← The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast
The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast
1KHO 572: There Are So Many Ways to Be Smart | Maeve Jemison, Home is Where the Truth Is
00:58:08
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- [00:01]
Ginny Arch
Hey friends, it's Ginny from the 1000 Hours Outside podcast. Every Sunday this September, we are easing into homeschool together. This week I'm joined by Maeve Jemison, author of Home Is where the Truth why you can and should homeschool your child. We are busting the biggest myths. We're talking about starting mid year and sharing real life ways working and single parents can make homeschool fit. We'll also get practical about organization, chores and why homeschool is the ultimate in individualized education plan Even if you don't homeschool, you'll find simple ideas for calmer school nights. Think read alouds, screen light rhythms and quick resets when everyone is at the end of their rope. So grab your coffee, take a deep breath and press play with me. Make sure you're following the show and share this with a friend who needs a hopeful nudge for the week ahead. Fall is about to be in full swing and because it's already starting to get a little chilly in the mornings and evenings, I've been slowly but surely refreshing my wardrobe with pieces that actually work. Things I'll wear on repeat, not just once. That's where Quince comes in. They make it easy to stay warm, look polished and save money, all without sacrificing quality. Speaking of chillier temps, I'm absolutely loving the Mongolian cashmere gloves I recently got because my hands seem to always be cold and I can easily toss them in my purse or backpack just in case the weather changes quickly. I've also been eyeing their wool coats. They look totally designer but cost a fraction of the price and they're 100% Mongolian cashmere sweaters. They start at just $50 and are incredibly soft. What makes Quint's different is how smart their model is. They partner directly with ethical top tier factories and cut out the middlemen so you get luxury quality clothing at half the price of similar brands. It's a wardrobe upgrade that feels smart, stylish and effortless. Honestly, I've even been browsing their bedding and travel bags lately. Quint's is turning into a one stop shop around here. Keep it classy and cozy this fall with long lasting staples from Quint's. Go to quince.com outside for free shipping and 365 day returns. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com outside.
- [02:02]
Maeve Jemison
Here we go.
- [02:03]
Ginny Arch
Welcome to the 1000 Hours Outside podcast. My name is Ginny Arch. I'm the founder of 1000 Hours Outside and I have A friend here today that we've met in person, which is really, really special. We've met actually twice at the Florida Parent Educator association convention, fpea, and we've hung out there and talked about writing books. And here you are with your actual book, and you have a podcast. The book is called Home is Where the truth is why you can and should homeschool your child. Nave. Jemison, welcome.
- [02:34]
Maeve Jemison
Thanks for having me, Jenny. I'm blessed to be here.
- [02:37]
Ginny Arch
So we spent this time together. It must have been a couple years ago, and then you wrote a book.
- [02:42]
Maeve Jemison
Yes, but let me back up a little, because I remember the first time you brought your cute little curly head to fpea. So I've been watching you, listening to your. Your podcast and doing our thousand hours outside ever since you came to fpea, which was many years ago, and you got up there on stage with Heidi St. John, and I saw the Lord working in that. Do you remember that?
- [03:08]
Ginny Arch
I do. I actually. That is so wild that you brought that up, because I remember thinking, how did I get here?
- [03:16]
Maeve Jemison
Right? You're sitting next to Heidi St. John. Right. And it's like, it was amazing to see, and it was amazing to see your humility, and everything you said was amazing. So you've been inspiring me for a long time, so thank you.
- [03:32]
Ginny Arch
Oh, how sweet of you to say. And how fun to meet in person. And then you came out with this book, Home is where the truth is why you can and should homeschool your child. Tell us about your podcast as well.
- [03:41]
Maeve Jemison
Okay, well, the podcast is called Homeschooling for Catholic Parents. All are welcome there, but it basically is a way to get the ideas in the book out into the world. Right. Lots of people listen to podcasts, and my husband and I host it together, so we have a lot of fun bantering back and forth. But, yeah, the. The book came, Jenny, because of all these conf. I'm a streaker at FPEA. Okay? I mean, I think I have, like, 15 or 16 years under my belt, so I have learned so, so much. Conferences, you guys, if you can get to a homeschool conference, get to one. They are so great. But, you know, back in 2020, when the world became homeschoolers, everyone was picking my brain because I had already been homeschooling. Right. How do you homeschool me? But what do you do? What do you do? And what I would tell them. You know, read aloud to your kids, find what their passions are, see what they're interested in, see what they Want to learn, sit there and read and snuggle. It would kind of you would look at into these parents who have been sending their kids to school all, all their lives and their eyes are kind of like what? That's it, you know, like. So I realized that there's so many myths and misconceptions about homeschooling that I said, well, if I know something about anything, it's homeschooling. So that's why I decided to write the book.
- [05:13]
Ginny Arch
I actually love that format of the book. So each chapter is a misconception. So it's things like, your kid won't be adequately socialized. I don't have enough patience. Those types of things. Myths and misconceptions. Homeschoolers are weirdos. They're going to miss all their school friends. You should teach according to all of the government benchmarks. I work so I can't homeschool. So it's just misconception after misconception. And you go through and talk about those. So it's a fantastic format. Tell us your homeschool journey because we've got two different journeys. We started there, we started off with homeschooling. So some people do that and some people do something different and then midway they say this isn't working for us or we want something different and you pull the child out mid year, which I think is a really important thing to talk about because that happens probably more than people realize they get partially through the school year or even almost really close to the end. I've heard that like the April ish timeframe is a time when a lot of people pull their kids out and maybe it's because they think, think, think, think, think this is going to get solved, this is going to get resolved. And so they're waiting around and then they realize maybe it's not going to. So they. Or the weather gets really nice. So I mean, you know, in Michigan, maybe not in Florida, but you know, the weather gets really nice. So I do think that there's actually benefits to both. You know, if you start off from the beginning, there's benefits to that, but there's also benefits if you make an about face and change and teach your kids that you can make big changes and you. They sometimes have that. Then they know like what it was like to get up super early and what was it like to have a lot of drama surrounding you all the time. So. Or have all of this homework. So I think either way there are really some benefits there for the family. What's your Journey.
