Home School

The teen years aren’t easy. There were many times I wondered if I’d make it through unscathed. I happened to be one of the lucky ones. Many parents aren’t nearly as lucky. Unfortunately, there are no guarantees. There is no predestined parenting path anyone can take to guarantee your child’s safety, well being, and happiness.

When my daughter was younger, I’d worry and stress over nonsensical things. Anxious that her head size wasn’t within the normal range for other infants her age, I worried that this would somehow affect her ability to learn. I drove myself crazy wondering if she was getting enough protein in her diet because she would refuse to eat meat. A working mom, I didn’t want to be an absentee parent causing my daughter to resent me, so I’d kill myself trying to juggle and rearrange work to make it to every recital, play, and soccer match. If only I’d have known then what I know now, I wouldn’t have worried quite so much. Perhaps, I’d have a few less grey hairs or gotten a little more sleep.

As children get older the dangers compound. My mind swirls with the possibilities of dangers lurking out there threatening to damage or destroy my daughter’s well-being: peer pressure, bullying, depression, a destructive unhealthy self-image, eating disorders, cutting, underage drinking, drugs, smoking, texting while driving, sexting, car accidents, sexually transmitted diseases, teenage pregnancy, rape, fighting, school violence, being kidnapped, shop lifting, an over-inflated ego and a sense of privilege, and my list of worries goes on and on. Ever vigilant, I was often accused of being over protective, but it didn’t matter. I simply didn’t care. I would do everything within my power to ensure my daughter’s well-being.

A relatively good girl, my daughter is a sensible, intelligent, and beautiful young woman who has the world in the palm of her hand. After taking this last year off, she’ll be attending college in the fall. Some would say my vigilance paid off, they’d be wrong. The truth of it is, I simply got lucky. My daughter could have easily fallen prey to any number of the dangers I feared. There is absolutely nothing any of us can do to guarantee our child survives the tumultuous teenage years. All we can do is watch out for them, love them, and hope we get lucky.

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We did it! We successfully completed our first year of road schooling.

There were several components to navigate when we first decided to give up our stationary lives to adopt this mobile nomadic life of travel, but none were as important as the education of our children. Delving headlong into the home school/road school process, I educated myself on the various methods and philosophies before deciding to use the eclectic approach. Compiling our curriculum could have been an overwhelming and daunting experience had it not been for the grace of families like our own who helped to pave the way and the informative world wide web. Meeting the ever changing needs of our children, we cater to their individual interests while adhering to our state specific requirements.

Looking back at this last year, I’d like to share three opportunities and experiences my children have had that they normally wouldn’t have received within the confines of the typical classroom. I hope this may help those out there who are trying to decide if home school/road school is right for them or who may have just started out.

Wood Working and Remodel Unit

One of the first things we needed to do was find an RV. It needed to be diesel, affordable, and able to accommodate our family of five. Wanting to avoid costly monthly payments that would detract from our monthly budget, we planned to buy our RV outright. We were ecstatic to find a used thirty-four foot RV that met all our needs nicely.

Investing a little sweat equity, we would make it comfortable and distinctly ours. This was a perfect chance to have a unit on woodworking and remodeling.

The Bathroom: Remodeling the bathroom floor, we had to first start by pulling up the old hardwood floor. There wasn’t enough room for two people to work on this together, so the kids took turns prying up the boards with a crowbar.After the old wood was replaced, we tiled the floor and replaced the old worn toilet with a new one. Scraping the old wall paper off the bathroom walls, we finished things off with a fresh coat of pain.

The Living/Dining Room: Pulling up the carpet in the living room and dining room area, the kids took needle nose pliers And eliminated the hundreds of staples that had been left behind. Next, we laid down the foundation and the new hardwood floors. Having pulled out the dining room table to complete our floor project, we decided to forgo it completely in favor of more comfortable sitting and sleeping arrangements.

While this was very much a family project, the kids learned first hand to appreciate the hard work that goes into making any house a home.

Commerce and American Ingenuity

At first glance, Wall, South Dakota, appears to be nothing more than a road side tourist attraction with its many souvenir shops, the statue of the giant jack rabbit, the restaurants, the traveler’s church, and the various other attractions. However, it is so much more. It is a flourishing town built on American ingenuity. Wall, South Dakota is one of America’s most well-known tourist attractions thanks to the business acumen of Dorothy and Ted Hustead. Settling on the edge of the Badlands in Wall, South Dakota, the Husteads opened Wall Drug Store in 1931. They hoped to put down roots and to make a nice living for their family. Unfortunately, business was bad. They struggled along for nearly five years, quietly hoping business would pick up when Dorothy had an ingenious idea that soon had their business flourishing. Free ice water. It was an economically brilliant idea. Dorothy and Ted Hustead had plenty of water and ice, but they needed customers. Travelers going through the hot desert of the Badlands would surely be thirsty and in need of refreshment. Putting up signs along the highway route advertising their FREE ICE WATER, the Hustead’s store was soon extremely business with the traffic they attracted from their road signs. Standing in Wall Drug Store reading Dorothy and Ted’s story brought to life what two hard working people with a little American ingenuity can do.

United States History and Art

CZWR0211 Home to over forty memorials, museums, and art galleries, there is no other place quite like our Nation’s Captiol when studying the history of the United States.

We spent two weeks here, but could have easily spent several more. There is so much to do and see it can be a little overwhelming. However, with a little thought it is easy to plan your time here. To make the most of our time, we splurged and took a city tour which allowed us to see many memorials within a day. Knowing we didn’t have enough time to see and do everything the city had to offer, we decided it was only fair to divide and conquer. Taking turns, we each chose a museum or gallery the family would visit. This seemed to be a fair method that appeased us all. Complementing what we saw with reading and writing assignments, the history of our country was brought to life.