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When Colleen Dippel was a fifth-grade public school teacher in Houston, she got called into the principal's office and told never to tell parents about two higher-performing charter schools down the street. In this episode, Colleen pulls back the curtain on how schools quietly pass kids along with good grades while hiding basic skill gaps, why her own son's public school kept paid-for textbooks locked in a back room, and how parents can tell in 15 minutes whether their child is actually learning. Read the show notes: https://opened.co/podcast/colleen-dippel About Colleen Dippel: Colleen Dippel is the founder and CEO of Families Empowered, a Texas-based nonprofit that has helped more than 116,000 mostly low-income families choose and access K–12 schools that fit their children. - Families Empowered: https://familiesempowered.org/

Ashley Partridge homeschools two second-grade boys near Nashville with a 24-month-old and a 12-month-old at home. Her school day used to start at nine and end by lunch. Then the babies came, and the schedule had to bend around naps, snacks, and a baby who doesn't sleep.In this conversation with Ela Bass, Ashley explains how she tailors school to her family's life instead of the other way around. GUEST: Ashley Partridge, stay-at-home mom of four and homeschooler in Tennessee since 2023. Instagram: @happy.hearts.homeschool · TikTok: @apartridge232CHAPTERS00:00 Intro01:11 The gut feeling she couldn't shake before kindergarten03:03 He didn't talk until almost four. Then what?07:02 Close the books and start again tomorrow08:22 Done in an hour or two: is that enough?10:33 Two boys, one grade, and the meltdowns that forced a reset12:55 The homeschool struggle nobody talks about13:47 The baby who hasn't slept, and the floor that can wait17:01 Her real schedule with two babies at home22:14 A week of co-ops, tutorials and à la carte classes25:05 Reverse planning: write down only what got done29:50 "Why am I on lesson 14 and he's on 29?"33:39 The socialization question, flipped40:26 The curriculum she almost switched45:46 Instagram homeschool vs. real life49:01 Her best advice when nothing is working50:09 Think you're not made for this?

Anita Scott was homeschooled before Texas settled that it was legal, then became a principal in South Dallas. Her method, in classrooms and at the kitchen table: build the culture first, let kids write the rules, and keep them yourself. Now policy director at the Texas Homeschool Coalition, she tells Ela Bass how it works. 00:00 Preview 00:26 Meet Anita Scott 01:34 Homeschooled when it was still illegal in Texas 03:06 From homeschool kid to public school principal 04:24 What makes an education "good"? Parent involvement 08:03 Turning around a class that lost three teachers 15:55 Who supports the homeschool mom? 19:09 What she loved about being homeschooled 22:59 Policy wins for homeschoolers in Texas 27:19 Why she got into policy: laws written by people who never taught 34:08 How should we measure teachers and students? 45:51 Homeschooling's honest strengths and weaknesses 51:15 Why culture comes before curriculum 53:03 How to build culture in your homeschool 01:01:19 Structure vs. flexibility: let your kids show you the pace 01:05:00 Setting classroom norms that kids help make 01:16:56 Where to find Anita

Andrea Fife spent 10 years teaching fifth grade. Then she joined OpenEd as a homeroom teacher, reading the learning logs families sent in every week, and within a couple of months those logs had upended what she thought she believed. Now OpenEd's Chief Academic Officer, she tells Ela Bass what families should do first and what they can stop worrying about: why OpenEd is not a school, the question to answer before you buy any curriculum, what turns a good learning log into a great one, and what she tells parents about testing and special education. Read the show notes: https://opened.co/podcast/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-opened ABOUT ANDREA Andrea Fife is the Chief Academic Officer at OpenEd, where she leads the learning department. She taught fifth grade for 10 years and found out at 36 that she had ADHD. Her earlier conversation on homeschooling a child with ADHD: https://opened.co/blog/homeschooling-a-child-with-adhd Chapters 00:00 The one episode to send every new OpenEd family01:20 The three words every OpenEd parent needs to hear02:01 OpenEd is not a school. So what is it?05:10 Before you buy any curriculum, answer this08:09 When your kid breaks your own rules about screens09:51 Overwhelmed? Point at the screen and pick one12:10 "Baking is math": what parents taught a 10-year teacher14:49 The teacher in the passenger seat17:24 The learning log that gets a great reply21:24 Testing: what it's for and what to do with the results33:09 Special education, IEPs and getting help sooner43:33 "Should I be worried?" Reversed b's and d's46:04 Two grades behind in math: where to start47:54 "They don't care. You do."50:11 Several kids, several ages, and no burnout52:19 Why she brought a piano into her classroom

