Download The Companion Guide For Acceptance & Expectancy In Homeschooling
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If your homeschool days seem to run smoothly one season and unravel the next, this episode will help you understand why. Today we're exploring how the rhythm of your day shifts as your children grow and why what worked before may suddenly feel impossible. In homeschooling, these changes aren't problems to fix, but transitions to understand.
I'll walk you through how I observe children's patterns and needs using a practical framework: the PEO model—person, environment, and occupation. You'll learn why starting with curriculum often misses the mark, and how putting your child's individuality, regulation, and interests at the center creates learning that actually sticks.
This matters because in a homeschool setting, you have the flexibility to shape both space and schedule to fit where your child is developmentally. Recognizing these shifts gives you clearer options, replaces urgency with confidence, and helps you build days that support connection before curriculum, especially for kids who didn't fit in traditional environments.
In this episode you'll hear about:
- Understanding Changes in Homeschool Rhythm
- Recognizing developmental shifts versus problems to fix
- Concept of "Connection over Curriculum"
- Managing Urgency and Educational Decisions
- Stress around leaving traditional school or seeking a fresh homeschool start
- The tendency to rush into curriculum choices
- The Foundation: Start with the Child, Not the Curriculum
- Education works best when child-centered, not curriculum-centered
- Introduction to the PEO Model (Person, Environment, Occupation)
- Two key truths: Parents know and love their child best
- Scriptural reference: Ephesians 2:10—children as unique and purposeful
- Reference to Charlotte Mason's educational philosophy—children as "born persons"
- Definition of acceptance (seeing the child without comparison or urgency)
- Definition of expectancy (believing in meaningful and supported growth)
- Importance of holding both acceptance and expectancy together
- Observing and Understanding Your Child (The OT Lens)
- Observational strategies for understanding "the person" in the PEO model
- Noticing regulation and sensory needs
- Noticing the role of joy and interests as "doorways" into learning
- Shifting Away From "What's Wrong" to "What's Needed"
- Changing focus from problems to supports needed for a child to thrive
- Prioritizing connection and emotional safety before curriculum
- The Neuroscience Behind Connection and Learning
- Introduction to Stephen Porges and Polyvagal Theory
- Environment: Designing Supportive Spaces and Rhythms
- Adapting Rhythms as Children Grow
- Practical Examples of Supporting Regulation and Rhythm
- Story of a preschooler whose meltdowns improved with a more predictable daily flow
- Story of a teenager whose engagement improved by shifting his schedule later in the day
- Environmental Reflections for Listeners
- Inviting listeners to evaluate and make simple changes to their physical spaces and daily anchors
- Using Interests to Drive Learning
- Identifying interests via observation in free time and conversation
- Practical examples of adapting curriculum and learning activities to interests and needs (movement, chunking tasks, choice)
Links and Resources From Today's Show
Thank you to our title sponsor for this episode, Lovevery. You can check out their products and resources here.
