In 2014, Alyssa Padgett convinced her husband Heath to take her to all 50 states for their honeymoon. Somehow he tricked her into doing it all in an RV. They’ve lived and traveled in an RV ever since. With her husband, Alyssa runs The RV Entrepreneur Podcast, a resource for anyone who wants to run a business while RVing.
With so many families working and schooling remotely, there’s been a huge influx of teens and kids RVing for extended periods of time. Kelsey was roadschooled from ages 12-17 and shares the highs and lows of life on the road as a teenager. (It also makes a great read for parents wondering if full-time RV life is worth it for their kids!)
I was homeschooled from the beginning until I graduated from high school, and I’m now homeschooling my family. I also teach writing and English to kids from around the world, many of whom are homeschooled. As a kid, I loved fantasy and adventure stories, but I didn’t really like realistic stories because I wasn’t familiar with things like homeroom or class periods. I have loved finding books with characters who are homeschooled, especially if homeschooling is portrayed accurately. I also love stories about relationships, so stories with strong family ties and deep friendships are meaningful to me. I hope that both homeschoolers and other schoolers can enjoy these book picks!
Mibs (the main character) isn’t homeschooled yet, but she is about to be homeschooled with her older siblings. The characters felt like ones I would meet in my homeschool or church life. They felt comfortable.
But more than that, this book is just fun. I love the story and the characters so much, as well as the struggle to find what makes a person unique. The family bonds in Savvyare strong, and Mibs develops deep friendships with characters of all ages. It’s a special story, and one of my favorites. I am not doing it justice by half.
1
author picked
Savvy
as one of their favorite books, and they share
why you should read it.
This book is for kids age
9,
10,
11, and
12.
What is this book about?
But just before the big day, Poppa is in a terrible accident. And now all Mibs wants is a savvy that will save him. In fact, Mibs is so sure she'll get a powerful savvy that she sneaks a ride to the hospital on a rickety bus with her sibling and the preacher's kids in tow. After this extraordinary adventure - full of talking tattoos and a kidnapping - not a soul on board will ever be the same.
Sunny Lancaster is an athlete and a dancer, moving through the world to the sounds of hip hop and his own thudding feet as he runs track.
Sunny has talent, but he’s running more to honor his mother’s legacy than to pursue his own dreams. I connected with this book as a teacher and a parent because it speaks so eloquently about letting young people find themselves and honoring their vision for the future.
Sunny tries to shine despite his troubled past in this third novel in the critically acclaimed Track series from National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds.
Ghost. Patina. Sunny. Lu. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds, with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team—a team that could take them to the state championships. They all have a lot to lose, but they all have a lot to prove, not only to each other, but to themselves. Sunny is the main character in this novel, the third of…
I grew up in a family of nature lovers and went with my parents and my brother on numerous nature hikes. These are my most precious childhood memories. I learned as a child to appreciate nature, I was fascinated by wild animals and inspired by the beauty of the natural world. As I grew up, I became more and more aware of how fragile the natural world is today and how important it is to protect it. This is one of the main motivators for me to create books for kids that will inspire them to love and respect nature.
What drew me first to this book were Cindy Derby's spectacular and unusual illustrations that are truly a celebration of wild nature. When I started reading, I was also drawn to the magic of Deborah Underwood's words and the perfect combination between words and pictures.
I identified with the feeling in the book that even when I'm inside, I can feel the outside. The outside in the book is constantly peeking in, when the main character of the story is inside–inside the house, inside school, inside the car. When I finished reading the book I couldn't wait to go outside, to the adventures that await me out there.
From the New York Times best-selling author behind The Quiet Book comes a mindful contemplation on the many ways nature affects our everyday lives, even when we're stuck inside. Five starred reviews!
Perfect for fans of Joyce Sidman and Julie Fogliano, Outside In reminds emerging readers of the ways nature creates and touches our lives in homes, apartments, and cars, and is the perfect homeschooling tool to reflect on the world's connectedness.
Outside is waiting, the most patient playmate of all. The most generous friend. The most miraculous inventor. This thought-provoking picture book poetically underscores…
Hey there, readers! One afternoon during my children’s naptime, I read a couldn’t-put-it-down young adult adventure story. It totally drew me in, but as much as I enjoyed it, I distinctly wished it had included Christian morals. The goal of my writing is to give God glory and encourage readers to grow in their faith. My hope is that seeing relatable characters choosing to let God’s light shine through them, even during hard situations, will inspire readers to trust God and strengthen their faith. Be inspired along with me when the characters in this book list courageously make the right choice.
While most of us won’t suddenly move from being homeschooled in an African village to attending a huge high school in California, readers can learn so much from Katie!
If you love books that emphasize strong families and congenial characters who face relevant issues, you’ll loveFaith Under Pressure.
I was inspired by the respect within Katie’s family, her desire to bloom where she’s planted, and her commitment to start a Christian club at school.
When agreeing to tutor a bully threatens her new friendships, Katie faces a new level of anxiety, and her faith will be tested like never before.
My family lived in an American camp in Saudi Arabia when I was young, and we traveled extensively. I’ve always loved ancient cultures, from our first international trip to Greece when I was six. The two months I spent in Mexico and Central America as a young adult inspired my first novel for young people, The Well of Sacrifice. But Egypt has long held a special place in my heart. The mummies and pyramids grab a child’s attention. The fact that these people were so different from us – and yet so similar in other ways – keeps that fascination going. Stories about ancient Egypt never get old!