Ruth Rinaldi got through a maths degree without knowing her seven times table. She went on to run the maths department at a UK secondary school, then left the system, and today she has done no formal written math with her own two kids, ages 7 and nearly 10.She tells Ela Bass why math feels so hard for so many kids: not the subject itself, but how it's taught, with timed tests, right-or-wrong marking and rules handed out before anyone understands them. She also explains how math anxiety passes from parent to child, why stress crowds out working memory, and what she does at home instead of a curriculum.FIND RUTHJoyful Maths with Ruth: https://joyfulmathswithruth.co.ukInstagram:   / joyfulmathswithruth  Facebook:   / joyfulmathswithruth  Multiplication Without Memorisation, her course for parents: https://joyfulmathswithruth.co.uk/par...CHAPTERS00:00 "I didn't even know my seven times table"00:30 Welcome01:33 When a child's anxiety seems normal04:18 Why a head of maths left the school system09:20 Jo Boaler, number sense and six-second times-table tests12:11 Why school teaches math this way: a curriculum for walking15:46 Why is math so hard for so many kids?20:35 How math anxiety passes from parent to child21:58 No formal math at home, ages 7 and nearly 1025:59 Number sense: one question, several ways30:37 Follow the child: struggle, readiness and a scientific calculator34:56 Why she does the writing for her kids37:38 Working memory: why stress makes you worse at math39:16 Stop trying so hard to make math fun41:54 Free puzzle sites: youcubed, Transum, NRICH42:51 When kids out-think the formula48:30 How long to keep math informal51:42 Where to find Ruth

Cynthia and Justine are the co-founders of The Learn + Live Letter, a homeschool membership of hands-on, play-based unit studies for ages 3 to 12, and this is OpenEd's first episode to take the method apart - what a unit study actually is, how one dinosaur unit carries history, measurement and letter sounds, how to run one lesson across a 3-year-old and a 12-year-old, and what Cynthia does the moment tears start at the table. GUESTS Justine LoMonaco and Cynthia Holt - co-foundersm of The Learn + Live Letter. Website: https://learnandliveletter.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/learnandliveletter/ CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 01:05 She kept him home for kindergarten and never sent him back 02:19 "I thought homeschoolers were a little bit weird" 05:06 How to find a homeschool community from scratch 11:36 Finding unit studies on a CD-ROM 15 years ago 17:08 Classical education in a 900-square-foot apartment 19:22 Homeschooling a second time: "he gets the best version of me" 23:24 "Could this possibly be enough?" 27:30 90 minutes a day, and why you're not running out of time 30:59 Advice for a pregnant mom in her first homeschool year 36:59 What a unit study actually is: the dinosaur example 41:27 Teaching two ages from one unit study 50:41 State hour quotas and de-schooling yourself 55:27 "You can't learn in a place of fear" 01:01:33 Rapid fire

Before homeschooling, Blanca Montelongo worked in a public school as a registrar, sorting incoming kids by income, background and last name. Eight years in, she talks with Ela Bass about the fear she hears most from moms: "I don't think I can do it." IN THIS EPISODE - What she says to a mom who tells her, "I don't have the patience" - The one thing every family needs before they start, or they go back - Why finding a homeschool community is "kind of like dating" - The year her entire curriculum was one subject - What she does before she reaches her limit, not after - The one test her son ever took, and what she decided afterward FIND BLANCA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blancalight.m/

