Writing Rockstars Blog

The truth of the matter is, not all kids make intuitive leaps. Some need explicit, step-by-step instruction.

Super bright, academically gifted children often don’t need to be taught. All you do with those kids is present them with a new concept and materials with which they can practice it on their...

The teen years can be pretty challenging.

Mood swings, changes in interests and habits, and disagreeable or flat out adversarial behavior are characteristics that often emerge in our teens during this time of their lives, at least to some degree.

It can be a tough time for your kids and a very tou...

A strong piece of writing doesn’t happen by simply putting a pen to a blank sheet of paper.

Please don’t ask your kids to do this!

Writers block is real, and you don’t want to trigger it in your kids.

Successful writing requires creative idea generation, organization, multiple drafts, restructuri...

This time of the homeschool year tends to be academic crunch time.

You’ve been working hard in your homeschool for the past couple of months. You’re also getting your kids out of the house for exercise and extracurriculars during the week. You know just how important it is to have a variety of acti...

Why do your kids melt down so much with you?

So many times, when my son was very young, he would go into hysterics over any number of things: for example, a visit to the dentist or going to the barber for a haircut.

But he only did it when I was with him -- never with his dad or a grandparent. Cle...

It’s early February.

Every day, I look out of my kitchen window, and I see gray skies, bare trees, icy slush and mud.

Is it the same for you and your family?

You’re also right in the middle of that LONG period of homeschooling during the back end of winter that has NONE of the fun holiday celebra...

Ah, confidence. That can be so elusive sometimes.

As a parent, you know you’re the voice inside your child’s head. What does that voice say to them? It’s a huge responsibility. We all want the best for our kids. We all want to raise, strong, confident, successful adults.

You can teach a skill or a...

When I was a middle school teacher in the late 1990’s, we had a lot of time-consuming staff meetings after school. I don’t remember any of them. Except for one.

It was a meeting with a presentation about maintaining your “mental hygiene.”

Mental hygiene?! What on earth was that? That term cracked ...

Are you overwhelmed?


You’re a homeschooling mom. You’re committed, and you’ve done your best. You’ve worked hard to plan your first week to perfection, and you’re ready to go!


The first day goes well, the second day’s good, and then... the novelty starts to wear off.


The kids aren’t cooperating. The...

Picture this....


You’re ready to start homeschooling for the day. Your kids are at the table. They’re sitting up, alert, pencils poised, and ready to begin. Books are open. They’re smiling. You’re smiling. Everybody’s leaning in toward each other. The family dog is lying quietly on the floor nearby....

It's difficult to know exactly how and when to give feedback to your young budding writers at home.

How do you help teens with writing, without taking over and putting too much of yourself into it?

You want to support your kids and guide them to be good writers. That’s not going to happen if you w...

So, how many online classes have you used with your kids? In our last post, we discussed curriculum shopping, [link to last post].

But at some point, you should consider some online classes for your kids, for these three reasons:

1. You can seek and find fantastic instructors outside your local co...