Books about kids who homeschool are few and far between, but not for long. Lisa Cottrell-Bentley, an unschooling mother of two girls, recently released the second in her series of books about the fictitious Wright Family.
Wright on Time Books
The Wright on Time series follows the adventures of the fictitious road-schooling Wright Family. Parents Stephanie and Harrison, along with their children Nadia and Aidan, have moved into the RV and are full-time students of life, visiting every state for a hands-on education.
Book One: Arizona
In the first book of the series, released in autumn of 2009, the Wrights rent a cave in Arizona for the day. How many readers even knew that was possible? Inspiration for the series comes from Lisa's own RV travels with her children as well as interviews with other road-schooling families.
Book one takes place entirely in the cave where Aidan gets to see "freaky cool" bats up close, Nadia gets to mine for gemstones and readers get a glimpse of real-life science.
Book Two: Utah
In book one, the Wright's mention that their next stop is Utah. A curious treasure from their Arizona cave exploration leaves readers wondering what their friends in Utah will tell them about its origins. The Utah book was released in November of 2009 and the series is becoming popular with road-schooler, unschoolers and homeschoolers. Readers can follow along with the family's adventures through Nadia's blog.
Other Books About Homeschooled Kids
Also fairly new is Rain Fordyce's I am learning all the Time [Homeschool Adventure Books, 2008] which chronicles the thoughts and experiences of 5 year old Hugh as he begins official homeschooling and watches his friends go off to kindergarten.
Both authors were inspired by their own families, and the market for books homeschooled kids can relate to is a fresh one.
Real-Life Road Schoolers
Bentley has immersed herself in the world of road-schooling, taking her family on extended road trips and getting feedback from families all over the United States, quite literally. Families living on the road, modern day nomads, are catalogued on her website, where families answer 20 questions about life on the road.
Picturing a lifestyle without schooling is often difficult for families who haven't experienced homeschooling. Even homeschool families may have difficulty imagining life on the road. The Wright on Time series successfully creates a vision of travel-based education while simultaneously inspiring a thirst for exploration that wannabe nomads will respond to wholeheartedly.
Disclosure: Lisa Russell has received a review copy of Wright On Time Book One: Arizona by Lisa M. Cottrell-Bentley [Do Life Right, 2009]
Lisa Russell - Lisa Russell is a freelance writer and mom of six daughters. She blogs about their life at lisarussell.org
