Love in a Time of Homeschooling: A Mother and Daughter's Uncommon Year [Hardcover]

Laura Brodie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 6, 2010

After years of watching her eldest daughter, Julia, struggle in the highly regimented public school system, Laura Brodie - ignoring the skepticism of her husband, friends, and relatives - made the radical decision to teach her child at home for a year. The monotony of fill-in-the-blank history and math worksheets would be replaced with studying dinosaurs and dragons, some conversational French, violin lessons, and field trips to historical places, art museums, science fairs, bookstores, and concerts. Julia would have homework, but mostly it would be to write about what she'd experienced each day and to read to her heart's delight. "Love in a Time of Homeschooling" is the touching story of human foibles and human potential, in which love, anger, and hope, mingle with reading, math, and American history. Once the purview of Christian fundamentalist and bohemian parents, homeschooling is a growing trend among mainstream parents looking to address their children's short-term educational problems. Brodie gave her daughter a sabbatical to explore, learn, create, and grow - a year of independent research and writing to rejuvenate Julia's love of learning. Though the experiment was not easy, mother and daughter worked through their frustration and difficulties to forge an invaluable bond. Hers is a life lesson no parent should miss.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Told by elementary school teachers that her daughter, Julia, "needs to spend more time in our world," author Brodie (Breaking Out, The Widow's Season) decided that her daughter's unique intellectual needs would best be served by a year of home-schooling: "The more I looked into it, the more I discovered that short-term homeschooling is a growing trend in America, for a vast array of reasons." Chronicling the entirety of her homeschooling experience, from the decision-making process to Julia's successful re-entry into 6th grade, Brodie takes pains to show how difficult homeschooling can be: "How foolish I had been, to have believed that Julia's complaints over the past two years... stemmed from an institutional cause" (as it turns out, Julia simply doesn't like to be told what to do). Having been frustrated by other homeschooling books' Pollyanna attitude toward the parent-child relationship, Brodie's contribution to the field is full of honest revelations that make it vital for anyone considering homeschooling; happily, her gift for good storytelling and keen observation (of herself and others) make this an absorbing read for everyone else.

Review

“In a world where homeschooling is so often misunderstood, discounted, and even ridiculed, Laura Brodie offers a clear-eyed view and makes a valuable contribution to the literature on the subject. This is necessary reading for anyone with an interest not just in homeschooling but in education generally.” (David Guterson, author of The Other and Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense )

“Funny, heart-cracking and ultimately profoundly educational. I recommend this book to all parents and educators who have ever thought-I wish things could be different.” (Mary Pipher, author of Seeking Peace: Chronicles of the Worst Buddhist in the World )

“As a parent involved in homeschooling, I highly recommend this book. It’s timely, beautifully written, and must reading for anyone who has ever wondered what homeschooling is all about-and it would make a great gift for all your friends who think they know!” (James Grippando, author of Money to Burn )

“Love in a Time of Homeschooling, a touching glimpse into a mother-daughter relationship, will inspire you to foster a love of learning no matter what your schooling choice may be.” (Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder )

“Engaging, unpredictable. . . . No rosy manifesto to homeschooling, nor a condemnation, but a real-life encounter, full of stormy battles, power struggles and, most of all, passion. There are moments of pedagogic beauty. . . . Graceful and charming.” (Kirkus Reviews )

“Laura Brodie shines a spotlight on love as an essential ingredient [in homeschooling], creating a well-earned space on all homeschoolers’ bookshelves and, optimistically, on the bookshelves of all parents.” (Linda Dobson, author of The Ultimate Book of Homeschooling Ideas )

“The only thing worse than sending your child off on a bus each morning might be keeping that child at home. But Brodie manages the feat with wit, wisdom, love, and some hard knocks along the way. Her story gives hope that there is more to life than long division.” (Cameron Stracher, author of Dinner with Dad )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Harper; 1 edition (April 6, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061706469
• ISBN-13: 978-0061706462
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #549,698 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Good concept, wished the author didn't have an apologetic tone towards homeschooling, September 25, 2010

