Ever wish you had a trusted advisor to listen to your concerns, cheer you on for your victories, and suggest changes you cannot even think about?
Adriana Zoder – Homeschool Coach
We all have blind spots and someone with experience can unlock your next level homeschool. The most successful athletes hire coaches for a reason. Why not hire a homeschool coach?
After several people have asked, I have created a Coaching Product. Please click the button below to get more details.
Enjoy!
When it comes to nature study, you can keep it as simple as you want. And then, there is some gear that would totally enhance your experience. Feel free to adapt this list to whatever your plan is for nature studies. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post contains affiliate links. I really appreciate your support!
Binoculars for birdwatching – If your kids are older, let them carry their own binoculars. Carry it yourself for younger kiddos. Don’t say I did not tell you.
Binoculars for Nature Study
Nature journals are homeschool must-haves. Click here to download a FREE 30-page Nature Journal. If you want to pay money for it, by all means. Get one for yourself, too. Don’t let the kids have all the fun. Continue reading
Last week, I attended a Christian College Fair at Berean Christian School in Knoxville, TN. I learned a lot and, as I was leaving, I met a wonderful lady who shared from her own experience as a mom. These private conversations you will have at such events matter a lot. I did not plan on meeting this person. That’s when you know God is leading you to the right people. I will probably never run into her again, but her words will stay with me for a long time.
Christian College Fair
We all want the best for our children. When challenging times happen, it feels good to have mentors or counselors or friends who have walked this way before. They can share from their experience. This is why I decided to blog and share digital content about homeschooling. Many people have helped me. I want to help others.
We all need to do our work better and faster, so that we can have more time for fun. However, I do hope homeschooling is fun for you most of the time. In this spirit, I offer you five productivity tools. This post contains affiliate links. Here we go:
Homeschool planner – This Paper Peony Press planner contains pages for your yearly, monthly, and weekly goals. As such, you will find space to plan your menus, besides your lessons and calendar. Bonus: it is undated. I really like it.
Homeschool Planner
Noise-canceling earbuds for focused planning – Personally, I enjoy silence from time to time. When I sit at co-op with all the noise around me, in the general area, it can get very noisy. At home, we run the dehumidifier all. the. time. I do not find white noise relaxing. It annoys me. A lot. So these earbuds are a lifesaver for me. I wish I had them when the children were little and loud.
Noise-canceling earbuds
Portable chargers for co-op days or field trips – How long do you stay at co-op? We spend seven hours there. We also drive for three hours both ways. So we are gone from home for 10 hours. When we take fields trips, they also usually take all day. As a mom with children on the road, I need to be connected with my husband via cell. We live in the year of our Lord 2025. Gone are the days of payphones and pagers. For my peace of mind, I must have a cell phone and a charger with me.
Portable Charger
Desk calendars or dry-erase boards for scheduling – These come in handy. As a result, the entire family knows where everybody goes and when. Now that we have three cars and three drivers, we all go in different directions. It feels good to know and see visually the week or the month ahead. Personally, I like this wall calendar because of the cork board section at the bottom, where you can pin tickets or bits of paper and notes.
Wall Calendar
Coffee maker and tumbler for on-the-go days – You know homeschool moms do not stay at home every day, right? We need our coffee on the go, preferably in a stainless steel tumbler, please. The link will take you to a black matching set with a coffee maker and a 14 oz travel mug. As the only coffee drinker in my family, I love my single-serve coffee maker – which is what this link will take you to. No waste, reusable filter, and compact for your already crowded kitchen counter.
Coffee Maker and Tumbler
If your student is headed to college, you owe it to yourself to attend at least one college fair. I would wait until your child’s junior year. If your child has reached the senior year, definitely go now. Last week, I attended a college fair at Maryville College and learned a few things.
Maryville College Fair at Clayton Center for the Arts
It happened in the beautiful Clayton Center for the Arts in downtown Maryville, TN. Continue reading
Raspberry Pi Press published Unplugged Tots, a book by Hannah Hagon, in August 2025 in the UK. In the US, the book is available for pre-order here and now [affiliate link]. The subtitle of the book encourages us to “introduce children to the foundations of computer coding.” However, unplugged means no electronics. Well, how on earth can one teach computer coding without electronics? Through simple household items and activities parents and children can do together.
Unplugged Tots by Hannah Hagon
I had to privilege of interviewing Hannah last week about Unplugged Tots and you can watch the interview on my YouTube channel or listen to it on Spotify. Yes, I have started a complementary podcast version of this blog. Please bear with me as I work out the techy details. Continue reading
After the back-to-school season, we homeschool parents may realize our chosen curriculum isn’t working. What to do? Let me suggest you do not need to make drastic changes. Maybe all you need is a little supplementation. This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for your support.
Brainquest Workbooks
In this post, I am recommending workbooks or curriculum add-ons which can address this pain point we have all felt at one time or another. Continue reading
The First Week of my son’s Last Year has come to an end. Why am I capitalizing nouns as they do in German? Maybe because I feel like this First Week and this Last Year feel important? Here’s what we have learned: the Common App walks you through all the needed documentation each college requires. Some will have the same requirements. Others will ask for an extra thing or two. But you cannot do it all in one sitting.
Alexander the Great Diploma – don’t you wish you saw his transcript?
To tackle the job of applying to five universities, my son spent a few minutes every day opening tabs and filling out required information. One cannot possibly finish in one session. Continue reading
Have you ever struggled with keeping materials, books, and projects organized? You and me both. Especially after the back-to-school rush when clutter starts to build, I find it necessary to take a few minutes and really think through my organization methods. Let me offer you solutions to help streamline your homeschool space, based on what has worked for us. This post contains affiliate links.
Spend a few minutes today to save hours every week.
You might know that I am a bit of a health reformer. A vegetarian since 1993, I have also been drinking 2+ quarts of water daily, walking 2+ miles regularly, and generally aimed for 7 hours of sleep at night. One cannot be too careful with one’s lifestyle choices. If we aim to age well, – and who doesn’t? – we must make a bit of an effort. This post contains affiliate links.
Glass Food Storage Containers
Well, my son has taken our healthy lifestyle to a whole new level. Ever since he read Estrogeneration (affiliate link), he has politely refused to eat certain things (like veggie meat products or processed foods). I don’t mind a challenge, so I have adapted my cooking to accommodate him and, for the most part, the other members of the family have not complained (too much).
Estrogeneration – learn about your next level healthy lifestyle
Here are some of the new things I have had to add to the kitchen:
This post contains affiliate links. If you order through these links, I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.