!

You’ll love these other tips:

  • 6 Tricks for the Kid That’s NOT in Love with Reading!
  • How to Transition a Child From Reading to Literature
  • Teaching Homeschooled Boys How to Read – When to Panic!

5 CommentsFiled Under: Homeschool Boys, Homeschool Simply, Reading Lists, Teach Homeschool Language Arts, Teach the Rebel Homeschooler Tagged With: book lists, books, boys, homeschoolreading, livingbooks, reading, teens

20 Nature-Inspired Kids’ Novels to Nurture Interest In the Outdoors

June 16, 2020 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

This list of twenty nature-inspired kids novels are the types of books which helps kids connect to the outdoors. These nature novels can be part of any curriculum or stand alone. Also, look at How to Put Together a Middle School Nature Study With Book List.

Whether you’re wanting kids to step away from their devices, looking for a nature-inspired book for a unit study, or you want to inspire your kid’s inner naturalist, look at this roundup of books.

20 Nature-Inspired Kids' Novels to Nurture Interest In the Outdoors

Nature Novels For Kids

1.
Call of the Wild by Jack London for ages 12 and up.

The Illustrated Call of the Wild: Original First Edition

A classic story of survival from the perspective of Buck, a kidnapped Saint Bernard who is forced into being a sled dog during the Klondike Gold Rush.

Set in the Alaskan wilderness during the 1890s, the descriptions are stunning and take readers right to the freezing temperatures of the Yukon.

2.
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell for ages 8 to 12.

Island of the Blue Dolphins

A young girl is left deserted on a pacific island off the coast of California. Karana must forage for food, build weapons for protection, and make clothes for covering.

A story of strength and resilience that will inspire. Beautifully written and perfect taking the readers to an island filled with dolphins, otters, and sea birds.

These activities will go along with this book.

  • Foraging and Feasting Nature Unit Study and Lapbook
  • Oceans Unit Study and Lapbook
  • How to Dissolve a Seashell – Beach Hands-on Fun Activity
  • Super Seashore Watching Unit Study and Beach Lapbook

3.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain for ages 12 and up.

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: Original Illustrations

This classic, set near the Mississippi River in the 1840s follows Tom and his adventures through plenty of outdoor shenanigans.

Look at this activity Lewis & Clark – Mighty Mississippi book & Sediment Activity to go along with this book.

Travel to the river with Tom and Huck with this fully illustrated edition!

Nature Books for Kids

4.
Hatchet by Gary Paulson ages 11 and up.

Hatchet

The sole survivor of a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian Roberson, finds himself stranded in the Canadian wilderness. He must fend for himself.

Brian slowly learns the survivor skills he needs to stay alive, building shelter, making fire, and foraging for food.

This novel takes the reader through a fifty-four-day journey of perseverance that forever changes a young man and his perspective about life and family. 

Gary Paulson has many other novels that are set in the wilderness, and spends his personal time split between Alaska, New Mexico, Minnesota, and the Pacific.

Nature Book List for Kids

This book takes readers on an eco-adventure full of everything from the town’s well know bully to potty-trained alligators. There is a movie that would make a fun follow-up too.

5.
Paddle-to-the-Sea by Holling C. Holling for ages 8 to 12.

Paddle-to-the-Sea (Sandpiper Books)

Follow a young boy as he travels from The Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean in this adventurous novel that brings geography to life.

20 Nature-Inspired Kids’ Novels to Nurture Interest In the Outdoors

This author has many other titles perfect for nature study.

The Secret Garden (HarperClassics)

6.
The Secret Garden by Francis Hodgson Burnett for ages 9 to 12.

An orphaned girl is sent to live with her great uncle and discovers a secret garden on his Yorkshire Moors property.

The lush garden is the young girl’s only escape.

This edition is beautifully illustrated by Tasha Tudor. Recreate some of the pictures or draw a scene from the book. 

7.
The Secret Lake by Karen Inglis for ages 8 to 12.

The Secret Lake: A children’s mystery adventure

This book is a time-traveling mystery adventure of two kids who find a pathway to a secret lake and one hundred years old garden.

Nancy Drew meets The Secret Garden in this modern novel sure to become a favorite. 

Nature-Based Fiction for Kids

8.
The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare for ages 10 to 12.

The Sign of the Beaver

Thirteen-year-old Matt is left to survive on his own in the Maine wilderness.