By 

Jonathan Davies - See all my reviews

This review is from: Love in a Time of Homeschooling: A Mother and Daughter's Uncommon Year (Hardcover)

When I saw this book on our local library shelf, I was intruigued by it. As a homeschooler starting my third year, it was nice to see a book in the new release section that chronicled a "year and the life" of a mother and daughter homeschooling. However, as I found myself waiting for a very long time for the author to get to the actual story of their year. The first 100 pages are filled with statements about how different the author, Laura Brodie, is from the "traditional" or "typical" homeschoolers. She often mentions that she was not a religious fanatic or political zealot -- as if all homeschoolers need to fall into one of these 2 catagories. I kept thinking the author was going to explain how she gained a new respect for or persceptive of homeschoolers. However, she often mentioned how she read many homeschooling books and read about HSLDA -- but she didn't feel like she needed to follow any of the "norms" of homeschoolers. This is a beauty of homeschooling -- you can customize it to meet your child's needs. However, I didn't feel like this was the point she was getting at, I felt like she felt like she was better than everyone else. I just felt through reading the book that she was almost trying to apologize to her readers for making this important decision for her daughter and tried to justify herself against homeschooling critics. I just wish she had taken a more embracing approach to the homeschooling issue. I wish she left me feeling like she was on my side instead of being judgemental towards all homeschoolers that weren't her. It's obvious that her daughter, Julia, was and is an ideal canidate for homeschooling and that she benefited greatly from her year at home, so why try and downtalk the homeschooling community in general -- there's already too much misguided thoughts and information about this schooling option. I do understand that not everyone can stay home and educate their children, nor do I think everyone should. I decided to start because it was what was best for my gifted, ADHD child who would not have had his needs met in the school system. Through my experience, I've learned so much about homeschooling and I've also been judged by family and strangers alike. I didn't appreciate reading a book by a fellow homeschooler and feeling judged by her as well. I DO NOT recommend this book to any homeschoolers or non-homeschoolers. I think this book does not enlighten people about homeschooling in our country, but only encourages the misunderstanding between home-educators and the public schools.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fun Read But Paints Misleading Portrait of Homeschooling, November 16, 2010

By 

CrimsonGirl "homeschooling mom" (S.F. Bay Area, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Love in a Time of Homeschooling: A Mother and Daughter's Uncommon Year (Hardcover)

As a memoir, I enjoyed reading "Love in a Time of Homeschooling". Ms. Brodie is an excellent story-teller and her writing vividly brings to life her and her daughter Julia's "sabbatical" to try homeschooling during Julia's fifth-grade year. As someone who has been homeschooling for 5 years, however, I was dismayed by the misleading impression that someone unfamiliar with home education might get after reading Ms. Brodie's memoir.

As far as I could tell from the book, the Brodies did not get involved in a homeschool support group, learning co-op, sports/music/theater/debate/etc. program, or any of the various classes offered to homeschoolers. I wonder if they might have continued homeschooling after the one year had they availed themselves of some of the wonderful group opportunities out there for homeschoolers these days. Homeschooled children don't have to be as socially isolated as Julia Brodie apparently was. I don't think it's healthy for homeschooling parents and children to spend all day every day with only each other. The good news is that these days they don't have to be- and I sincerely hope readers of Ms. Brodie's memoir will realize that.

It was also clear to me that Ms. Brodie ought to have better researched the curricular materials she used- her year might have gone much smoother had she chosen the delightful "Life of Fred" series for math rather than the dreary, overly repetitive Saxon. Additionally, Ms. Brodie made the mistake of deciding to follow the state curricular standards at home. She ought to have ignored the SOL's completely except in math. Just because some committee of bureaucrats in Richmond have dictated that public school students should study X, does NOT mean that she needed to cram it into her daughter's schedule.

