Today we are delighted to have Ginny Yurich share with us how spending time outside will help our kids thrive. Ginny is a Michigan homeschooling mother of five and the founder of 1000 Hours Outside, a global movement, media company and lifestyle brand meant to bring back balance between virtual life and real life. She is a thought-leader in the world of nature-based play and its benefits for children, and one of her top priorities is to inspire parents to invest in spending time in God’s...

A strengths-based approach to learning is exactly what our asynchronous kids need.  We may be tempted to focus on remediation in areas where they are “behind,” but remember there is no behind; our kids learn every day.    It is so important to teach our children to use their strengths to help them overcome their weaknesses instead of allowing them to feel behind, always trying to catch up. In today’s episode, Colleen talks specifically about why we should implement a strengths-based...

Building social-emotional skills, nurturing generosity, and increasing confidence in our kids is important all year long, but can be great to focus on during the holiday season. In this episode of Raising Lifelong Learners, host Colleen Kessler discusses teaching kids to be empathetic and to help others, and emphasizes the benefits of nurturing empathy in children, especially those who are neurodivergent. Listen to learn practical tips for fostering a sense of service in kids, along with...

There are so many changes this time of year that affect our intense kiddos.  Our routines are off, there are new or uncomfortable places to visit, we’re managing family members who do not understand our kids, plus all the excitement and anticipation.  Sarah Collins joins Colleen again, this time to talk about ways to meet the sensory needs of our kids and anticipate some of the challenges they may face. Let’s jump in and ready ourselves for the holiday season!   Our sponsors for today’s...

Colleen has a delightful conversation with clinical psychologist, Gail Post, Ph.D. in today’s episode.  Gail has years of personal and professional experience with the gifted community and shares so much regarding the emotional and social needs.  Grab your earbuds and get ready for some practical parenting ideas and lived-in advice on raising our intelligent and intense kiddos.   Gail Post, Ph.D. is a Clinical Psychologist, parenting coach/consultant, workshop leader, writer, parent of...

We are raising kids who are learning and developing in ways that do not fit in with the typical milestones.  They may be reading at three, yet at ten are still struggling to find meaningful friendships. We, as parents can, often feel isolation when raising neurodivergent children.  They notice that they are outliers, and we feel it, too.  That doesn’t mean making connections is impossible, though! There are steps we can take, to help our family find their tribe and build a community.  In...

We have Sarah Collins from Homeschool OT on the podcast again, this time to talk about self-regulation for our kiddos.  Colleen and Sarah will deep dive into the different sensory systems and look for each day.  This episode is full of information on why sensory integration is important, along with practical tips and activities to include in your day to teach your kids to regulate and help them most.   Connect with Sarah Sarah Collins |The Homeschool OT Instagram Our sponsors for...

Our neurodivergent kids may require extra help finding a peer group where they feel comfortable being themselves and sharing their thoughts and interests.  It’s essential for us to be in tune with our children so that we can find places for them to connect with others.  That may be connecting them with people of all ages who share hobbies, sports, or academic interests.    Today Colleen will discusses ways you can help your gifted, 2e, and neurodivergent kids find belonging in ways that...

Katie Keene is the host of the top 1% globally rated podcast Her Home and Heart, and host to a membership community of beautiful Christian homeschooling families on the journey to peace at home and generational family success despite the challenges of raising a special needs child.   Her mission is simple: to ensure that no family breaks apart simply due to lack of tools to create a SOLID, peaceful, and joyful family foundation at home.   Katie is most passionate about helping...

Today Colleen is talking about helping our children draw healthy boundaries, with the example of family members wanting a hug when our child is not comfortable giving one.  This question was submitted during one of the group coaching events in The Learners Lab, a Raising Lifelong Learners online community for neurodiverse homeschooling families.  Each month in the Lab Colleen hosts a group coaching night.  Parents can submit their questions ahead of time and Colleen will take the time to...

Welcome to Raising Lifelong Learners, the podcast that delves into the challenges and triumphs of parenting exceptional children while fostering a lifelong love for learning.  Today's guest is Dayna Abraham, author of the newly released book, Calm the Chaos.  Dayna is the founder of Calm the Chaos Parenting and the popular parenting blog, Lemon Lime Adventures. She’s worked with hundreds of thousands of parents around the world struggling with some of the most challenging behaviors to...

Today, we dive into the topic of helping our children embrace their authenticity and discover who they truly are. This discussion is prompted by the upcoming focus on this subject in the Learners Lab community. We emphasize the importance of nurturing an environment where our kids feel comfortable being themselves and exploring their interests and passions. By fostering open communication, acceptance, and understanding, we can empower our children to develop a strong sense of self-esteem,...

