HOMESCHOOL GLUE || Real-Life Simple Systems + Rhythms for Overwhelmed Homeschool Moms

Sarah
  • 5.0 (17)
  • Parenting
  • Updated Weekly

Homeschooling was supposed to feel meaningful — not like you're one bad Tuesday away from quitting. The Homeschool Glue Podcast helps overwhelmed homeschool moms cut through the mental clutter and build simple systems and rhythms that make homeschooling feel lighter, calmer, and sustainable for real life. If you're tired of holding everything together in your head, you're in the right place. 

  1. 1d ago

    012 || How I Prep for Fall Without Letting It Take Over My Summer

    Most of us have things we save for the slower months: projects that are easier when the pace is lighter, prep work that makes the next school year feel manageable, or things we’ve just been putting off. In this episode Sarah shares exactly what she’s doing this summer to set up for a great fall, and the intentional way she’s fitting it all in without letting it swallow the season. From memory keeping and deep cleaning the homeschool space to building her weekly rhythm and creating free read book bins for each of her girls, this one is practical, honest, and full of ideas worth borrowing. She also shares the most important piece: how she’s managing the list without stress, and why having daily systems already in place is what makes all of it possible. LINKS: Free Starter Glue-PrintSchool Memory Keeping blog postSchool Memory Keeping YouTube videoTeacher Planner (Canva template)Student Planner (Canva template)Daily RichesMorning MenusEpson EcoTank printerBinding MachineHumble Heart Press (printing services)Classy Artist Box (Use code HOMESCHOOLGLUE for 20% off first subscription box order)Favorite series for 4–6 year old readers reelNature journal caddy reelEpisode 006 — How to Design a Summer That Actually Feels SlowEpisode 004 — Stop Rebuilding Your Homeschool Every Sunday (weekly rhythm) Episode 009 — Build Your Own Homeschool: Curriculum Planning ProcessShop all Homeschool Glue resourcesFollow on Instagram

    42 min

  2. Jun 2

    011 || 10 Things That Make Homeschooling Easier

    It’s Sarah’s birthday week and she’s celebrating with a fun one: ten things that have genuinely made her homeschool life easier. Not things that look good on a list, but things that are actually woven into their daily life and that she would genuinely miss if they were gone. From batching breakfasts on the weekends (a system she started running a home daycare) to the vintage Bluetooth speaker that replaced the Echo she kind of hates, to the line leader system that ended the bickering, to silent reading time that her girls call their favorite part of the day . . . this episode is practical, a little funny, and full of things worth stealing for your own home. Birthday Bundle Sale — June 1–4, 2026 only: The more you buy, the more you save. Use the codes below at checkout in the shop: 2 items — code 2BUNDLE for 10% off3 items — code 3BUNDLE for 15% off4 items — code 4BUNDLE for 20% off5+ items — code 5BUNDLE for 25% off Links: Shop all Homeschool Glue resourcesFree Starter Glue-PrintYoto PlayersSherwoodSkylight CalendarRead Aloud Revival Podcast — Sarah Mackenzie (silent reading episode)Episode 007 — Our Chore SystemEpisode 008 — The 5 Systems Every Overwhelmed Homeschool Mom Needs (Mental File Cabinet)Follow on Instagram

    43 min

  3. May 26

    010 || What Nobody Tells You About Homeschooling

    If you could go back to your first day of homeschooling . . . the one with the beautiful planner, the brand new curriculum, and approximately no idea what you were doing . . . what would you tell yourself?  Sarah shares the things nobody told her before she started homeschooling. Not the curriculum tips or the room setup advice, but the bigger picture things. The mindset things. The ones that, if you get them wrong, will make everything else harder no matter how good your systems are.  This one is for the mom who is just starting out, the mom in her first few years, and honestly the mom who has been doing this for years and still needs to hear some of these again. Send it to a homeschool mom who needs it today.  Links:  •        Free Starter Glue-Print  •        Shop all Homeschool Glue resources  •        Follow on Instagram