- [06:57]
Maeve Jemison
Okay, thanks. What I want to first start off saying is, yes, it's never too late to make the decision to homeschool. And as a former high school journalism teacher, I can tell you, come April, May, June, kids are signed out. We're not. We're showing movies in the classroom. It's lackadaisical. So, yeah, whenever you decide to homeschool is never too late. I did have a. My eldest was in sixth grade, and thus up until then, she had had a great school experience. She was in an all girls class in third and fourth grade, which was a nationally recognized thing because not a lot of schools do that. She was. She is very smart, very quick to learn. And I had my second child, and when this child was a baby, there's this family at church. I didn't even know what homeschooling was. I didn't really know it was a thing at all. This was about 2009, and there was this family at church and they would show to all the ministries together and they would serve as a family. They would volunteer as a family. They had three kids. And Jenny, these kids were kind. They spoke to you and they looked in your eyes and they had manners and they just were just the sweetest things. And they were a homeschool family. And I was so intrigued. Wow. Oh, my gosh. I want that for my family. So I started praying about it because like I said, my eldest was in sixth grade. Ish. And she was doing great. So I'm like, you know what, Lord? When this baby is like four, I'll be ready to homeschool. I'm going to start praying about it now. And no, no. The Lord had other ideas. Praise him. Within a few months of saying that prayer, two things happened that the Lord showed me that it is time to homeschool right now. For one, my husband Matt was like, like, okay, that sounds like a great idea. I thought he'd be like, I don't know about that. I don't know about you teaching the kids, honey. No. But he was supportive. I'm like a miracle number one. And then the second, there was just some little behavior things with my daughter where she would get a red mark one day, you know, just little things. And the Lord made it known to me that we're going to start homeschooling in January, which was like, okay, the December break. So we took her out of sixth grade at the middle school, which scary place, middle schools, Right. But we took her out of middle school and we took her whole course load that she was going to finish and we brought her online with it. So I was homeschooling, but it was all online. I was brand new to this, so I was just learning as I go too. So we took that whole entire course load on FLVs, which is Florida Virtual School. Jenny, she. So she had 18 weeks. Her counterparts that were still in school had 18 weeks. Left my child in our living room finished that coursework in six weeks. So. Wow. Yeah, so that's how quick she was to finish her assignments. But then she might, oh, turn around and talk to the person behind her or, you know, so not only was all this time or is all this time wasted in the government school system framework, your kids can't flourish quite as much as if they are doing it at their own pace and learning in their own. The best means that they learn. So ever since then, we've been homeschooling and it's been the greatest adventure, the best decision we've ever made. And that's why I just really am passionate about dispelling any of these myths, Encouraging parents to just try it, just try it and watch your family bond just start to flourish and your parenting get a little better and, you know, all kinds of benefits out there.
- [10:56]
Ginny Arch
Yeah, I mean, we say the same thing. Best decision that we have ever made. Do you still do FLVs? Did I say it right? Yes. Do you still do?
- [11:06]
Maeve Jemison
You know, it's funny that after about a year of that, of all her classes online, we went the. The next convention, we went to the FPEA convention. She. We were a one of the book vendors she picks. It was her time to do biology. She picks up the apology of biology textbook from the counter. She hugs it to her bosom and says, I can't wait to have this textbook. So she was just sick of being online all day. And so that's another great thing about the homeschooling is your kids are going to figure out what they like. There's going to be so many different ways to learn. They don't just have to sit in that hard desk staring at a computer screen. Instead, she took that biology book home in a nestle of pillows and her spread out her notebook and her colored pens and got at it.
- [12:01]
Ginny Arch
So how many kids hug their textbooks? Not that many. I can see though apology has got phenomenal materials. And it is an interesting thing to say and to remind, especially if people have younger kids, that so much of the schoolwork is on screens right now. And so if you're looking for something different, this might be a Good option for you. I also want to say that I think it's totally fine to have some, something that helps you transition out of what you're used to. So, you know, because some, you know, people can just be judgmental here and there. So they might be like, well, online school through FLVS isn't really homeschool. You know, people would say things like that or you know, you know how people can be. It's just your transition out and you may stick with it for the whole time or you may say, this gave me a year to get my feet under me and for us to sort of figure out the rhythm here and then we're gonna slowly transition to something else. So my book is called Homeschooling youg're doing it right just by doing it. And I think a lot of people take that to be the sort of free, unschooling, we're gonna be at the park, that type of thing. Which I do think is a great way to raise kids and for them to learn and grow. But I also think that, that if you are doing it more straight laced, if you've got a little more of a type A personality, you're going to check the boxes. That's the right way to do it too. So whatever works for your family, for your kids, for your personality, your kids are still going to learn and grow. Let's talk about some of these misconceptions. Here's one. This is a big one because the world is rapidly changing and the world is really expensive. So one of the misconceptions is I work, therefore I can't homeschool. So this is for dual income families. This is for families where the mom works part time, in the home, out of the home. And it's also for single parent households. Can you help dispel that misconception?
- [13:54]
Maeve Jemison
Yes. Just like you said, that there's no one way for a family to homeschool. It's whatever works. It's whatever helps you and your family flourish. It's the same with parents working. There's every kind of mode to do it. And it's about one third of families that homeschool have both parents working. So there are, it's what I like to tell people is if you're on like social media or Facebook and you're in a homeschool group, I like to go in there and search both parents work. You will find. So for every family out there, there's a different way to do it. You can homeschool on the weekends, you can homeschool at night. If a parent works remotely, they can be home with the kid and one parent leaves a checklist. And let's say this, if your kids need child care, if they're that young and you both work, there are still options. There are, are daycares that take homeschool kids because they're old, they might be a little older, they might, they don't need as much diaper changing and stuff. So there's great economical benefits to that. There's homeschool moms that say, I have a friend, she's always looking for other homeschool. She's a homeschool mom, she's got five kids. Hey, you want to come over? You know, I want more kids for my kids to learn with because she's Montessori based. Right. So she just loves having the kids together. There's homeschool co ops, there's some drop off co ops, there's hybrids, there's pod school, meaning the child might go to like a homeschool place for a day. Parents can get some work in and then they come home and do their work. Jenny, there are so many ways to do it. Actually I will even say there's a lot of single parent households where that parent work works and they are still homeschooling because it's so flexible. And remember how I told you there is so much time wasted in the public school you're not going to be homeschooling from 8:30am to 4:30pm it is not like that. Depending on the age of the child, you can homeschool in one and a half, two hours a day. Jenny, you're always quoting John Taylor Gatto. Yep, 50 hours baby reading, writing and arithmetic. Okay. And listen, I have, my eldest now is 26, she's out in the world adulting. But I right now have a 17 and 14 year old that I do not homeschool them. I help them, I guide them. They are here homeschooling, I promise you that. But I am not doing anything but consulting them. Another great book that we both love, Self Driven Child. The Self Driven Child by Neil Stix. Right, right. So I read that book. I've, there's, there's a lot of footnotes in my book with the, the ideas from that book. But my 14 and 17 year old at this point are self driven. They get their stuff done through the different seasons of life. It's going to change and ebb and flow your homeschool. But once they're able to be home alone, the world is Your oyster if you have to work still, you know, there are so.
