The OpenEd Podcast

OpenEd
  • 3.7 (9)
  • Education
  • Updated Semiweekly

The world has changed, and education is catching up. Join Isaac Morehouse and the OpenEd team as we explore the future of personalized learning. We're breaking down barriers between traditional schools, microschooling, homeschooling, and alternative education. Each episode features innovative educational approaches, real family stories, expert insights, and practical tips for navigating educational choices. Make education unique for your child. Subscribe now and visit OpenEd.co for our daily newsletter on personalized learning. Be part of the education revolution.

  1. 4d ago

    How to Start Homeschooling If You Don't Feel Qualified

    Before homeschooling, Blanca Montelongo worked in a public school as a registrar, sorting incoming kids by income, background and last name. Eight years in, she talks with Ela Bass about the fear she hears most from moms: "I don't think I can do it." IN THIS EPISODE - What she says to a mom who tells her, "I don't have the patience" - The one thing every family needs before they start, or they go back - Why finding a homeschool community is "kind of like dating" - The year her entire curriculum was one subject - What she does before she reaches her limit, not after - The one test her son ever took, and what she decided afterward FIND BLANCA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blancalight.m/

    How to Start Homeschooling If You Don't Feel Qualified

  2. Sep 15

    Why She Pulled Her Kids Out of School | Homeschool Stereotypes

    Cassie Olguin nearly didn't homeschool, and not because of the workload. She could not pick a curriculum. "There's like eleven billion homeschool curricula, and ways to do it, and methodologies for teaching... it was so loud at a certain point that I almost didn't do it." In this episode, she explains how to choose a homeschool curriculum without needing anyone else's opinion, including the day her own written rule convicted her for teaching her twins the same math because it was easier for her. GUEST Cassie Olguin - Alternative Education Content and Events Manager at Outschool and homeschool mother of three. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cassies.hs.corner/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassieolguin/ Outschool: https://outschool.com CHAPTERS 00:00 She believed every stereotype 01:51 Bullying, standardized testing, and the opt-out fight 08:48 Convincing her husband, and the backup plan 14:13 Decision paralysis, and Homeschool 101 17:09 Find your people 19:42 Where to start, and writing a mission statement 22:41 Matching curriculum to how each kid learns 35:14 "You're not a licensed teacher," and the reading timeline 39:08 COVID, and a completely different world than thirty years ago 43:37 Pressure, choice, and why opinions are hard to change 47:58 Resources for the early years 51:17 Where Outschool and enrichment centers came in 55:14 Dual enrollment, and what school doesn't teach 01:01:54 Rapid fire and where to find her

    Why She Pulled Her Kids Out of School | Homeschool Stereotypes

  3. Aug 28

    FORMER TEACHER: I Told My Students They Didn't Have to Come to Class

    Tanner Bowman taught computer science in a public high school for ten years, deleting one classroom rule per year until attendance in his class was optional. He now runs Optio, an accredited K-12 program built on one move: start with what the kid already cares about, and let the subject arrive as a requirement of the goal. A sixteen-year-old who hated online algebra was doing mathematical analysis of the stock market on his own time. That analysis became his math credit. This episode: 0:00 – Cold Open: The Kid Written Off by School 0:27 – Meet Tanner Bowman & What Optio Is 1:03 – Inside Optio: Quests, Not Grades 4:10 – Tanner's 10 Years in Public School Fighting for Autonomy 10:06 – Sage on the Stage vs. the Gardener 14:13 – The "Kids Who Don't Want to Learn" Myth 18:09 – Rethinking Curriculum for the Internet Age 25:23 – Turning Passions Into Math, Science, and More 29:47 – Why Optio Killed Letter Grades 36:42 – Scaling Personalization With the Quest Model 41:47 – Detoxing Kids From "Public School Brain" 46:18 – Helping Kids Find What They Actually Love 53:44 – Rapid Fire: Advice for Parents & Teachers 57:04 – Optio x OpenEd: Turning Passion Into Real Credit 59:35 – Where to Find Tanner & Optio GUEST Tanner Bowman, founder of Optio Website: https://optioeducation.com Instagram: https://instagram.com/optio_education Email: tanner@optioeducation.com

