Providing children with a Catholic education was considered so important to Irish, Italian, and Polish immigrants that parishes built the school BEFORE the church. A lot has changed but Mary Ellen and Ginny remind us that one thing that has NOT changed is the serious obligation of Catholic parents to give their children an authentic Catholic education. Today they discuss how homeschoolers can best fulfill that obligation.

Show Notes:

Years ago, providing children with a Catholic education was considered so crucial that parishes built the school BEFORE the church. What changed? Well, lots, but today, Mary Ellen and Ginny remind us that the one thing that has NOT changed is the serious obligation of Catholic parents to give their children an authentic Catholic education. They also discuss how homeschoolers can be best equipped to fulfill that obligation.

Parents are required to give their children a thoroughly Catholic education – period.

So, what does this mean for homeschoolers?

1. Catholic materials have to be the default choice.

· There are a few legitimate reasons to use non-Catholic materials – a special needs child, could be one of them.

· Money can be a factor if you truly cannot afford a Catholic option.

2. Content is a critical issue in reading, science, and history.

· Books should teach the Catholic Faith and give examples of the saints.

· Christian books can be downright anti-Catholic.

3. It is imperative to teach the extraordinary accomplishments of faithful Catholics.

Holy Mother Church is often portrayed as anti-science. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Some sources are quick to bring up Galileo but neglect to mention that:

· It was Catholic cleric Nicolas Copernicus who first identified the sun as the center of our solar system.

· Augustinian Monk Gregor Mendel founded the field of genetics.

· Louis Pasteur, founder of bacteriology, was a devout Catholic who prayed the rosary daily.

· Seismology is often called the Jesuit science because of the order’s contributions.

That’s why you need a Catholic program!

4. Your parish CCD program, even the best-intentioned of them, is Catholic-lite.

They cannot and do not replace daily religious instruction in your home. Thirty hours a year just does not cut it. And it includes a minimal Catholic history of accomplishment.

A Great Catholic program we love:

• Seton Home Study School

Homeschooling Resources

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services

Society of Catholic Scientists

Notes from Social Media

Beth from Illinois wants to know:

How much time is typically spent on kindergarten? My second child is on the way, and I am overwhelmed by the idea of managing a school schedule with a new baby at home.

Best advice: Don’t sweat it. Maybe an hour to two during the day can be split up. Be flexible using baby’s naptime or downtime. Now, as they start to crawl and walk, things get challenging. You’ll find more about that in our episode, The Secret of Teaching with a Toddler in the House.

Are you considering homeschooling but are not quite there yet? You may have bought a few books, read a few blogs, and followed a few Instagram accounts. It can be really hard to say, "We are doing this!" and jump in. Well, fear not: Ginny and Mary Ellen have helped thousands with their clear and simple practical advice, along with a generous helping of good humor.

Listen now at the link below!

https://www.setonhome.org/podcast/

Program Notes:

How Do I Get Started?

Are you considering homeschooling but are not quite there yet? Have you dipped your toes in? You may have bought a few books or read a few blogs. It can be really hard to jump in and say “We are doing this!” Ginny and Mary Ellen have a few things to consider that might help you take the plunge.

So, if you think you should homeschool, we agree and have a few tips to help you get started.

1. Check out the laws in your state.

· HSLDA is an excellent resource for state rules. See the link in Resources below.

· Discreetly check out the compliance your local school district requires.

· Look for local Facebook groups.

· Veteran moms are an excellent resource for the ins and outs of reporting.

· If you withdraw from public school, sending a letter stating you will homeschool is standard.

· Provide the minimum of information. Too much information can cause trouble.

2. Start with a boxed curriculum.

· In the first year, you might be more relaxed if you are enrolled somewhere.

· It's straightforward; you know all the bases are covered.

· As you gain experience, you can pick and choose or write your own.

3. Get organized.

· Start getting your house in order.

· Be ruthless and get rid of everything not serving your family.

· Set up a system to easily plan your meals, tidy up, and grocery shop.

· Record a phone message: "Schools in session. I'll return your call after dismissal."

4. Get routines started.

· Envision your daily routine and rhythm.

· Establish play times, chore times, nap times, and bedtimes.

· Schedules will make your first year of homeschooling much less stressful.

5. Make a Plan.

· Decide on your start date, vacation days, and end date.

· Plan a few field trips and art projects.

· Get a teacher planner for each child.

6. Time outside your home.

· Use good judgment in choosing activities.

· Your first year is not the time to jump into outside activities.

· Those activities will be available in the second semester or even next year.

· Time may be your greatest asset, be a miser spending it in your first year.

