Two kids, eight grades, written down.
I taught my daughter from 1st through 6th grade and my son from 4th through 8th, at home. Here is everything I wish someone had handed me on day one: the honest basics, the curriculum that actually stuck, and the unit studies our kids still talk about.
Two kids, taught at the kitchen table
I'm not an expert. I'm a mom who taught both of my kids at home while working full-time shifts in healthcare, my daughter from first through sixth grade, my son from fourth through eighth. Both of them went on to graduate high school as valedictorians, and they'll tell you it started at our kitchen table.
Everything here is what actually worked for us, told as stories, not advice. Read our full story →
Everything, in the order I wish I had found it
Eight grades between two kids, sorted into the pages I would have wanted on day one.
Start Here
Six things to sort out, roughly in order, and what to do on the days when nothing works.
Read it →Laws by State
Homeschooling is legal in all fifty states. Find your state's actual rules and where they are written.
Read it →And once you are past the first week
Get the Backyard Birds unit study
Seven pages, ready to print: a tally sheet, a bar graph, a field-guide page, a nature journal, and a week of plans for you. Free, and yours to keep. I will send the occasional note when I post a new unit study or printable, and you can leave any time.
Where should I send it?
One email, one download link, no nonsense.
You are more ready than you feel.
No one is perfectly qualified on day one, and I certainly was not. You learn alongside them, you adjust, and years later you look back amazed at how much you built at your own kitchen table. Start small, follow their curiosity, and give yourself the same grace you would give a new teacher.