    44 min

  4. May 19

    009 || Build Your Own Homeschool: My Entire Curriculum Planning Process

    It’s curriculum planning season, and if you’re deep in research, deep in comparison, and slowly losing your mind trying to figure out what to use next year, this episode is for you. Sarah shares her entire curriculum planning process: why knowing your educational philosophy is the only filter you actually need, how she plans family-style to save time, money, and sanity with multiple kids, the feast framework for deciding how much is too much, and the Google spreadsheet she uses to map everything out before spending a dollar. Plus the mistakes she sees most often — including the one that quietly burns more homeschools than any bad curriculum ever could. The full 2026–2027 curriculum picks for kindergarten, third grade, sixth grade, and toddler are linked in the show notes. Links: •       Starter Glue-Print •       2026-2027 Curriculum Choices Blog Post •       Episode 004 — Stop Rebuilding Your Homeschool Every Sunday (weekly rhythm deep dive) •        Simply Charlotte Mason •        Ambleside Online •        Math-U-See •        TypingClub •        Daily Riches curriculum •        Buds, Blooms + Bees science curriculum •        Shop all Homeschool Glue resources •        Follow on Instagram

    47 min

  5. May 12

    008 || The 5 Systems Every Overwhelmed Homeschool Mom Needs

    What systems do you actually have in place in your homeschool? Not your curriculum — the infrastructure underneath it. The things that keep the mental load manageable, that keep the week from falling apart, that keep you from rebuilding everything from scratch every Sunday night. In this episode Sarah walks through the five foundational systems she believes every overwhelmed homeschool mom needs: the Brain Dump, the Mental File Cabinet, the Daily Download, the Monthly Prep Day, and a Weekly Rhythm. She explains exactly what each one is, why it matters, and how to start building it — including a hint at something big coming this summer that’s going to make the Mental File Cabinet dramatically easier to set up. Links: •         Free Starter Glue-Print Guide •         Free Monthly Prep Day Canva template •        Episode 004 — Stop Rebuilding Your Homeschool Every Sunday (weekly rhythm deep dive) •        SlideBox app •        Shop all Homeschool Glue resources •        Follow on Instagram

    37 min

  6. May 5

    007 || Why Your Chore Chart Isn't Working (& What to Do Instead)

    Sarah posted a chore chart to her Instagram Stories without thinking much of it — and got hundreds of DMs by the end of the day. So in this episode she’s sharing the whole system. You’ll hear the full three-tier tending system she uses with four kids ages one to eleven: Daily Duties, Family Tending Hour, and Bonus Tending tasks. Plus how the Skylight calendar and a simple rewards system keep kids actually motivated, the 9:30am alarm that changed her mornings, what happens when kids whine or refuse, and how she added a brand new piece to the system just last week when she noticed something wasn’t working. Two free Canva chore chart templates are linked in the show notes — grab them and make them your own. LINKS: •        Free chore chart Canva templates •        Free Starter Glue-Print •        Skylight YouTube video •        Shop all Homeschool Glue resources •        Follow on Instagram •        Join the email list

    48 min

  7. Apr 28

    006 || Stop Letting Summer Happen to You — Design It Instead

    A slow summer doesn’t happen by accident — it happens by design. And if you’ve ever finished the school year dreaming of a slower pace, only to look up in August wondering where it went, this episode is for you. Sarah shares exactly how she’s planning this summer: what she’s saying yes to (swimming lessons, VBS, and a children’s theater play — that’s it), the simple weekly rhythm she’s building around Adventure Monday, Water Wednesday, Explorer Thursday, and Free Friday, and the daily anchors that make the slow parts actually happen. Plus five practical tips for designing your own slow summer before it fills up on you. Because a slow summer is not a lazy summer. It’s a chosen one. Links: •       Free Starter Glue-Print •        Buds, Blooms & Bees •        Shop all Homeschool Glue resources  •        Follow on Instagram •        Join the email list

    38 min

  8. Apr 21

    005 || Why I Kept Homeschooling When Life Fell Apart

    When life gets really hard, the advice is almost always the same: take a break. And sometimes that’s the right call. But in two of the hardest seasons of her life — one involving a devastating family crisis and one involving a brand new baby — Sarah discovered that stopping was actually harder than continuing. And it had everything to do with the rhythms she had already built. This episode is different from the others. No tips, no frameworks — just two honest, personal stories about what systems actually look like when life falls apart. And why building them before the hard times come is one of the most important things you can do for your family. If you know a homeschool mom in a hard season right now, send her this one. Links: •        Free Starter Glue-Print •        Follow on Instagram

    29 min
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5
out of 5
17 Ratings

About

Homeschooling was supposed to feel meaningful — not like you're one bad Tuesday away from quitting. The Homeschool Glue Podcast helps overwhelmed homeschool moms cut through the mental clutter and build simple systems and rhythms that make homeschooling feel lighter, calmer, and sustainable for real life. If you're tired of holding everything together in your head, you're in the right place. 

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