Homeschooling Resources

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services

Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA)

Notes from Social Media

Maria and Carrie posted on the podcast's FB page asking for tips on how to teach spelling.

There are two keys to successful learning: repetition and multi-sensory. Kids who struggle with spelling should write them 5 or 10 times each. They see them, and the words go into muscle memory when they write them. Even better, say them and spell them as they write them. Book b-o-o-k Book. Make it fun by letting them write words on a whiteboard or the patio floor using sidewalk chalk. Before they test, have students march up and down, repeating the words and their spellings several times.

Who says Catholic homeschool students can't enjoy school spirit and connection with their fellow students? Not Seton Home Study School!

Seton has an online forum, Catholic Harbor, to provide just those things and more. Listen to learn more!

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Draper Warren Bio:

Draper Warren is the Director of Admissions at Seton and the Admin of Catholic Harbor. He is a Seton alumnus and graduate of Christendom College. He has worked at Seton for over 25 years, earned an MBA, and is currently completing a doctoral degree in educational leadership at Marymount University.

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Show Links:

https://www.setonhome.org/student-life/catholic-harbor/

https://www.catholicharbor.com

Venerable Fulton Sheen said. "There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate The Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly perceive the Catholic Church to be."

These words could easily be applied to homeschooling. Too many people react negatively when they hear of a family homeschooling, but these impressions could not be further from the truth. Today, Mary Ellen and Ginny take on the naysayers' challenge with Debunking Seven Myths and Misconceptions About Homeschooling, arming you with the real story.

#1 Parents are not qualified to teach their children.

This is ridiculous, considering a child learns more in the first five years of life than in the remainder of their lives, and that's entirely due to the parents. You can find all kinds of resources to help you teach.

#2. Homeschooled children don't get to socialize.

This is the most pervasive myth about homeschooling. People always bring it up, and it is just not true. Numerous studies prove that homeschooled kids excel in socialization.

Bottom Line - School socialization is virtually useless:

This generation is the unhappiest we have witnessed in modern history. Kids—the vast majority of whom are in school—are miserable, so socialization is not what it is cracked up to be.

3. It's harder for homeschooled students to get into college.

This may have been true at some point, but now colleges are actively recruiting homeschooled students.

4. Only parents with advanced degrees can homeschool.

That is not true. Any parent can homeschool. If you are unfamiliar with the material, there are teacher's editions, videos (YouTube, Khan Academy), and some home study schools have counselors. Online classes are also an option. As long as you are directing your child's education, you are homeschooling. You don't have to be the one teaching every class. Also, it is fun to learn alongside your kids.

Public school teachers all have degrees, many advanced, and that system is a disaster. Parents would almost have to try to do worse.

5. Homeschoolers need to experience diversity.

This is a funny criticism since public school classrooms are strictly geographical in their composition. You are sitting in a room with people who make up your neighborhood. How diverse is that? However, homeschooled students get out into the world, travel, feed their curiosity, volunteer, and have the opportunity to explore the world as they learn about it.

6. You can't work outside of the home and homeschool.

Again, not true. You can homeschool at any time of day or any schedule that works for you. You have to be organized and sometimes let something go (your floor may be sticky for a while), but it can be done and done well.

7. Homeschoolers can't participate in extracurricular activities.

Homeschool kids play on soccer teams, go to dance classes, and participate in the same club leagues and other organizations that other kids do. Because their time is better managed, they also have an opportunity to follow up on their interests. They have time to read for pleasure, craft, tinker with Legos, or build forts in the yard.

There will always be naysayers when you choose a path different from the norm. When you prayerfully decide that homeschooling is right for your family, do not let the Debbie Downers of the world rob you of the peace that comes with knowing that your child is growing and learning in a loving, safe environment from parents who want the best from them.

Resources:

Homeschooling and the Question of Socialization Revisited, Richard G. Medlin, Stetson Univ.

Richard G. Medlin, Stetson University (A wealth of information here, See: Publications)

Homeschooling Information:

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services

Do you have a child who is hesitant to try new things? Who would rather sit and stare at a book because they are convinced, they can’t do it, even before they try?

Today, Ginny and Mary Ellen discuss how confidence can be encouraged in even the most hesitant children and chart a map of seven key lessons for building self-confidence in your homeschooled child.

The Hesitant Child

Do you have a child who is hesitant to try new things? Who would rather sit and stare at a book because they are convinced they can’t do it before they even try? Self-confidence is an essential life skill, enabling a child to face challenges, cope with frustration, and try their best at new things.

Seven Key Lessons to Build Self-Confidence in your homeschooled child.

