Options for Homeschool Consulting and Support
Catholic Homeschool Consulting, Mentoring, and Coaching Services
No matter how well you prepare for homeschooling, there will be times when you feel overwhelmed. There will be situations where you second-guess yourself or your decision to homeschool. Sometimes you feel confused about how to proceed, inadequate for the task, or just plain burned out.
If that happens, it is totally okay! Every homeschooling experience comes with highs and lows. It doesn’t reflect on your abilities or your decision to homeschool. It’s just how life is.
When you find yourself in a slump, that’s when it is essential to have someone you can turn to. If you feel like your homeschooling efforts have hit a roadblock, consider working with a homeschool consultant. Homeschool consultants are veteran homeschoolers who work with families to help them achieve their homeschooling goals. They can be of tremendous help in getting you organized in your homeschool or getting things back on track if you’ve hit a snag.
Today, I will profile several options for you to consider if you are looking for outside support for your homeschool. All of these consultants and services are intimately familiar with Homeschool Connections. Whether you use HSC exclusively, as a supplement, or not at all, each of these options is an excellent choice.
Susie Lloyd Homeschool Consulting
Susie Lloyd is a veteran homeschool mom of seven children with 30 years of experience. Besides being a seasoned homeschooler, she also has experience founding homeschool support groups, co-ops, and building thriving homeschool support networks. She is also a well-known Catholic homeschool author and speaker and has appeared on numerous programs and podcasts. Susie has worked with HSC for many years and is an excellent resource. She can help you with homemaking as well as homeschool solutions.
Bloom Homeschool Consulting (Jenny Bales)
Another wonderful person you can contact is Jenny Bales and her team at Bloom Homeschool Consulting. Jenny has years of homeschooling experience and is actively engaged in the homeschooling community. Jenny has other talented coaches working with her at Bloom, providing a whole team of experienced consultants to draw upon. I’ve known Jenny personally for years and would highly recommend her to anyone! She is also an HSC parent and very capable of helping you integrate HSC classes into your overall homeschooling game plan.
Peach Smith Consulting
You may also want to look into Peach Smith Consulting, run by the lovely and eponymous Peach Smith. Peach brings an ocean of experience to the table: she has decades of teaching experience and has worked in curricula development. She has helped create educational programs around the world. She has assisted hundreds of families with educational planning, from home education to school choices to college consulting. She has built educational programs for private schools and assisted in building co-ops, pods, and developing curricula in private schools. Peach has instructed classes in all subjects from Pre-K to the high school level. When it comes to veteran homeschoolers, she is about as veteran as you can get! (she’s also a big fan of HSC.)
Pine Meadows Accountability Mentoring (Tammy Parker)
Sometimes, the person who needs mentoring is your child. If your child struggles with organization, staying on task, or motivation, you should consider connecting them with Tammy Parker. Tammy runs a program called Pine Meadows Academy Accountability Mentoring. Tammy’s program focuses on inculcating organizational habits and positive life skills in students. Due to the popularity of this program, Tamm now has other talented mentors working with her at PMA. If your tween or teen could use some accountability outside the family from a professional mentor, Tammy’s program may be just what you need.
Fiat Life Coaching (Emily Brown)
If you’re looking for someone who can be more of a general Catholic life coach, I recommend Emily Brown of Fiat Life Coaching. As a Certified Life Coach, Emily’s expertise extends beyond homeschooling to also include general life skills. Her approach integrates your homeschooling efforts within a broader context of building positive living habits and a confident, peaceful mindset. Emily radiates warmth and wholesomeness and is an all-around fantastic person to work with if you need to bring some harmony to your lifestyle as a Catholic.
Community PLUS (Paola Ciskanik)
I highly recommend Paola Cisanik’s Community PLUS if you want a more community-based approach. You may know Paola as one of the founders of The Catholic Homeschool Conference, The Catholic Homeschool Community, and Emmanual Books. Paola has organized an online community geared towards nurturing Catholic homeschool families on the support group model. Thrive leverages the collective wisdom and experience of a large community of homeschoolers, allowing members to seek solutions together in a supportive community.
To connect with other Catholic homeschool parents, I invite you to join me at our Homeschool Connections Community or our Facebook group today.
