Homeschooling Away From Home

One of the great advantages to homeschooling is the ability we have to take this show on the road. When we travel, so does our school. On our last trip, I think half of our car was packed with school supplies. My husband never complains about all the books he has to pack into our family car, but he always makes at least one comment about the number of shoes I claim are necessary for any getaway.

I know all our “school stuff” took up a good portion of our hotel room. I had crates of books, workbooks, paper, and other miscellaneous supplies all packed into our little hotel room for the entire trip. We sacrificed one corner of the hotel room to the two little kids’ supplies, and the coveted desk to my high schooler and all his materials. The only person who seemed a bit disconcerted with my stash was the sweet woman from housekeeping who somehow ended up with our room for a solid two weeks. But luckily she developed a cleaning method that included turning a blind eye to the piles of papers and books.

For the entire two weeks we got up early in the morning and completed an entire day of school well before noon. It was awesome. My kids were able to spend time with their cousins and not worry about falling behind in school. In fact, my oldest got so far ahead we were a little concerned we would run out of class materials before the two weeks were up. In hindsight, I think he figured out how to pace himself so that he could take a couple of days off–out of “necessity”.

I know that I say this all the time, but I am so thankful to live in a country where I am able to home school my children. As we sneak up on the launch date of my first book, I am looking at taking my kids on the road for a couple of months. Right now they seem to be completely excited about the potential this adventure holds. I will dig up information on all the interesting sights, museums, and educational experiences we can do as a family while we are on the road. It will be epic.