- [17:21]
Ginny Arch
And I think God makes a way.
- [17:22]
Maeve Jemison
Amen, sister.
- [17:23]
Ginny Arch
For whatever your personal situation is. He parted the Red Sea, he's going to make a way. So if you're in a situation where you feel like there is no answer, God is going to give you your answer. He's going to give you the people, the community. He's going to help you learn. This John Taylor Gatto situation where he was a public school teacher and he said there's ample research that it only takes 50 to 100 hours for a kid to reach functional literacy. That's it. Like 50 to 100 hours ever at the right agent stage so that they could go on to learn anything they ever wanted to learn in their life. And that's the world that we live in right now. We live in a world where kids are going to have to learn a lot of things. And I'm not saying that's all the schooling you do with your kids, but if you can get them to there, you know, do you have 50 hours total? I mean, in the whole year? You really don't need a lot of I'm standing up in front of you with a dry erase board, you know, teaching you this history lesson or, or something like that. They do a lot on their own. They're very motivated. Kids love to learn. People love to learn. And I think that's a misconception, is that you think you're going to be fighting tooth and nail for them to learn. But no, everybody loves to learn. Think about whatever it is right now that you're wanting to learn about. I was on a plane yesterday. I sat next to this lady and she was crocheting a little thing. It looked like a little pot with a little cactus in it. And I was like, I kind of want to learn that, you know, because learning is fun.
- [18:48]
Maeve Jemison
Yes.
- [18:48]
Ginny Arch
And so that's why your child is going to hold their apology of biology textbook because God made it that way for us. It releases dopamine when you read and when you learn, it feels good. So there's not this butting of heads. Hey friends, it's jenny erst from 1000 hours outside it's 2025. Are you still feeding your kids like it's 2005? That's where nurture life comes in. There are g delivery service made just for babies and kids ages 10 months to 10 years. And they are saving my sanity. Nurture life meals are fresh, fully cooked and ready in just one minute. That means when my Kids come home from homeschool co op starving and each one wants something different. I'm not scrambling. Last night we were on the go so my crew had spaghetti and meatballs and Mac and cheese meals they love that I actually feel good about. What I love most is that Nurture Life takes the stress out of feeding my kids on those days when schedules are hectic to no guesswork, no begging them to try veggies. It's all dietitian designed, allergy friendly and yes, I've even snuck a few bites myself. You choose from over 50 rotating meals and snacks. Nurture Life does the cooking and everything arrives at your door chilled and ready to go. So head to Nurture Life.com 1000hours55 and use code 1000hours55 for 55% off your first order plus free shipping. Once again, that's NurtureLife.com 1000hours55 and make sure you use my promo code 1000hours55. Even if you aren't a parent with young kids, you might have parent friends who struggle with mealtime. Make sure to share our code so our show gets the credit. Remember, put your little ones first with healthy meals from Nurture Life. Time for some life talk. Life insurance talk, that is. If you're like me, you probably have life insurance. But do you actually know how much you're paying for it? Or how much coverage you're getting? Odds are you might be paying too much for too little. And here's something not many people realize. If you only have life insurance through your job and you're suddenly laid off, you could be left with nothing. That's why I'm heading to SelectQuote. For over 40 years, SelectQuote has helped more than 2 million Americans secure over $700 billion in coverage. They're not a one size fits all company. They work for you in just 15 minutes. Their licensed agents compare top rated policies tailored to your health and your budget and they do it for free. You can even get up to $2 million in same day coverage with no medical exam. And if you have pre existing conditions like high blood pressure or diabetes, Select Quote partners with companies that can help. Life insurance is never cheaper than it is today. Get the right life insurance for you for less and save more than 50%@SelectQuote.com 1000 hours save more than 50% on term life insurance@SelectQuote.com 1000 hours today to get started. That's SelectQuote.com 1000 hours healing takes courage, but it also takes the right support what if it started with a step away from the noise, a proven approach and a puppy. Capstone Wellness is here to help with a unique model founded on faith and clinical excellence. For teen boys and young men struggling with trauma, mental health and addiction, Capstone Treatment center provides a safe place to begin their healing journey. Every boy receives a Labrador retriever puppy on admission and takes that puppy home when they graduate. Paired with deep therapy work, these pups help teach responsibility, nurture attachment and bring families together. For individuals, couples, or families who aren't looking for residential care, vine and Root intensives cover months of world class counseling in a concentrated multi day package designed to retrace hurt back to the root. For over 24 years, Capstone has helped thousands of families on their path to healing. Learn more at capstonewellness.com 1000hours. That's capstonewellness.com/1000hours. So just once again, over a third of homeschool families have both parents working. This is from your book Home is Where the truth is. 14% of homeschoolers have single parents. And then you said this. Oh, I thought this was really good. Maeve, you say this 18 year contract pays a priceless salary. That actually makes me really emotional. I'm like about to cry. Gosh, I thought that was such a powerful statement. I've never really thought about that because, you know, of course people will be like, you know, you know, I've got this homeschool mom job. You know, I'm the chauffeur and the principal and the janitor and the lunch lady and the teacher and the, you know, the counselor. And I get paid $0. But you would say no, it pays you a priceless salary. Can you talk about that?
