Secular Homeschool Revolution

Homeschooling, Parenthood and Inner child

Homeschooling has impacted me in ways I expected flexibility, freedom, and the ability to build an education around my kids’ interests and our values, but this episode is about the part I didn’t expect.
In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, I’m sharing a personal reflection on how homeschooling has become an unexpected journey of inner child healing. What started as an educational choice has also become a deeply emotional process of witnessing my kids receive support, patience, and room to grow in ways that can feel healing to witness as a mom.
I talk about the moment that cracked this open for me: watching Cari’s week eight of horseback riding lessons after she set a goal for herself was incredible!  Watching her move through fear with support reminded me how powerful consistency, patience, and staying present can be.

Mastery-Based learning in Homeschooling: Why Grades Don't Equal Understanding

What is mastery-based learning  and why does it matter for homeschoolers?
After referencing it in last week’s episode, Ashley realized not everyone may be familiar with what mastery-based learning actually means. In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, she breaks it down in a clear, practical, and supportive way.
Mastery-based learning shifts the focus from finishing the curriculum and chasing grades to building true understanding. Instead of asking, “Did we complete it?” this model asks, “Do you understand it?”
What mastery-based learning is (in simple terms)
Why grades don’t always equal comprehension
How mastery looks in real-life homeschool moments
The difference between memorization and deep learning
How to maintain accountability without recreating school at home
Why slowing down can actually increase rigor
If you’ve ever worried your child is “behind,” this episode will reframe that narrative and remind you that depth over speed is a radical, intentional choice.
Mastery isn’t about perfection.It’s about confidence rooted in real understanding.
 
Resources & Links
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Presidents' Day, But Make It Decolonized

Presidents’ Day gets packaged as “celebrate great leaders,” but the way it’s commonly taught is basically nation-branding: hero worship, sanitized harm, and “respect power don’t question it.” In this mini episode, we flip the script with a decolonized, equity lens asking who benefited, who was harmed, and who resisted.
We also shout out the students walking out and organizing right now because that is civic education in real time. And yes, my kids are heading to a student-led “ICE Out” protest and I’m proud as hell.
In This Episode
Why Presidents’ Day is often propaganda (and how it shows up in “cute” school activities)
Myth-making vs critical history: admire power vs analyze power
How to do a quick Power Audit of any president (who benefited / who paid)
Why student walkouts are democracy with teeth (and why the “they don’t even know” crowd is projecting)
A simple way to teach civics that includes outcomes, not just names and dates. 
Quote to Carry With You
“Presidents’ Day isn’t neutral. It teaches kids to respect power not question it. We’re not doing that over here.”
Call to Action
If your kids are questioning, organizing, walking out, speaking up celebrate that. That’s the point. That’s the future acting like the future.
 
Support This Work
If this blog or the Secular Homeschool Revolution podcast supports your family:
☕ Buy Me a Coffeehttps://buymeacoffee.com/secularhschoolrevolution

Are Grades Necessary?

Do homeschoolers need grades? Can you homeschool without grades and still prepare for college?
In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, we unpack whether grades are truly necessary or just part of a conditioning system built around ranking and compliance.
We cover:
How traditional grading systems shape behavior
Why mastery-based learning works in homeschool settings
What assessment without grades looks like
How to create narrative transcripts for college admissions
Whether colleges require homeschool GPAs
The myth of “everyone gets a trophy.”
If you’re questioning report cards, transcripts, or how to document rigor in a secular homeschool, this episode offers both a mindset shift and practical tools.
Support the show:
www.secularhomeschoolrevolution.com
https://www.instagram.com/secular_homeschool_revolution/
buymeacoffee.com/secularhschoolrevolution
 
Stay revolutionary.

The Way We Teach Black History Is The Problem

Black History Didn’t Start With Slavery: Teaching Black History the Right Way
Most of us learned Black history out of order and that wasn’t an accident.
In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, host Ashley breaks down why the way Black history is taught in schools is incomplete, sanitized, and designed for comfort rather than truth. This conversation explores why Black History Month exists, who fought to have Black history taught in schools, and why schools resisted teaching it honestly.
More importantly, this episode explains why the order of Black history matters and why starting with Africa instead of slavery fundamentally changes how kids understand history, systems, resistance, and the world they live in today.
This episode is especially for:
secular homeschool families
progressive parents
educators questioning traditional curriculum
families looking for better ways to teach Black History Month
In this episode, we cover:
When Black History Month started and who created it
Why schools chose to teach Black history out of order
How starting Black history with slavery distorts the entire narrative
Why beginning with African civilizations matters
How to teach Black history without centering trauma
Age-appropriate ways to teach Black history (elementary, middle, and high school)
A week-by-week Black History Month breakdown for homeschool families
Black history curriculum and resource recommendations
Week-by-Week Black History Month Teaching Framework
Week 1: Africa  Black history before enslavement
Week 2: Enslavement as disruption and resistance
Week 3: Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and systemic backlash
Week 4: Black life, resistance, and culture today
This episode challenges families to move beyond “theme month” teaching and toward truth-centered, systems-aware, liberation-focused education.
Resources Mentioned
Your African History – African history curriculum for familieshttps://yourafricanhistory.com/
Kamali Academy – Afrikan-centered education and liberation learninghttps://www.kamaliacademy.com/
EVERFI – 306: Black History (Free Curriculum)https://everfi.com/courses/k-12/online-african-american-history-curriculum/
Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH)https://asalh.org/
Support Secular Homeschool Revolution
If this episode supported your homeschooling journey and you want to help keep this work accessible and independent:
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Your support helps fund future episodes, resources, and community-driven content.
 