Cassie Olguin nearly didn't homeschool, and not because of the workload. She could not pick a curriculum. "There's like eleven billion homeschool curricula, and ways to do it, and methodologies for teaching... it was so loud at a certain point that I almost didn't do it." In this episode, she explains how to choose a homeschool curriculum without needing anyone else's opinion, including the day her own written rule convicted her for teaching her twins the same math because it was easier for her. GUEST Cassie Olguin - Alternative Education Content and Events Manager at Outschool and homeschool mother of three. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cassies.hs.corner/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassieolguin/ Outschool: https://outschool.com CHAPTERS 00:00 She believed every stereotype 01:51 Bullying, standardized testing, and the opt-out fight 08:48 Convincing her husband, and the backup plan 14:13 Decision paralysis, and Homeschool 101 17:09 Find your people 19:42 Where to start, and writing a mission statement 22:41 Matching curriculum to how each kid learns 35:14 "You're not a licensed teacher," and the reading timeline 39:08 COVID, and a completely different world than thirty years ago 43:37 Pressure, choice, and why opinions are hard to change 47:58 Resources for the early years 51:17 Where Outschool and enrichment centers came in 55:14 Dual enrollment, and what school doesn't teach 01:01:54 Rapid fire and where to find her

Liz Powell spent nearly two decades in public education, nine of them as a public school principal. She left when her own daughter reached school age. She looked at her own kindergarten team, "all talented, lovely, amazing people," and could not find a classroom for her. In this episode, she explains the differences between homeschool and public school.Read the full show notes: https://opened.co/blog/homeschool-vs-public-schoolGUESTLiz Powell - former public school principal, now homeschooling three in southern MaineInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/principal_in_pajamas/CHAPTERS00:00 Behind the public school curtain00:52 Who actually makes the decisions03:30 "I would go at war with central office"05:27 Why a principal ended up pro-homeschool07:00 "I couldn't find the right room for her"08:55 When data helps and when it doesn't10:20 Why intervention arrives too late13:20 When your salary depends on test scores14:14 Why the system takes homeschooling personally15:26 The yellow star18:24 "We start kindergarten way too early"19:41 Play teacher with your child20:55 "I'll be very vulnerable. It was so hard."23:50 "I might rock your world here"27:41 Is a teacher better than a mom?30:04 The first year: glitter pens and lost control31:48 Jump to the words, clap to the words35:33 The learning basket37:02 Tips for a first-year homeschooler40:48 ADHD in a forty-five-minute lesson45:24 "I never met a family that regretted it"45:51 The purpose of education

Tanner Bowman taught computer science in a public high school for ten years, deleting one classroom rule per year until attendance in his class was optional. He now runs Optio, an accredited K-12 program built on one move: start with what the kid already cares about, and let the subject arrive as a requirement of the goal. A sixteen-year-old who hated online algebra was doing mathematical analysis of the stock market on his own time. That analysis became his math credit. This episode: 0:00 – Cold Open: The Kid Written Off by School 0:27 – Meet Tanner Bowman & What Optio Is 1:03 – Inside Optio: Quests, Not Grades 4:10 – Tanner's 10 Years in Public School Fighting for Autonomy 10:06 – Sage on the Stage vs. the Gardener 14:13 – The "Kids Who Don't Want to Learn" Myth 18:09 – Rethinking Curriculum for the Internet Age 25:23 – Turning Passions Into Math, Science, and More 29:47 – Why Optio Killed Letter Grades 36:42 – Scaling Personalization With the Quest Model 41:47 – Detoxing Kids From "Public School Brain" 46:18 – Helping Kids Find What They Actually Love 53:44 – Rapid Fire: Advice for Parents & Teachers 57:04 – Optio x OpenEd: Turning Passion Into Real Credit 59:35 – Where to Find Tanner & Optio GUEST Tanner Bowman, founder of Optio Website: https://optioeducation.com Instagram: https://instagram.com/optio_education Email: [email protected]

