[Podcast #310] High Tide Homeschooling with a Teen

Brave Writer Podcast

Melissa Wiley takes the mic solo this week for a heartwarming look inside her current homeschool life with her youngest, sixteen-year-old Huck.

Drawing from her decades of experience as both author and homeschooling mother of six, Melissa walks listeners through a day in the life of their family’s “tidal homeschooling” rhythm—where structured “high tide” study meets creative “low tide” exploration. She shares how her son’s outdoor program, their history-and-literature studies, and rich family traditions—film club and nightly read-alouds—keep learning alive and joyful.

If you’ve ever wondered how homeschooling evolves through the teen years—or how to nurture curiosity and connection as your family grows—this episode offers both inspiration and practical insight. Melissa also touches on her creative work, finding balance as a writer and parent, and how rhythms of learning shift with each new life chapter.

Show Notes

As homeschooling parents, we come to recognize that family learning moves in tides. There are seasons of high energy—bursting with projects, discussions, and discovery—and quieter times when we drift, recharge, and let curiosity find its own way back to shore.

For Melissa Wiley, these rhythms are a source of peace rather than pressure. After years of homeschooling a bustling household, she now finds joy in the slower, one-on-one days with her son Huck. Their mornings start quietly, often with reading or reflection, before easing into studies of history, science, and literature. The rest of the day flows with creative play, outdoor adventures, and unhurried conversation. It’s homeschooling that breathes—steady, flexible, and deeply human.

Tidal Homeschooling and Daily Rhythms

Melissa describes this way of learning as tidal homeschooling: alternating between “high tide” periods of structure and “low tide” stretches of exploration. In practice, that might look like a week of focused writing lessons followed by days spent outdoors, tinkering, sketching, or diving deep into a new interest. It’s not about balance as much as trust—trusting that learning is always happening, even when it doesn’t look like school.

Connection, Creativity, and Family Culture

At the heart of Melissa’s homeschool life is connection. Whether it’s the family’s “film club,” her husband’s rock-and-roll history sessions, or daily read-alouds that spark lively debate, these shared rituals nurture both imagination and relationship. Learning isn’t a checklist; it’s a conversation that keeps evolving as her kids grow.

Melissa reminds us that education doesn’t end when the formal lessons do. It continues in laughter around the dinner table, in curiosity during a walk, in the stories that knit a family together. Homeschooling, at its best, is simply life—rich, rhythmic, and full of wonder.

Resources

Connect with Julie

Connect with Melissa

Produced by NOVA

Brave Writer Podcast

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Middle School Writing: History Projects

Brave Writer

You might wonder how your middler is ever going to be a competent essay writer. They procrastinate. They lack organization. They can’t follow steps. They have zero motivation to write. Like, at all!

Well, we have a secret to share. 

Projects are the perfect stepping stone to academic writing for a middle grader. 

Projects offer:

  • A gentle introduction to formats and writing within parameters
  • A toe-dip into the world of academic research 
  • A chance to move through concrete steps, like planning, revising, and editing
  • And the opportunity to share all that hard work with others! 

Projects are also an opportunity for a deep dive.

In Brave Writer’s online class, Middle School Writing: History Projects, we look at the history of one of your child’s favorite things. That’s right, your child will choose their own topic—an ideal way to generate motivation! 

What will it be for your kids? 

  • The origins of chess?
  • The story of popcorn?
  • A deep dive into Morse code? 

So sign up! You’ll find this course is the ideal pre-game academic experience for your middle grader! 

Brave Writer Online Classes

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Turn Living Literature into Unit Studies

Brave Writer

Brave Writer’s Literature Singles are more than grammar guides—they are literary treasure boxes filled with ideas to expand a novel into an engaging unit study for the whole family.

Read a book, talk about its grammar, punctuation, spelling, and literary devices. Discuss the stories with comprehension questions and then throw a party to celebrate!

Want inspiration for unit study planning?

Check out the curated themed collections below to see how you can mix and match levels to meet the needs of your family. We share resources from our Poetry Teatime website (FREE!) and our Brave Learner Home membership community to give you some ideas.

Slide into Baseball

Combine with

Step into History (Black History edition)

Combine with

Step into History (Spies edition) 

Combine with

Slip Under the Sea

Combine with

Space Out

Combine with

Inventions & Inventors

Combine with

Planning Tool

We’ve also put together a spreadsheet tool that helps you see all of our literature singles at once. You can sort by historical era, literary device, author, and more!