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Allies

This episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution is a direct call-in for white and progressive allies during this moment of ICE expansion and state violence. Drawing from Malcolm X’s The Ballot or the Bullet, Ashley challenges performative allyship, the centering of white discomfort, and the harm of “kind” white people who value politeness over action. From the misuse of Say Her Name to selective outrage and silence when it matters most, this episode makes one thing clear: allyship without risk is not solidarity. This is not a comfort episode; it’s a demand for courage.

Representation is Resistance

In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, Ashley explores why representation in homeschooling is not about checking boxes but about shaping identity, belonging, and alignment with power.
This episode challenges homeschool parents, especially secular and progressive ones, to stop focusing on good intentions and start examining outcomes.
Because homeschooling doesn’t exist outside of systems.And opting out of school doesn’t automatically mean opting out of white-centered narratives.
If you care about raising kids who know who they are, understand power, and don’t grow up defending systems that harm them, this conversation matters.
Listen intentionally. Teach honestly. Stay revolutionary.

Decolonized Literacy (REPOST)

I was made aware that I uploaded the wrong episode for last week! Apologies! 
 
What does decolonized literacy actually look like in a secular homeschool beyond book lists, reading levels, and grammar worksheets?
In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, host Ashley breaks down how dominant literacy practices often prioritize polish, compliance, and respectability over meaning and voice, and why even progressive homeschoolers can unintentionally recreate harm at home.
We explore what literacy looks like when it’s rooted in relationship, culture, and truth-telling rather than performance. From audiobooks and graphic novels to oral storytelling, messy writing, and real-world communication, this episode reframes reading and writing in ways that honor children’s voices without abandoning skill-building.
You’ll hear:
Why decolonized literacy is a practice, not a curriculum
How dominant literacy mirrors respectability politics (and etiquette culture)
What actually counts as reading and writing
How to support literacy without recreating school at home
What decolonized literacy is not and where structure still matters
This episode is especially helpful for new homeschoolers, progressive families, and anyone questioning grade-level pressure, academic performativity, or “doing homeschool right.”

Talking to our kids about ICE (immigration enforcement)

How do you talk to kids about ICE and immigration enforcement without scaring them—or sugarcoating the truth?
In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, host Ashley shares how she approached honest, age-appropriate conversations with her kids about ICE while living in San Antonio, Texas, where immigration enforcement presence is heavy and visible.
This episode is for progressive and secular homeschool families who want to talk about current events with care, clarity, and connection. Ashley walks through how she led with questions instead of lectures, how conversations differed between elementary aged kids and middle/high schoolers, and why de-centering ourselves as parents matters when discussing hard topics.
The episode also provides historical context, explaining how U.S. systems of surveillance and documentation long predate modern immigration enforcement while clearly naming that what Jewish people experienced in Germany was genocide, and how conversations about slavery and racialized control in the United States are often met with less public sympathy and urgency.
To support families navigating these discussions, the episode highlights:
A CNN 10 episode featuring immigration enforcement as an age-appropriate current events resource
ACLU Know Your Rights resources to ground conversations in clarity rather than fear
Why reading books about immigrant stories is essential for building empathy and understanding beyond headlines
This episode is not fear based.It’s about truth with care, historical context, and raising kids who can understand the world without carrying the weight alone.
Perfect for homeschool parents, progressive families, and educators looking for thoughtful ways to discuss immigration, ICE, and social justice with kids.
🎧 Listen now and join the conversation.

What Decolonized Literacy Really Looks Like in Secular Homeschooling

What does decolonized literacy actually look like in a secular homeschool beyond book lists, reading levels, and grammar worksheets?
In this episode of Secular Homeschool Revolution, host Ashley breaks down how dominant literacy practices often prioritize polish, compliance, and respectability over meaning and voice, and why even progressive homeschoolers can unintentionally recreate harm at home.
We explore what literacy looks like when it’s rooted in relationship, culture, and truth-telling rather than performance. From audiobooks and graphic novels to oral storytelling, messy writing, and real-world communication, this episode reframes reading and writing in ways that honor children’s voices without abandoning skill-building.
You’ll hear:
Why decolonized literacy is a practice, not a curriculum
How dominant literacy mirrors respectability politics (and etiquette culture)
What actually counts as reading and writing
How to support literacy without recreating school at home
What decolonized literacy is not and where structure still matters
This episode is especially helpful for new homeschoolers, progressive families, and anyone questioning grade-level pressure, academic performativity, or “doing homeschool right.”