- [23:09]
Maeve Jemison
Yes, I would love to. I also want to say that I love that Bible verse that delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. So if homeschooling is something that is on your heart, mama, keep praying. Like Jenny said, he will make a way. Can you ever put a really a price on guiding your children to the path with which the Lord has prepared them? He put talents, passions, interests in them. And you know, like you were saying, that joy of discovery, I was flabbergasted by it. When I started teaching my kids. I'm a public school school product. I taught high schoolers who did not want to be in that classroom and set their chin in their hand on their elbow on their desk. When I saw that my children were voracious about whatever I put in front of Them, we, we used to love to do unit studies. So we're learning about dolphins. This was when they were elementary age. We learn about dolphins, roller coaster camouflage and creation robots. They, Jenny, the, the joy of discovery is there, like you said. And I still have it. And you still have it. You want to learn to crochet. I learned how to podcast. You know, it's fun. And you, you just cannot put a price on walking that path with your child. Once they find that passion, once you see what they are interested in, and then going out in the community and seeing, saying, oh, let's go to this field trip where we can learn more about it. Let's go ask this expert what they know about it. Because we don't know everything as the parents, you know, they're gonna, and that's the other thing is they're gonna come to a point where they are so enthralled with what they're learning about that, well, a, you gotta kind of fake a smile sometime when they're telling you all the facts and you're like, oh, that's great, honey. Because they just, it's, they talk about it so much, but you then have to go find the experts. Just the other day we took our daughter who's interested in becoming a pilot, so we took her to the little local airport where they have people pilots who will take them up in a 15 minute flight. And yeah, it's just. And would we have done that if I wasn't trying to help her down her path to being a pilot? I never would have thought about that. But these are the wonderful things that we get to experience with our children through homeschooling.
- [25:46]
Ginny Arch
And I think it's an interesting point and an important point to bring up that it is enjoyable for the parent. And the reason that that's important is because especially today where there's a lot of mental health struggles and people are not enjoying their lives, it is good for a child to see a parent enjoying their life. And even in the realm of working, if you really like your job and like you talk about how you've obviously got the podcast now and you've got the book, but also you do a side hustle of helping women discover their fashion sense. So you're a clothing stylist and that's something that you're passionate about, something that you've been doing since you were really little. Like you're three years old and your mom's like, wow, like that's one of our kids. We have one out of five. I do not have fashion sense. But one of our daughters is same thing. Like when she was really little like you, she would be like, I don't want to give that shirt to my cousin. I want to keep that one. You know, like when she'd outgrow her stuff, she was really into her clothes. And by the time she was like eight, if I had to go shopping for the kids for clothes, I would be, I would take her and I would be like, is this going to be stylish enough for your brothers? You know, like, she had it only one of the five. So you, you're, you have this thing in you that God gave you and that's a passion you have. And so when you're learning alongside your kids, when you get to grow because they're growing, then you thrive. And Madeline Levine says when the parent thrives, the kid does. It's like this trickle down effect. And so I think it's such a good point to bring up, like you're excited about it. All these new things that you get to learn too.
- [27:21]
Maeve Jemison
Oh, yes. I have become a history expert.
- [27:26]
Ginny Arch
Okay.
- [27:26]
Maeve Jemison
When I was in high school, I I aboard history, US History, anything. Now, oh my gosh. Through teaching my children history, Jenny, when I retire, I'm going to be a tour guide somewhere. I'm going to go to, like, I love history. So. Yeah. And I got to say, your daughter, she's after my own heart with her fashion skills because it's just like a creative outlet. Right. And here's the other cool thing, is that you pass on some of your passions. Like, it's not like you're trying and saying, oh, I hope my child loves history just as much as I do, but you bring it to life. So they are, they're not going to have all your passions. No. But you're going to see little things. Like when my kids come to me and say, oh, I'm going to this thing. What should I wear, mommy? I'm like, oh my gosh, this is my moment. You know, like these, these that never.
- [28:26]
Ginny Arch
Happens in my house. They go to their sister.
- [28:30]
Maeve Jemison
Well, they probably go, they help you. They need your help with writing. Right? They, they ask you for some stuff. Yes. But it's because when you're te, when your kids get into those teen years, you are going to need these common ground. These. When they're little, of course they love snuggling you and they're, they just think the world of you. In fact, I just have to share this story because I have a seven year old. I Have three kids who play basketball, they all practice at the same time. And I'll look over at my 7 year old as I'm on the bleachers and he'll look back at me every time he shoots a shot or does something. He'll see if I'm watching and then I'll like give a little clap. And it's just so precious that he still wants me to be his cheerleader. He still wonders, is mommy watching? Because you're going to go through seasons with your kids where maybe for one of my, as it was middle school, he's like, don't be around me. Don't be around me with my friends. Like, don't even follow me over here. Like, he's giving me the eye, like the side eye, like go over there, mom, you know, and so. And then you got high school, the high school age, and they're getting in their independence. They're, they're ready to, they're doing these things so they can branch out from you when it's time. But you know what, Jenny? We always have homeschooling. We always have read alouds, we always have the morning devotional. We always have a field trip to go on. We always have memories built inside, jokes from these field trips and stories we read. So it's just another one of the aspects of homeschooling that's so beautiful. Is that you, that bond with your kids.
- [30:16]
Ginny Arch
Yeah. And you talk about how your passions also can be something that draw them in and connect and then they know you. Well, I talked to this mom, she runs a thing called the Girls Adventure Club. And she was saying how one of the things that the kids will say is, mom, I didn't know you could do that, you know. Oh, mom, wow. You know, so I just think those are the things that you wouldn't ever consider, you wouldn't consider that as being some sort of main benefit of homeschooling. But I think it is one. I think it is. And I think it goes a long way. I read this book by J.J. barrows and she said everybody remembers their moms, you know, even the ones in the nursing homes or their moms are long gone. Everybody talks about their mom. And so to have that connection, you know, that your mom's there and what's my mom all about? My mom. And you know, even if they got the season of the eye rolling, you know, that is a throughput all the way till the end of life. She said even the ones with, you know, dementia, they haven't seen their mom for years, but they think they saw her yesterday. They're just talking about their moms. So it's a beautiful thing.
- [31:20]
Maeve Jemison
It's a.
