<![CDATA[The Palace of Academe Newsletter]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.comhttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!uZKa!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fthepalaceofacademe.substack.com%2Fimg%2Fsubstack.pngThe Palace of Academe Newsletterhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.comSubstackMon, 20 Jul 2026 00:37:52 GMT<![CDATA[Parent Effectiveness Training with Catherine Dickerson]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/parent-effectiveness-training-withhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/parent-effectiveness-training-withFri, 10 Jun 2022 15:00:19 GMTMy guest in this episode is Catherine Dickerson, a Montessori teacher, P.E.T. instructor, and play therapist. Catherine tells us what she loves about the P.E.T. approach and how it helps parents give their children what they need to grow and thrive.

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Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

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]]><![CDATA[What is Homeschooling?]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/what-is-homeschoolinghttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/what-is-homeschoolingTue, 07 Jun 2022 15:01:25 GMTHomeschooling has been growing over the last several years, and homeschooling parents have a wide variety of reasons and approaches. In this episode, I discuss what homeschooling is and why I think it is important.

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#Homeschooling #Parenting

Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus

Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Why Is Homeschooling Hard?]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/why-is-homeschooling-hardhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/why-is-homeschooling-hardFri, 03 Jun 2022 11:45:38 GMTAre you thinking about homeschooling but wondering whether it will be too hard? Maybe you are a homeschooler and wishing your days could be full of less frustration and more happiness. In this video I talk about three things to consider if you are finding homeschooling difficult.

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#Homeschooling #Parenting

Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus

Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Ask Me Anything: What is the Best Homeschool Curriculum]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/ask-me-anything-what-is-the-besthttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/ask-me-anything-what-is-the-bestTue, 31 May 2022 11:42:39 GMTWhat is the best homeschool curriculum? In this video I answer a question about how to choose homeschooling curriculum, what to look for, and what to avoid.

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#Homeschooling #Parenting

Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus

Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Homeschool vs. School Environment]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/homeschool-vs-school-environmenthttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/homeschool-vs-school-environmentWed, 25 May 2022 01:26:57 GMTIn this episode, I talk about some of the differences between in-school and home education and how being aware of the differences can help us in our homeschool planning.

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Music credit: Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Golf Balls & Screen Time]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/golf-balls-and-screen-timehttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/golf-balls-and-screen-timeSat, 21 May 2022 00:34:53 GMTIn this video I talk about the approach we have taken to screen time in our family so far (kids are 9 and 6). What are your "golf ball" activities that take priority over screen time in your house? What kind of balance has worked for you? Let me know in the comments!

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Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus

Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Simple Homeschool Writing Curriculum]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/simple-homeschool-writing-curriculumhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/simple-homeschool-writing-curriculumTue, 17 May 2022 14:17:56 GMTIn this episode, I explain a simple approach to teaching writing to homeschooled children in the early grades.

----------Show Notes------------

Writing With Ease: https://www.amazon.ca/Complete-Writer...

One source for printable handwriting paper: https://www.dadsworksheets.com/worksh...

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Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus

Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[3 Rules of Thumb]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/3-rules-of-thumbhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/3-rules-of-thumbFri, 13 May 2022 22:57:46 GMTIn this video, I give you three handy rules of thumb that you can use in planning and teaching in your homeschool.

----------RESOURCES------------

TEACHING WRITING: STRUCTURE AND STYLE: https://iew.com/TWSS

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Music credit: Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]

Music provided by Audio Library Plus Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M

Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Flexible Homeschool Math Curriculum]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/flexible-homeschool-math-curriculumhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/flexible-homeschool-math-curriculumFri, 06 May 2022 21:50:48 GMTIf you are just starting out with homeschooling, you might be overwhelmed with all the math curriculum choices out there. Here is my recommendation for a curriculum that is easy to customize to the way you and your children like to learn.

----------Show Notes------------

MATH MAMMOTH: https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=math+mammot...

ARITHMETIC FOR PARENTS: https://www.amazon.ca/ARITHMETIC-PARE...

WATCH THIS VIDEO ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDch...

Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]
Music provided by Audio Library Plus
Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M
Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[How to Motivate "Have To" Tasks ]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/how-to-motivate-have-to-taskshttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/how-to-motivate-have-to-tasksMon, 02 May 2022 22:59:55 GMTDo you find yourself repeatedly telling your kids that there are some things they just "have to" do? Here is a way of thinking about the things we "just have to do" in life that might help you (and your kids) feel a little more motivated to do them. Let me know what you think - drop me an email or comment!

Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]
Music provided by Audio Library Plus
Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M
Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[No Crying Over Sharks!]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/no-crying-over-sharkshttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/no-crying-over-sharksMon, 25 Apr 2022 23:10:56 GMTIn this episode I share a little story about how I started thinking about homeschooling in terms of essentials. We have a limited amount of time with our kids and they have a limited amount of attention for schoolwork - what are the most valuable skills and knowledge we can give them in that time?

I apologize for the noise in this episode - we thought it would be a good idea to record outdoors! Probably won’t try that again.

Music credit:

Track: Secret To Happiness — JayJen [Audio Library Release]
Music provided by Audio Library Plus
Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pxy3vBwE1M
Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/secret-happiness

]]><![CDATA[Episode 1: Where to Begin]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/episode-1-where-to-beginhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/episode-1-where-to-beginMon, 18 Apr 2022 13:39:00 GMT

]]><![CDATA[3 Great Read-Aloud Choices]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/3-great-read-aloud-choiceshttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/3-great-read-aloud-choicesFri, 04 Mar 2022 16:37:05 GMTThis isn’t your usual book recommendation list! I’m not going to tell you my favourite read-aloud or give any suggestions for specific titles. We’ve all had the experience of reading a “classic” story that we just can’t get into, and we wonder what everyone else seems to think is so great about it. Instead, here are three ways to choose books and that you and your children can really connect with personally. 

A book you loved as a child

If there is a book you remember fondly from your own childhood, your memories and enjoyment of it can make a great starting point to help your kids connect with it as well. Take some time before you begin to think about why you enjoyed it so much. What did it mean to you? What parts of the story do you think of now, years after you last read it? What do you hope your children will enjoy about it? Tell them about why you are choosing this book before you begin to read it. Without giving any spoilers, tell them what your favourite parts were. Whether they enjoy the book as much as you did or not, you’re giving them a chance to connect to the book and to understand an important person in their life a little better, too. 

A book with a local connection you can explore

Last summer I read Anne of Green Gables to my children and husband, and then we made a trip to Prince Edward Island to visit the “real” Green Gables. This book has a lot of personal importance for me. I grew up in Newfoundland, another Atlantic Canadian island with a similar culture and history, and I always felt like Anne, Marilla, Rachel Lynde, and the other residents of Avonlea were members of my extended family. I knew it would be a stretch for my kids to listen to the book, with its old-fashioned writing style and long, poetic descriptions of landscapes, but I also knew that I could bring out the funny and endearing parts of the story and that actually visiting the places that inspired Luce Maud Montgomery could be a really powerful experience. I am so glad that I made it happen, because it was every bit as wonderful as I’d hoped! Wherever you live, find some literary connections that you can explore with your children. The stories will come to life and you will learn how to enter into the perspective of the characters. 

A book set in a totally different time and place

When you know ahead of time that the character and setting of a book are significantly unlike your own, you can go into it on a mission of understanding. Choose a book that has at least some connection to your family - perhaps it’s set in a place you recently read about in history or saw in a TV show, or maybe the main character is the same age as your child. Have a conversation before you begin to explain the value of getting into another person’s perspective, of understanding how they see the world and what motivates their actions. A well-written book will help you move right into the world of the character and make you feel as though you’re living in the story. Stop at the end of each chapter to talk about what you’ve learned about the characters and why they took the actions they did. Talk about what you have in common with the characters, and the things that might be different between their lives and your own. Which characters from this book would your kids want to be friends with? 

I hope this list inspires you! Reading literature aloud with your children has so many wonderful benefits, from increasing their vocabulary and comprehension to expanding their perception of the world and their empathy for people who are different from them. If you want more inspiration for reading aloud, I highly recommend The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease - it’s full of age-appropriate suggestions and lots of research-based reasons for reading aloud to children of any age. I would love to hear about your favourite read-alouds in the comments!

