The Brave Learner: Finding Everyday Magic in Homeschool, Learning, and Life Kindle Edition

What i LOVE about this book is that it is SO PRACTICAL. I’m tired of endless “theories” and “general concepts” and over-all statements. I am learning this whole homeschool thing and i LOVE it, but i’m the very first one in my family who does this, near and far. I’m a creative person, but had no idea how much creativity i was “allowed” in the “school” part of homeschool.This book gives you a thinking framework for a not-so-school-like homeschool, that draws children in and makes them want to learn. It also allows, actually, encourages to take or leave suggestions, re-evaluate, revise, and mold everything to your own unique family.It is chock-full of PRACTICAL ideas. From the tiniest things to bigger, ongoing things in your homeschool, it will give you ideas you can start today.It is not a “Christian” homeschool book, it can be adopted to any worldview your family lives by.

This book is amazing and takes so much stress away from educating children. It explains how to incorporate learning into everyday life rather than seeing life and learning as separate entities.

Julie, Julie, Julie!! You must have lived in my head, because so many things written in this book are my own personal doubts, ideas, beliefs, triumphs and failures. It is SO validating to see that you have gone before me, experienced these things and made it out alive on the other end proud of your grown children and their accomplishments!"At the heart of the homeschooling enterprise is the faith that the parent is enough--that YOUR energy, resourcefulness, creativity, and passion will be sufficient for YOUR children." -Julie Bogart, The Brave LearnerSo many times I have questioned my ability as a parent to educate my children, even tho deep down, I know I have everything I need to do so. Reading Julie's words have been so uplifting and validating. I have gone through periods of severe self-doubt and lack of self-confidence and found myself in many comparison traps. She guides us through the understanding that it isn't so much the curriculum you choose or don't choose, but more the environment for learning that we provide for our children that will grow their love of educational exploration.One of my favorite sections in the book is titled, "Bellows or Buckets of Water"Julie writes, "You have a choice when witnessing the eruption of fiery passion in your child--to either direct a bellows at the flame, or to dump a bucket of cold water over it." WOW. What. A. Statement. It really made me reflect on all the things my children have done and ask myself if I had been an encouragement to them or a party pooper to their excitement by still picking out things they could have done differently or better.Julie shares a story in her book about her son Jacob being in love with astronomy and how he wanted to dive in and learn everything about it. Julie did not find this topic satisfying or interesting. Instead she writes very candidly, "It was an awkward journey into unknown territory that I kept hoping would be short-lived (#truth)." I love that hashtag at the end because it IS truth. I am currently experiencing the SAME thing with my 6 year old son Lucas, only his obsession is tornados. All his bedtime requests are weather books and the only things he wants to watch are weather documentaries. NONE of this I find fascinating in the least, and I was feeling really bad about that and not knowing how to support and help him with something that I felt so disconnected to. And then this boy, who never likes to draw or color started drawing these beautiful swirly and quite frankly, accurate, tornados. Through these drawings, he would tell me elaborate stories about the creation and the path of these weather phenomenons, and I could see his PASSION for this and it was absolutely beautiful. At the end of Julie's story about her son Jacob and his love of astronomy, and how he helped her see the beauty of his passion by showing her Mars through his telescope, she wrote, "All I know about astronomy I learned from Jacob--not the other way around. How could I not be amazed? Enthralled? Transfixed? Enchanted." I have to say I feel EXACTLY the same way about Lucas and his tornados, and I never looked at it that way until I saw it through Julie's eyes.Julie encourages us to find peace in our own abilities as home educators. She helps to build our confidence in that it's okay to make mistakes, it's ok to decide you want to educate one way but tomorrow completely change your mind. It's ok to not have all the answers. It's ok that your child is not paralleling a standard public school education or your homeschooling neighbors education. It's okay to have LIFE CYCLES in passions and there are so many ways to learn through your children's interests. This book is a guide to help you through your homeschool journey. She gives practical tips, tricks, and ideas just in case you are a parent like me, who needs someone to literally walk them through something as small as a shopping list for art supplies! Julie is with you every step of the way. Her heart and passion for how young people learn is so evident and she wants you to succeed and be assured that YOU ARE ENOUGH FOR YOUR CHILDREN!