- [31:20]
Ginny Arch
It's a beautiful thing for you to have passions, for you to get this interest in history that you used to not like you talk in the book about your blue flame, because people are like, well, what about me time? Me time, me time. And I think what's interesting about it is you just thrive in ways you probably weren't expecting.
- [31:39]
Maeve Jemison
Right.
- [31:39]
Ginny Arch
Like you think your whole life is going to get sucked away from you, but instead it becomes enhanced because you're in this dynamic learning environment with your children, and so everything is elevated. So that's one of the things you talk about in this book, your blue flame. You said your dad started surfing at age 58. It opens up this world of continual learning for yourself as well. So it's really a beautiful. A beautiful, beautiful situation. It's a win, win for all. Okay, I want to talk about this one because I thought it was so interesting. Okay, so our house is messy. It just is what it is. I think someday it won't be, but at the current point, it's. It's pretty messy. So you talk about how some people are like, well, I don't have the organizational skills. And then you talked about this family. I want to know about it. That vacuumed themselves out the door.
- [32:33]
Maeve Jemison
Yep, yep. The joyous God bless them. My. My great childhood friend. I would always stay the night at her house. They were so meticulously clean. And I never knew, I didn't know this was a thing. I was about probably 14, 14, 13 years old when I started hanging out with them. And now this was in pile carpets heyday. Now, if you got Berber carpet, you can't really vacuum track yourself out of the house, but they would literally. Now, the vacuum tracks are beautiful. I mean, you can go look them up and you'll see some. But there better not had been a footprint in the carpet and. Right. So we do not recommend that kind of living for homeschooling. That cannot work. Right. But yeah, the organization. This is one of the things that, from my market research, from me asking, like, what are you scared of? What's your biggest concern? That is one of people's biggest concern is how do I stay organized at home? So in my house, there are organized days, and there's days when it looks like the Tasmanian Devil went through the homeschool classroom and there's balled up socks in the corner. So do not worry about organization. Because for one thing, you're probably home a lot more if you're homeschooling. And when you're homeschooling, you're also teaching your kids chores and keeping up the home. Jenny One of the things that flabbergasted me when I was doing research is that only about 25% of kids have chores assigned nowadays. One in four. Jenny. So no, no, no, not in the homeschool. That's not what we're doing. We're gonna teach our kids how to clean up. Teach our kids organized. Now you might have like how you have your child who's great at fashion. I have one of mine that is naturally organized. You go in her room, the bed is made, everything is in, it's dusted, it's. She's meticulously organized, organized. So there are, it does come natural to some of your kids. But this is one of the things that we do have to teach our kids is we don't want to send them off to college as a scourge of a roommate, right? We, we're going to teach them, you know, here's how you do your laundry. And like, like I, how I said my 14 and 17 year old, I do not homeschool them anymore. Same kind of thing we have, we have systems in place now where. Jenny I don't ever do the dishes. My kids do the dishes. I don't clean the kitchen, my kids clean the kitchen. Sometimes I'll have to catch up laundry because we're a little lax in that. But do not let that organization fear hold you back because over the years, like the seasons come and go, you're going to be organizing this and that. Listen, I just cleaned out my supply closet for the first time in like five years. Jenny. I was throwing out so much stuff. I just cleaned out like about six months ago, I just cleaned out my bathroom closet and I did that once every, like I think we've lived in this house 10 years and that's the first time I've done it. So you're going to be able to find time to organize. It's not the thing that should really keep you or scare you. Get a bunch of bins. Bins are your friends. That's what, that's the rhyme. After Christmas time, the bins are our friends. Throw the stuff in the bins. Right?
- [36:03]
Ginny Arch
The other day my lamp broke. It's my bedside lamp and I use it to read late into the night because I'm always preparing for this podcast. It broke. It actually won't turn off unless I unplug it. And so I needed to find a new lamp for my bedside and my favorite place to go of all places to go is Wayfair. Wayfair is the perfect place to go if your tableside lamp breaks, but it's also the perfect place to kick off your back to school and fall season prep. Everything comes so fast and they have an amazing selection of things from cozy bedding and linens to storage solutions for every room. They always have you covered. Plus their huge selection of outdoor items makes it easy to find just what we need to transition smoothly into the fall. Besides lamps and linens, they even have playsets. We have the most incredible playset in our backyard that we got from Wayfair about six six years ago and the kids still use it constantly. Whether you're refreshing your workspace with a new desk or making weeknight dinners a breeze with quality cookware, Wayfair literally has it all. And with free fast and hassle free delivery, even on big stuff like sofas and dining tables, there is no better time to shop, get organized, refreshed and back into routine. For way less. Head over to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. That's Wayfair. W A Y F A I R.com Wayfair Every style, every home eczema isn't always obvious, but it's real. And so is the relief from Ebglis. After an initial dosing phase, about 4 in 10 people taking EBGLIS achieved itch relief and clear or almost clear skin at 16 weeks, and most of those people maintain skin that's still more clear at one year with monthly dosing.
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Ginny Arch
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- [38:24]
Maeve Jemison
When did making plans get this complicated? It's time to streamline with WhatsApp, the secure messaging app that brings the whole group together. Use polls to settle dinner plans, send event invites and pin messages so no one forgets mom's 60th and never miss a meme or milestone. All protected with end to end encryption. It's time for WhatsApp message privately with everyone. Learn more@WhatsApp.com I did want to go back to one of the things you said about when you were talking about kids remembering their moms and, and that our kid, our kids might not know us as much as we think they do. Here's another great benefit of homeschooling. Homeschool skate. Do y' all have that? Jenny, Michigan. Are there. Are there? Yes. Where there's. There are skating rinks and it's only homeschoolers because they do it in the middle of the day.
- [39:17]
Ginny Arch
Right?
