Margaret Hatcher is ready to answer all your burning homeschool questions and share her chicken wisdom to help solve your schooling conundrums!
Want to ask Margaret your question? Fill out the form at the bottom of this page, and your question could be featured in the next installment of Hatcher’s Homeschool Confidential. Or reach out to contact@prairietideprojects.com directly.
Dear Margaret,
“How do you schedule (home)schooling when you’ve got all the other life stuff to do? What if you’re not free to ‘teach’ at 10am on Tuesday?”
It’s a fair question, dear, and one I hear often.
If you’ve only ever seen education happen in a school building between the hours of 9 and 3, it’s natural to assume that learning must be boxed up, scheduled, and separated from everything else in life.
But here’s the thing: what if all that ‘life stuff’ is actually the most valuable schooling there is?
The Limits to Learning
One of the assumptions we carry (often without realizing it) is that education must happen:
- only on weekdays
- only while seated at a table or desk
- only with clearly marked “start” and “stop” times
- only with a “professional” to guide the learning experience
But learning doesn’t follow a bell or a schedule. Life rarely does either, and when you’re homeschooling you start to realize that those boundaries between “school” and “everything else” are not only artificial, but also detrimental to a child’s ability to learn (and to a parent’s sanity, too).
Education as a gift, not a chore
When we expect children to be in a specific place at a specific time just for the sake of consistency, we risk using school as storage. It’s a way to keep kids occupied, not necessarily engaged.
It also forces parents to adhere to yet another organization’s schedule that is outside their control. Add in work demands and grocery runsto the school’s expectation that children be delivered and picked up on time, and suddenly you’re just a logistics expert and your kids are cargo. If your job starts too early, or finishes too late for the regular school day then the issue is compounded as kids are often shuffled between school and “out-of-school” care. It becomes more of a chore for everyone than it is an opportunity.
Homeschooling opens the door to a different rhythm: one where curiosity, flexibility, and lifestyle can take the lead in dictating how and when your child can learn.
Real-World Learning, All Day Long
The more homeschool kids you meet, the more you realize that teaching kids how to manage their own time, how to recognize when something interesting is happening, and how to follow their interests with focus and discipline are far more valuable than any schedule I could devise.
It’s not hard to understand why schools can’t accommodate these approaches. Can you imagine what chaos that would throw traditional classrooms into? Having 25 children all following their interest, and reacting to the needs of each day is not something schools are set up to accommodate, let alone encourage.
Homeschoolers, on the other hand, can lean on the needs of every day life to guide their learning. Being allowed to engage more deeply with their day-to-day life helps not only build knowledge, but accomplishes useful tasks! That’s better than any participation trophy.
For example:
- Going to a pot luck? Baking muffins and you’ve got math (measurements), science (chemical reactions), and the important life skill of learning to feed yourself and others all in one go.
- Want to learn more about the wildlife in your backyard? Build a birdhouse! That’s geometry, fine motor skills, and environmental science plus a prime opportunity for a little character-building when things don’t line up on the first try.
- Budgeting for a friend’s birthday gift? That’s real-world financial literacy, decision-making, and kindness in action.
None of these require a Monday morning timeslot. They happen when they happen, sometimes at 7 p.m. on a Saturday, and they count.
Homeschooling Removes the Clock
One of the gifts of homeschooling is that it frees you from the clock. Kids don’t need permission slips to follow their interests. They can learn on a Tuesday morning or a Sunday evening. They can explore rabbit holes of curiosity without a bell telling them it’s time to stop.
And the result?
They don’t see learning as something separate from life. They’re more likely to stay engaged and curious outside of formal lessons. Meanwhile, many school-trained kids have a much harder time doing anything that feels like schoolwork outside of official hours. “We already DID school,” they say, and the walls go up. If there’s no grade, no due date, and no desk, they struggle to see the point.
Homeschool kids, on the other hand, know that learning is allowed to be anywhere.
It’s a mindset shift to be sure. One that doesn’t just change how they see school, but how they see themselves, their abilities, and their place in the world. They know it’s THEIR world, and no one is going to do their work for them.
Resources we love
Whether you’re gearing up for back-to-unschool season or just trying to fill in the gaps left by conventional schooling, we’ve found it incredibly helpful to keep a few trusted resources in our toolkit, because no one can do it alone!
One of our absolute favorites? The Tuttle Twins.
We started reading the Tuttle Twins board books with our kids before they could crawl, and are thrilled that there is plenty more Tuttle content to look forward to as they grow because they have more than just books (though the books are excellent!), their great lineup of resources also includes games, videos, and the Tuttle Twins Academy (with NEW World Issues course!).
The Tuttle Twins consistently delivers thoughtful, family-friendly lessons that are easy to use and actually enjoyable for kids.
Right now, they’re running a back-to-school sale, so it’s the perfect time to check them out. If you’re looking for real learning, with real values, and no hidden agenda – at up to 70% off – this is it!
Check out the Tuttle Twins sale here
Their stories spark conversation. Their characters model independence. The lessons encourage curiosity. And best of all, they respect the intelligence and potential of every child. What more can we ask for from our ‘educators’?
Take a peek at what’s included in the Tuttle Twins Academy and see if it might be right for your students!
Whether your child is diving into history, economics, entrepreneurship, or ethics, the Tuttle Twins is worth having in your back-pocket to help support you and your kids take advantage of ALL learning opportunities (not just the ones you sit at a desk for).
Happy Learning!
Who is Margaret Hatcher? Learn more about her, and the rest of the Free-Range Faculty at Hatcher’s Homeschool.
Have something you want to ask Margaret? Send us a message and your question might be featured in the next Hatcher’s Homeschool Confidential.
Disclosure: Prairie Tide Projects is an affiliate of the Tuttle Twins and may earn a commission if you make a purchase through affiliate links. This comes at no additional cost to you and we hope you find this recommendation helpful. Learn more on our Partners page.