This book was the assigned reading for a Christian Homeschool Mom Book Club I belong to but, because of life, I only had half of it read when I attended the meeting. One of the criticisms that came up was how, although some of the ideas were creative and would bring some life to our homeschool, they didn't necessarily coincide with Christian values. Since I hadn't completed the book I didn't really feel like I had enough information to form an educated opinion at the time so I just took note of that criticism and moved on. Upon reading the reviews I see that other Christian parents have felt the same; however, after finishing the entire book I actually completely disagree with this. Just because Jesus isn't explicitly mentioned doesn't mean that Christian values are not represented/reflected in this book.To me Chapter 13 is the culmination of the entire book and where Christian parents (okay, all parents) need to really pay attention. This chapter is a critical assessment of the homeschool co-ops that are available to homeschooling parents and how sometimes they become too rooted in ideology and philosophy to the detriment of our connections and relationships with our family. This is exactly what Paul discusses in the book of Romans -- how Christians tend to get too hung up on the infighting of our ideologies that we lose sight of our biggest commonality -- a love of Jesus Christ. Jesus himself says that, while the Law is important, the most important commandment of all is to love God and our neighbor above all else we are instructed to do (Matthew 22:35-40 and Mark 12:28-34).Ms. Bogart's point in this chapter, and really the entire book, is exactly that -- we often get too hung up on what our ideologies are in homeschooling that we end up damaging the relationship with our family to chase ideas but our emphasis should be on loving our family above all else. The entire book is devoted to her ideas about how to bring joy to your homeschool based on her experiences. But as she points out, if we are to follow homeschooling role models we are sure to find that they are human (page 258) and if we knew the entire picture of their family life, we would see the vulnerabilities/flaws that exist in all of us. I think maybe some are also unfairly placing her on a pedestal, too, and looking for her to be that Christian role model when in fact she is someone sharing her story about what worked for her family. Our true role model should be Jesus, not Ms. Bogart or anyone else (while I do appreciate a fresh perspective from time to time!); I think that her cautioning us against elevating anyone to the position of a guru to the point where we blindly follow them is another example of how this book can be relevant to a Christian parent... and I'm certain she doesn't want that responsibility, either!So just like a beautiful sunset won't point the way to God with a neon sign but you can sense His presence in it, don't dismiss this book just because it isn't overtly Christian. If you only allow yourself to come into contact with books, songs, etc. that explicitly spell out Christian principles, you are robbing yourself of the opportunity to use your God-given gifts of analysis and discernment in a world where God's presence is often quiet and subtle. Use those gifts as you read this book and realize what it really is: a narrative about someone who has gained wisdom from her experiences as a homeschooling mom for a long time with a variety of ages, stages, and personalities, and who is using that experience and her gift for writing to help others. Use your discernment to decide what will work for your family and what won't. But just because she isn't quoting Bible verses doesn't mean a Christian parent can't benefit from this book.

This book for both homeschoolers and traditional schoolers. Shifts our perspective on parenting

If you are looking for a one stop shop for all things home education this book is it! If you are a parent wanting to learn how to make a better connection to your child, this book is it! If you want to examine your paradigm about education in general this book will help you do that! If you interact with any children at all, you'll want this book. If you were a child that perhaps has some baggage that you are bringing into your home that you want to deal with - yes this book will help you with that too! Home educators have known about Julie's wit, compassion and knowledge for years - now the secret is out! If you haven't met her - you need to, if you have, you already know how special this human being is to this planet.

I notice that most of the negative reviews of this book point to a lack of Jesus as being cause to reject a lot of the contents. How self-absorbed do you have to be... What illusions of grandeur do you need to uphold - to believe that the only book on home education worth publishing, is one that specifically references your world view and private faith? A majority of homeschooling families in the world (because families do home educate outside of America and this book is on sale elsewhere in the world!) are not Christians. This isn't a book written specifically for the minority of global home educators who happen to believe in a Christian God.This is a book on educating children. It is not a book on raising children within a religious environment (there are other books on that). This is a homeschooling book that could be enjoyed by a Christian family, a Muslim family, a Buddhist family, a Pagan family... As well as a family who have no religious position at all. There is nothing on the cover, in the synopsis, or anywhere in any promotional material, that suggests this book is written for Christians. If you by it, and you're surprised to find that it doesn't mention your particular faith, even though there was nothing to suggest that it would... You need to ask yourself why you expect the world to revolve around you!If you are such an intolerant, self important individual as you don't want to read inclusive books that can be enjoyed by everyone, but only books which pander to your need for validation at the expense of including others - you'll need an alternative book.As a guide to home education, it leans very heavily towards unschooling and autonomous/natural learning methods. If this doesn't sit well with you and you prefer a more structured, school-like approach, I'd avoid this book entirely.We are a semi-structured, secular family in England (which is the case for a majority of UK home educators) and this book has been a great encouragement. I also found that even though its written primarily for a US audience, the fact that it isn't, like most North American books on home education, heavily influenced by Christianity, meant that it was very relevant to British home educators who are likely to be taking a secular approach.

I'm reading this book slowly, finding guidance and encouragement on every page. I don't homeschool anymore but the words in this book remind me how to be a better, more understanding parent. Julie Bogart teaches me how to recognize & appreciate what the truly important things are in my children's development and in my relationship to them.

Awesome book, it offers great practical and easy ideas on providing an enchanting homeschool experience. It goes in deep and opens up doors for me and how I now see things through a different way. There’s basically no one dimensional view point when it comes to home school and it requires the parent/teacher to be more creative in thinking and see things from different angles. I love this book. My first homeschool book ever and I have enjoyed the content and very grateful for the wisdom and practical advices, I can go on and on. The author respected all homeschool parents and it really convey in her writing. I love it, thank you so much. It was a handy purchase as I am about to embark on my homeschool journey. What a great beginning to a very enchanted experience which I cannot wait to start. Love it ♥️♥️