It Started With the Battle of Curriculum Resistance
Three years ago, I walked into homeschooling like I was starting a new job I had spent hours of research and anxiety preparing for. I was ready. Hours of YouTube videos, a variety of books, and dozens of podcasts were in my back pocket for reference.
I had a planner ready to go and the “perfect” curriculum for each kid. I had a vision in my head of how peaceful our homeschool days would be: read-alouds by candlelight, kids joyfully solving math problems, and me sipping coffee while someone spontaneously wrote an essay about ancient Mesopotamia. You know, normal homeschool mom fantasies.
What I wasn’t prepared for was the resistance.
There was the typical whining and the echo of “do I have to?” But there were also tears. That was something I wasn’t prepared for. I mean, my kids had been in school and the stuff we were doing was definitely less time consuming and not overly challenging, so what gives?!
My oldest, who has always been curious and bright, was pushing back and avoiding coming to the table. My youngest daughter started asking every morning, “Are we done yet?” before we even began. Even I started to feel like I was dragging us all through quicksand.
I kept thinking, but this curriculum totally fits them, and it has great reviews. It’s supposed to be engaging! I don’t understand why this isn’t working.
That question led me to go back to the drawing board, and ultimately back to the research center. That’s when I started diving deep into the world of unschooling, child-led learning, and interest-led approaches. I didn’t know if I was ready to unschool completely, but I knew I need to make a change.
When Homeschooling Felt Rigid and Unschooling Too Wild, Interest-Led Learning Was the Sweet Spot
There were some subjects that they enjoyed like poetry and art, shoutout to all the Charlotte-Masoners out there, and others that felt like they should be full of joy and weren’t. Science and History sound like they will be fun and engaging, but the only time my girls showed any interest in these subjects were when they were going down their own rabbit holes.
After months of trying to push through, trying out different curriculum samples, and realizing that it just wasn’t working, we stepped away from the structure. We skimmed back to the basics of math and language arts and started spending the rest of our time reading lots and lots of books.
One of those books ended up being a book about Anne Frank. That’s when I saw the first big “academic” related spark. My oldest became OBSESSED with all things Anne Frank, Holocaust, and World War II related.
I’ve talked about this before because it really set us on a brand new path. It was a pivotal moment in our homeschooling journey. World War II was not a scheduled curriculum, and my youngest had basically no interest in it.
So my oldest and I got more books, we watched some kid appropriate videos about the Holocaust, and we took a virtual tour of the house Anne Frank hid in.
My oldest lit up. She was asking questions, making connections, and actually enjoying herself. And I didn’t have to beg her to pay attention.
I started to wonder… What if we did more of this? What if we let curiosity lead instead of the lesson plan? Maybe the idea of an “almost unschool” approach could work for us.
Feeling Stuck: Why Our Homeschool Journey Needed a New Approach
Letting go of the structure I had built was scary at first. I had worked so hard to “do it right,” and interest-led learning felt like I was tossing the rulebook out the window.
Part of me worried I was being lazy, hence the title of my blog. I mean, everyone I saw on the internet was showing their perfectly curated lesson plans, curriculum recommendations, and fully cooperative kids sitting around the table. Yet here I was spending just as much time observing, finding resources, and investing in the things they are passionate about.
So why did the doubts keep creeping in? How were others able to fully unschool while I struggled to even “almost unschool.”
Was I failing them by not sticking to a structured curriculum? Would they fall behind? Would I be judged?
But here’s what I learned: the pressure to stick to a plan can drain the life out of learning. I was so focused on checking boxes and staying “on track” that I lost sight of why we chose to homeschool in the first place—to create a love of learning, to honor their individual needs, and to have more freedom and joy in our days.
I took a breath and decided that I needed to focus on those “why’s.”
How Embracing Interest-Led Learning Changed Our Daily Homeschool Routine
The first thing I tried was asking my kids what they wanted to learn about. They had no idea.
I tried prompting them with, “If we could learn anything at all, what would you be curious to explore?” They sat there and stared at me like I had three heads. Back to the drawing board.
We did the little bit of curriculum we had left in the mornings with them and then I stepped back and observed.
What did they want to do with their free time? What did they choose to explore without any prompting? I learned that my oldest wanted to learn all sorts of things I never would have thought of: sign language, sewing, anything solar system related. My youngest was thoroughly enjoying all things art related: crafts, directed drawings, cardboard box creations, learning guitar.