]]><![CDATA[Episode 0]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/episode-0https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/episode-0Tue, 01 Mar 2022 19:06:43 GMTThis episode is a short introduction to the podcast. There is much more to come! Thanks for listening!

]]><![CDATA[Our First Shakespeare]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/our-first-shakespearehttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/our-first-shakespeareThu, 10 Feb 2022 13:25:37 GMTLast month I did Shakespeare with my kids for the first time, and I thought I would share what we did because I was really happy with how it went. My goals for this activity were to help them feel a connection to and interest in Shakespeare, and to begin to become familiar with the language used in the original plays as well as the plots and characters hidden beneath all that old English. I plan to do one or two plays a year from here out and, by the time they “graduate” from homeschool after eighth grade, I hope that they will be familiar with all of the major Shakespearian plays and be able to read whole works for themselves.

My kids are in fourth and first grade, and I used free resources from the excellent Shakespeare Week website for this age group. We began with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, because I hoped that they would be drawn in by the magical characters and funny absurdities. I planned activities for four days (which is a full week in our homeschool schedule). On the first day, we began by reading the Shakespeare Stories children’s adaptation of the play, and the kids used the Shakespeare Week Lego instructions to make figures of Tatiana and Puck as I read. Afterwards we orally summarized the plot together. On Tuesday we watched a video of a reading of another children’s version of the story from the Shakespeare Week website and did a little multiple-choice quiz about the story together. I printed a twelve-sentence summary from the learning tools on the website and cut it so each sentence was on a strip of paper. On Wednesday the kids worked together to put the summary in the correct order, and then we watched a video of children performing a narrated version of the play. On Thursday, when both kids were well familiar with the plot, I printed out a single scene (Act 3, Scene 1), and we chose parts and read it together. I planned this activity for my fourth grader, but as it turned out my first grader wanted to have a part, too (I think she just really liked the funny names of the Mechanics!). We looked up a few of the difficult words in our children’s dictionary, and once we were sure we understood the scene, we watched two different versions of that scene being acted out, following along with the script.

A note about motivation. Remember that motivation to engage in a lesson comes from two places: from enjoying the activity as it happens, and from the connection of what is being learned to the child’s values. The second source is the most important! If a child sees exactly how what they are learning is directly going to help them pursue their values, either later today or in the future, they will be able to stay engaged even when the lessons are less “fun”.

I began to lay the groundwork for the value of Shakespeare as soon as I decided to add it to this year’s literature plan. This was easy to do because my kids love to watch TV and my son in particular spends a lot of time writing stories and making animations with a friend. Whenever we were watching a show together and either the plot imitated a Shakespearian scenario or the characters directly referenced or quoted Shakespeare, I would point it out. It’s actually amazing how frequently you see this once you start to look for it! We found references in sitcoms on Netflix, in movies, and even in Minecraft videos on YouTube. My kids have started coming to tell me whenever they spot a Shakespeare reference!  So many of the common tropes used in art can be traced back to Shakespeare - and even further back. Shakespeare himself didn’t invent many of the tropes he used, but borrowed them from earlier authors and existing stories. I recently read Ovid’s Metamorphoses with the Literary Canon Club and saw connections to Shakespeare everywhere! Connecting your school studies to real-world values in this way supplies a lasting motivation that isn’t daunted by “boring” days and dry chapters. 

I was very happy with our first dip into Shakespeare. The kids did a great job of understanding the plot and we had some interesting discussions. Someone noticed a similarity between Puck and Peter Pan, which we read earlier this year, and we had fun comparing the two characters. They both enjoyed reading the scene from the original and watching the stage plays. I think this introduction was a great success and I look forward to doing another play with them next year. 

I would love to hear about how my readers have incorporated Shakespeare into your homeschool literature studies! What are your and your kids’ favourite plays? If you haven’t tried doing Shakespeare with your kids yet, I hope you are encouraged and inspired to do so, and please feel free to contact me with any questions or ideas. 

