 People are always misspelling my name: Julieanne Miller. I could have let it bother me, over the years. Instead, I merely smile and shrug it off. There are more important things in life to worry about, like whether or not I remembered to bring my debit card with me to the grocery store - when I'm standing there looking at the checker who has just totaled my full cart of purchases. I thought it was amusing when a brand new book was released into the book-publishing kingdom recently. Guess what the main character's name is? Julianne Miller. So, the author accidentally misspelled the main character's name. Oh, I mean, my name. :) Actually, I saw bits and pieces about this new book posted here and there on the internet. And I thought it was pretty amusing one evening when I noticed that the author, who goes by the pen name "Charity Hawkins", contacted me on Facebook! I guess she was doing a search for people with a similar name as the main character, and my name popped up! Ha! Politely, she wanted to know a little bit about me. Normally, I'd hit the delete button at a stranger who was asking for personal information. But since I'd already heard about this book, and I had heard its publisher, Todd Wilson, speak in person at least once before, I replied to her careful questions. "Charity Hawkins" was thrilled to learn that I was also a homeschooling mama of my children, a follower of Jesus Christ, and had a homeschooling website of my own! We decided that I could do a book review of her new book (starring ME! - just kidding!), and I would also host a giveaway for another brand new copy of her book.
What did I think about The Homeschool Experiment? First of all, do not attempt to read this book while driving (oops, I mean riding) in a car on a long trip and the nearest bathroom is still an hour away. You will be laughing hard every now and then, and you want to arrive at your destination still wearing dry clothes and looking somewhat presentable. I took The Homeschool Experiment with me around town while I was reading it. After all, for busy homeschool moms, the best times to read books for pleasure are at the children's orthodontist, or while waiting for your child to get a haircut, or during a child's violin lesson, etc. Sitting in a quiet room at home, pleasantly reading a book, rarely happens around here. While I didn't flash the book around town, saying, "Look what I'm reading right now!", it was interesting to hear people making comments about this book. I haven't experienced that for quite some time. Maybe because it is so unusual these days for the average American to see someone reading a physical book while waiting around town, instead of texting and viewing the internet on a smart phone, it is shocking to them. I don't know! The orthodontist, who himself homeschools his children, said, "Is that for real? An experiment?" He was amused when I explained that the main character was none other than Julianne Miller. Of course, the names sound identical when pronounced, so of course, he thought it was about me, right? I made sure he knew that the book wasn't really about me. Ha!  Illustrated portrait of the author I don't know where I was reading this book when I laughed so hard that everyone stared at me. Was it at my hairdresser's shop? Or during an orchestra rehearsal? I don't remember. All I remember is that I could NOT contain my laughter, no matter how hard I tried to be polite. Kelsi, my 14-year-old, had warned me that one part of the book was SO funny that she hadn't laughed that hard for a long time! (Yes, she stole the book from the mailman and read it before I had the chance to grab it.) Sure enough, I laughed so hard that it was embarrassing! Gulp. My mom took The Homeschool Experiment with her on a trip to Alaska, and she got to the hilariously funny part (which I didn't tell her about beforehand), and she laughed so hard that she actually called me from Alaska to tell me about it! I wasn't home, so she left a message, but I'll tell you, I had another good laugh listening to her message! Okay, so about The Homeschool Experiment: it is hilariously funny (oops, I already said that), and it is poignant and relevant to any homeschool mother's life no matter what stage of homeschooling she may be in. You will be filled with hope, encouragement, laughter, some great ideas about homeschooling, and discernment about homeschooling, all while reading a knee-slapping story. This may sound weird, but I even think that people who are opposed to homeschooling will get something out of this book. Seriously - it is written so well and is such an excellent story. It may not change their minds about educating children at home, but I know it will give them more understanding about the whole process. Would you like to read the first three chapters of The Homeschool Experiment? You can do that at the Familyman Ministries website, which belongs to comedian Todd Wilson. Actually, he's a cartoonist who also writes funny books about homeschooling, and he's a greatly amusing and entertaining speaker at homeschooling conventions as well. You'll also be able to access a homeschool group study guide there, should you decide to read this together with a group of homeschool parents.
Disclosure: I received two paperback copies of The Homeschool Experiment - one for myself to read, and one to give away here, in exchange for my honest review of this book. No other compensation was provided.
