Podcast · Learning

Homeschooling & Loving It!

by Homeschool.com with Jamie Gaddy · English · Learning

Where is my instruction manual? I can't find mine either! Let's chat about parenting, homeschooling, and how to love it while you're up to your neck in it!!

New episodes: Now and then
Typical length: 24 min
Latest: 1 Oct 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

1 Oct 2026 · 16 min

Episode 91: Am I Doing Enough?

FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | PANDORA As homeschool parents, it’s easy to wonder if we’re doing enough. Whether you’re new to homeschooling or you’ve been at it for years, those questions can sneak in after a difficult week, an unfinished lesson plan, or a scroll through social media. Are we covering enough? Are our children learning what they need to learn? Are we somehow falling behind? In this episode, veteran homeschool mom Jamie Gaddy shares lessons learned from homeschooling six children over the past seventeen years and offers encouragement for parents who may be…

Play episodeWhatsApp Download

Earlier episodes 29 most recent

10 Aug 2026 · 11 min
Episode 90: 5 Unusual Tips for Getting Starting
The start of a new homeschool year often brings a mix of excitement, anticipation, and pressure. Between choosing curriculum, organizing supplies, and planning schedules, it’s easy to feel like everything needs to be perfect before day one. But after years of homeschooling, many parents discover that the most successful homeschool years don’t begin with the perfect curriculum. They begin with the right mindset. In this episode of Homeschooling and Loving It, we share five practical and out of the ordinary strategies that can help homeschooling families start the year with confidence,…
7 Jul 2026 · 11 min
Episode 89: Tips to Keep Kids Learning without Losing Summer
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | PANDORA As summer settles in, many homeschool families welcome slower mornings, outdoor adventures, and a well-earned break from routine. But this season also brings concerns about the “summer slide,” the loss of academic skills when learning comes to a complete stop. In this episode, Jamie shares simple, low-pressure ways to keep learning naturally woven into everyday life while still enjoying a relaxing summer. Rethink the Summer Slide Learning doesn’t have to stop just because formal lessons pause. Children are naturally learning through everyday…
28 May 2026 · 13 min
Episode 88: Summer Learning That Sticks
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | PANDORA In this episode of Homeschooling: Loving It, Jamie continues the conversation on summer learning by focusing on how to make it meaningful, engaging, and lasting. Rather than viewing summer as a break from learning, this episode encourages families to see it as an opportunity for exploration, passion-driven growth, and confidence building . Jamie shares how parents can guide their children in setting simple goals, discovering new interests, and maintaining academic skills in creative, low-pressure ways. The episode emphasizes that true learning…
21 May 2026 · 12 min
Episode 87: Why Summer Learning?
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | PANDORA In this episode of Homeschooling: Loving It, Jamie encourages families to rethink summer learning as a time for joy, connection, and exploration, rather than continuing traditional schoolwork. Summer is presented as a season for rediscovery, where kids can follow their interests through hands-on, flexible, and child-led activities. Instead of structured lessons, learning happens naturally in everyday experiences, whether in the kitchen, outdoors, or through hobbies. Jamie also addresses common challenges like burnout, shifting sleep schedules,…
18 Jan 2026 · 8 min
Episode 86: Tips to Reignite Your Homeschool Spark
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | PANDORA Keeping Homeschooling Interesting: 5 Key Takeaways to Reignite the Spark Homeschooling is a beautiful journey—but let’s be honest, even the most passionate homeschool families hit a rut now and then. If your days are starting to feel a little too routine, don’t worry—you’re not alone, and you’re not doing anything wrong. The good news? You can absolutely bring the spark back into your homeschool! Here are five simple but powerful ways to keep things fresh, fun, and full of curiosity. Change the Scenery Sometimes, all it takes is a new…
18 Feb 2025 · 27 min
Episode 85: You Can Homeschool with Carrie Strong
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | PANDORA For some parents, the thought of homeschooling melts their hearts. But, today’s podcast is about sharing with the world that YOU CAN homeschool and there is no reason to fear! Joining Jamie today is Carrie Strong, author of the book “You Can Homeschool!” Her book is designed to help other parents see the simplicity of homeschooling and a clear path to getting started. Jamie and Carrie chat about how to start, the lessons they’ve learned, and encouragement for all parents who are on the fence. If you can, take a minute to look at the book “ You…
25 Oct 2024 · 16 min
Episode 84: Tips for Keeping It Together!
