How to teach your child to read (a step-by-step guide for parents)
This is the episode that finally answers the big question: how do I actually help my child learn to read? In it, I share a clear, step-by-step guide parents can use every day.
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How to make money as a home educating parent
Most advice on making money is hustle culture. This episode is different - two real income streams I’ve built discussed in detail, a framework to map your own, and six realistic lanes parents like us are using to make extra income right now.
The fight over how to teach reading (and what matters instead)
Parents are drowning in arguments about phonics, whole language, and balanced literacy. Here’s the truth behind the Reading Wars, and what really matters for your child.
Why reading makes us panic (and what children’s brains are really ready for)
Part one of this series uncovers why reading timelines get parents so worried, and what the science says about how and when children are really ready.
Ten things a home educating parent should NEVER do
After years of doing this, and speaking to thousands of other parents, I’ve found there are ten things that will categorically make home education harder than it needs to be. This episode puts every one of them under the spotlight.
Why home educating is the most important work there is
As a home educator, there’s a good chance you’re not valuing yourself, or your role, nearly as much as you should. Today I want to show you why I believe you’ve taken on a level of professional responsibility and weight that most people never will.
The myth of the self-directed child, Part One (why freedom isn’t enough) 🎙️
Why so many children struggle to take initiative - even with total freedom - and what the science of motivation, autonomy, and brain development tells us they actually need instead.
If I was starting home ed all over again, here’s what I’d do (part one) 🎙️
Everything we'd do differently if we could take ourselves right back to the start of this journey again.
The truth about “school readiness” (what developmental science actually says) 🎙️
What really happens in a child’s brain before and after they turn five? And what are the hidden costs of deciding that formal learning should “start” at that age? Let's look at the neuroscience, the developmental timelines, and four key reasons why the idea of “school readiness” is so deeply flawed.
The 11 things children need to reach their full potential (part two) 🎙️
Part One explored five conditions that built a foundation. This second half moves into the deeper developmental drivers that shape capability and confidence from the inside out.
The 11 things children need to reach their full potential (part one) 🎙️
In this two-part series, I walk through 11 essential conditions that help children reach their full potential - backed by science, and shaped by real life. Part One covers the five foundational pieces every child needs to grow well.
What every parent MUST know about the AI Generation
AI is replacing the very jobs we’ve always raised our children to aim for. In this urgent episode, I unpack where AI is at right now, what the next decade might look like, and how we can prepare our children for a future more different than we can imagine.
What if my child never learns maths? (and what the research actually says) 🎙️
We’ll look at what most people actually need maths for, how numeracy develops without school, how quickly kids can catch up later, and why the data shows the school system isn’t delivering the results we think it is.
The 7 skills that make home educating WORK 🎙️
How do I actually guide my child’s learning and growth? I know I don’t want to be a teacher, I know I want to be more like a mentor, or coach, or guide, but...how do I do that? What does it look like in practice?
We were SO wrong about how children develop resilience
I was sent an email recently that I want to talk about here. It was based around the kinds of questions this parent gets from her mother: "How will your child cope in life if they aren't made to do things they don't want? If...
Why Being In The Moment Matters
Children are very good at being in the moment. Adults, usually, are not. Not because we don’t want to be, but because we don’t really know how to anymore. From a young age we’re continually asked to move on from moments we’d rather stay present in...
Episode 18: The Big Home Education Questions Everyone Asks
Will your children be sheltered? How will you educate them properly if you’re not a qualified teacher? How will they get a good job when they grow up? Everyone who chooses a life without school will hear these kinds of questions at some point. They’ll come from friends,...
Did Your Child Have A Say In Being Homeschooled?
“Did your children have a say in being homeschooled? If they decide they want to go to school at some stage, will you let them?”. I’ve been told that by home educating we’re depriving our children of choice. That as parents we’ve just walked down a path...
Episode 17 (Q&A): Comparing Your Children To Others | Slow Life Seasons | Explaining Home Ed to Your Kids
Welcome back to another question and answer episode, where we take questions from the home education community and chat our way though them. I really love working through this episode each month, because your questions always reflect the struggles, the worries, and the hopes and dreams, of so many of...
Episode 16: On Being Their Coach, Not Their Teacher
Today, I want to talk about why I believe it’s so important that we – as home educating parents – play the role of coach, and mentor, and guide to our children. I want to take you through the simple, but powerful, framework Kate and I have used to help our...