1. First and foremost, self-confidence is knowing you are a child of God. He has given you gifts and talents and expects you to use them. When you know that, it becomes easier to believe in yourself. One of the best results of self-confidence is the ability to do the right thing even when it is unpopular, which is part of life in the world today.

2. Model confidence for your children. Tell them that sometimes new things make you nervous or stressed out, but they mostly turn out fine. We were not created to worry but to try to discern God’s will for us. Sometimes, that means doing something new or out of our comfort zone.

3. Praise sincerely. That doesn’t mean constantly. Constant praise diminishes the effect and kids know insincerity when they hear it. It’s a “you get a sticker for everything” culture. Praise when something is truly praiseworthy and make it meaningful. It doesn’t have to be direct praise. You tell Daddy that little Johnny took over for you to make dinner when you were called away. He was a lifesaver. You don’t have to say to him directly. Everyone will know that he saved the day. And he’ll know it, too.

4. Help them set realistic goals. Some kids will set the bar for themselves too high for their developmental age.

5. Guide them in problem-solving, ask why something isn’t working, help troubleshoot the problem, and let them work it through.

6. Let them fail. It’s the best teacher. Let them see that sometimes, even our best efforts are not enough to reach a goal, and that’s okay.

7. Give them responsibilities and their completion opportunities to earn privileges. Children gain confidence in their abilities when they accomplish something – not when they get an unearned trophy. Start with household responsibilities such as yard work or babysitting. As they gain skills, they can market them.

Epilogue: Two of my grandkids were hired to help at a large family gathering – mainly to entertain little ones. They did that but also helped with party cleanup. Got glowing reviews and tipped!)

Homeschooling Information

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services

To Learn Online or Not – That's the Question

Online homeschooling programs offer a tempting solution for busy parents. However, it's essential to consider both the benefits and drawbacks.

Today, Ginny and Mary Ellen cut through the noise to provide practical, no-nonsense advice, wrapped, as always, in their unique humor and warmth.

Little kids – preschool and primary grades.

Overall, there are advantages to Online Learning, but sitting a child this age in front of a screen gets a big thumbs down, with just a few exceptions.

Kids this age need to be:

• Jumping around.
• Sniffing flowers.
• Chasing bunnies, real or imagined.

These activities develop imagination, observational, and communication skills.

It's their chance to tell you what they have seen, heard, touched, and smelled.

Stuck in the house? - Give them blocks, Legos, or a whiteboard with markers—not a screen.

A word or two on Handwriting:

• Have you seen children's Handwriting recently? Does it look like chicken scratch?
• Most young children can't read cursive, and virtually none can write it.
• They will whine but need to sit and practice penmanship for hours.
• Writing, cutting, and pasting builds small motor skills and reinforces learning.

Is online education ever appropriate in younger years?

Two opportunities stand out:

1. Online Language Lessons

Being bilingual does great things for children's brains. Online language lessons are a solution.

1. Enrichment Programs

For instance, if students study bees in science and are very interested, an online enrichment lesson or video could be beneficial. But an even better solution might be a trip to the library.

Online for Middle and High Schoolers?

The PROS: Online Can be Appropriate for Older Kids - Upper-level and even middle-school math, science, and foreign languages. Even before high school, moms may need help teaching grammar and diagramming. Teaching Textbooks has been a lifesaver in many homeschools.

Online classes allow kids to hear lectures from experts or watch videos that expand on a textbook lesson. As students mature, it will be easier to put screens in perspective.

The CONS: Isolation - It is psychologically unhealthy to be isolated. This generation has more diagnosed mental illness and higher suicide rates than any before it. Human beings are social creatures - we need social interaction. We don't get that in front of a screen.

Tongue-tied - We've all passed groups of teens who stand near one another but never look up from their phones. They don't know how to communicate. Teens struggle to get jobs because they lack social confidence. None of this gets better if they stare at a screen all day.

Homeschooling Information

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services

Many of us started homeschooling to pass on our Catholic faith and get our kids to heaven. But in the back of our minds, when we can think past laundry and dishes and driving kids to activities, we hope they can exert a positive influence here on earth.

Our guest offers a career track to fulfill that influence in a Christ-centered manner. Dr. Maura Wenzel’s nursing career satisfies her desire to serve, love others as Christ loves, and see Christ in every patient. Her choice may be a perfect fit for your Catholic homeschooler.

Program notes:

Now more than ever, why do we need nurses with a solid moral compass?