Join our host, Jamie, as she shares her best tips for keeping your homeschool sanity! As a homeschool mom of six, she’s had to gather survival skills for juggling all the parental duties, housekeeping tasks, work-at-home responsibilities, and homeschooling. It’s a challenge for each of us. But there are a few tried and true methods that help to keep the day flowing smoothly while also helping parents keep their sanity. Additional articles on homeschool organization: Homeschool Organization Tips and Tricks The post Episode 84: Tips for Keeping It Together! first appeared on Homeschool .com .
4 Jul 2024 · 20 min
Episode 83: Connecting Rhythm and Handwriting with Nikki Wilson
In this podcast you’ll hear from our host Jamie and her special guest educator, Nikki Wilson on the topic of handwriting. Challenges with Teaching Handwriting Children are often bored or struggle with the fine motor skills involved with learning how to write letters. Nikkie shares several tips for helping them overcome these roadblocks along with ways to get them to smile! Tips for Teaching Young Children Handwriting As an educator, Nikki found several ways to help children enjoy handwriting and remember the process. Using rhythm in an exciting way, children become motivated and begin to…
2 May 2024 · 26 min
Episode 82: Homeschool Assessment
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | PANDORA For some homeschoolers, homeschool assessment can be confusing and even challenging. Join Jamie, homeschool mom of 6, as she shares how you can make it simple and easy. Once upon a time, in the quiet corners of suburban homes, families embarked on a unique educational journey: homeschooling. As they navigated this path, they encountered various forms of assessment to gauge their children’s progress. Let’s delve into the world of homeschool grading and assessment and explore the different ways homeschoolers evaluate their young scholars. Types…
28 Mar 2024 · 29 min
Episode 81: Homeschooling the Gifted or High Performing Learner
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | PANDORA Join Jamie as she interviews Kimberly Langen, a highly educated and gifted educator who started Spirit of Math in 1994 to challenge learners to think differently! Kimberly has developed an alternative way to helping gifted and high performing learners stay motivated and learn mathematics in ways that align with their particular style of thinking. This podcast was very enlightening and if you have a gifted or high-performing learner you’ll want to listen in. Kim shares a great many practical tips on how to homeschool and keep your learners…
26 Jan 2024 · 1 hr 4 min
Episode 80: Panel Discussion on Homeschooling
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | PANDORA This episode is one of my favorites! In honor of School Choice Week, I was able to join several other homeschooling mamas who shared their ups and downs and encouragement for homeschoolers new and experienced! We had a great time talking about homeschooling and this episode is full of nuggets of wisdom from four very experienced homeschool parents! If you are interested in learning more about homeschooling please visit our Getting Started Guide to Homeschooling. The post Episode 80: Panel Discussion on Homeschooling first appeared on…
26 Oct 2023 · 24 min
Episode 79: You Can Homeschool, Tips for All!
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | PANDORA If you’re not sure if you can or even should homeschool, then this podcast is for you. Join Jamie and Stephanie Palazzolo as they chat about the rights you have as a parent and how to get started. Remember, you can start homeschooling at any time! Some of the best advice for homeschoolers is that you know your child better than anyone, including a teacher. Don’t sell yourself short, you have been your child’s first teacher since the day they were born, and now that you want to homeschool… you can still be that amazing first teacher. Take…
17 Aug 2023 · 23 min
Episode 78: Helping Your Students Pursue Their Excellence
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER What is pursuing “Their Excellence?” If you’re not sure, then you’ll want to listen in to this podcast with Jamie and Jessica where they dig deep into how you can encourage your kids and actually PLAN to help them pursue “their” unique excellence! Our guest today is a leading expert in the growing world of “learning without walls”–Jessica Parnell, CEO of Edovate Learning Corp. Jessica is a published author, professional speaker, and former homeschool mom alum whose passion for children and education drove her to create and provide…
3 Aug 2023 · 21 min
Episode 77: Tips for Homeschool Record Keeping with Corrina from Modify
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER With the growing popularity of homeschooling and the wide selection of materials and resources that are now available, we know that it can be difficult for homeschoolers to find what they need and the basics of what they need to do to organize and keep records in their homeschool. In fact, over the years I’ve often had many questions about what records I needed to keep. Today Corrina and I are going to discuss homeschool record keeping – – I know this is often a worrisome topic for many homeschool parents. Sometimes we are just not sure…
