What materials are needed to roadschool?

Learning comes naturally when you're there. Climbing a Mayan temple at Lamanai ruins in Belize.

Education is a huge concern to parents, as it should be. When we travel long term, it can be even more of a concern. Will your travels handicap your child? Will he keep up with his peers? Is this travel idea a good one?

As a long-time schoolteacher and roadschooling mom for four years, I can say with absolute certainty that you needn’t worry. Your child will do just fine. And no, you don’t need to haul a classroom around the world with you.

As roadschoolers, you’ll have the advantage of being in unique locations and you’ll be able to take advantage of that fact.  When you visit national parks, take time to listen to the ranger talks and read the info presented in the visitor centers. As you drive along the highway, stop and read the historical markers. You will find that a huge amount of your children’s education can come from simply taking advantage of your local environment – wherever that happens to be today.

There are some materials that will make your life easier on the road. Each family will choose different items, but this is what we carried with us on our bicycles as we traveled the world on two wheels:

• Kindles – the best purchase ever. Our sons could download English books no matter where we happened to be.
• Math books – For younger children, all they need to know in this area can easily be incorporated into your daily routine, but for older kids who are studying more advanced math, it’s not as easy.  We managed to get some math books from a school that had purchased new ones and was discarding their old copies.
• Notebook – We carried a notebook for each child. They used them as journals if we were camping out and they didn’t have access to a computer, and as paper for math. We bought small notebooks and replaced them when full.
• Calculator/Thesaurus/Dictionary/Translator – One machine did it all. It was the size of a normal calculator, but was so much more.
• Maps – We carried maps so we knew where we were going, but they also made great teaching materials.
• Computers and various CDs – A computer is a great tool!  We had a wide variety of educational programs for our children – from an entire earth science book that had been scanned to geography programs to math drill. There is no end to what you can find for the computer.
• Creativity – This is the most important thing to take with you!  By thinking creatively, you will find you can provide an awesome educational program for your children no matter where you happen to be in the world!