Elizabeth - Ballarat, VIC / Wadawurrung Country

05/14/23 • 76 min

Elizabeth describes herself as a lover of learning and confesses she was not a typical candidate to homeschool her children. In this honest conversation she eloquently shares how she went from counting down the days until her three kids (now 9, 7 and 6) were at school to questioning everything she had always taken for granted, and the wonder led life her family now lead that was born out of the tumble down the rabbit hole.
SUMMARY

Growing up with a 'socially acceptable amount of school trauma'
How her leap from high school to university was a huge shock to her system
The honest reality of being a mother struggling at home with three kids under three
How negative self talk and self criticism began to manifest in her eldest daughter from her experience at kinder in stark contrast to the positive mental health she and her husband had been consciously nurturing in their children from birth
Jumping head first into home education despite the hundreds of horrifying fears that she would stuff it up and how this is a completely natural process of deschooling your own brain
The first year of homeschooling is complete chaos and the biggest learning experience for the parent
The surprising love her children have for workbooks despite consciously not wanting to replicate school at home
The support and dynamic her husband brings to their homeschooling life
Using 'nutritious' resources as a support network and safety net that allow for independent, self-directed learning
The code of silence we fail to inform our teenagers about - the myriad of ways other than VCE to get into higher education
Her hope for a joyful & positive childhood her grown adult children can reminisce about spent together as a family
You don't have to be an avid reader or academic to homeschool!
Motherhood is all consuming, but homeschool is not despite the reputation
WhAt AbOuT sOcIaLiSaTiOn? The most ludicrous concern you'll encounter
Comparison is the thief of joy - don't compare your home to school

RESOURCES
MEL Science kits
Cosmic Kids Yoga
Prodigies Music
KiwiCo STEM boxes
INSPIRATION
Free to Learn - Peter Gray
The Smartest Kids in the World - Amanda Ripley
Homeschooling Bravely - Jamie Erickson
Raising Critical Thinkers - Julie Bogart
How Children Learn - John Holt
Consider asking your local library to purchase a copy of these books if they don't already have them in their catalogue
CONNECT
@learninginourworld Instagram
Have you got a story to tell?
Connect with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories or email [email protected]
This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.
Original Music
Hazel - Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer
Listen on Spotify here

Growing up with a 'socially acceptable amount of school trauma'
How her leap from high school to university was a huge shock to her system
The honest reality of being a mother struggling at home with three kids under three
How negative self talk and self criticism began to manifest in her eldest daughter from her experience at kinder in stark contrast to the positive mental health she and her husband had been consciously nurturing in their children from birth
Jumping head first into home education despite the hundreds of horrifying fears that she would stuff it up and how this is a completely natural process of deschooling your own brain
The first year of homeschooling is complete chaos and the biggest learning experience for the parent
The surprising love her children have for workbooks despite consciously not wanting to replicate school at home
The support and dynamic her husband brings to their homeschooling life
Using 'nutritious' resources as a support network and safety net that allow for independent, self-directed learning
The code of silence we fail to inform our teenagers about - the myriad of ways other than VCE to get into higher education
Her hope for a joyful & positive childhood her grown adult children can reminisce about spent together as a family
You don't have to be an avid reader or academic to homeschool!
Motherhood is all consuming, but homeschool is not despite the reputation
WhAt AbOuT sOcIaLiSaTiOn? The most ludicrous concern you'll encounter
Comparison is the thief of joy - don't compare your home to school

Previous Episode

Steph - Toowoomba, QLD / Barunggam Country

Steph and her husband not only homeschool their two boys aged 10 and 6 but also welcome a number of other children into their home with their family day care Spirited Hearts in Toowoomba.
We discuss trauma in relation to her own school wounds and her son's experience of moving in and out of the school system despite Steph knowing she wanted to homeschool before she became a mother.
SUMMARY