And so our days went. We did our math and language arts quickly every morning and then found ways to explore their interests and expose them to even more options. I never fully let go of curriculum and so we deemed ourselves “almost unschoolers.”
Here’s how I embraced another Charlotte Mason method and started embracing showing them a buffet of information:
- Using documentaries, pre-screened YouTube videos, and living books instead of textbooks. If the girls asked a question, I would find a fun way to answer it. I found picture book biographies that told stories of people from the past and we read.
- Going on outings to zoos, museums, and local historical sites. Some days we just went to the pool or somewhere without a clear educational purpose. This is when I was able to find learning in the most curious of places. Resilience, perseverance, teamwork: these are the things that no textbook could ever teach.
- Writing stories or drew pictures to go along with stories we were reading together. If writing was a point of resistance, I didn’t push it. The joy was the important part.
- I’m arguably not the most savvy in the kitchen, but both of my girls love cooking and baking. I watched as math came alive through the measuring process and altering recipes of their choosing to fit how many cookies we really wanted (9 is not nearly enough.)
- Reading became our primary portal to fuel their interests. For my youngest, she gained a confidence that didn’t feel forced by phonics practice or forced curriculum.
Sure, there were still “quiet work” times and occasional structured lessons, especially for foundational skills. But those were woven into the flow of our day, not imposed on it and they were now the minority of our day.
Another huge benefit of making the switch was the ability to accommodate my daughter who has ADHD. She wasn’t feeling like she was failing because you can’t fail at doing things you love and enjoy! Here are some other ways we have learned to work with her ADHD instead of making her conform to structure.
It felt lighter. Freer. More like a lifestyle of learning than a checklist of tasks. Maybe the true unschoolers were onto something.
Why Interest-Led Learning Works (And How It Strengthens the Homeschool Journey)
Here’s the truth I wish I had understood earlier: Learning doesn’t have to be forced to be real. In fact, the most lasting, meaningful learning often happens when it isn’t forced.
Interest-led learning works because it taps into a child’s natural drive to explore, understand, and make sense of the world. Kids are wired to learn. Have you ever met a four year old who didn’t ask “why” over and over or come up with the craziest questions you’ve ever heard?
It was when I realized that those questions were fading over time that I realized that it wasn’t because my kids were growing up, it was because the system they were in was telling them that those questions weren’t important, weren’t part of the lesson plan.
When we follow our kids’ interests, we’re saying:
- “I trust your curiosity.”
- “Your voice matters here.”
- “You’re not just a student to be molded—you’re a whole person.”
This approach isn’t only an open door to learning, but an opportunity for connection. There’s less conflict and more opportunities to learn together.
It also teaches kids how to learn how to learn instead of what to learn, a life-long skill that has gone to the wayside over the years. They become resourceful, creative, self-motivated thinkers. And those qualities will serve them far beyond spelling lists or history dates.
Getting Started with Interest-Led Learning: Simple Tips for Homeschool Success
If this sounds like something you’re interested in embracing but also overwhelming, I get it. Starting something new always feels a little wobbly at first. But you don’t have to flip your homeschool upside down overnight.
Here are a few gentle, doable ways to begin:
1. Ask your child what they’re curious about.
Let their answers guide a theme for the week, or even just one afternoon. If they don’t have an answer to this, that’s okay!
2. Build learning around that interest or another interest you’ve observed.
Watch a documentary, check out library books, do a craft or science experiment, or let them create a project to show what they’ve learned.
3. Let go of the guilt.
You’re not lazy. You’re being intentional in a different way. Following your child’s interests doesn’t mean abandoning structure, it means making space for connection and joy.
Trusting the Journey: Final Thoughts on Interest-Led Learning and Homeschooling
Interest-led learning isn’t a magic fix to all struggles in your homeschool, but it can be a powerful shift. It reminded me why we started homeschooling in the first place: to create a life where learning feels meaningful, not just mandatory.
Some days are still a struggle, even for just the basic curriculum. Some interests fizzle out quickly. And sometimes we still use bookwork when it makes sense. But overall, our homeschool is calmer, happier, and more connected than it ever was before.
Trusting your child’s curiosity isn’t giving up control, you’re giving them the gift of agency. You’re saying, “Your passions matter. Your questions matter. You matter.”
Check out my freebie interest-led learning survey to do with your kiddo/s by signing up below. It’s a great starting point to help guide a new way of homeschooling.