Brave Writer

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[Podcast #309] Redefining Homeschool with Alisha Brignall from Canada

Brave Writer Podcast

Welcome back to the Brave Writer Podcast! This week, Julie sits down with Alisha Brignall, a Canadian homeschooling veteran and educational leader with over 15 years of experience guiding families through their unique learning journeys.

With a Master’s in Education and her work as a Home Education Manager at an independent school, Alisha brings a wealth of knowledge about both the philosophy and the practical realities of homeschooling. She’s also the founder of INSPIRED, Alberta’s only secular homeschool conference, dedicated to creating inclusive and supportive communities for families.

Alisha Brignall
Alisha Brignall

In this warm and deeply insightful conversation, Alisha and Julie explore how homeschooling has evolved over the past two decades—from early pedagogical pioneers to today’s eclectic mix of families seeking flexibility and connection. They:

  • unpack the differences between Canadian and American approaches to home education,
  • discuss how to cultivate confidence as a parent educator,
  • and highlight the growing landscape of hybrid models and secular learning spaces.

Together, they reflect on what it truly means to measure success in education, nurture a love of learning, and prioritize family relationships as the foundation for meaningful growth.

Show Notes

Homeschooling Then and Now

Alisha began homeschooling when her oldest child—now a thriving young adult—needed something different than what traditional education could offer. What began as a personal experiment grew into a lifelong vocation of understanding and supporting diverse learners. Julie and Alisha discuss how homeschooling’s motivations have transformed since the early 2000s: where once parents were often pedagogically motivated, steeped in John Holt or Charlotte Mason, many families today are driven by necessity, seeking refuge from overstretched systems or wanting a more flexible, inclusive approach.

The conversation delves into how these changing motivations affect the homeschool experience. Alisha observes that modern families often come to homeschooling unsure of their educational philosophy, juggling dual careers and new hybrid models. Yet, even amid the complexity, both she and Julie see the same spark of possibility—parents rediscovering confidence as educators and children finding joy in self-directed learning.

Confidence and Connection in Learning

A recurring theme throughout the episode is trust—trusting children, trusting yourself, and trusting that meaningful education looks different for every family. Alisha shares stories from her work as a mentor and from her own homeschool, where allowing her son with dysgraphia to create his own set of Pokémon-style “Gogemon” cards led him to become a film student with a love of storytelling. These moments, Julie reflects, are the heart of learning: when curiosity is met with freedom and encouragement, growth naturally follows.

Julie and Alisha also explore how the metrics of “success” in homeschooling can differ widely among family members. Alisha recalls a time when her family realized they each defined success differently—mom wanted growth, dad wanted measurable progress, and the kids just wanted peace and joy. Recognizing those different values became the turning point for their homeschool harmony, and Julie encourages listeners to ask their own families what success truly looks like.

The Future of Home Education

Looking forward, Alisha sees both challenge and promise in the future of education. The landscape is expanding: AI tools, hybrid programs, and microschools are changing how families approach learning. But what remains constant, she says, is the relationship at the center of it all. Whether schooling at home or within new systems, children thrive when they feel connected—to their parents, their communities, and their curiosity.

Julie echoes that sentiment, reminding listeners that homeschooling has always been an act of faith in connection: parent to child, learner to subject, family to world. As more families experiment with what education can look like, that foundation of love and trust will continue to guide the way.

Resources

Connect with Julie

Connect with Melissa

Produced by NOVA

Brave Writer Podcast

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Does Writing Instruction Require Suffering?

Brave Writer

One of the reasons that people struggle with writing is that it doesn’t feel easy.

But what if it could be?

What if your child experienced self-expression as something they enjoy, as something they deserve to have in their toolbox of being human?

I noticed when I interviewed adults that the scars of criticism from writing instruction linger into adulthood. A lot of times those scars make them adopt the same methods that harmed them when they teach their own kids to write. That’s not surprising because we’ve also been taught that learning that is effective should be difficult and a struggle.

It’s almost like we can’t value learning that feels good.

But when we write freely and from the heart, it does feel good. In fact, it is therapeutic and deeply satisfying.

Every person has the craving to self express and be read and heard. This is our birthright. I wrote my newest book, Help! My Kid Hates Writing, to help you reclaim that birthright on behalf of yourself and your kids.

Help! My Kid Hates Writing

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