(I was given a copy of this product but not required to give a positive review. These are my own thoughts.)
I’m not sure I have enough space here to share everything I’d like to share about the DVD series, Homeschool Made Simple. I started watching it with a pile of laundry and never got it folded because I had to pick up my pen and jot down every other word that came from Carole Joy Seid!
Perhaps I’m the only person in the homeschool world who is new to Carole Joy Seid. I first heard of her when I saw this series on Compass Classroom, then I noticed that she had a podcast on Read Aloud Revival. IÂ listened and was very intrigued by what she shared regarding her homeschooling philosophy.
Simple Homeschool Philosophy
Now, to be fair, none of what she says is new. She is Charlotte Mason meets Raymond & Dorothy Moore. So why should you be interested? I will tell you that the way she presents her information resonated with me to my core. From the beginning of the series when she talks a bit about the start of the homeschooling movement so many years ago, to concrete steps homeschooling moms can take today. She makes sense and more importantly, her vision for homeschooling is simple and doable for anyone.
We have always enjoyed and been drawn to a literature based education. From our start with Five in a Row to our current use of Trail Guide to Learning. I have swayed many times into feeling like we weren’t doing “enough”, but I always end up coming back to what works best for our family.
I wish I would have had this DVD series when we started our homeschooling journey. To have the confidence and confirmation that you don’t need much more than a library card, a math program, and a Bible and you can give your children a truly wonderful education. But it’s terribly easy to get distracted with all of the “noise”. The new and shiny curriculum, the must-haves, the latest and greatest extras that everyone “needs”.
Gentle Homeschooling
Somewhere along the way the word “gentle” homeschooling became a bit of derogatory statement. As if attempting to give your child a complete education without the pressures of a scope and sequence, somehow your children were doing nothing more than daydreaming in the backyard, playing with fairies and mud pies – even as teenagers. Gentle does not equal academic inferiority nor is it lazy homeschooling. It’s providing your children with a way of life that is both beautiful and challenging, with the goal of igniting a love of learning. A way of educating the whole person.
If you are new to homeschooling, looking for a breath of fresh air for your homeschool, or just need a bit re-affirmation for your journey – this video series will accomplish that and so much more.
The workshops include:
* Children & Reading
* Choosing Books
* Building Character in Our Children
* Math, Writing, Science, Art & Music
* Children & Media
Interested in your own copy of Homeschool Made Simple? You should be! From now through May 31st you can receive your copy at a 35% discount. Use the coupon code IHN35Â at checkout. This is a great deal and will be well worth your investment of time and money. Most importantly, this is an investment in your children and your family.
I enjoyed this series so much and that I purchased her seminar A Literature Based Approach to Education to continue learning. (Paid for with my own money!)
(*A note for my fellow Catholics – I will of course be using Catholic resources for our religion/bible studies as well as covering the reformation from a Catholic perspective.)
What a great resource! I really appreciate your discussion about gentle homeschooling getting a bad rap. I am finding that less is more in our family with schooling and trying to really focus on quality. Thanks again!
It truly is a great resource! Less truly is more, thank you for reading!
I also love the less is more philosophy. I first learned this from Julie Bogart with Brave Writer. Her focus is on writing, but she offers a free blog and podcasts that I find are so encouraging for my approach to homeschooling.
I like her too! I have been reading her info on tea parties & poetry.
It’s interesting to hear the perspective of someone that loved it so much. My experience was the opposite. I felt like there was nothing new to write and my children, ages 8 and 11, had passed many of the milestones for products she recommends. I appreciate her love for books and the simple, but that’s nothing new. Her disdain for electronics was predictable. I agree, in part, but think she goes a little overboard. Her recommendation to have children, grades 1-3, focus on American History (after she just gets done stressing the importance of World History) seemed odd to me. I think it’d be much more difficult to teach than Ancient History – the displacement of Indians, slavery, witch trials, etc. At least with Ancient History, I can say this was a people a long time ago that thought so different than us. Some of the books she recommends seem like they’d have a clear bias. Since so much of her recommendation revolves around her books recommendations for tying together literature and history, I’m afraid, if I purchased more, that I’d just be paying for a list of books with her point of view. I have extensive booklists I’ve worked hard on that I’d share for free with my friends, so I resent that she withholds those. I’d love it if you’d review The Literature Based Approach, because I’m afraid to invest the money.
I’m sorry you didn’t love it as much as I do! I think her approach to history is that teaching ancient history to very young children can be a challenge because they do not think in the abstract, but everything is very concrete to them. So speaking about worshipping different kinds of Gods and Goddess has the potential to be confusing. As always, you know your children best and perhaps it would work in your house. I know we did Greek myths several years ago with my older kids and they were in upper elementary. I’m planning to do Ancient history again this fall with my whole crew. She also suggests doing a very comprehensive Western Civ in high school – that makes sense to me. I’m not sure what you mean about her bias and her book recommendations. Each person that has a curriculum plan has a point of view it’s just a matter of finding what fits with you and what you want to teach in your homeschool. I don’t plan to review her seminar, but not because I haven’t found it very helpful! I would be happy to talk more about it if you’d like to e-mail me. Thanks for reading and for your comment 🙂
That was the exact point that had me scratching my head too, Amy. (the layout of history)We follow a classical model for our homeschool, and our children have started with the ancients. We did Greek Mythology last year (my daughter was in 3rd grade) and both she and my sons (K) LOVED it. This year, we’re studying Famous Men of Rome — once again, we all love it. We started listening to Story of the World Vol 1 in the car over the summer, and the kids ask for it every time we go anywhere.
Jen, I appreciate that you took the time to review — like you, I can get distracted by the shiny. For me, if I find something that works, I close my eyes to everything/everyone else. It sounds like a literature based approach works well for your family. That’s the beauty of homeschooling — the freedom to do what works best for you, instead of fitting a square peg into a round hole.
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I’m very intrigued by this and would like to know more. Is this DVD set sufficient to follow, or would the seminar be necessary as well? How does one get her book list?
I would definitely start with the DVD series. The seminar does have a bit more meat to it than the DVD, but the DVD is a great place to start. She includes some resources with the DVD series.
Ack! Jen, I was not planning on getting this….but now after your review I just might! Your enthusiasm is contagious!
I’m glad you can tell I’m liking this resource! I feel a good deal of freedom as I’m (loosely) planning our homeschool year.