This is a story filled with descriptive detail about survival in the wilderness and the relationships between settlers and natives in the 1700s.

Look at my other activities here to go along with this book.

  • French and Indian War 1754 -1763
  • 15 Hands-on History Ideas for Kids Studying the French and Indian War

9.
The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Davide Wyss for ages 10 and up.

The Swiss Family Robinson (An Illustrated Classic)

A classic story of one family’s survival after being shipwrecked in the East Indies on their way to Australia.

They live on a deserted island for ten years. A book filled with adventure, lots of exotic animals, and plenty of survival skills.

Also, look at my Free Swiss Family Robinson Unit Study And Easy DIY Water Filter.

10.
The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey for ages High School.

The Snow Child: A Novel (Pulitzer Prize in Letters: Fiction Finalists)

Set in snowy Alaska in 1920, a couple desperate for a baby, build a child out of snow.

The next morning the snow is gone, but a young girl is found running in the woods.

She hunts with a red fox by her side and survives on her own in the Alaskan wilderness.

The couple’s lives are changed forever, as they grow to love the child as their own.

11.
My Side of The Mountain by Jean Craighead George for ages 8 to 12.

My Side of the Mountain (Puffin Modern Classics)

Sam Gribley runs away from New York City to the mountains and must survive on his own.

The descriptions of nature are detailed, and it is the perfect choice for learning real-life survival skills.

The book’s rich vocabulary will make for a great read-aloud.

Our Journey Westward

Kids Novels to Inspire the Love of Outdoors

12.
Summer of The Woods by Stephen K. Smith for ages 8 to 12.

Summer of the Woods (The Virginia Mysteries)

A summer packed with outdoor adventure! Follow these kids as they discover the Virginian woods where they find secret caves, rushing waters, and rare treasure. 

These books would be awesome for a state study of Virginia, as there are several more in the series that takes the reader to historical sites throughout the state.

13.
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle for ages 13 and up.

The Last Unicorn

A lone unicorn ventures out on her own to find more of her kind.

Set in an enchanted forest, readers escape to the wood with this classic fantasy fiction.

14.
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame for ages 8 and up.

The Wind in the Willows

Four animals live among the Thames Valley in England.

A classic novel about adventure, morality, and friendship is also well known for its depiction of nature.

The Wild Robot (The Wild Robot (1))

15.
The Wild Robot by Peter Brown for ages 10 to 12.

Can a Robot survive in the wild? Find out as Roz learns to survive the wilderness.

Fans of the movie Wall-E will enjoy this adventurous story about the clash of technology and nature.

The book includes lots of descriptions of nature and animals.

Riding the Flume (Aladdin Historical Fiction)

16.
Riding the Fume by Patricia Curtis Pfitsch for ages 11 to 13.

Set among the giant sequoia trees in California, the novel is about a young girl faced with the discovery that her sister who died years earlier may still be alive. A must-read!

Living Books About Nature

Nature Girl

17.
Nature Girl by Jane Kelly for ages 8 to 12.

Eleven-year-old Megan is without internet and TV in the Vermont woods for the summer.

Our Journey Westward

When she gets lost on the Appalachian Trail, she decides to hike all the way to Massachusetts where her best friend lives.

Get ready for a hike with this adventure novel!

18.
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls for ages 9 to 14.

Where the Red Fern Grows

Set in the hills of the Ozarks, young Billy, and his two dogs explore the countryside.

This is a timeless tale of love and loss and the special bond between a boy and his best friends, two pups named Old Dan and Little Ann.

19.
Wish by Barabra O’Connor for ages 9 to 12.

Wish

Set in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, a young girl makes the same wish every after year.

This is a sweet story about a girl and a newfound furry friend.

20.
The Lost Book of Adventure
for ages 7 and up.

You’ll be transported by riveting adventure tales from around the globe, like being dragged off by a hyena in Botswana, surviving a Saharan dust storm, being woken by an intrepid emperor penguin in Antarctica, and coming face-to-face with a venomous bushmaster (one of the most dangerous snakes on the planet)—all told in lyrical prose and illustrations that wonder at the mysterious beauty of the wild.

I hope one of these 20 nature-inspired books will teach your kids about nature and revive a love of the great outdoors.