Dr. Wenzel is a Clinical Associate professor at the Catholic University of America’s Conway School of Nursing. As a former U.S. Navy nurse, Dr. Wenzel has experience in many fields of nursing, including surgical, emergency, and perioperative nursing. Dr. Wenzel is passionate about nursing, nursing education, and weaving the Catholic Faith throughout her courses.

She and her husband and three young children live in southern Maryland.

An inside look at this gratifying profession.

● What attracted her to nursing?

● What are the emotional or spiritual traits that make the best nurses?

● How did homeschooling help you develop them?

● What high school courses are most important?

● What is the difference between R.N., BSN, and APRN?

Why is Catholic University so attractive to Catholic homeschoolers?

Catholic—The beautiful campus, in a very safe part of Washington, D.C., is steeped in Catholic culture. Surrounded by the U.S. Conference of Bishops, next to John Paul II Shrine, there is an abundance of priests and nuns on campus and many opportunities for daily mass.

Professional – An education from an excellent faculty, teaching in a new state-of-the-art nursing building with a floor replicating a hospital wing. Receive a nursing education that clearly emphasizes the role of ethics, values, and spirituality in health care in a city with many partnering hospitals for clinical experiences.

“Nursing is an excellent profession for those who wish to serve but in a much more spiritual way. It is an opportunity to love others as Christ loves and to see Christ in every patient.

As a young nurse, I found my deep faith in our Lord to be the framework through which I was able to process many challenging patients, situations, and long hours.

Still, in a much more substantial way, it helped me to persevere through new and challenging medical ethical dilemmas. The world has shifted since my early nursing days, and the challenges we Catholic nurses face now are even more difficult to navigate.” Dr. Maura Adams Wenzel

Resources

Conway School of Nursing

The Catholic University of America

Seton Magazine: Answering the Nursing Call to Duty by Dr. Maura Wenzel

Homeschooling Information

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services

In an enlightening exchange, Mary Ellen and Ginny discuss the remarkable but often overlooked value of a Liberal Arts education.

Michael Yost of Thomas More College joins our hosts today, revealing why a Liberal Arts education may be the wisest, most valuable choice your student could ever make. This conversation could change everything if college is in your family's future.

The Remarkable and Increasing Value of a Liberal Arts Education

Michael Yost is the Senior Admissions Officer at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts. He is a 2018 graduate of the college where he met his lovely bride. They are the proud parents of three beautiful children.

Tapping into Mr. Yost's expertise as Senior Admissions Officer, our hosts discuss:

• How affordable is Thomas More College?
• Work-study opportunities.
• Why is the Rome Semester integral to their education?
• The Admission Department's view of "Mom diplomas."
• The value of extracurriculars on the college application.

Full disclosure by Mary Ellen:

I have a daughter who graduated from Thomas More College, so I am partial to the college; it's dear to me.

What makes Thomas More College a unique experience compared to other colleges?

• The focus is on a college education rather than training.
• Students learn to be fully rational, knowledgeable creatures capable of understanding themselves, their Maker, and the world around them.
• They are trained to be talented communicators, able to process information rapidly and clearly.
• Skilled in communication abilities needed in a world driven by data and information.

The Thomas More College Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts.

• Our Program consists exclusively of the great works of the Western canon, deliberately organized in our single, integrated program of studies.
• By carefully guiding in-class conversations, our exceptional faculty start students down the path of Wisdom in a mode more characteristic of discovery than instruction.
• These aspects set the College apart from most other institutions of higher learning, yet the College is truly unique in its emphasis on the necessity of experience.
• Each student sees first hand the impact of culture in our mandatory semester in Rome, begins the study of philosophy by studying the natural world in our Natural History course, and learns the value of craftsmanship in our Guild program.

The Rome Program – Integral to the Thomas More Education

In their Rome semester, Thomas More College sophomores

• Traverse catacombs and cloisters, piazzas, and palazzos.
• Explore the heart of the Christian West.
• Experience the history of Christendom written in the stones and on the ceilings, in the streets and the cemeteries, and in the skyline dominated not by skyscrapers but by the dome of St. Peter's.

Statistics: After four years at Thomas More College, each student has

• Written at least 64 papers.
• Participated in 1,792 seminar hours
• Translated over 1,000 lines of Homer, Cicero, and other Classical authors.
• Read 10,000 pages of the Great Books.
• Traveled over 8,400 miles to and from Rome, Italy.
• Visited over 100 baroque churches, Roman architectural sites, Renaissance piazzas, and catacombs.
• See it all here.

Thomas More Resources

FAQs

Meet Michael Yost

The Rome Program: An Integral Part of the TMC Experience

Homeschool Resources

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services