Episode 144. Clonlara: Unique Accredited Support for Homeschoolers—An interview with Clonlara Director of Education April Huard
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Episode 144. Clonlara: Unique Accredited Support for Homeschoolers—An interview with Clonlara Director of Education April Huard

Episode 144

My children are homeschooled at home in Idaho but are technically private school students at Clonlara School in Michigan. How does that work? I get that question A LOT so I’ve invited April Huard, the Director of Education at Clonlara School onto the show to answer that question and share more about Clonlara’s unique and transformative mission.

Clonlara’s Mission: The mission of Clonlara School is to transform education on a global scale through a highly personalized approach that fosters authenticity, autonomy, and joy in the learning process. We are passionate about supporting homeschooling families as they follow their curiosities and become lifelong learners.

April Huard Bio: April is currently the Director of Education at Clonlara School, but started her education career as a second-grade teacher in a public school. When her oldest child was ready for kindergarten, she quit her job to start homeschooling her. April had no idea at the time that homeschooling would turn into a lifelong passion and prepare her for a career at Clonlara School. April and her husband have homeschooled all five of their children at various points during their school years. At Clonlara, April works with on-campus and off-campus students and an amazing global team of passionate educators.

In this episode, April & I talk about:

  • Her journey to her role at Clonlara
  • Multiple language options available
  • On campus programs
  • Off campus programs
  • How Clonlara came to be
  • Homeschool support
  • Accreditation
  • The history of homeschool laws in Michigan
  • Homeschool became legal in Michigan in 1993
  • The founder Pat
  • Who uses Clonlara’s unique education support
  • The role of advisors at Clonlara
  • Global change begins at home with moms
  • Taking responsibility for our child’s education
  • There is no one size fits all answer for anything ever
  • Support for homeschool moms
  • Support for homeschool parents
  • Diversity of Clonlara families
  • Global learning community
  • Changes since Covid
  • Clubs and group activities for students
  • Socialization and homeschooling
  • We’re not alone in our teaching
  • We’re not alone in our homeschool
  • Benefits of Clonlara
  • Get your high school diploma through Clonlara
  • Transcripts for homeschoolers
  • The natural learning process made visible
  • Metacognition skills
  • Reflecting on progress
  • Self reflection
  • Teaching follow through
  • Keeping doors and opportunities open for students
  • Curriculum suggestions
  • The role of Clonlara advisors
  • Interest Led Learning
  • Education reform
  • The face of education is changing
  • Shifts that have happened since covid
  • Hybrid schooling
  • Learning pods
  • Micro schools
  • Education trends being discussed at education conferences
  • Homeschool is legal in all 50 states
  • Alternative education models
  • Feeling more freedom to explore alternative education
  • Approaching education with ease
  • Good teachers bring oxygen to the room
  • Clonlara means “meadow of the mare”

Clonlara Links: Website, Facebook, and Instagram

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SPONSOR

Homeschool Explained. Today’s episode is sponsored by Homeschool Explained, an online course I created to help parents find their confidence as they begin their homeschool journey. Homeschool Explained is also for families who are already homeschooling but feel they could use more resources and a confidence boost to keep going,

My course is designed to save you time; it can be really overwhelming typing “how to homeschool” into an online search engine then spending hours sorting through the results. With Homeschool Explained, there will be no more maddening online searches for how to start homeschooling—this is me, a passionate veteran homeschool mom, holding your hand and walking you through homeschool 101 in just under 3 hours. The course is outlined to be logical and easy to understand. I take over 15 years of homeschool experience and condense it into a 3 hour instructional video and include a newly updated, downloadable PDF. I’m super stoked to announce that the PDF isn’t the only new upgrade! I’m now including ongoing encouragement! So your learning doesn’t end when the tutorial video stops. At least once a month I’ll upload encouragement for you. This month I have 2…an audio for parents who are teaching their young children to read and a video about joyful journaling—how to bring joy into writing and record keeping.

I used to teach in-person workshops when I lived on Maui to help families gather all the information and resources they needed, answer all their questions, alleviate concerns, and help them get organized as they started homeschooling. Homeschool Explained is the online version of those workshops. I totally get it, starting any new journey can be really overwhelming…especially when it comes to re-thinking how your kids are going to get an education—and that you’re going to be the teacher. But don’t worry. There is so much support and freedom in homeschooling. It’s do-able. It’s fun. And it takes way less time than most people think. I put over 15 years of homeschool experience and insights into this easy to follow, easy to use online course that answers common questions, helps you work through worries, and saves you time. No more internet search overload. This is all the info you need to get started homeschooling today from a trusted, experienced source.

I show you what modern homeschool days actually look like—all while covering major topics like curriculum, homeschool styles, subjects to teach, cost, state laws, socialization and so much more. This course takes the guess work out of where and how to begin and leaves you with solid support and resources from day one. I would be honored to help you to start your homeschool journey with confidence! Find out more at www.homeschoolexplained.com

LINKS

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Visit Today’s Sponsor: Homeschool Explained
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