Look at some of these other ideas:

  • 6 Boy Approved Books Which Spark the Love of Reading
  • 6 Tricks for the Kid That’s NOT in Love with Reading!
  • 5 BEST Books to Create an Around the World Unit Study (and Hands-on Activities)
  • 5 Steps to Choosing Geography Living Books Your Children Will Love
  • 6 Fun and Free Nature Studies to Beat the Doldrums

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Graduate a Homeschooler, Homeschool Boys, Homeschool Multiple Ages of Children, Homeschool Simply, Homeschool Teens _ From Teen to Graduation, Middle School Homeschool, Teach Homeschool Language Arts Tagged With: book lists, homeschoolanguagearts, homeschoolreading, livingbooks, nature, nature study, read aloud, reading, readingcomprehension, science, sciencecurriculum

Essential Life Skills – A Homeschooler’s Other Curriculum

March 2, 2019 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

More and more parents these days are dropping their kids off at the front door of public school and are expecting teachers to do it all — teach the three Rs and life skills necessary for kids to live as functioning adults in society. As homeschoolers we have an advantage; we know that essential life skills are a crucial part of our curriculum.

With the growing concept of adulting – when young adults are learning life skills for the first time as they move out on their own – it would seem that the formula public school tends to use which is an academic approach isn’t working. And homeschoolers aren’t immune to this problem.

Essential Life Skills a Homeschoolers Other Curriculum @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

No matter in what form they educate their children, parents who try to do and be all things for their kids are doing them a great disservice. Additionally, if parents are trusting (aka hoping) that life skills will be caught, rather than taught that only seems to work out when they pick up something we don’t want them to, right?

As homeschooling families we have not only the privilege, but the responsibility to teach our kids these all-important life skill sets that make for a well-rounded and capable grown-up.

Too, we all know that skills taught like this should begin early. I focus on the teen part of life in this article because really it’s the time to maximize what we’ve been teaching them all throughout the years.

From the mouths of homeschoolin’ mommas who have been traditionally schooled comes this list of skills they didn’t learn in school. The teen years are a great time to make sure your kiddo gets these skills down while still living under your roof. And even if they’re in high school, it’s never too late for a crash course.

And they will thank you for it down the road!

And if you’re looking for curriculum to help you teach life skills, you’ll love Skill Trekker. There are 500+ skills (and counting) in the program.

Domestic Life Skills for Homeschooled Kids

  • basic cooking and cleaning bathrooms, vacuuming, grocery shopping (online and in real life)
  • how to sort laundry properly
  • basic and advance home maintenance
  • basics of human anatomy and well-being
  • how to access home services
  • how to garden or at least grow and care for one plant
  • how to care for pets, their health and animal CPR
  • how to sew is not a lost skill about homeschoolers and basic alterations
  • how tos of basic couponing
  • how to change a diaper
  • lawn maintenance
  • simple electrical and plumbing know how
  • how to menu plan

Auto Care Skills for Homeschooled Kids

  • how to buy a car and basic car care (oil and filter changes, how to check oil, change a tire, etc)
  • determining the value of a car using the Kelley Blue Book
  • how to keep an auto compliant with local law
  • how to pump gas

Workplace Skills For Homeschooled Kids

  • learn how to fill out a job application
  • learn how to prepare a resume
  • prepare for a job interview
  • understand how to work with others in a workplace environment
  • how to be on time for a job

Small business management, which is so relevant to many of today’s entrepreneurial homeschoolers, was and still is often reserved for college, or at least specialized trade school programs.

Your entrepreneurial kids may enjoy the boxes from Boss Club which teach kids how to be entrepreneurs. You can click on the picture below to see how they build skills for helping your kids.

Health Care Skills for Homeschooled Kids

  • basic hygiene
  • understand how to take care of their basic health
  • understand differences in how food is grown or processed
  • how to give consent for procedures
  • CPR and basic first aid
  • understand how to use medicine versus natural remedies
  • how to notice and be caring when others have special needs like dementia, seizures, or panic attacks
  • how to give basic elder care

Financial Education for Homeschooled Kids

Last, but certainly not least, many homeschool moms failed to receive an adequate, or sometimes any, financial education while in school.

