Sims boys hiking in Unicoi State Park

Expert Advice

Roadschooling Tool Kits

With a few simple tools, you can jump into roadschooling with both feet and feel confident in your quest to take education to the road!

So you’ve heard a lot about this term “roadschooling“, and you’re interested in getting started but you have no clue if you have the tools to pull this off. You are certainly not alone and that’s where we hope to come to the rescue. We know that many people feel that homeschooling or in this case roadschooling is far out of their reach. We’re here to tell you that with a few essential tools you can jump in with both feet and feel confident in your quest to conquer roadschooling!

Let’s start simply, roadschooling is just homeschooling while traveling. That’s it, nothing more and nothing less. Much like homeschooling, there is no defined “must do” or a defined path. You get to design and control the flow. Roadschooling allows us the benefit of incorporating our children’s education into our travels. It’s the perfect marriage for our family. Now don’t get me wrong, you will probably stumble a few times as you find your roadschooling groove. Let us help you limit some of those early mistakes. So to make your life easier here are our top five “must have, must know” essentials to create an effective and pain-free roadschooling experience.

  • A Curriculum that is Mobile

    This means whatever curriculum you choose in any particular subject needs to be mobile or you must have the ability to take it with you when you travel. Not having to carry large bulky books for each subject is a big plus. Example... we use Teaching Textbooks for the boys math studies. We have both the CD Version and the online resources in case we have issues with internet connectivity. Some of our other curriculum, (science, art) relies on an internet connection. This is great because it limits the amount of “stuff” you have to carry with you, but it does make internet connectivity an important part of our travel.

  • Speaking of Internet Connections...

    for our way of roadschooling, this is a must have. We believe firmly in redundancy and carry multiple cell carriers with us. We keep our cell phones with hotspot data plans on T-mobile and have data hotspot plans with both AT&T and Verizon. Since we are on the road typically over 100 days every year, we invested in this connectivity. Most people won’t need multiple carriers, but trust us it’s a great luxury to have on the road!
  • Cellular Booster

    So you spent the money on the hotspot plans but you're still only getting one bar when you travel. That’s where a cell booster can really come in handy. RV parks are well aware of their need to upgrade their WiFi networks but until they do and have enough bandwidth for a campground full of RVers to be streaming at the same time, we think it’s best to carry our own. A cellular booster can turn a usable signal into something that we can download and watch Netflix. Having a usable signal allows the boys to log in to their outschool classes no matter where we are located. Just keep in mind these boosters only amplify a signal that’s already there. If you're boondocking out in the middle of nowhere, it may not help.
  • Museum Reciprocal Memberships

    Roadschooling is like being on a continuous field trip, and who doesn't like to visit museums? Did you know that many museums have membership levels that offer reciprocal benefits at hundreds of other museums around the country? Our memberships and their perks have saved us thousands of dollars over the years. These are renewable, tax deductible in most cases, but check with your tax professional.

BONUS TIP: These are renewable and tax deductible in most cases, but check with your tax professional. Membership types include children’s museums (ACM,) zoos and aquariums(AZA), science museums( ASTC),and history museums ( NARM, Smithsonian affiliate). This is just a sampling of the memberships that are out there. Here is a link to a Fulltime Families’ post here that explains these memberships and a few more, plus tips on how to maximize your memberships in more detail!

  • Be creative and have fun!

    I know, I know. You're not a teacher, or you think you don’t have the time to be creative. But trust me, yes, you do! By creative I mean taking the time to do research on places you want to visit. Sometimes we choose a destination based on the educational things we want to do. Other times, it’s the opposite and we pick a destination and then search for learning opportunities within that area. The key is just realizing that there is likely something educational to see or do everywhere you go. A simple hike can turn into a nature walk exploring the local environment and you can teach the kids about the animals that live in that region. Going zip-lining? How about a math lesson on the angles of the zip-line and calculating the speeds based on rider weights? Ready to cook? How about taking a local cooking class that features the specialties of that area? Try visiting a local bookstore and hear an author discuss their book. The opportunities are endless.

So there you have five of our must have tools to successfully road school.  You’ll find once you start looking for places to learn and things to do, you won’t have enough time to fit them all into your schedule. Pssst...one more small thing. If you're anything like us, you will enjoy these learning opportunities as much or more than your kids. Never stop learning! 

picture of a family

Soulful RV Family

After 11 years in the trenches of the NFL, Keith Sims was ready for a change of pace. Little did he know his wife, Tia, had been plotting for this moment for years, and had long ago decided that they and their three boys were going to discover new roads in an RV. They now spend more than 100 days and nights each year touring the country, and use the travel experiences to enhance the boys’ homeschool education.