Rebecca Stromsdorfer never wanted to homeschool. She toured the charters and the private schools in her county looking for any other option, but she couldn't find a classroom she'd put her daughter in. This episode is a full walkthrough of how she started homeschooling and what she learned along the way. GUEST Rebecca Stromsdorfer - homeschool mom of five (22 years), founder of My Homeschool Village Website: https://myhomeschoolvillage.com CHAPTERS 00:00 She never wanted to homeschool 03:55 Enjoying learning vs. making it fun 07:52 Six workbooks, and everything a first grader needs to know 12:36 Deschooling, and what "broken" actually means 21:24 You don't know what plant you were given 25:47 Week one: take a vacation, then start doing the work yourself 32:02 What their family culture actually is 35:30 The homeschool daily schedule, hour by hour 38:57 The weekly homeschool rhythm 51:11 She thought she was dumb, and the mirror 01:00:33 Homeschooling is hard on marriage 01:08:28 Rapid fire: curriculum and textbooks

Sam Griffin spent two years wanting to homeschool and not starting, because she did not think she was qualified. Five years later, she teaches four kids from kindergarten through ninth grade. She is a homeschool mom of four and a homeschool coach who works with parents who are curious about homeschooling but have no idea where to start. Read the full show notes: https://opened.co/blog/homeschool-schedule-2-hours-a-day GUEST: Samantha Griffin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/homeschoolsam/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@homeschoolsam CHAPTERS 00:00 From footwear buyer to homeschool mom of four 02:22 How the coaching started 03:11 "Our kids work a nine to five" 04:58 The homeschool schedule: two hours of academics a day 05:50 What the schedule gives the kids 07:07 Her first year was a hot mess 08:40 Every curriculum has the same scope 09:47 Start with two subjects, open-and-go 12:19 The self-doubt in year one 15:25 Stop explaining it to anyone 18:48 A 13-year-old in ninth grade 21:56 "Skip elementary science and history entirely" 29:23 You don't have to be the teacher 31:30 Theater, farm school, and survival class 40:50 A wakeboarding class that's really physics 43:43 On the viral anti-homeschooling podcast 46:38 Was it hard to leave the career? 50:05 Rapid fire: socialization, college, credentials

Jeremy Cioara never planned to homeschool - or to become an entrepreneur. Twenty years and seven kids later, the longtime tech trainer has a simple method for raising kids who actually love to work: bring them along. In this episode, he tells Ela Bass how a haircut turned into buying his daughter a cookie shop, and what 20 years of hiring taught him about degrees versus doing. FIND JEREMY LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremy-cioara-4860573/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cioarajeremy/ CHAPTERS 00:00 How the Cioaras decided to homeschool (and bought a cookie shop) 06:38 Advice for homeschool dads who aren't on board 10:09 Bringing your kids along: what a dad's role looks like 13:18 Dads knowing dads 17:53 From training career-changers to raising kids who work 24:14 How the family talks about work and unique giftings 31:44 The practicalities of developing each kid's gifts 38:53 Why homeschool sports over going pro 46:23 Passing the mantle of decision-making 49:31 Rapid fire: getting kids to love work 53:57 Where to find Jeremy

Val Morse was homeschooled until high school, and now she homeschools her own two daughters - two completely different learners. In this conversation, Val breaks down what to do when your kid hates learning, why being interested is a skill you can build rather than a personality trait, and what it means to let go of the outcome. Follow Val on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valariespnw/ Read the full blog post: https://opened.co/blog/how-to-make-learning-fun

What's it actually like to be homeschooled? Finley is 10 years old, in fourth grade, one of nine kids, and a Lego robotics competitor - and he is the youngest student ever interviewed on the OpenEd Podcast. He walks through his real homeschool day and answers the question of socialization for himself.Read the full blog post: https://opened.co/blog/day-in-the-life-of-a-homeschooler