28 Comments
6/15/2012 10:13:41 pm
We are entering into our 9th year of homeschooling our 3 precious children. The best tip I can give to a new homeschooling family is to TAKE YOUR TIME. This new endeavor will give you an opportunity to reconnect with your children (if they have attended school outside the home in the past) and establish beautiful foundations in your family and their personal character. Enjoy and let your time together be a blessing! I loved homeschooling my children. Homeschool is so portable. My favorite subject was history (American history) and I love museums, so we went to a lot of museums. My favorite though was a living-history museum in Iowa. The kids really learned a lot. Going to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove, MN was a lot of fun too, especially since my daughter was using a curriculum that was centered around the Little House books. Balance. You have to keep a balance. Don't stress and feel like you have to cover everything their peers in public school are learning this year, or that you have to learn it in the same way. But, don't relax so much that you later regret not covering grammar or writing sooner. Keep a balanced view. Think and plan ahead, but don't become overly stressed about it. Push your kids just enough to challenge them, but not enough to overwhelm them or cause them to turn off to school. In other words, you really need to know yourself and your children. But, if you do get to junior high and realize you should have started teaching something sooner, give yourself some grace. It will still be okay. 6/16/2012 01:44:44 am
Relax. You can't be a perfect homeschooler. Your kids will have gaps in their learning and that's ok. The smartest, most successful person that you can think of... they had gaps and look how well they did!
Sandy Kim
6/16/2012 01:46:21 am
One tip: find a homeschool group or co-op to join, or start one yourself. Another tip: enjoy the younger years and relax a bit when they are little. Let them enjoy creative play or games or explore but don't get too bogged down with hours of study when they are young. They will have plenty of time to study hard as they get older. 6/16/2012 04:16:58 am
The best advice I'd have for a new homeschool family is to relax and enjoy the ride! People tend to worry about whether they are teaching the right things or getting it "all" done - but I think it's more about giving your kid the tools to learn and developing their character, enjoying the time you have with them. We homeschool, and one of the most asked questions I get is how to get started. Of course I always tell them about the state laws, but I also tell them how they have already been teaching their children since birth, and remind them how great their kids already are. Starting to homeschool is different, but its something you have to actually START doing in order to figure out what works best for your family. So I encourage them to "just start!" 6/16/2012 09:16:39 am
My most helpful tip is to not worry about how everyone else homeschools and find the groove that works right for you. If that means you school all year round on six weeks off one, fine, if that means you do your school work after supper, fine. If your kids learn better while scuba diving, great. And don't let others dictate what curriculum you need. Trust me on this. I learned it from experience... 6/16/2012 03:24:53 pm
Sounds like a fun book! And I was going to say, "relax!" but the two people above me already said it... So I'll go with "Just breathe. Remember to breathe. Don't take things too seriously. If you can't laugh about it now, you'll laugh about it someday."
Amy L
6/17/2012 12:56:28 pm
I home school one and will be home schooling two before Iong. I need all the laughter I can get!
Sounds like a terrific book, and what a fun connection of your names. 6/18/2012 01:55:52 am
My tip is to find out your child's learning style and tailor your teaching to that. Find books from the library or online resources before spending a lot of money on curricula that might not work for your child. 6/19/2012 12:44:32 pm
tip: make your child's/childrens' education top priority every day
Debbie S
6/24/2012 07:59:42 am
Helpful tip - find a good friend you can share with. You'll need the support of others for those days you want to quit. 6/24/2012 01:53:46 pm
JuliEanne, 6/25/2012 04:32:45 am
At this time we don't home school our boys, but I have a lot of admiration and respect for those mama friends of mine that do! I would definitely be interested in reading this book :)
Cindy (Reichert) Ray
6/25/2012 09:39:13 am
I had my light bulb moment with homeschooling when my daughter was in 1st grade. Instead of rushing to do another worksheet on adding & subtraction I took various toys & empty cereal boxes...etc & put price tags on them. She dressed up in her play dress up clothes with purse & money & went "shopping" in the "store". She had to decide if she had enough money to buy what she wanted. This was the day I finally found the confidence to do things the way I thought best. So my advice is to relax. You will not mess up your child because you do not follow a set curriculum to the "T". The curriculum is only a guide. Leave a Reply. |
Hi! I'm Julieanne!
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