Special Episode: 5 Signs You’ve Got a Ho Hum Homeschool

Homeschool Better Together with Pam Barnhill

Pam Barnhill

Kids & Family, Christianity, Education, Religion & Spirituality

4.9 • 683 Ratings

🗓️ 24 July 2025

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Is your homeschool running on autopilot and losing its spark? You're not alone, and you’re definitely not failing. In this special episode, I’m getting real about a syndrome I call the “Ho Hum Homeschool.” You know, when you’re doing all the things, color-coded planners, checklists, math, and reading, but somehow, none of it feels like actual learning. The days start to blur together. The joy fades. You start wondering: why does this feel so hard? (And if it’s just us, or if everyone’s eating cereal for every meal in May.)

Grab a cool drink, your favorite homeschool catalog, and let’s have a gut-check. I’ll walk you through the five big warning signs your homeschool might be a little (or a lot) off track, even if you look good on paper. Spoiler: It’s not about buying new curriculum, hacking your whole schedule, or laminating every last thing in sight.

But don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging! I’m inviting you to my favorite (and totally free) workshop, The Case of the Ho Hum Homeschool, where we’ll use some playful detective work and real-life encouragement to uncover the three small but powerful shifts that can bring the heart, the connection, and the joy back into your homeschool days. No trench coat required, I promise.

Here’s what we’re covering:

The true signs your homeschool is flatlining (even if you’re “checking the boxes”)
Why more curriculum and new schedules aren’t the solution to burnout (and what is)
Why fun and connection are always the first things to get cut, and how to fix it
How to design a homeschool day that actually feels good for your family (without the guilt or overwhelm)
A behind-the-scenes sneak peek at my free, hope-filled workshop to help you reset before next year (even if you’re already tired planning!)

Mentioned resources:

Ready for clarity and actual hope (not just another to-do list)?

Head to pambarnhill.com/hohum to save your seat for the workshop, free, actionable, and replay available!

Transcript

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0:00.0	Are you ready for homeschooling to feel joyful again?
0:05.4	Do you long for support as you learn alongside your kids?
0:10.3	Welcome to Home School Better Together, a podcast about building a homeschool experience that works for your family.
0:18.2	I'm Pam Barnhill, and it's time to step out of the overwhelm and into the wonder.
0:23.9	Let's do this.
0:28.0	Hey there, friend, and welcome to the podcast. If you are listening with a cold drink in one hand
0:34.1	and a stack of homeschool catalogs in the other, you might just be in summer planning mode.
0:40.9	You've made it through another school year. You've caught your breath, sort of. And now you're
0:45.4	looking ahead and you're thinking, how do I make next year feel better than the last? And first of all,
0:53.6	yes, I love that for you.
0:55.9	But maybe you're also thinking,
0:59.5	last year felt kind of off.
1:02.1	Or we got stuff done, but it wasn't any fun.
1:05.7	Oh yeah, I've been there.
1:07.2	Or it all started so strong and then it fizzled by October.
1:14.0	Mm-hmm.
1:14.9	If that sounds familiar, then I want to gently suggest something.
1:20.0	You might be dealing with what I call the Ho-Hum homeschool.
1:25.6	So what is a Ho-Hum homeschool? Well, it's not exactly burnout and it's not chaotic.
1:32.5	It's not you sobbing into a pile of broken pencils and, hey, no shame if that's happened, right?
1:38.7	But it's more like a low-grade, meh. You're going through the motions, but something's missing. You're doing
1:47.3	school, but it doesn't feel like learning. And you've got that sneaky suspicion that it's not
	...

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