  • how to handle and maintain a checking account how to prepare and file taxes
  • how to create and stick to a budget
  • how credit works
  • the basics of a mortgage and how it works
  • value of saving and preparing for retirement
  • how to apply for insurance and discern what’s necessary

So there you have it, skills that haven’t been taught in school in the past, and most likely aren’t today.

As homeschoolers we have an advantage; we know that essential life skills are a crucial part of our curriculum. Click here to grab this list!

These aren’t fluff topics; these are concepts and abilities that will enable your teen to be a fully functioning adult and even perhaps put him ahead of many of his peers.

Don’t make your teen fumble with adulting when you can arm him with these basic essentials!

You’ll also love these other tips:

  • A to Z List: Middle and High School Homeschool Electives
  • When It’s Your Fault that Your Homeschooled Kids Don’t Do Chores
  • Successful Entrepreneur-3 Best Homeschooled Teen Resources
  • 14 Fun and (maybe Frugal) Homeschool High School Electives
  • 45 Ways to Define Homeschool Curriculum – Is Your Definition Holding You Back?

Hugs and love ya

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Build Character in Homeschooled Kids, Gauge Homeschool Progress, Graduate a Homeschooler, Homeschool Boys, Homeschool Multiple Ages of Children, Homeschool Simply, Homeschool Teens _ From Teen to Graduation, How To - - -, Teach/Which Subjects to Teach/Cover EVERYTHING Tagged With: homeschool challenges, homeschool lifestyle, homeschoolcurriculum, homeschoolhighschool, life skills, middleschool, teens

Screen-Free Educational Activities for Kids Who Love Video Games

January 31, 2019 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Do your kids love playing video games?

Most parents seem to shudder at the thought of video games and screen-time, but I’ll be honest and say that setting limits in this area wasn’t my strong suit in parenting.

How to get your gamers interested in other subjects or activities! You’ll love the SOLUTIONS. CLICK here to grab these tips for Screen-Free Educational Activities for Kids Who Love Video Games

My boys are gamers.

Compared to most standards, I was always lenient about screen time with my kids. Of course, I’ve done my fair share of harping about it, but for the most part I never won the battle. (For the record, I also never really fought that hard.)

Everyone says to pick and choose your battles, and video games weren’t on the list of battles I chose. If they weren’t playing anything inappropriate, I was okay with them.  

Video games have always been something my boys enjoyed doing together, and with six years between them, those opportunities were few and far between. Even with an age gap, they both enjoy some of the same games and they’ve done a lot of bonding over video games throughout the years.

Ironically, my oldest is now a full-time college student majoring in Computer Science with a goal to enter the master’s program for Interpretive Entertainment. That’s a fancy name for video games.

In the end, I guess all the games I let them play weren’t so bad.

Even though I failed the screen-time thing, I have spent my fair share of time aggravated that I couldn’t get them interested in other things. It’s hard to compete with technology!

How do you get your gamers interested in other subjects or activities?

Screen-Free Educational Activities

Art for Kids Who Love Gaming

Video game characters (and their artists) have sparked interest in both of kids over the years. My kids didn’t just have favorite characters, they had favorite artists. Still do! Just like we throw around celebrity names-my boys toss around the names of artists and game designers like it’s common knowledge.

Although, I never recognize any of the names, there’s an entire industry and market of people who would know exactly who they’re talking about. That’s awesome!

  • Design a video game character. 
  • Take an online digital art class. 
  • Design the setting for a video game.
  • Look for drawing classes in your community.
  • Visit museums, colleges, or universities with exhibits of digital artwork.
  • Learn to draw anime

Reading for Kids Who Love Gaming

Good news!

If your kids are playing video games, chances are-they’re reading!

When my kids were little, I was always shocked by the amount of reading they’d have to do to get through the game. Thank goodness for all that reading/

My boys loved games like Pokémon, Animal Crossing, and Mario Party. Getting around in any of those worlds required a novel’s worth of conversation between characters. I remember my youngest learned some mad counting skills from counting all his coins while playing Mario Party ten years ago.

Obviously, our kids can’t sit in front of the screen all day, but these were some positive take-aways from allowing them to play. Luckily, video game companies like to make money in other markets too and I was always able to find books based on the games they loved growing up.

The way I see it, words on a page + my kid’s willingness to read them = happy mom.

