Roadschooling Our Way

Roadschooling is my favorite....it's not without its challenges, but I think the unique and diverse learning experiences we get out of it are worth it. I'm learning how to do this better all the time. 

Where should I go?

Pick a location...it can be anywhere! A lot of people want to aim for national parks, and yes, these are among the most spectacular places to visit, but they are 1) crowded and 2) very far apart. I advise that you instead aim for a region that is within your comfort zone for driving distance, weather and budget, go there for at least a week or two and explore everything slowly. Trust me, it won't matter what you pick...there are amazing things everywhere. 

How do I find things to do?

Scope out the big and small museums, county and state parks, regional foods, Native American tribal councils, libraries, hiking paths, and fairs or festivals. I love the Adventure Lab app that goes with the Geoaching app and find it well worth the $36 a year subscription fee. You get walking tours for many locations that give you something to do and also point out some historical or geographical points of interest. We will visit a coffee shop and get the local paper to see what events are going on. When we stay in private campgrounds there are sometimes seasonal residents there who will host potlucks or other social events and you can find out from them what is going on in the area. 

Will there be a test?

Definitely not. We don't have grades in our homeschool. They get scores on math and then find mistakes and resubmit until they know it. For social studies and science they will write a few essays or do a big project throughout the year, but I have found quizzing them to be a waste of their time and mine. We talk about what we've seen and write down questions that we have, which often shapes the next adventure. We use maps and a timeline to orient ourselves.

How do you know what the kids are going to learn?

I really don't. We have some guiding questions....who used to live here? Do they still live here? If not, what happened? This can apply to any species. The physical science is often the reason behind things coming and going. We read signs and look at museum exhibits and usually end up with a lot of questions and then look online and watch videos or read articles. This morning we turned on a livestream from NASA, thinking we would see the view from the International Space Station, but instead it was a panel discussion on contributions of African Americans to NASA and related agencies. Those historic markers you find on the side of the road are usually pretty barebones in their description but if you search for youtube or visit archives.gov you can dig deeper into the story. 

How much is enough?

Sometimes I panic that we are not doing enough....but don't fall into this trap. Leave space for thinking about things. We like to hike or fly kites. Not every second has to be filled with acquisition of new information. Our society has become way too rushed and we complain that our kids have difficulty with transitions. I spent years trying to figure out how to sweep children along with maximum efficiency, but I have since changed my mind about this approach.  I slashed the fat from our schedule several years ago and then kept slashing until we found a place of equilibrium. When we are at a good place with our schedule my kids have zero problems getting ready and out the door. I learned about backwards planning from Julie Bogart and having a daily reflection period for sketching or jotting down a few notes about what we did has been game-changing. Trust the process. Slow down and what you've done will almost always be enough. And if it wasn't enough, you don't have to consider it a personal failure, just incorporate what was missing the next day, the next week, the next year.

Does it cost a lot of money?

It can cost whatever you want it to cost. Many museums have a free day. Getting a membership and visiting one place many times while you are there may be more cost effective and a richer experience than rushing through a bunch of different ones. Reading historic markers is free. Libraries are free and will have interesting highly localized collections. If you stay at state parks, programming there is usually free. The junior ranger badgework that national parks offer is free. Camping is a pretty low cost way of travel once you have equipment. Sometimes it's worth it to pay a tour guide or museum admission, but you don't have to cram your trip full of these experiences.