20 Jun 2023 · 15 min
Episode 76 When Failure Hovers How Do You Plan Your Homeschool?
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Jamie shares her heart about family life and difficulties along the journey but also points to the fact that failure isn’t the end. Even if we have to set aside homeschooling for a bit, there is always a fresh start tomorrow. A Quote from Anne of Green Gables books, “Tomorrow is always fresh with no mistakes.” Ways to plan your new homeschool year: Find New Homeschool Curriculum in our Awards Learn more about Homeschool Products with Our Homeschool Curriculum Reviews Find Free Planners for you and Your Students Listen to apple podcasts?…
4 May 2023 · 27 min
Episode 75: Understanding Money with Phil Denniston & InflationEducation.net
Let me introduce you to Phil. Phil Denniston is founder and CEO of InflationEducation.net, better bedtime stories revealing the secrets of the debt-based fiat money system using the pricnipals of liberty, sound money, Austrian Economics, and Natural Law. Phil holds a BA in Economics from the University of Colorado. With InflationEducation.net Phil was able to marry his two passions: Understanding the history and mechanics of our monetary system AND using story-time with his four children (ages 5-14) to reveal the wizard behind the curtain, preparing them for the debt-based fiat money system…
30 Jan 2023 · 14 min
Episode 74: Help for Homeschool Burnout
Over the years in speaking with homeschooling parents, I’ve heard the phrase, “Homeschooling is making me depressed,” more than once from a discouraged homeschool mom. And yet, the majority of those homeschooling parents felt a lack of energy and inspiration specifically during the winter months! Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a harsh reality for many people during the long, dark winter, and adding the responsibility of homeschooling can make it more difficult. Even for people who don’t necessarily struggle with SAD, homeschooling in February is enough to make the most determined and…
10 Nov 2022 · 21 min
Episode 73 Advice for Homeschooling During the Holidays
With the holidays upon us, many of us feel more stressed than usual. There are numerous holiday events, relatives to see, places to visit, and gift shopping and preparation to get done. Most of us wonder about holiday homeschooling. How to homeschool amid everything? The holidays are a great time to take off from structured homeschooling. Don’t sweat the books. They will be waiting for you when the holidays are over! This looks different for each family, but changing up your homeschool routine to be more flexible and fit your holiday preparation can be fun and exciting. I know with my half…
20 Oct 2022 · 36 min
Episode 72: The Importance of Homeschool Handwriting
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Join Jamie as she interviews Holly Britton, author of the Squiggle Squad handwriting program. The interview was an amazing opportunity to get some practical pointers for homeschool parents teaching their littles how to write. Here were a few of the tips from the podcast: Don’t start too early – let it happen naturally. Rely on natural cause and effect. Crayon to paper – fun marks – movement creates something Start with building motor skills – shoulder and arm movement – core muscles and sitting Shouldn’t focus on WHAT but THAT…
22 Sep 2022 · 29 min
Episode 71: Interview with Connor Boyack: Civics and Government
We’re excited about our guest this week. The author of the Tuttle Twin’s Book Series, Connor Boyack is here to join us for a chat on why he wrote/is writing these books and about his new history book project. The Tuttle Twins has sold over 4 million copies and is widely discussed from CNN to Fox News. Connor attempts to reveal the truth about free market, government and civics in a fictional storyline that elementary kids and even teens can easily understand and apply to current events. Connor has a great newsletter that he sends out weekly. A quote you used in your newsletter back in May…
31 Aug 2022 · 28 min
Episode 70: Motivating Reluctant Writers
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER We’ve all experienced the struggle. The fear of a blank page intimidates us from writing the thoughts and ideas rushing about in our minds. Join Jamie as she interviews guest and author Joshua Davidson about how to motivate those reluctant writers. Joshua Davidson is the author of the award-winning book series, Night Zookeeper. The series now has an online learning portal and a cartoon TV series in the U.K. Listen for great ideas on how to get your students to write creatively in no time! Night Zookeeper was voted in the top 10…
4 Aug 2022 · 30 min
Episode 69: Success Without College with Bruce Goodmansen
The question of college is becoming increasingly more difficult for homeschool families. With rising costs, disappointing curriculum, and more students are faced with a decision to find alternatives. Bruce Goodmansen joins us today with his solution. His book is filled with tons of options for students who just don’t want to go the college route. Visit Bruce at Anything But College. You can check out his book here 100% Success Without College FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Listen on apple podcasts? Could you give us a review? We all know that helping our teens find…
