Homeschool Day in the Life: Bianca, Homeschooling Mom and Passionate Advocate for all Things HOME–Homeschooling, Homesteading, + Homemaking

A homeschool day in the life looks different almost every day, right? Over on our Instagram page, we love to give you a peek into lots of homeschool days regardless of how they change day to day.

Today, we’re going to give you a peek into the homeschool day in the life of Bianca, homeschooling mom and passionate advocate for all things HOME–Homeschooling, Homesteading, + Homemaking.

We can all learn and be inspired by one another, regardless of our homeschool approach. It’s not about looking good for social media, it’s about the connection going on inside our homeschool walls and sharing with others what works for us.

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We might all homeschool a little differently, but we can always look for ideas from each other that inspire, encourage and equip us in our own homeschool days. So each week we create blog posts for you to access later of each of those “days in the life”. We hope you keep coming back for more inspiration. Keep going, mama! These days at home are so worth it!

Meet Bianca

Bianca @americanheritagehomestead is a passionate advocate for all the things “HOME” – homeschooling, homesteading, homemaking.

She has been homeschooling her children for the last 9 years, and can honestly say that it has been the best decision she and her husband could have ever made for their family.

It is her joy to help families thrive. Throughout the years she has led several different homeschool co-ops and classes, bible studies, and children’s ministry for the last ten years. She has seen homeschooling change her life and all the lives of those who were willing to step out in faith and try it.

One thing she loves to pass along is our American Heritage, where this beautiful country began “For the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith (Mayflower Compact, 1620).” It is her desire to see our beautiful heritage returning to homes in America.

Welcome!

Hi I’m Bianca. I am so glad that you are getting a glimpse into my day in the life of homeschooling. I wanted to share our day authentically, and take you through my daily routine. Here’s what my mornings look like…

I typically set my alarm for a few hours before my children get up (around 6am). I hit the coffee on that I prepared the night before & spend the next few hours reading my Bible in the quiet of the morning.

There’s something so special about getting up, glancing out the window every so often, and watching the sun begin to brighten the land. The beauty of the countryside in the distance could only be the work of God’s hands.

Since my children were little, they have come out of their rooms to find me with my bible open, coffee nearby & my pen filling up the many notebooks that adorn our home.

This morning I am studying through Isaiah 60, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light.”🌻

Just a word of encouragement for you today: There is no pressure when it comes to homeschooling, it’s precious time to enjoy your family. Slow down & soak it all in. Enjoy the journey with me today.

PS: My husband and I LOVE collecting mugs. To us they are keepsakes of memories made throughout the years. This bird mug was the first one I ever used when we moved into this new home.

Breakfast

The most important thing to my son when he makes his way out of bed – after he comes and snuggles on my lap for a little of course – is always breakfast. And sometimes it’s not just one, but two or three “breakfasts”. But TODAY is special because my son wanted to surprise me by making me breakfast (with some help from his dad). He asked if he could use my phone to capture his work. You can see his sweet little hand giving me some whipped cream.♥️

If I’m being honest, I will say that I am not your typical Suzy Homemaker, though I am working more towards it. I would love to say that I *always* have a beautiful breakfast spead laid out but more often than not I look for simple, easy meals to start our day. Proverbs 31 says, “She provides food for her family” – it doesn’t say it had to be fancy. I think of the ways of old, when it was a much simpler time. Families needed easy, quick meals to start their day, so they could get to work and fulfill their chores on the homestead.

Some of my simple breakfast go to’s:

• Yogurt with fruit & honey
• Eggs & toast
• Bacon & egg sandwiches
• Cream of rice with a dash of brown sugar & a side of fruit or protein
• English muffins with homemade jam…sometimes just a piece of fruit 🍎

When I’m feeling more ambitious, I do like to make a yummy banana bread, chocolate chip pancake muffins or set up a breakfast bar (especially on the 1st day of school, I’ll share in stories).🌻

How We Start Our Day Together

I like to have slow, cozy mornings. That is the beauty of homeschooling. There’s no need to rush, especially during the winter season. Sometimes my son will have a cup of warmed cider (to mimic our coffee), and all of us will sit quietly reading our bibles. All you can hear are the slow sips, the crackling fire, and the flick of the pages turning.

I remember a time when I would shockingly wake my daughter to get dressed and then rush her to make the bus on time. There was nothing pleasant about it, and I certainly don’t miss those days. But being able to cherish the time with my children, without rushing, but savoring every moment, has been one of the greatest blessings of homeschooling.🌻

To me, homeschooling is really about “discipleship”, training our children, leading them to God, shaping their character, walking through life with them – and to me, it all starts with laying a solid biblical foundation. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge (Prov 1:7).” so this is what the start of each school day looks like for us. Before any official bookwork, my son usually gets a snack & snuggles beside me as I read the Bible to him. Today, he listens with his 2nd breakfast in hand.♥️

The Library

One way I try to instill a LOVE FOR LEARNING comes from books, books & more books. Once you can read, you can learn anything.