- [39:19]
Maeve Jemison
Listen, I grew up in the 80s, the skating rink heyday. When I busted out a backwards skate on my. And my kids are like, wow, Mommy, you're good. I was like, okay. Right. But and also I do want to give a shout out to my dad. He's, he's my biggest cheerleader and he's going to listen to this podcast. I taught my dad to surf when he was 58 years old. Just the other day, after the hurricane went up the coast. I don't remember what its name was. We're in Florida. It just went up the coast. It didn't hit us with. We got great waves. My dad is almost 81 years old and he, we were out there together surfing those waves together after the hurricane. He's a fit 80 year old. But that is a testimony to the always learning. Yeah, the continual learning. And homeschool is such a petri dish for that. Just continual learning and learning how to learn. Right? Learning how to learn. Learning how to teach yourself. So that's the same thing with organizing. It might start out where you're not the greatest organizer, but as your kids get older and you and your husband, you know, bring your spouse in on this. It's not all on you, mama. To home. To organize the whole home. Bring him, bring in the principal is what I like to call my husband. On, on the organizing and make it a family thing. Your kids are going to flourish. You know, one of the interesting studies about chores. They followed a group of Harvard grads and they wanted to see what made them. Was it Harvard grads? They followed a group of people, maybe it wasn't Harvard grads. And they wanted to see what made them successful. And one of the main threads through the success of this group, they followed for a long time, decades and decades, was that they had chores at home. They had chores because that shows how to be a part of a team. That shows that you're important. That shows that the work you're doing is important. So there's so many life skills in chores that that's how you're going to stay organized. Mama, you put those kids to work.
- [41:37]
Ginny Arch
And it's a win win. Because it's good for them too.
- [41:40]
Maeve Jemison
Yes.
- [41:40]
Ginny Arch
If you want to read more. Hunt Gather Parent by Michaeline Duclef has got a lot of information about how it gives kids a family membership card and they really want to be a part of something. And then they're going to learn those skills for, like you said, when they're out in the world, when they're at college, when they become a parent themselves, when they have their own home.
- [41:55]
Maeve Jemison
Yeah. They're going to have to learn it anyways.
- [41:57]
Ginny Arch
Yeah. They're going to have a foundation to draw from because they've done it.
- [42:00]
Maeve Jemison
Yeah.
- [42:00]
Ginny Arch
And they've also seen. I just think there is a lot of benefit to. First of all, I think there's benefit for kid to see some disorganization because when they become an adult and maybe they're disorganized, they might think, well, this wasn't that big of a deal. You know, in, in my home and my mom tried to figure it out. We tried this and we tried that. And that's what life is about. Life is about growth and trying to figure things out. Okay, here's a big one. So one of the things that you talked about and I, I guess I never really thought about this too much. You're like, I love dodgeball. So I think a lot of people will think back on their own school experience and know innately that, okay, well, my kid isn't going to be around their friends every single day. You know, my kid is maybe not going to be able to play dodgeball in gym class. My kid is. There's really only a few things. Right. But, you know, maybe they're not going to do the science fair. Although homeschooling provides opportunities pretty much these days for all of these different types of things. But you kind of look at the loss. Oh, like they're not going to be able to do this one thing that I really loved when I was growing up in school. But we can't really have the perspective of theirs and know, well, what are the things that they love that I didn't get? Does that make sense?
- [43:15]
Maeve Jemison
Yes. Right. Dodgeball. Just have a bunch of kids and pelt your kid, make them run out in the yard. You got to play to mom and dad. Okay, you could still get that family dodgeball game in. But now that homeschooling is, can we call it mainstream? I think we can, right?
- [43:32]
Ginny Arch
It's, it's like 4%. So sure.
- [43:36]
Maeve Jemison
But it's no longer that you say, I'm a homeschooler and nobody knows what that is.
- [43:42]
Ginny Arch
Right.
- [43:42]
Maeve Jemison
And in fact, I have a friend that this is her first year homeschooling. Well, her daughter is five, so. But she's. So she's choosing to homeschool. And she keeps telling me, oh, I met this homeschool family. Oh, so. And so homeschools over there. And so what I see is that she's seeing homeschoolers come out of the woodwork because she. And the reason she's so keen to pick up on that is because she, she is probably thinking in her heart of hearts like, okay, maybe I am doing the right thing because there's other people doing it too. Right? And yeah, there's. I really can't think of my much besides maybe a huge dodgeball game. But no, my kids got to experience that through co op. There are still communities to be found. So one of the things that I thought when I took my daughter out, because my, my eldest daughter, she scored the highest possible score as being outgoing on the migs Breyers migs personality test. Like the literal highest score of an extrovert, meaning she wants to be around people. She loves to talk. And so that was one of my biggest fears is, oh, no, she's gonna be lonely or she's gonna just like maybe go into this depression or she's not gonna have enough of her people. And so reflecting on her, her school life after she had graduated, and I asked her, you know, how was that for you when I took you out? She said, you know, I thought those people that I was around every day were my friends. But when I wasn't around them every day, I realized they weren't my friends. I didn't want to like, seek them back out. They were not that my people. I was just herded in with them instead. In the homeschool realm, your kids and you hopefully find some homeschool mama friends. I love homeschool moms because we. We care so much. We. We just care so much that our kids get the best possible education, the best possible knowledge of the Lord. But our kids are gonna find true, lasting, really deep friendships, not just because they have to sit by this person at lunch every day, or not just because they have the same class with this person, but because they have built a real friendship, you know, not just because their seat assigned, but because they have gotten to know each other. They have maybe the same belief system, maybe they love the same hobbies, but true foundations, you know, true foundations of what friendship really is.