29 Jun 2022 · 29 min
Episode 68: Interview with John Edelson on Homeschooling Increase
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Join Jamie as she interviews long-time homeschool advocate, John Edelson. John is the founder of Time4Learning.com and has been at the forefront of online homeschooling for the past two decades. John shares his thoughts about how homeschooling has changed over the years, how first-time homeschoolers can get started easily and simple advice for homeschooling without stress. Interested in finding out more about Time4Learning.com? Visit their free demo page to see how online learning works . Don’t Miss Our Other Great Homeschool…
9 Jun 2022 · 23 min
Episode 67: Kirk Cameron Interview on Homeschooling
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER We all know that homeschooling has changed over the past several years. A change that has been relatively positive across the board. But what does that mean for you, the normal parent wondering if homeschooling might be a good fit? Join Jamie as she interviews Kirk Cameron about why homeschooling is so important to him, and about his new movie The Homeschool Awakening. Kirk’s new movie is a wonderful glimpse of homeschooling through the eyes of more than a dozen homeschool families. This movie also helps answer those frequently…
20 May 2022 · 21 min
Episode 66: American Sign Language in Your Homeschool
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | SPOTIFY | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Join Jamie and Emily as they discuss American Sign Language (ASL) how it’s a great fit for homeschoolers and the importance of introducing the language as well as deaf culture to our children. Want to know more about ASL Virtual Academy? Visit our ASL Virtual Academy curriculum finder listing to see a detailed description and video about their product. Take time to visit ASL Virtual Academy. Listen on apple podcasts? Could you give us a review? The post Episode 66: American Sign Language in Your Homeschool first appeared on…
29 Apr 2022 · 28 min
Episode 65: Critical Thinking and Worldview Foundations
Faith-Based Podcast FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Training our children to be wise, use critical thinking, comparative arguments, and more to establish their worldview is a vital part of child-rearing. Elizabeth shares how she has taught children a simplistic way to recognize truth, falsehood, and opinion and how we as parents can begin with practical simplistic critical thinking activities with even the youngest children. Visit Foundation Worldview for courses, free webinars, and book clubs. Related Podcasts What is Normal Anyway? Tips to Avoid Burnout The post…
28 Mar 2022 · 29 min
Episode 64: The Mystery of History with Linda Hobar
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Join Jamie as she interviews Linda Hobar author of the well-known series “The Mystery of History.” Find out why teaching history from a Biblical viewpoint can be exciting and enlightening and discover practical ways you can teach multiple children at once. The post Episode 64: The Mystery of History with Linda Hobar first appeared on Homeschool .com .
10 Feb 2022 · 38 min
Episode 63: Importance of Teaching About The Bible – Rachael Carman
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Join Jamie and Rachael as they chat about the foundational principles that make such a difference in homeschooling and raising children. Find out more about a new curriculum that’s just released and be inspired to embrace the daily investment of pouring into your children as you homeschool. Listen on apple podcasts? Could you give us a review? The post Episode 63: Importance of Teaching About The Bible – Rachael Carman first appeared on Homeschool .com .
1 Dec 2021 · 47 min
Episode 62: Preparing Your Teens for Their Future!
FOLLOW US ON: APPLE PODCASTS | GOOGLE PLAY | STITCHER Preparing your teens for their future is a task that no parents find small or insignificant. As you homeschool you’ve grown to realize that it’s a joy, an investment, and so much more. However, many of us feel a bit intimidated when it comes to homeschooling our teens. There seems to be a lot of expectations, and the courses are so much more difficult than the elementary level. But wait – – what if we told you there was nothing to worry about. That homeschooling high school and preparing your teens is much easier than you ever imagined?…

About Homeschooling & Loving It!

Where is my instruction manual? I can't find mine either! Let's chat about parenting, homeschooling, and how to love it while you're up to your neck in it!!

Homeschooling & Loving It! is a English learning podcast from Homeschool.com with Jamie Gaddy. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: Homeschool.com with Jamie Gaddy
Language: English
Category: Learning
New episodes: Now and then
Typical length: 24 min
Latest episode: 1 Oct 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1476422247

RSS feed Apple Podcasts

More English learning

Take it with you

The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.