Homeschooling (by all of us)

The kids missed a term of school for this adventure. We brought a Jumpmath book for each of them and encouraged them to read and write as we went along. Otherwise, we hoped they’d learn through the varied experiences that come with travel. And we knew we’d learn alongside them. 

As we near the end of our trip, the kids describe “a different kid of learning than school”.

Clara’s learning memories:

- Meeting lots of people, like the English people who like birds, Graeme and Steven, and our cousins.

- Learning that  “the world is small but it’s also massive.” You can fly across it in a day or bike in one area for weeks. 

- Seeing new animals: “Elephants and camels are bigger than I thought they were”

Ben’s learning memories

- Learning much more about European geography, flags and history (e.g., experiences in the Second World War)

- Trying and liking new things, including new foods and new types of clothing 

- Experiencing how diverse cities are. “ The same new rule would have a very different impact in Delhi than in Copenhagan.” 

My learning memories: 

- The joy of birds and flowers. I’ll never forget the dawn chorus when camping or wildflowers growing in cornfields.

- Telling stories together all over the world. Making up little pieces and shifting to new ideas and scenarios whenever we liked. 

- The benefit of asking questions and saying “yes!” So many people have shared their wisdom, space and time with us.

Will’s learning memories

- We can usually figure things out on the fly, even though it is a little stressful sometimes. Like now, as we approach an unknown city with nothing booked and it is starting to rain (later that day we ended up at a wonderful campsite with a llama camel and a very friendly host).

- How lovely it is to spend all this time with the little stinkers. We have had lots of chats about all sorts of different topics in ways that might not have happened in our daily lives. 

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