Practicing aware parenting so her children don't have to grow up and heal from their childhood
Being aware of everyday stresses and focusing on the emotional wellbeing of children
Helping children build strong emotional foundations and self awareness through her Natural Learning Haven
Being labelled as "too quiet" and how this affected her experience at school
Refusing to conform, feeling alienated and distrusting teachers
How the system does not support teachers and this in turn affects children
How the reading of Harry Potter cemented her confidence in homeschooling
Learning to read when the child is ready to read
Steph's eldest son requested to go to school at age 6 and the dilemma of wanting to homeschool but also respect her child's autonomy
Feeling like a failure as a homeschooling mum because they want to go to school
Her son's experience of deschooling and finding his way back to thriving in a thematic learning style at home
"We are lifelong learners. You don't have to learn everything in 18 years."
Turning to books, nature and yoga as her way of recharging
The needs of the parent are just as important as the childs

INSPIRATION
Free to Learn - Peter Gray
Unschooled - Kerry McDonald
The Call of the Wild + Free - Ainsley Arment
The Wild + Free Family - Ainsley Arment
Raising Critical Thinkers - Julie Bogart
(Consider asking your local library to purchase a copy if they don't currently have these books in their collection)
CONNECT
Spirited Hearts website
@spirited_hearts instagram
Spirited Hearts podcast
Have you for a story to tell?
Connect with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories or email [email protected]
This podcast is recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.
Original music - Hazel by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer
Listen on Spotify here

Next Episode

Sam & Christian - Perth, WA / Whadjuk Noongar Country

Sam & Christian homeschool two of their three "bare feet little nature loving" children whilst their teenage son until recently has always been in the school system. This down to earth couple share the ups and downs of their experiences with school, how a Steiner playgroup opened their minds to this alternative educational pathway and the joy of living amongst the natural splendours of WA.
SUMMARY

Comparing their son's catholic kinder to their daughter's Steiner playgroup led Christian to suggest they consider homeschool which Sam thought was a crazy idea initially
Not wanting their kids to be stuck behind a desk all day
Once you read all the books and know what you know, you can't go back
Their eldest child's pathway through mainstream schooling, the pressure of getting him into their private school of choice and the devastation Sam felt when he was rejected despite doing backflips to get him in
Despite their son not wanting to be homeschooled, he has still got a lot of the benefits of the homeschooling lifestyle
How Christian's FIFO schedule works for their family and affords more quality time for him with their kids
Sam & Christian's reflection on their own schooling - bullying, bad teachers and just wanting to hang out with their mates
Beginning homeschool with a Waldorf curriculum which quickly evolved into natural learning and following the interests of their kids
Falling into a pot of goodness with their community after speed dating on Facebook homeschool groups to find their tribe
Sam & Christian want their kids to be life long learners, to respect Mother Earth, be free and active and not feel pressured to fit into boxes
Their advice to parents of teens struggling in the system and to Dads who may be reluctant to embrace this lifestyle

RESOURCES
The Good & The Beautiful - curriculum
Born Wise
Educated by Nature
We Are Nature Network
Wild Movement Perth

INSPIRATION
Stark Raving Dad Blog
Brave Writer Podcast - Julie Bogart
Robin Grille Psychologist
BOOKS
The Wild + Free Family - Ainsley Arment
Homegrown - Ben Hewitt
Weapons of Mass Instruction - John Taylor Gatto
Raising Free People - Akilah S Richards
Last Child in the Woods - Richard Louv
How to Raise a Wild Child - Scott D Sampson
(Consider asking your local library to purchase a copy if they don't currently have these books in their collection)
CONNECT
@little.beach.farm Instagram
@wearenaturenetwork Instagram
Have you for a story to tell?
Connect with us on instagram @australianhomeschoolstories or email [email protected]
This podcast is recorded on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, always will be aboriginal land.
Original music - Hazel by Daniel Garrood @garroodcomposer
Listen on Spotify here