Many things have changed in our lives since we have been on the road full time. My children have always been home-schooled so the transition to road-schooling has been easy enough, but there are some big differences in our daily routine. I want to share with you some of our biggest changes, some of these we expected and others we did not, but so far it has been a great experience.
1. Daddy Time- The fact that we now get to share all of our learning experiences together as a family has been awesome. We don’t have to say good-bye to Daddy every morning and then bombard him with all the days activities the minute he walks in the door at night. He is there to share the day with us. He gets to participate in all the fun (and not so fun) things we do each day. There is no more “Daddy we wish you could have been there,” because he is there.
2. Field trips- School used to take place at the kitchen table or on the living room couch with an occasional field trip to a park or museum. School now takes place mainly in museums, national parks, zoos, and state capitol buildings. This has really been educational. The kids seem to learn so much and they really remember what we are learning. There are still lessons done in the trailer, but the learning we are doing out of it takes place much more. The experiences we have teach us a great deal about the world we live. I am thankful to be able to give my children an education full of experiences.
3. Library Time- In the past we were routine library patrons. We went every week and checked out bags full of books. My family loves to read! Now visiting the library is a different experience. We are not able to get library cards; therefore, are not able to check out books. We still try to visit libraries frequently, although it is definitely not once a week like it used to be. Now the kids have to read their books in the library while we are there because we cannot take any with us. This is hard for them as they are not always able to finish the books they are reading. Libraries are still a great place to go and every time it is a different experience.
4. In Nature- A big complaint these days is that children don’t get outside to play enough. Not us. We spend most of our time in the great outdoors now. National parks and the junior ranger program are an awesome educational resource for us. We visit parks in most of the cities we in. The kids back yard changes frequently and they love exploring new camps and discovering what hidden surprises await them. It’s amazing how big and beautiful this country is.
5. Everybody Learns- This is probably the most unexpected of all. My husband and I love to learn and it is one of my favorite things about homeschooling, but the extent of how much we are learning on this adventure has exceeded our expectations. It is a truly wonderful thing to learn together as a family and talk about what each of us take away from our varied experiences. I love that my children get to see their parents enjoying the learning process right along with them. It is my hope that they will continue to learn and to be excited to learn new thing throughout their lives.
Making the learning experience fun and exciting is so much less challenging now. It has been a big adjustment to take our life on the road, but worth every moment. It’s not always easy, but the things we learn and experiences we share are priceless. We will always remember these times we have shared and it is my hope that we also remember what we have learned along the way.