Books for Kids Who Love Video Games

  • Pokémon books by Scholastic
  • Vintage Mario Bros. comic books
  • Minecraft Modding For Kids
  • Strategy guides
  • Coding projects
  • Game On! 2019: All the Best Games: Awesome Facts and Coolest Secrets

Writing for Kids Who Love Video Games

Write a game review.

Let others know why you think your favorite game is so awesome.

Sometimes it’s even more fun to write about what we don’t like! Write a review of your least favorite game! Be the critic. What you would change? How would you improve the game experience?

Write a story for a game.

Guess what video games have?

  • Plot
  • Setting
  • Theme
  • Characters
  • Conflict
  • Point of View
  • Symbolism.

What a great way to teach the aspects of writing needed for a great story! I’m not sure if we realize how much we can incorporate the things our kids love to inspire them to do the things the things they think they hate.

Next time your kid is going on and on about his game, have him write down some of the things he loves most about it and use those ideas and momentum to spark his next writing assignment.

Career Research for Homeschooled Kids

Who knew you could grow up and play video games for a living? It’s true! Do a research project on the types of careers available to someone in the gaming industry.

How much do they make?

What would your kid love about these jobs?

What colleges and universities have programs in these fields?

The career research in this field will lead you and your gamer down one fun rabbit trail! You’d be shocked to see some of the annual salaries reported for these jobs.

  • Lead designer
  • Programmer
  • Animator
  • Artist
  • Software engineer
  • Software Developer
  • Game Writer

This book, The Art of Game Design is a great read full of information for anyone wanting to get started in game design!

How to get your gamers interested in other subjects or activities! You’ll love the SOLUTIONS. CLICK here to grab these tips for Screen-Free Educational Activities for Kids Who Love Video Games

Other screen-free activities gamers love:

  • Puzzles
  • Build a bird feeder.
  • Learn to play chess.
  • Strategic board games such as Risk and Battleship
  • Lego
  • Gundam figures
  • Sculpt figures out of clay.
  • The Unofficial Minecraft STEM Lab for Kids

You’ll love these other activities:

  • Winter Nature Craft: How to Make Easy DIY Bird Feeders
  • 100 Brilliant STEM Activities Using Everyday Items
  • Amazing Hands-on History Activities for 14 Ancient Empires (free notebook cover too)
  • 21 Hands-On Math Activities for Elementary and Middle School
  • Ultimate Guide to Learning Activities in a Jar or Bottle
  • 100 Easy Ways Kids Can Fight Boredom & Celebrate Childhood

What screen-free educational activities would you add to the list?

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Be an Exceptional Homeschool Teacher, Build Character in Homeschooled Kids, Gauge Homeschool Progress, Graduate a Homeschooler, Homeschool Boys, Homeschool Multiple Ages of Children, Homeschool Simply, Homeschool Teens _ From Teen to Graduation, Uncategorized Tagged With: coding, screen-free

Homeschooling Stubborn Teens: Not for the Faint of Heart

November 8, 2017 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

While homeschooling through the years we confront with dogged determination many scenarios which makes us weak at the knees or makes our heart skip a beat. But, nothing comes even close to the enemy in our own midst – our sweet child turned stubborn, unmotivated, and seemingly lazy teen. Homeschooling stubborn teens is not for the faint of heart.

I’ve learned that although it’s easier to blame my teens for everything that went wrong, I too had to learn how to parent differently. As each of my sons reached the teen years, I’ve had to become more resourceful and creative in how I homeschool them.

I've learned that although it's easier to blame my teens for everything that went wrong, I too had to learn how to parent differently. As each of my sons reached the teen years, I've had to become more resourceful and creative in how I homeschool them. Click here to grab these SUPER helpful tips!

Avoiding drama in your house is not all together impossible, but you can curb it and cope with it by learning from my mistakes.

3 PARENTING TECHNIQUES FOR HOMESCHOOLING STUBBORN TEENS

Whether your teen has been homeschooled from the beginning, came willing to homeschool after many years in public school or had no choice, he wants choices now.

One/ Focus on the teen, not the school.

However, before you can get to choices, the number one mistake made by many homeschooling families is to focus on homeschool. Yep, wrong focus right now.

The teacher in us is ready to go, but the mom in us should lead right now. Problems, whether academic or developmental, signal something is wrong.