- [46:26]
Ginny Arch
And what a skill set, what a skill set that is to learn how to make a friend outside of being placed, like you said, in a seat next to them. You say, she said, I only consider them friends because I was with them every day. And so she's learning the skill set of building friendships. These are all sorts of life skills that our kids are learning in these different environments. And so I. I like the idea of not looking at as a loss. I love dodgeball. What are they gonna miss? Because we. I think that they like, they could do the same thing. You know, I loved having all of this time where I could explore my interests. You know, we don't really even understand. We can't totally understand what that's like to have maybe a little bit less pressure and that type of thing. So I like looking at what you gain. You talk about when your child learns differently. A lot of things here talk about Thomas Edison. You talk about teachers who are juggling a lot of IEPs. So I taught high school as well, you know, and you are juggling a lot of IEPs and you put in there. And I feel like this is so important. Often the IEPs are different from each other, and so they're opposite. And I totally related to this. You're like, what are you supposed to do when one child's IEP calls for stimulation and bright colors, while another child calls for no distractions and quiet, calm surroundings? And that is really the truth. I remember I had a class that had 35 kids in it. It was a basic math class, and there was 35 kids. The room was not that big, and half of them had IEPs. And they all said that they needed, like, a preferred seat in the front row. I was like, well, I don't have that many seats in the front row, just logistically. So it's just interesting. You know, you talk about that, the sort of logistics of that you say, if your child's strength isn't in chemistry, consider not forcing them to take chemistry. But then you had this sentence that I thought was really a big one. A child who says, I hate being in the lowest reading group. So that's something that we don't talk about too much, which is that kids know, you know, that the structures are there where they're. It's kind of very clear, like you're. This is the bright child and this is the one who struggles. And often they're separating them out in these ways. And the stigma that that carries. Now, this child in the book that says that is 6 years old. None of my kids could read at 6. Zero of them. They all learned at 7, and some kids learn at 10, and some kids learn at 12. So you shouldn't be in a lowest reading group when you're at an age that's not required for you to be reading.
- [49:11]
Maeve Jemison
Right, Right.
- [49:12]
Ginny Arch
That's a stigma.
- [49:14]
Maeve Jemison
Yes. And the. I loved how you touched it on it on your book Homes, your latest book with your I. You talked about your IEPs, and when I was reading that, I was just chuckling to myself that we were both talking about that. Because here's the thing with IEPs, which is individualized Education plan. Right. They might need glasses, so they might need to sit near the front of the, the classroom. They might need a longer time on a test. Jenny, I read through that entire list that Florida, at least at Florida, I don't know if it's a national or Florida. Florida iep. There is not one single. Of one single thing in that list that you cannot do at home better than they can do in a classroom. Give them their own study corral, which is their own little cubby nook. Give them longer time, read it to them, help them write it no matter what. Give them a mentor, Give them a learning buddy. That's you. That's a bigger sibling there. I. It was kind of absurd that I'm thinking they have all these things that you can do in the classroom, but if you bring them home, it's much easier to do there. It's much easier to make them flourish.
- [50:32]
Ginny Arch
Yeah, that's actually such a good point. No homeschool child is sitting in the back row. Right? Home is like the ultimate iep. Home is the ultimate individualized education plan. And no parent is going to be like, hey, can you sit at the back of the room today?
- [50:49]
Maeve Jemison
Right. Right. Yeah.
- [50:51]
Ginny Arch
I mean, it's. It's a really good point. And I think it's important to think about the stigmas that kids take with them. I'm in the lowest reading group. No six year old should ever be saying that because there shouldn't be reading groups for six year olds.
- [51:04]
Maeve Jemison
Right.
- [51:05]
Ginny Arch
There is a natural age and stage for kids to learn to read and it goes up until about 12. So I mean, it doesn't make, actually doesn't make any sense at all. And then they have that stigma they carry with them. So you talk in this book about if your child learns differently, you're still going to be okay. You give a lot of advice there. I want to hit one more of the misconceptions before we run out of time here, okay?
- [51:26]
Maeve Jemison
Can I say one more thing about neurodiversity real quick? It turns out that the neurodiverse people are actually the people who we think are normal, the people who are really great at reading and math. That's only like 20% of people. So everyone else are the people with ADD, the people with ADHD, the people with dyslexia. These are just learning differences. It's. Everybody is neurodiverse. Okay? Almost everybody. Do you see what I'm saying is.
- [51:59]
Ginny Arch
Like, well, we're all individuals.
- [52:00]
Maeve Jemison
Yeah. We all learn so differently that to put a neurodiver diverse tag on 75% of the people because they don't sit still. Read a book. Exactly. Understand every algebraic equation. Those people are the neurodiverse people. Okay? One great resource I love is Eight Great Smarts by Dr. Kathy Cook or she took the work of, what is it? Multiple intelligence by Dr. Howard Howard Gardner. And there are so many ways to be smart. You could be smart with your body like athletes and dancers and soldiers. You can be musically smart. You can be nature smart. There's so many different ways so that just because you don't fit in that little square peg that you read above, above grade level and you're super great at numbers, that doesn't mean that there are not so many talents, so many, so many intelligence that your kid can thrive with. And so like you said, homeschooling is the ultimate iep. Because that kid who is body smart, he does not want to sit there doing worksheet. He wants to swing from the rafter, swing from the little swinging chair while you guys do school. He wants to play basketball on the mini hoop, bouncing around the room while you do school. So I just want to encourage parents in that regard.
- [53:18]
Ginny Arch
And no class, no classroom setting can accommodate that. They cannot accommodate the mover because there's 35 kids in there and there's not enough room and they're, you know, they can't have the basketball thing up on the door is going to cause a bunch of problems. That is great to learn about the multiple intelligences and the way that kids learn. And obviously your dad is body smart and nature smart out there surfing.
- [53:42]
Maeve Jemison
Right.
- [53:42]
Ginny Arch
81. I mean, what a cool thing. Nature is a throughput there all the way into, you know, the 80s. I, I love that.
- [53:49]
Maeve Jemison
Right.
- [53:49]
Ginny Arch
So these are things to consider. And I, like I said, I love that you approach the book with the misconceptions in the myths because you really do cover so many of the things that someone might be confused about. And one of the ones, I just want to hit one last one. There's a lot more than we've talked about here that are in the book. It's called Home is Where the truth Is. There's one that says I couldn't homeschool because I'm not patient enough. You know, I hear that a lot too. I'm not patient enough. And you know, you talk again about Michaeline Duclef's book Hunt Gather Parents. The Inuit don't ever yell at their children. I think part of the point is you learn to be more patient. And isn't that the point of life? Don't we all want to be a little bit more patient? Don't we want to grow? And it's like, well, God gives you those opportunities to grow and to become better at certain skills because of the choices you made. So instead of avoiding it, you step into it and then you learn. So can you talk about that misconception? I could never homeschool. I don't have the patience.
