The kids; 7 years old and 4 years old. Sometimes I feel so confident that we are providing them with enough “schooling” while other days I worry. In essence, it feels mostly like we are just taking a year off with no regard that our daughter would be in 1st grade if we were at home.
Don’t get me wrong, I am a full believer in letting kids be kids. That they are truly learning when they’re engaging in free play, exploration and maybe most importantly during periods of boredom. I don’t believe young children need to be sitting at a desk, learning conventionally via a traditional curriculum to be “successful.”
We have completed a junior ranger booklet at every national park we have visited. We go on long hikes, take walks in nature, explore foliage and discuss findings found outside. We read plaques with information about history and identification of

plants/shrubs/rocks/animals. We make fires at camp and the kids help cook the meals. We spend time together as a family. And yes, because I am insecure, I have flash cards and workbooks to help appease the inner part of me that is worried. I would argue that our children are learning more than they would be in a classroom, but why do I still feel nervous that when we return to a “traditional” education that things will be difficult, they may be “behind.”
All I can do is believe that what we are doing will serve a greater good in their development. That reading, writing and math will catch up once they are practicing those things regularly in the classroom. That we’re creating memories for our family that will never be regretful.
And in the meantime, my hope is that the unobstructed starry night skies that we’ve become so familiar with, will teach them that this world we are living in is limitless; that seeking out such beauty and peace will give them a sense of themselves in an otherwise chaotic and cluttered life.