This fun overview of life in ancient Egypt is written as a guidebook for the history traveler. This helps bring the past to life for kids on a more personal level.
The book combines all of ancient Egypt, which is hardly accurate, but it’s for children, not scholars. Teachers or homeschooling parents could have a lot of fun taking kids on an imaginary trip to the past.
Takes readers on a journey back in time in order to experience life in ancient Egypt, describing clothing, accommodations, foods, local customs, transportation, a few notable personalities, and more.
This book was a fun, quirky read right from page one. I loved how much it made me laugh.
It is a young adult murder mystery with fantastic elements and a good dose of humor. Chaffin is excellent at creating spunky characters that effortlessly pull you along through an intriguing mystery. I enjoyed how her poetic prose painted a vivid setting that enriched the story.
Marion isn’t crazy. She can talk to birds and see the future, but she isn’t crazy.
Fourteen-year-old Marion Morrissey has an overactive imagination. That’s why when she sees the body of a dead woman reflected in her bedroom mirror, no one thinks much about it. It’s just a trick of the light, until that same woman washes ashore after a hurricane, and things get real…and real weird.
First, Marion finds a ring on the waterfront.
Second, she tries it on – and she can talk to birds.
The police say the woman on the shore took her own life, but…
I wrestled with big questions as a child, particularly concerning gender inequality. I was aware of the issue as young as 7 years old. I didn’t even feel comfortable challenging the way things were until I was a young adult. Thus began my journey of researching, studying, and embracing women’s rights and gender equality. I feel very passionate about presenting those big questions earlier in the lives of girls, so they start feeling comfortable challenging the places where things don’t make sense, or the areas where inequality still exists. There is a need for more books like these in the market, but I hope you enjoy this list!
Ratchet, the main character, goes against all the stereotypical norms: she doesn’t like fashion, she works on cars and understands mechanical concepts, and, by virtue of her dad, gravitates toward environmentalism.
There’s so much to love about this book: it blends poetry and prose, the supporting characters (including Ratchet’s dad) are often hilariously entertaining, and the story is one of Ratchet finding herself and learning to accept her own unique self.
This heartwarming, coming of age story is the perfect book for middle school girls. Featuring a strong female character named Ratchet, who identifies as a motherless daughter, this relatable story with its illustrated format is particularly suited for 9-12 year old kids who love graphic novels.
If only getting a new life were as easy as getting a new notebook. But it's not.
It's the first day of school for all the kids in the neighborhood. But not for me. I'm homeschooled. That means nothing new. No new book…
I was homeschooled from the beginning until I graduated from high school, and I’m now homeschooling my family. I also teach writing and English to kids from around the world, many of whom are homeschooled. As a kid, I loved fantasy and adventure stories, but I didn’t really like realistic stories because I wasn’t familiar with things like homeroom or class periods. I have loved finding books with characters who are homeschooled, especially if homeschooling is portrayed accurately. I also love stories about relationships, so stories with strong family ties and deep friendships are meaningful to me. I hope that both homeschoolers and other schoolers can enjoy these book picks!
Eight Cousins is my favorite Louisa May Alcott book (but I like most of her books). Once again, the relationships are what make the story special. Rose begins the story as a sickly orphan, but through the unusual care and schooling of her guardian as well as her relationships with her cousins and aunts (she lives on the “aunt hill” – I love that name!), Rose learns and grows into a wise young woman. I loved the way the cousins acted like siblings and fought with each other and cared for each other. They reminded me of my siblings and cousins. Rose’s cousin, Mac, is one of my all-time favorite characters. This was a book I couldn’t put down.
After the death of her father, orphan Rose Campbell has no choice but to go and live at the 'Aunt Hill' with her six aunts and seven boy cousins. For someone who was used to a girl's boarding school, it all seems pretty overwhelming, especially since her guardian Uncle Alec makes her eat healthy things like oatmeal, and even tries to get her to give up her pretty dresses for more drab, sensible clothes. Will Rose ever get used to her Uncle's strange ideas and all her noisy relatives? Will there come a day when she can't imagine living anywhere…
My first animal story, Lost in the Snow, was based on stories that my mum and I invented together when I was very small, about our stray cat Rosie. She walked into my dad’s office and sat down in his chair when he was out at lunch! I loved imagining her adventures as a stray kitten, and those stories could be scary, sad, emotional as anything – because we knew she came home to live safe and happy with us. I’ve been creating stories about animals ever since.
Another fox book! Such a wonderful story of love between a boy and a wild creature. Pax’s relationship with the rest of the foxes is so brilliantly told – he longs to belong with them, but he’s still so closely woven with Peter, his boy. The strange, jarring background of war adds so much tension to this story too – no one can be safe. Utterly gripping.
3
authors picked
Pax
as one of their favorite books, and they share
why you should read it.
This book is for kids age
9,
10,
11, and
12.
What is this book about?
The moving story of the extraordinary friendship between a boy and his fox and their epic journey to be reunited. Beautifully illustrated by multi-award winner, Jon Klassen. Now available in Paperback!
Pax was only a kit when his family was killed and he was rescued by 'his boy', Peter. Now the country is at war and when his father enlists, Peter has no choice but to move in with his grandfather. Far worse than leaving home is the fact that he has to leave Pax behind. But before Peter spends even one night under his grandfather's roof he sneaks out…
