Episode 193: Homeschool AND a Bed & Breakfast?! with Sarah Thatcher

 
 

For the Busy Mommas…



We want to talk homeschooling…more specifically….what a real homeschool can look like. 

Because, every homeschool is different...every child is different, every mom is different, and every family is different.  

So, rather than just share what Tiffany and I do in OUR homeschools, we thought it would be amazing to reach out to other moms in our community and showcase all the real possibilities for homeschooling!   

In this episode we have Sarah, a former public school teacher who thought she would never homeschool! 

She's a momma to 4 boys who all came in rapid succession, and she's been homeschooling for 2-ish years now!   

Sarah Thatcher (01:00)

There are four boys in Sarah’s family…they adopted their first 3, and a surprise bio came right after (blessing the family with four children under the age of 2). Those first few years were very blurry.

They’ve been homeschooling the whole time, and they live and work together as a family while owning a bed and breakfast.

The Thatcher Homeschool Life (02:00)

They do a whole-family, one-schoolhouse plan. Currently, her boys are 5, 6, 7, and 8…and since they don’t begin formal education until age 6, the oldest three are being homeschooled.

Sarah never thought she would homeschool before she had kids…she was a public school high school teacher. Then, when her oldest was a baby, she began researching, and they were all-in!

Before starting anything formal, Sarah geeked out, listened to all the podcasts, and read all the books. It’s worth mentioning that even with all this planning and preparation, she still feels like it’s trial-by-fire some days.

The Orchard House Bed & Breakfast (04:00)

This was a new venture for the Thatcher family, the culmination of a dream of Sarah’s (brought to life by a . Before this venture, the family lived and worked at the Wild + Free farm village for a few years.

They discovered that they love hospitality, they love working together as a family, they love living where they work, and bringing the boys right along in the process.

Since they stopped working for Wild + Free, they searched and found the perfect property for a bed & breakfast and had guests (and a wedding) almost immediately.

As far as homeschooling goes, they are still figuring out the space for homeschooling.

A "Typical" Homeschool Day (06:10)

The family purposely blurs the lines between homeschool and life. Mornings begin with a collective time in the living room. Tablework and formal schooling happen at the dining room table while Sarah prepares tea and snacks.

Unsurprisingly, most of the homeschoolers we’ve interviewed school at the dining room table (Britt & I included).

Sarah also has her personal morning routine, which she started when the kids were little. The boys were not allowed out of their bedrooms until 7:30 in the morning, because setting herself up well each day made such a difference!

She developed the Daily 4 (#daily4), and it’s made up of the 4 things she does each morning before momming.

  • Time with Jesus & Coffee

  • Making the Bed

  • Moving her Body

  • Getting Ready (Dressing, Hair, & Make-up)

The kids also have a morning rhythm…

  • Getting Dressed

  • Make the Bed

  • Tidy Rooms

The times for these rhythms vary a bit, but these are the things the kids do each day.

Nowadays, Sarah’s husband will make breakfast for the kids so Sarah can complete her Daily 4.

Recently, the family adopted the Clipboards, with each child having six responsibilities (which include both school and life).

So the kids begin with the Clipboards, have breakfast, and Sarah heads over to the B & B, cooks for the guests, and then heads back home for morning collective with the kids.

Curriculum (13:30)

The Thatchers don’t start anything formal until age 6, and they want the kids not only to love learning, but they want them to love reading (math can come later).

So, they began with "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons," and Sarah’s oldest son (at age 6) took a bit of time, and they struggled for a bit (he wanted to push through), but he learned how to read! They celebrated like crazy, and then moved on to Little Pilgrim’s Progress (an adorable story written specifically for kids), and Sarah began to introduce narration and notebooking.

That’s all they did for a year (along with morning collective). It was peaceful, her oldest loved it, and the younger kids wanted to start.

Sarah’s second son began the “Teach Your Child to Read” and it was rough (they decided together to pause, and she began with her third, and created some friendly competition).

She’ll begin the same way with each child, and it seems to be working well.

The oldest has now begun The Good & the Beautiful Math (Level K), and they worked through at his own pace, trusting that there’s no behind.

That’s it! Lots of reading, tons of conversations, and interest led lessons.

Incorporating Faith (22:15)

One of the main reasons the family chose to homeschool was so Sarah and her husband (and now their in-laws) would be the childrens’ main influence. In addition to that, the family reads the Ergermeier’s Bible Storybook (which is their favorite) in their morning collective. It keeps the kids’ attention, and it is so close to the original (with some pictures).

The day begins with prayer, and they read other biographies, martyr stories (which are hard to hear, but necessary) and the kids memorize a verse each week. Sarah is considering working in hymn memorization, but hasn’t begun yet.

Sarah's Biggest Homeschooling Fear & Flex (24:41)

She hears so many mommas around her with questions about doing enough. Hearing that so much, and great responses from other women (in the Wild + Free community too), it isn’t something she worries about.

Now, she worries about the buy-in from her kids. She wants them to love what they’re doing in school. The idea that they’ll push and want to go to “real school” and they know they're doing real school (much more real than is offered with a public school situation).

This is what has brought her to research unschooling and interest-led learning, and it has really helped with her fear because if learning is truly interest-led…there’s the buy-in.

What has worked well for the family is the layered approach. They begin with one thing, and then layer on one more. The routine feels simple and natural, and that has worked the best.

Advice to a New Homeschool Mom (28:00)

There is no better person to teach your kids than you. Sarah has a Master’s in Education, and she doesn’t feel like that has equipped her to homeschool any better. No one is more qualified than you as the mom to teach your kids. You are the best for your kids.

A's to Our Q's (29:40)

  1. The subject Sarah enjoys teaching and learning about the most is hospitality (she’s reading J.R. Miller’s “Homemaking”), and she’s excited to learn more about how to love and care for people.

  2. Early on, Sarah was so into Wild + Free, and met many wonderful mommas through that community. Book-wise, she’s read John Holt, The Call of the Wild + Free, and more recently she’s been learning about Unschooling…specifically through Nicole Shiffler on IG (and her course is wonderful).

  3. Sarah’s go-to dinner in a pinch (back-up meal) is a clean-out-the-fridge-night, and it includes all the leftovers. Charcuterie of leftovers, if you will. She doesn’t have to cook, the kids love it, and food isn’t wasted!

Resources from This Episode

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Episode 194: Are Your Kids Missing Out?

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Episode 192: 3 Myths About Quirky Kids…BUSTED! with Ginny Kochis