Nomads are:

1. Desert wanderers
2. Those who follow their food supply
3. Desperate

I giggled as I filled in the answer.

This month in our morning prayer groups we're praying for the Fulbe nomadic peoples. One of the themes that keeps surfacing is the cost of a nomadic lifestyle. Nomads miss out on certain stabilities and benefits of a consistent home. In fact, one of the main prayer points a few days ago was for God to send missionaries willing to live a nomadic lifestyle as they join the Fulbe.

Homeschool culture appears to be shifting toward a nomadic lifestyle. Families, looking for greener grass elsewhere, abandon their current curriculum. Some never return to the lush richness of something they loved. They wander instead.

How much, I wonder, do we lose when we leave the wonderful thing we have?

Just to be painfully clear: If your current program isn't working, find one that does. Yes, even Sonlight may not be the best choice for your family. And I'm absolutely in favor of you switching from something you don't love to Sonlight <smile>. There is nothing wrong with finding the program that is right for your family. But as more and more curriculum options are born, I'm noticing curriculum nomads head out into the desert in a desperate search for the perfect program.

Have you switched homeschool programs? How has the change been? If you've switched away from Sonlight, did you/do you love your new curriculum?

~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

You fidget in the tiny room. The mirror glowers back at you.

"These don't work either," your reflection admits. Finally, you settle on a pair of pants that seem to work. They're different from your last cut, but they may grow on you.

Pants are expensive. Clothes in general are expensive. But we need them.

You bring the pants home and wear them for a few months. In that time your children spill on them, the knees get a little worn and--like me--you accidentally mark them with a pen.

I Marked These Yesterday while proofing the Catalog

After several months of wear and tear you realize the pants aren't really you. You don't like the way they look and you're not thrilled with the range of motion. You now regret your purchase.

"It would be so nice to be able to return clothes after you've tried them for half a year," my co-worked mused.

I nodded in agreement, looking at the mark I'd recently added to my pant leg. "That's why Sonlight's Love to Learn Guarantee blows me away. You can use half the books, mark them up, try them out and if you don't absolutely love them in that first year, you can still get your money back."

This guarantee is as generous as it is because my mom does not want you to have to go through what she experienced her first year of homeschooling. If you'd like to "try on" Sonlight and see if it fits your family, know that you have a year to try up to half of the materials to see if you absolutely love it. If not, we've got you covered.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

Homeschooling looked very different twenty-plus years ago. Sonlight pioneered the literature-rich homeschool curriculum movement. All that existed before were textbook based curricula. In fact, Sonlight's model was such a radical departure from accepted educational models, my mom wasn't even sure anyone else would be willing to try it.

So what are the cultural shifts I've noticed recently?

1. Suppliers
Today, there are many startup companies trying to capitalize on Sonlight's wildly successful approach to homeschooling. But it's not just literature-based programs anymore. You can now find suppliers of other varied approaches to education. This has allowed niches to form. More than that, it allows homeschoolers to find "their approach" within homeschooling.

2. Success
Homeschooling used to be counter-cultural. Homeschoolers had to fight to make homeschooling legal. Today, especially with the flood of anti-public school documentaries saturating the silver screen, homeschooling is seen by many as a far superior option. And a great option it is!

This incredible success has lead to a relaxing of the homeschool culture. Sure, we still wonder if our children are learning "enough," but given the other options, we begin to feel we needn't worry. I consider the rise of unschooling to be one of many indications of this.

3. Studies
Sonlight broke from traditional school environments by rejecting textbooks. The "living books" movement has had incredible success. The trend I see now, however, is a further break from educational models. It seems that homeschoolers are moving away from even a literature-based model toward programs with even less reading. "You don't need all those books," I hear. "Instead, just read these few, carefully selected ones."

4. Simplified
And so parents, it appears, want things even more simplified. While Sonlight's homeschool curriculum offers many of these benefits--more instruction and opportunities with less parental preparation--I think the pendulum is swigging back. Textbooks are dull and uninspiring because of how their information is presented. The life and reality of historical events is replaced with a more quickly covered paragraph summary. Worse, textbooks do not inspire conversation and discussion. Stories provide a spectrum of human experience to consider, talk about and apply. As the homeschool world shifts toward a more simplified and focused experience, I fear that depth will again be lost.

Sonlight's literature-based approach does more than just make information memorable and enjoyable. As you spend time reading with your children, you draw closer to them and they to you. You get to experience the joy of learning with them. Your whole family gets to revel in the beauty of a well-told story, and you build bounds through the shared experiences of the worlds you visit within your books.

The cultural shifts of more curriculum suppliers taking advantage of homeschooling's success has created a demand for more study options and a more simplified approach to education.

Where does that leave Sonlight? Where we've always been: Seeking to offer you the very best homeschool curriculum so you are able to love learning with your students through great literature and resources.