    FORMER TEACHER: I Told My Students They Didn't Have to Come to Class

  4. Aug 12

    Is Homeschooling Hard? 22 Years and 5 Kids Later

    Rebecca Stromsdorfer never wanted to homeschool. She toured the charters and the private schools in her county looking for any other option, but she couldn't find a classroom she'd put her daughter in. This episode is a full walkthrough of how she started homeschooling and what she learned along the way. GUEST Rebecca Stromsdorfer - homeschool mom of five (22 years), founder of My Homeschool Village Website: https://myhomeschoolvillage.com CHAPTERS 00:00 She never wanted to homeschool 03:55 Enjoying learning vs. making it fun 07:52 Six workbooks, and everything a first grader needs to know 12:36 Deschooling, and what "broken" actually means 21:24 You don't know what plant you were given 25:47 Week one: take a vacation, then start doing the work yourself 32:02 What their family culture actually is 35:30 The homeschool daily schedule, hour by hour 38:57 The weekly homeschool rhythm 51:11 She thought she was dumb, and the mirror 01:00:33 Homeschooling is hard on marriage 01:08:28 Rapid fire: curriculum and textbooks

    Is Homeschooling Hard? 22 Years and 5 Kids Later

  5. Aug 5

    You Don't Have to Be a Teacher to Homeschool

    Sam Griffin spent two years wanting to homeschool and not starting, because she did not think she was qualified. Five years later, she teaches four kids from kindergarten through ninth grade. She is a homeschool mom of four and a homeschool coach who works with parents who are curious about homeschooling but have no idea where to start. Read the full show notes: https://opened.co/blog/homeschool-schedule-2-hours-a-day GUEST: Samantha Griffin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/homeschoolsam/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@homeschoolsam CHAPTERS 00:00 From footwear buyer to homeschool mom of four 02:22 How the coaching started 03:11 "Our kids work a nine to five" 04:58 The homeschool schedule: two hours of academics a day 05:50 What the schedule gives the kids 07:07 Her first year was a hot mess 08:40 Every curriculum has the same scope 09:47 Start with two subjects, open-and-go 12:19 The self-doubt in year one 15:25 Stop explaining it to anyone 18:48 A 13-year-old in ninth grade 21:56 "Skip elementary science and history entirely" 29:23 You don't have to be the teacher 31:30 Theater, farm school, and survival class 40:50 A wakeboarding class that's really physics 43:43 On the viral anti-homeschooling podcast 46:38 Was it hard to leave the career? 50:05 Rapid fire: socialization, college, credentials

    You Don't Have to Be a Teacher to Homeschool

  6. Jul 29

    I Bought My Daughter a Cookie Shop (We Have 7 Kids)

    Jeremy Cioara never planned to homeschool - or to become an entrepreneur. Twenty years and seven kids later, the longtime tech trainer has a simple method for raising kids who actually love to work: bring them along. In this episode, he tells Ela Bass how a haircut turned into buying his daughter a cookie shop, and what 20 years of hiring taught him about degrees versus doing. FIND JEREMY LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremy-cioara-4860573/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cioarajeremy/ CHAPTERS 00:00 How the Cioaras decided to homeschool (and bought a cookie shop) 06:38 Advice for homeschool dads who aren't on board 10:09 Bringing your kids along: what a dad's role looks like 13:18 Dads knowing dads 17:53 From training career-changers to raising kids who work 24:14 How the family talks about work and unique giftings 31:44 The practicalities of developing each kid's gifts 38:53 Why homeschool sports over going pro 46:23 Passing the mantle of decision-making 49:31 Rapid fire: getting kids to love work 53:57 Where to find Jeremy

    I Bought My Daughter a Cookie Shop (We Have 7 Kids)

  7. Jul 22

    The Real Reason Kids Hate School (and What to Do Instead)

    Val Morse was homeschooled until high school, and now she homeschools her own two daughters - two completely different learners. In this conversation, Val breaks down what to do when your kid hates learning, why being interested is a skill you can build rather than a personality trait, and what it means to let go of the outcome. Follow Val on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valariespnw/ Read the full blog post: https://opened.co/blog/how-to-make-learning-fun

    The Real Reason Kids Hate School (and What to Do Instead)

  8. Jul 7

    What's It Actually Like to Be Homeschooled? A 10-Year-Old Explains

    What's it actually like to be homeschooled? Finley is 10 years old, in fourth grade, one of nine kids, and a Lego robotics competitor - and he is the youngest student ever interviewed on the OpenEd Podcast. He walks through his real homeschool day and answers the question of socialization for himself.Read the full blog post: https://opened.co/blog/day-in-the-life-of-a-homeschooler

    What's It Actually Like to Be Homeschooled? A 10-Year-Old Explains
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3.7
out of 5
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About

The world has changed, and education is catching up. Join Isaac Morehouse and the OpenEd team as we explore the future of personalized learning. We're breaking down barriers between traditional schools, microschooling, homeschooling, and alternative education. Each episode features innovative educational approaches, real family stories, expert insights, and practical tips for navigating educational choices. Make education unique for your child. Subscribe now and visit OpenEd.co for our daily newsletter on personalized learning. Be part of the education revolution.

Information

  • Creator
    OpenEd
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    112
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © OpenEd
  • Show Website
    The OpenEd Podcast

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