Today we're diving into a favorite topic - connecting with your kids. We talk about the vital role that building a strong relationship with your child plays in creating a successful homeschooling experience. Remember that academics can always be remediated, but damaged relationships and self-esteem can have long-lasting effects on our children's learning. We explore why many of us chose to homeschool in the first place - the desire to provide a safe and supportive environment for our...

Today, we're chatting with Sarah Collins of HomeschoolOT.com, delving into the topic of parenting with sensory needs and challenges while homeschooling, and discussing how the challenges we face as parents can trigger similar challenges in our children, creating a cycle that we need to proactively address.  Sarah shares valuable tips on how to take care of ourselves as parents and effectively homeschool our children. Stay tuned to discover how to effectively communicate with our children,...

Our family unit is the backbone of our homeschool.  There are many habits and activities that can nurture a team mentality.  It is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your kids to be successful in anything you do and build a strong, resilient, emotionally intelligent family. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more at https://www.ctcmath.com/purchase/homeschool50?tr_id=RLL.  

One of the most beautiful things about homeschooling is how we can adjust kid-to-kid, and year-to-year. It's also one of the things that messes with us as parents. It’s inevitable when everything is functioning well, there’s another change: developmentally, emotionally, physically and we find ourselves reevaluating again.  It can be hard, tiring, and wear us out. That is why self-care is essential for those of us homeschooling differently-wired kids. The Raising Lifelong Learners...

Today we're doing something different -- we're sharing a talk that Colleen gave at the Great Homeschool Convention with Sarah Mackenzie of Read Aloud Revival. They address both sides of the reading spectrum, with Sarah discussing struggling readers and then Colleen shifting the conversation to advanced readers. You will leave with ideas and strategies that will help your kids wherever they are. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more...

You have neurodiverse children. They are gifted, they are twice exceptional, they have anxiety, perfectionism, sensory struggles, or perhaps they're on the autism spectrum. They have any number of neurodiversities. I am right there with you. I believe with my whole heart that homeschooling is the best possible educational choice for kids like ours. And I'm here to help you with that. So today we're going to talk about opening your mind to new possibilities. It's a different kind of...

Self-discovery is a powerful tool we can use and harness to help our kids feel good about themselves and be successful and to help all of us in the family thrive in our atypical, differently-wired homeschool. Colleen will be sharing ways we can guide our kids in ways that help them discover who they are and how their brains are wired. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more at https://www.ctcmath.com/purchase/homeschool50?tr_id=RLL.

The concept of multimodal learning has so many potential benefits for our neurodivergent kiddos that it's empowering, really. Multimodal learning means using a variety of different styles, a variety of different senses, and a variety of different strategies in what you do. In today’s episode Colleen will explore what that looks like in your homeschool. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more at https://www.ctcmath.com/purchase/homeschool50?tr_id=RLL.

Metacognition is the ability to think about our own thinking, and that is exactly what Colleen will be talking about in today’s episode.  Metacognition impacts many areas of our child’s development.  Colleen will be discussing how we can implement different strategies into the homeschool day to develop this ability in our kids, which will help them in all areas of life including family relationships, school, work, and socially with peers. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to...

In today's episode, Colleen and Sarah Collins of HomeschoolOT discuss how executive function skills are essential when homeschooling neurodivergent children. They chat about ways to support our children, such as equipping them with the necessary tools and knowledge and building their metacognitive and self-awareness skills. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more at https://www.ctcmath.com/purchase/homeschool50?tr_id=RLL.

On today's podcast episode, Colleen talks about the eight main executive function skills. She'll help you to identify the ways deficits in these areas impact your child's day-to-day life and show up in their struggles. She's also got some ideas for building each of these skills with your kiddos. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more at https://www.ctcmath.com/purchase/homeschool50?tr_id=RLL.

Today on the podcast Colleen discusses how to identify the signs of impulsive behavior in children and how to distinguish impulsivity from other common behavioral factors. She also shares some of her favorite tips for supporting your impulsive kiddos and teaching them strategies they can use to handle the common challenges that come with impulsivity and other co-occurring neurodivergencey like attention deficit disorder and autism. The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by...

Will you continue "school" during the summer? Or will you learn in other, less formal ways? In today's podcast episode, Colleen shares what summer looks like for her family and how they use it in ways even homeschoolers might find surprising! The Raising Lifelong Learners Podcast is brought to you by CTCMath. Find out more at https://www.ctcmath.com/purchase/homeschool50?tr_id=RLL.