- [54:54]
Maeve Jemison
Yes, that's actually, I think the number two misconception I always hear behind the socialization myth. And when that, that's what they say. Oh, bless your, Bless you, God bless you. I can never do that. I'm not patient. Thanks for the prayer and thanks for assuming I'm patient. But Jenny, I am not. As soon as I started homeschooling, I realized how mean, snappy, impatient and downright mean I could be. And that was just with a game of five year, A game of checkers with the five year old, you know, I mean, so yes, you do get. You, you get better. But you know what? We got to lean into the Lord on this one. I love Mother Teresa. She pinned this prayer and it says, sweetest Lord, make me appreciative of the dignity of my call and its many responsibilities. Never permit me to disgrace it by giving way to coldness, unkindness, or impatience. And yet. Amen. That is a truly beautiful thought and a high bar that St. Teresa of Calcutta set in. If anyone could achieve it, it would be her, right? She. She pulled the poorest of the poor out of the gutters of Calcutta, nursing their wounds. And she spent hours in prayer every morning. Now, I know homeschool mamas, we don't have hours and hours of silent time with the Lord, but I do want to give you guys this great little bit of advice that I got in from a priest one time. I was in confession and I'm confessing. And the same sin I always confess is like I snap at my kids. I'm. I just burst out in anger. And he said, he said, okay, next time you feel that anger coming on, this is what I want you to do. And do it right in front of that kid. I want you to stop and say a prayer. Something like, lord, give me patience in this moment to love my child. You know, something like that. Something simple. Give me patience, Lord. Help me to love them. Help me to be kind right now, Lord. And I tell you what, that is a game changer. For one, it works. The Lord gives the grace in the moment. For two, it shows that child that prayer works. It show that child sees you calming down. And it works so good, Jenny, that I, I'm. I'm going about my day and I'm getting snippy and I'll just hear a little cute little voice, mommy, I think you need to pray. And it's true. It is a daily thing. We just, we. We have to try. You know, you can do other things. You can take deep breaths, you can walk away, but you are going, you know, kind of like marriage. Iron sharpens iron. The Lord gave us marriage to make us Christ like to our spouse. Well, he gave us homeschooling for to be Christlike to our children. He gave us homeschooling for those works of mercy. Instruct the ignorant. You know, that's homeschooling right there. That's a work of mercy. It is a spiritual journey for us, for parents. And the other very practical thing is, Mama, out of the 6 billion people on the planet, he gave you those kids. He didn't give them to anybody else. He gave. He's gonna equip you to teach them. He's gonna. He. You'll get through it. And in another practical thing that I got this from Dr. Sticks Rudd and Ned Johnson from the self Driven Child is just get yourself Five minutes. Can you get five minutes of quiet to, you know, you could call it meditate, you could call it pray. Just sit with your thoughts. And that is very. When you feel like your patience is broiling over, just get five minutes, go in a bathroom, go in. Go lock your door in your bedroom.
- [58:47]
Ginny Arch
There are a lot of things, actually, I've been thinking about this recently. There's a woman named Dr. Jenny Tate, and she's been on our show and she has a book called Stress Resets. And then she came out with these set of cards that you can get. It's like a little deck of playing cards.
- [59:00]
Maeve Jemison
I like it.
- [59:00]
Ginny Arch
Of stress resets and hummingbirds humming, you know. Oh, you know, humming helps to reset. You could dunk your face in a bowl of ice water. There's something about that. It's called the mammalian dive reflex. Or you get your nose. I mean, just have some ice ready in a big bowl. You know, there are things. Anyway, the stress resets, they work in five minutes or less. So if you're feeling like you're at the end of the rope, then, yeah, you know, have your five minutes alone, hum, go for a little walk, do something rhythmic, dunk your face in some ice water, like whatever you need to do. And you're going to learn, and then you're going to model to your kids. There's a lot of ways out. You're going to model to your kids. I can grow. You're going to model to your kids. I care enough about you to grow in this area. So there is just so much going on here that is wonderful. It's wonderful. You talk about the wonderful family bonding, educational adventure that is homeschooling. There is no person on this planet who will do for your kids success what you are willing to do. A whole new world opens up with lots of time for family bonding, growth as a parent, and the joy of leading your child as he or she seeks out their passions. And what you say is the hardest part about homeschooling is making the decision to do it. And then you do it. And then you realize in this book, like this helps, that all these myths and misconceptions that you had are not real and that you flourish, you flourish as a family, even though there's here and there. There's some hard days, but life has hard days. It's just kind of how it goes. So the book is wonderful. It's called Home is Where the Truth is why you can and should homeschool your child by Maeve Jemison. You can Check out the podcast Homeschooling for Catholic Parents. We always end our show with the same question. What's a favorite memory from your childhood?
- [60:46]
Maeve Jemison
That was outside exploring the woods with my dad in Oklahoma. We would go out. We lived in Oklahoma, so there was a lot of woods around. And there was this big ravine, probably like a 30 foot ravine, but there was a tree that had fallen over it. The tree was still on the top edge of it, but it fell over and hung over the ravine. And my dad and I walked out precariously, walked out across on the tree. It didn't go all the way across and it was just a, a, an adventure. And my dad, he wasn't scared to go out. He didn't say, no, Maeve, don't try that. We were just exploring and we walked out on that tree and I can still see the fall leaves, you know, that were in the ravine below and the sparse trees. I can still see that bridge, black tree trunk with it. It's gnarled branches out over it. It's seared in my mind. And it. Yeah, that's probably the first and best one that comes to mind.
- [61:52]
Ginny Arch
I love it. And with your dad, what a nature guy. What an adventurous nature guy.
- [61:56]
Maeve Jemison
He's an adventure guy.
- [61:58]
Ginny Arch
It's incredible. What a cool thing. And that's got to be incredible for your kids to see a grandpa in his 80s who's out surfing the waves. I mean, that is incredible in the ocean. What a thing. What a legacy to pass on. What an honor to know you. I'm so glad that we met at fpea. It is a fabulous convention. People come in from all over the world.
- [62:16]
Maeve Jemison
Yeah.
- [62:17]
Ginny Arch
If you're looking for one to go to, huge. It's Memorial Day weekend every year and it is fantastic. Thank you for this book, thank you for your amazing podcast, and thank you for spending this time with us.
- [62:28]
Maeve Jemison
Oh, thanks for having me, Jenny.
- [62:32]
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Ginny Arch
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Ginny Arch
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