Although a teen can now vocalize that he hates math or writing and is seen as unmotivated, that’s only the result of what is going on inside.

Before assuming it’s a lack of motivation, step back, and deschool. You can’t move forward until you and your teen are both ready.

Coming into adulthood takes a toll daily on your teen and he needs you now more than ever.

Two/ Deschool now before it’s too late.

Look at ways you can step back, deschool, and focus. Move forward by stepping back instead of butting heads:

  • If he hates math, ask him which subjects he does like. Use that knowledge to plan a routine. For example, get the worst subjects out of the way at his peak time and in a place he chooses. Explain to him that he can make those choices, however, if he is not doing his math because he decided to lie down on his bed, then it’ll have to change. I had one son that just because he could sit on his bed, he was in the right mindset to do math which was a subject he hated. He did well and eventually later in high school, he moved to the table. Give him some choice. BUT, first take time to not do school while you question him (few questions in the beginning) about subjects he likes and doesn’t like. Help him to make a routine for the day he loves while satisfying your requirements.
  • Next, do something he wants to do. For us, it was skateboarding, bicycling and watching movies. I told my teens to not do school for a few days while they played. My teens praised me as the best homeschooling mom ever (ha, but I had a motive). Like all smart moms who want their sons to do well in academics, I knew that they had to see first that I was reasonable. After they played for a few days and I could see it winding down, I discussed with each one how to work in what they liked doing while balancing their academic load. It worked. They knew I was reasonable, but had expectations. Including them in the discussion gave them the control they wanted.
  • Focus on when the rebellion occurs. For example, I knew our problem was an over scheduling problem with one of my teens. The rest of the day he was pretty compliant barring a few bad moods. Over all, the sulking and back talking happened only during school. Stepping back and allowing my teen to rest gave me time to understand how many credits I wanted for middle or high school teen. I reworked his schedule. However, if your teen is complaining pretty much the whole day, then it’s a parenting or rebellious issue and homeschooling is getting a bum rap.

Three/ Over ambitious homeschooling can backfire.

It’s easy to say when your child is five or six years old what he will and will not do as a teen, but it’s quite a different thing scheduling for him at 15 or 16 years old.

While it may be true that a teen doesn’t have to love learning because work places or colleges don’t care if he does, it never worked when I told them that.

I’ve never made progress with my sons when I vented and I normally had nothing helpful to say when I lost it.

Pushing my sons to do college courses early while in high school, having them take jobs too early, and do heavier maths because they were hardworking could’ve backfired.

Stepping back to reaffirm that heart schooling was just as important as academics helped me to solidify the fact that homeschooling is a lifestyle. I want my sons to homeschool their sons because I believe it’s the best way to teach a child.

HOMESCHOOLING TEENS WITH THE FUTURE IN MIND

Homeschooling with a future generation in mind helped me realize that I wholeheartedly believe learning is a privilege.

Curbing my desire to sock it to my boys with their academic load while being teens helped us to not only lap up the precious teen years, but love every minute of it.

Sometimes the solution to a problem was to just stop. And remembering each teen is different helped me to see problems from each kid’s perspective. Can you relate?

What kind of problems are you trying to overcome with your teen?

When your teens are grown and look back at how you didn’t give up on them, all of the hard times will be memories. You’ll only see the beautiful man or woman thanking you. Your knees will then be weak for another reason – overwhelming happy emotion.

I've learned that although it's easier to blame my teens for everything that went wrong, I too had to learn how to parent differently. As each of my sons reached the teen years, I've had to become more resourceful and creative in how I homeschool them. Click here to grab these SUPER helpful tips!

Also, you’ll find these other articles super helpful. Don’t give up now. You’re almost there.

  • 4 Reasons Your Homeschooled Child is Uninspired To Learn (and what to do)
  • Homeschooling for the Love of Learning – Does It Really Work? 
  • Teach Your Homeschooled Teen the Art of Studying (without nagging) 
  • 9th Grade Homeschool High School – Avoid the Sock It to Them Attitude

Hugs and love ya,

2 CommentsFiled Under: Graduate a Homeschooler, Homeschool Boys, Homeschool Teens _ From Teen to Graduation Tagged With: fearless homeschooling, homeschool, homeschool challenges, homeschool highschool, homeschool mistakes, homeschoolchallenges, middleschool, teens

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