Finally, much of the struggle Ms. Brodie had with Julia was more of a discipline issue rather than a homeschooling one. If Julia had difficulty staying on task without direct supervision, that's a signal that the Brodie parents need to work on habit-training with her. The conflict that she had with Julia over getting schoolwork done is not an inherent problem with home education but rather one specific to that family. IMHO Ms. Brodie ought to have focused a whole lot less on meeting arbitrary government curricular standards and a whole lot more on habit training during the family's year of homeschooling.

If you're a family considering homeschooling, don't be scared off by Ms. Brodie's experience. Please realize that it is not very representative of home education.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Unfortunate Misunderstandings of Homeschooling, July 26, 2011

By 

Ben Franklin - See all my reviews

This review is from: Love in a Time of Homeschooling: A Mother and Daughter's Uncommon Year (Hardcover)

Laura Brodie did an experimental year of homeschooling with her daughter, and she wants to make sure her readers understand that homeschooling should be regulated more because other people who aren't as well-educated and self-aware as she might not do as good a job as she did. You know, during the one year during which she amassed all her experience with homeschooling - which limited her from learning about some of the most effective resources (which, it's hard for new folks to understand - frequently don't look anything like SCHOOL materials), understanding how to network with homeschoolers (especially in finding non-evangelicals), getting clear comprehension of the history and culture(s) of homeschooling, etc.

She is somehow grateful for this year of sabbatical from the stiflingness of school she can offer to her own daughter while making darn sure she doesn't embrace the total idea of unfettered homeschooling - and especially not for others.

She encounters bumps in the road, which we all do, but she fails to truly comprehend how many homeschoolers work these out over a couple years of homeschooling, and how she might have too. Her very idea of homeschooling for only a year essentially provides the escape route that allows her to avoid the real work of understanding and helping a child who seems to her to be lazy or unfocused. It allows her to avoid working things out with her daughter - she can go right back to sending her to school. It allows her to avoid the real discoveries about the homeschooling community and how it works. I read her book shaking my head at missed opportunity. She failed to examine her own underlying assumptions about the status quo -- public schooling -- and continues to hold up its practices as much more of a sure thing than homeschooling ever could be. Has she not read that 1/3 of all students who enter public schools fail to graduate? Does she not know that this reaches 50% in "minority majority" schools? Just how are school-oriented regulations or regulators going to provide guidance or a safety net for homeschooled kids when homeschoolers aren't even trying to emulate "school"? There is just not much credibility here.

Through the whole book, I kept thinking, "She's afraid." Her fears seem to include what would happen if: she truly gave herself over to homeschooling, she truly allowed her daughter to learn in ways that work with her learning style, she did not push her daughter into doing what *she* thought was good for her regardless of her daughter's readiness or interest, she is seen as being too supportive of homeschooling and somehow not progressive or academic enough.

The problem is, as a memoir, the material fails to recognize the true fear. If she'd gotten to the root of it, since she's a good writer, it might have been an authentic reflection on the wrestling parents do in making educational decisions for their kids.

Contrast this book with Kathleen Melin's By Heart: A Mother's Story of Children and Learning At Home. Melin is about six levels deeper than Brodie manages to get, while also managing to portray the imperfections of any educational approach, including the hardness that homeschooling can also have. The fear in Melin's book is palpable.

It's unfortunate that Brodie managed to make things worse in various blogs and commentary about homeschooling, where she continued to demonstrate her lack of understanding about the legal aspects in her own state and fails to get the culture of learning that many homeschoolers embrace. She seems to think homeschooling is about instruction, without ever coming to the understanding that it's about learning.

If Laura Brodie had let homeschooling rock her world, she could have rocked ours. Her prose is vivid and evocative. However, she's protected herself from any real growth or change, and homeschoolers can smell that because they've lived through their own resistance and pushed onward.

At night, I think about her and her daughter sometimes. I wish she'd not planned to homeschool only a year, had not given herself that arbitrary limit, so she would have had more time to understand the need to find that mentor who would have helped her find the right resources, helped her understand why regulating homeschooling risks it to the very school-ness she's taking a year off from, helped her see ways to both accept and challenge her daughter while managing her own fear - if she can't actually let it go.