]]><![CDATA[Boost Your Homeschool Happiness by Measuring the GAINS]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/boost-your-homeschool-happiness-byhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/boost-your-homeschool-happiness-bySat, 05 Feb 2022 19:54:30 GMTDo you ever look at your child’s handwriting and feel utterly despondent - as though the illegible mess before you is proof of your failure at homeschooling, parenting, and life? Welcome to the GAP.

In The Gap and the Gain, Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy explain the difference between how we feel when we measure ourselves against ideals - being “in the GAP” - and how we feel when we notice and celebrate our progress - being “in the GAIN”. We are “in the GAP” when we feel that we can only give ourselves permission to rest and be happy once we have reached a certain milestone. The problem with this sort of thinking is that there is never a stopping point, because as soon as we accomplish one goal another immediately appears, and now we have to reach that before we can rest and be happy. The time for rest and happiness never arrives when we are in this mindset. 

Being in the GAP in our homeschools causes unhappiness and frustration. It undermines our own motivation as well as our children’s. We find ourselves measuring everything against ideals and feeling that we are never “good enough”.  Ideals are like the horizon - something that is always unreachable, always way out in front of us, no matter how fast we move. If our child’s handwriting was perfect then we would immediately forget about handwriting and start focusing on how to write a better paragraph. 

“If I’m in the GAP, I become a tyrant and a bully to my son, rather than his biggest fan and supporter.”

from The GAP and the GAIN by Sullivan and Hardy

We homeschool because we want our children to have a meaningful and joyful education, but continually measuring yourself against unreachable ideals brings only feelings of inadequacy and hopelessness. Instead, joy comes from seeing and celebrating our progress - watching ourselves become a little better today than we were yesterday. Seeing and celebrating our progress gives meaning to our work and motivates us to aim higher. Happiness becomes something we experience right now, not something that we endlessly pursue and hope to find in a far-off future. 

Instead of living in the GAP, we can live in the GAIN. Sullivan and Hardy recommend measuring backward - purposefully notice how far you have come from where you started and how much you have actually achieved, even if things did not go as planned or you are still far from your goal.  The result of measuring backwards will be more happiness right now and more motivation for the future.

Below you’ll find printable tools that can help you implement GAINS thinking in your homeschool. I’ve been using them both since reading this book, and I can tell you that they have made a difference in the happiness and motivation in our home! 

WINS parties are a fun activity that your whole family can do together. Each person (including parents!) can keep a list throughout the week of each accomplishment they feel great about - whether it’s learning a new skill, finishing a project, winning a game, beating a personal record, or anything else they are proud of. If they’re not used to GAIN thinking they might need some help noticing all the ways they grow in the course of a week. It takes some practice, but soon you realize that children are always doing something now that they couldn’t do a few days ago, or doing it better than they could before! Add everything you can think of to the WINS list. At lunchtime on Friday, you can all get together and share your WINS, congratulate each other and celebrate together. WINS parties help you end the week on a high note, let your kids see that their efforts are seen and valued, and help everyone feel motivated to work hard again next week. 

Click here to download a Weekly WINS free printable!

The Experience Transformer tool is adapted from the book to be used by the homeschooling adult. This journalling practice helps you take negative experiences or failures and turn them into GAINS that will add value to your future. When school is finished for the day, especially if it’s been a hard one, take a few minutes to journal about what happened and answer the questions on the list. Processing events in this way helps you turn even unsuccessful experiences into tangible progress, because you now have new information and ideas that you can use the next time you are faced with a similar situation. 

Click here to download a free Experience Transformer journalling page!

“Happiness is a byproduct of realizing that you  are the destination. You are enough and you have enough."

from The GAP and the GAIN by Sullivan and Hardy

I hope you find these ideas helpful and inspiring! Remember, we aren’t giving up on ideals; we’re learning to use them appropriately to help us live lives of growth and happiness. Let me know how these tools work for you by sending me an email or leaving a comment below!

]]><![CDATA[Coming soon]]>https://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/coming-soonhttps://thepalaceofacademe.substack.com/p/coming-soonTue, 25 Jan 2022 23:03:27 GMTThis is The Palace of Academe Newsletter, a newsletter about the ins and outs of facilitating a meaningful, high-quality primary education from home.

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