We give them as gifts. We go to book stores as a family. We make Library trips. My husband and I have quite the collection of books, both kids have bookshelves in their rooms, and they have a bookshelf in the family room filled with all different kinds of books.

• If we want to learn about a certain war…
• If we want to learn about the herbs we find outside…
• If we want to do an art project…
• If we want to assign a “classic” for my daughter to read…
• If we want to read about a missionary…
• If we want to learn a new skill…

…we go to the “LIBRARY”🌻

This is our “curriculum” – and a daily use in our house. There’s nothing like holding a beautiful book in your hand and getting lost in imagination and wonder. Each book takes you to a new place. Many memories are made around this bookshelf.♥️

Many people have the tradition of giving a single gift on Christmas Eve. Our tradition that we do as a family is a book exchange. We pick a name and then have to pick out a special book for that person, and then we spend the night reading our books📚

A Typical School Day

My husband laughs and says, “I just wish they could see your free side, like the feather flying at the beginning of Forest Gump.” And that is totally me! I am not a strict schedule follower, I like to go with the flow. Although there are the constants – bible reading, basic learning & homestead chores. To me though, homeschooling is built around the “HOME”, not the other way around.

I like to hone in on my children’s desires, gifts and talents – and I’ve done that since they were little. What’s important to me is instilling a LOVE for learning.🌻

TYPICAL DAY FOR MY SON:

• Bible Time
• Memory Verse
• Breakfast
• Assigned Reading
• Math & English
• Chicken Chores
• History Lesson – sometimes a documentary to go with it

But that’s not always the case! We kind of go where the wind takes us.🌻

Homeschooling a High Schooler

So many people often get scared at the thought of homeschooling a teenager. “Are you really going to teach all the way through high school?”

Of course! Honestly, once you’re child is able to study for themselves, the possibilities are endless. I will say that my daughter is more disciplined in nature and has many goals that she is after, so we do challenge her a little more to help her reach those goals.

My husband (who is also more disciplined & scheduled) has taken her learning more into his hands now. I laid the foundation, helped her to find joy in learning & now he has taken the reigns to help her grow more so academically.

You can get overwhelmed when you focus on the QUANTITY of work and subjects you think they need, when it’s really about the QUALITY of the things you put in front of them. One good history book is worth far more than 50 lessons from a curriculum (can you tell we’re not “curriculum” people🙃). I think more so than anything, by the time they’re in the middle of high school, it’s important to gear them towards what their goals actually are. I’m not going to spend a year on Earth Science if she is going in a totally different direction.

Do they want to go into college? Are they interested in a certain kind of career path? At a certain point you have to say don’t waste their time or your own, studying things they have no intention of going forward with. And if your child doesn’t really know, then just cover the basics & give them the freedom to explore different areas of interest to see if they do find something that they are drawn to or are particularly proficient in. Instead of standard curriculum after standard curriculum, give them space to see what they actually like. Just my advice.🌻

For some perspective, my husband assigns certain books (Emma from Jane Austen, The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, David McCullough’s “1776”) that she must read by a certain time frame and then do a specific written assignment or an oral report. She’s also in the middle of writing her own novel and studying out areas of interest that will help her desired field.♥️

Ending Our Day

We ended our day at the book store📚🌻

Our kids have finished reading their chapter books and we love to reward them by letting them pick out new (really used) ones. A lot of the reason we choose used book stores is because we find titles that you wouldn’t normally see, little treasures hidden on the shelves. But the greatest treasure is doing it as a family.

As we say farewell, I want to remind you that homeschooling is built around the HOME. All too often the “home” part is lost. Homes were never intended to be places of worry or stress, but a place of comfort, refuge, and joy.

Home is where families can learn and grow together, where we can look at each day as a gift, knowing that we can be there for our children every step of the way, cherishing the time. Nothing can compare to the love, care, and nurture of the home.

The beauty of homeschooling is that no two homes will look the same. It’s not a one size fits all, it’s custom tailored to the desires, passions and needs of the home. My advice to you is let the HOME come before the school & enjoy learning together as a family.🌻

I hope you enjoyed our day in the life today, it was such a blessing to be able to share our lives with you.♥️

PS go visit a bookstore with your family📚

Thank you so much to Bianca for sharing your family’s day with us!

If you want to see more Day in the Life photos and videos, be sure to check out our Instagram profile.  There are highlights of each takeover at the top.