We’ve had the joy of listening to Stephanie Morrison, the Canadian Team Manager, over the past several months on the Hey, Mama! Homeschool Show, as she shared about homeschool dads, the importance of art and music in the homeschool, and the socialization myth. In addition to providing encouragement on our podcast, she oversees all that The Old Schoolhouse® does for Canadian homeschoolers, including connecting with various Canadian-based businesses that have products and services for homeschooling families. Stephanie also writes copy for The Old Schoolhouse® sales department to share with advertisers on Schoolhouse Marketing as well as writes the product review column—The Old Schoolhouse® Lab, in The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. 

Let’s learn more about Stephanie! 

Please tell us a little about your family. How many children are you homeschooling? (Or how many children have you homeschooled?) What are their ages/grades? 

I am a mother to three boys, although my oldest one is off on his own with his own family, which makes me a grandma to a girl (six years old) and a boy (one-year-old). At home, my other two boys are twelve and fifteen. 

How long have you been homeschooling?

Fifteen years—my husband and I made the firm decision to homeschool before our first son was born, so I say I’ve been homeschooling since he was born. 

What do you do outside of The Old Schoolhouse®?

Apart from my homeschooling mom work, I work on a few other marketing projects, including my business Creating Work & Play, where I coach and train (through my online course) entrepreneurs to start and grow their home businesses. I also keep quite busy on my farm, raising animals (chickens, goats, and rabbits for now) and growing food when the season is right. 

Tell us about your personal homeschool style.

When I have to label it, I say I’m an eclectic homeschooler. I don’t get too settled with one curriculum or one approach to a subject, which is probably why SchoolhouseTeachers.com works so well for our family. There are so many different lesson designers contributing their courses to the site that we get various teaching styles. I also find that I like change, and since I get exposed to so many different learning materials in my work here at The Old Schoolhouse®, I change things up by using a learning resource from new places every now and again. 

What have you learned from your homeschooling experience?

Learning is a way of life that can be embraced in so many ways. 

What is your favorite homeschool subject to teach?

I love teaching on language arts-related topics, especially writing. My boys don’t have a love of words like I do, but I think after years of sharing my enthusiasm, I may finally be rubbing off on them.

Are there any homeschool subjects you outsource?

Nothing that I have a tutor for or that I haven’t done the work to get the course/curriculum myself, but there are subjects like history, geography, and science that I’m pretty much learning right along with my boys. I find the type of course or learning material that does all the teaching so I don’t have to!

What is your favorite resource from The Old Schoolhouse® for helping homeschooling families? 

There’s so much it’s hard to narrow it down to one! I guess I’ll pick one of our biggest ones that we use regularly in our home—SchoolhouseTeachers.com. I’m on there quite a bit as I’m looking for helpful resources to offer our Canadian homeschooling audience. Still, as a mom, I love the variety of course options and that my boys can navigate the site easily enough to get what they need for their courses. 

If you could give one piece of advice to homeschoolers, what would it be?

Always be learning about your kids. Parent-led education is about giving your child a customized, quality education by aligning with the way they learn and what their interests are. This changes as children grow, so we need to regularly assess what’s working for them, what’s not, and how we can engage them in learning all subjects by connecting to their interests. While this may not be possible for every subject, we can do a pretty good job of making much of their learning time relatable to their interests and personality.

Are there any final words about homeschooling you would like to share? 

Enjoy the privilege of living the educational life with your children. Homeschooling may seem like a challenge, but as a mom who has had the experience of raising one child that I sent to public school, I can confirm that parenting is easier when you are the main influence in your child’s life. Children in public school, and even private school, spend more of their waking hours most days of their childhood in that institutional setting. So, it’s reasonable to accept that the parent is not the main influence, especially as children get to their teen years. 

You don’t need to be ‘teaching’ every subject. You just need to find the right curriculum that will teach them, and you’re there as their parent to guide them. There is no lack of high-quality curriculum for home education at an affordable price!  

In Closing 

We hope you will continue to join Stephanie and all our hosts as they share more encouragement and advice for your homeschool journey. In the coming months, we will share about living books, writing and language arts, celebrating homeschool dads, lap books, and more! 

If you would like to hear more from Stephanie, check out these Canadian Schoolhouse articles: 

10 Ways to Create Balance for Work-at-Home Jobs (for Moms) 

How to Get a Homesteading Family Education

Use a Homeschool Magazine for Learning and Teaching