Category Archives: Handcrafted Education

In Celebration of Our Children By Blair Lee I gave birth to my son the day before finals. He was two weeks early, which neither my doctor nor I expected. The only person who thought he would be early was one of my students, a mother of three. Two days before I gave birth, she came up to me and told me she didn’t think I would make it through the weekend. She had been watching the location of my pregnant belly shift throughout the week, and she could just tell. I am glad my student was correct because it …

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Eclectic Academic Homeschooling by Blair Lee, M.S. One question we get fairly often is: Is SEA (Secular, Eclectic Academic Homeschooling) an Unschooler group or a rigor group? This isn’t an easy question to answer without a specific definition for unschooler. Unschoolers can range in approach from radical unschooler to a child/student-led approach that many radical unschoolers do not consider unschooling. SEA Homeschoolers is an Eclectic Academic Homeschooling Group Instead of focusing on the unschooling/unschooler aspect of this question, I will rewrite it to ask: Is SEA (Secular, Eclectic, Academic) Homeschoolers an academic group or not? That is an easy question …

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From the time I was pregnant with my son Sean until he was a toddler, if you had asked me what I wanted him to be when he grew up, I would have told you I wanted him to be a Renaissance man. To me, the term Renaissance man means a person (male or female) who has a deep and nuanced knowledge over a broad range of fields. It refers to a person who is literate and can express oneself through writing, speaking, or both; a person who is a creative thinker; someone who is not necessarily an athlete but …

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Blair Lee will show you how to teach complex and abstract scientific ideas in a way that is both accessible and enjoyable for kids--whether you have a strong science background or you feel intimidated about teaching science. Blair will use a chapter from REAL Science Odyssey Chemistry Level 1 to demonstrate how hands-on labs allow children to understand sophisticated scientific principles and theories through auditory, visual, and tactile experiments and activities. You'll discover why this is the best way to tap into a child's natural way of leaning. Thank you! Here is a downloadable PDF you can use with your …

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The Benefits of Homeschooling By Blair Lee, A Voice from the Middle There is a revolution going on right now in education. It’s called homeschooling. I am part of a fringe group in this revolution. You don’t hear a lot from us, but there is a group of homeschoolers who consider our style to be secular eclectic academic homeschooling. You don’t hear from us because on the one hand we are the unloved mongrels of the homeschooling community so we keep a low profile, and on the other hand we are too busy figuring out how to best facilitate our …

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“I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.” Susan Sontag Travel is a big part of our homeschooling journey. When we can, we worldschool. Worldschoolers incorporate travel throughout their children;s journey through learning. My husband and I want our son to be a global citizen. We want him to understand that many different cultures have looked at situations and come up with equally viable answers, one not necessarily better than the other. We want him to experience and appreciate different cultures and this big beautiful planet he lives on. We started traveling with Sean when he was two years …

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Making through History: Sometimes We Should all Be Uncomfortable I’ve been leading a class that I created called Making Through History for almost two years, and it has been one of the best teaching experiences I have ever had. The class explores history and the humanities through the art and invention that expressed the values and aspirations of people in a specific time and place. These days STEM/STEAM education is all the rage, and we are told that our children can’t be prepared for the future without it. While I agree that technology and science literacy are essential to navigating …

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Earth Day Online Scavenger Hunt It’s Earth Day! Normally this is a day when communities have lots of organized activities to help people learn about and improve the environment, but with the current global pandemic that is not an option this year. So, we created this fun and educational online scavenger hunt that families can complete together while sheltering at home. We hope that as you check off all of the challenges on this list, you will learn about important environmental issues and find ways you can reduce your family’s environmental impact & help solve the climate crisis. 1. Find …

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SEA Homeschoolers Community Support Resources Over the last week SEA Homeschoolers has had an influx of new members in our Facebook groups, many of whom are unexpectedly homeschooling due to school closures across the United States and around the world. For some this will be a temporary situation, while others will use it as a way to dip their toes into the homeschooling community or dive in head-first for a long-term homeschooling journey. Whether you have been considering homeschooling previously or find yourself suddenly in unfamiliar territory, the SEA Homeschoolers community welcomes you and hopes that we can be a …

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Could Your Child Have Dyslexia? Dysgraphia? Dyscalculia? Dyslexia and its related issues (Dysgraphia – trouble writing, Dyscalculia –trouble with basic math) are on the rise. In my group for homeschooled kids with special needs, I estimate AT LEAST 25% of the kids have Dyslexia. And the trouble is – we as homeschool parents and teachers are not always equipped to identify and help our kids in this area. This could really delay and prolong your child being at their “grade level” — or even graduating. Many parents are familiar with the most classic sign of Dyslexia – kids who reverse …

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Advice on Homeschooling to College By Blair Lee, MS This year is an exciting one for us. Our son, who was homeschooled from 1st grade until he graduated, is going to college. He applied to nine colleges and was accepted at six of them and was put on the waitlist of one of them. He received scholarship offers at three of the colleges. In the end, and after some soul searching on his part, he accepted the offer from the college that was closest to home, San Diego State University. We have a close-knit family, and he decided that he …

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Developmentally Appropriate Kindergarten If you are homeschooling kindergarten this year and have asked homeschooling friends what to do, you may feel you have only two options: An academic year full of curriculum, or unschooling, where you just trust your child will play their way to all the skills they need. Are you frustrated? I am. As an occupational therapist, I know there is at least one more choice, developmental kindergarten. Developmental kindergarten focuses on helping children develop all the underlying skills they need to go on to be successful. Many versions of kindergarten have existed since it’s origins over 100 …

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Our Kids Need Us To Teach by Farrar William As my kids have gotten older, they’ve naturally become more independent. For high school, some days they stalk off with their computers, online classes, and textbooks, confident in their assignments as they head to their rooms to stick on their headphones and get work done. Wow, I think to myself. I am so awesome. My kids really have this homeschool thing down. And then I go to check their work. Oh, maybe we do not have this homeschool thing down. It’s not that bad, though I have to admit that one of my boys …

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Advice for Joining Park Days Park  days, kids running around playing with friends. You, sitting with other parents chatting about kids and homeschooling. Sounds like fun, doesn’t it! Get there early! It’s much easier to get to know a person or two at a time as they start to show up than it is to come in after everyone is already sitting and chatting with their longtime friends. That goes for your kids, too. Let people know you’re new and feel free to ask questions, but understand that this is prime social time for parents and kids alike. They most likely …

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Using Stories to Inspire Service Projects We all have hopes and dreams for our children: values we hope they develop, a vision for the world we want to one day see in their future, and our children’s place in helping to achieve that vision. When I imagine the traits I want my children to develop and embody, empathy, kindness, and compassion come to mind.  Incorporating service projects into your secular homeschool journey is a great way to promote these.  This is a hope that they will view the world through a broader spectrum of ideas, philosophy, and understanding than I …

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