What do you think of my summary? Have I totally missed it? What shifts have you noticed in the culture homeschooling?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

The social media world is lighting up questions about homeschool curriculum. Perhaps it's the weather, the time of the year or just something in the water. Whatever it is, right now the hope and promise of the next school year is more exciting than the current one. And with this excitement come the questions:

"Which Core should I get for my students?"
"What's this homeschool program like?"
"Should I use this resource or that one?"
"What do you do about _______?"
"How would you modify this?"

The insights of homeschool moms are in high demand. I see people asking all over the internet: forums, Facebook, blogs. As the questions swirl around the World Wide Web, I'd like to share a few places where you can consistently get great advice about homeschooling:

1. Sonlight Homeschool Advisors
   Sonlight's Advisors are homeschool moms, not sales people. Advisors aren't a group of people sitting in a call center or office waiting to sell you stuff. Sonlight's Advisors are homeschool moms who make time in their day to answer your questions about homeschooling and homeschooling with Sonlight.
2. Homeschool Conventions
   It's no coincidence that the convention season begins around now. This is the time you want answers, so this is time to provide them. Homeschool moms from all over the nation (and even one or two internationally) lug their boxes of Sonlight stuff to conventions to show you what Sonlight is like. They answer your questions, show you the materials and then make themselves available as a resource for you throughout the year.
3. Virtual Booth
   The Virtual Booth is my baby. I poured a lot of time and effort into this tool. You can get the basics of a convention booth before you take the effort and time to visit one. You can poke around a Sonlight convention booth, get lots of foundational information, and find some fantastic resources without moving form your spot right now. And the two "hosts" of the Virtual Booth? Also homeschool moms.

If you're looking for advice from homeschool moms for your upcoming homeschool year, we've got you covered. Chat with an Advisor. Find a homeschool convention. Or swing by the Virtual Booth.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

You make decisions on a daily basis that radically influence the lives of those around you. Your choice in schedule, rations, workloads and emphasis rivals that of any corporate executive. You may not feel like your life is a well-oiled machine but, with all the balls you keep in the air, you're doing great. ...mixed metaphors and all.

When I was young, I believed that leaders possessed a certain special something that enabled them to stand out in a crowd. As I've witnessed people over the years, that view has shifted. People like to be told what to do, what to think, what the right answer is. There are many areas of my own life where I'm happy to let someone else do the research, filter the details and give me the summary. I don't want to be responsible to know all that. And, in most cases, I don't have time anyway. But in those areas where I feel a certain level of proficiency, a modicum of mastery, I gladly share my take.

Leadership, then, isn't being someone or something special. Leadership is stepping up and deciding, directing and taking responsibility.

You do that every day.

While much of the rest of the world leaves the decisions about their child's education and daily interactions to others, you have bucked the trend. Certainly there are areas where you still take the advice and insight of others--your homeschool curriculum, for example. But in the practical outplay of your day, the buck stops with you.

You are a leader.

What sets you apart from the rest of the world in this area is that you have been willing to take responsibility and make decisions.

The world needs more people like you.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

P.S. I totally understand the pressure to "get it right" when you realize that people are letting you make the choice. It still rattles me a little when someone here at Sonlight lets me make the final call. If, like all great leaders, you'd like some insights and answers from someone who has gone before you, please feel free to contact a Sonlight Advisor. These homeschool moms will be happy to answer your questions and offer you their expertise as you make important curriculum decisions.

"I'm giving up. I can't do this anymore."

The words barely echo the true hurt and frustration. Another homeschooler is experiencing burnout or worse. Life has conspired to cripple this individual, and in a last resort of cathartic expression a blog post is born.

Moved, I click over from my RSS Reader; only to discover the post has been removed. The internet remembers, even what we'd like to forget. I have, through the power of technology, caught a glimpse into a scribbled out experience of life. The blog author has "taken back" what they wrote. But what I don't know--and rarely ever see--is why the post was deleted. Did they feel too vulnerable? Did they realize they were merely feeling overwhelmed last night? Did they discover something that made them change their mind about the whole thing? And why, I wonder, did they publicly post it in the first place if they now feel it no longer appropriate to share?

I am well-acquainted with change. We update Sonlight every year, seeking ways to better serve you. This means that every year you benefit from what we've learned in the past. On the other hand, change is hard, and it can be incredibly frustrating too. In fact, we list our yearly curriculum updates as one of the reasons you may not want to buy from Sonlight. We make the changes and move forward. So I know things disappear and are replaced with new ideas and thoughts.

But "ghost posts" are different. They indicate some change in thinking. And it makes me curious: Why the change?

Have you ever bumped into a deleted blog post? Have you ever removed one of your own? What changed your mind?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester