Homeschooling
Here you will find a collection of blogposts related to homeschooling which I’ve published both on my blog and on my instagram page. My name is Kouria Destinie and I'm excited you are here! I use my little space here on the web to share resources I find that may be useful to others interested in bringing the life of the Church into their homes! As an Orthodox Christian, wife of an Orthodox Priest, and homeschool mom of 4, I love sharing what’s working for us, and what resources we have found useful. Living out the Ancient Faith in a modern world takes intention. I will happily walk along side you, sharing what I am learning and finding, so together we can raise up the next generation of Christians who love God with all their hearts and minds!
I’ve put them into two sections. One for homeschool specific resources and one for book reviews. They are organized by the most recent blogpost at the top. See below:
Homeschooling:
By popular demand, here a 12 month bundle with all of the prints in one easy download. Last year, I was making these prints as I went throughout the year, so we finally now have 12 months (with adjusted dates for 2025) all in one!
As apart of our homeschool routine, we say prayers together before we begin. These are some of my favorite morning prayer/student Orthodox prayers. I wanted something beautiful we could hang up so the prayers were easy to find and pray together. Another aspect that was very important to me was that my children has a way of visually tracking their various tasks throughout the way.
Book Reviews:
I love Theology and all things Orthodox, but in this season of life I need simplicity. A little nugget to take and slowly digest. I try to carve out a few minutes a day to read, so sometimes I get one or two pages in. I also recently subscribed to Audible and I have enjoyed listening to books while doing chores, or nursing my little one - and I have found that I am actually able to “read” a lot more through that method. So I will share my booklist on Audible as well! Below you will find my current reading list and a brief commentary on my thoughts so far!
Do you have a notebook for taking down quotes from Holy Fathers in your reading? Do you always have a book of Holy Fathers that you are reading, and can turn to in a moment of gloom? Start now - this is essential.” - Fr Seraphim Rose.
There are a plethora of wonderful books on the market today for children to better understand our Orthodox Faith. Every year at Pascha, we gift our children a new book to add to our collection - usually surrounding the theme of the season. These are the ones we have read and loved! I’ve also added the age range that I think is appropriate to introduce it, but of course most of these books can be read aloud on the laps of mom and dad and would be perfectly suited for the whole family.
One of my favorite gifts to give for baptisms, specifically for children, is an Orthodox book about baptism! For many young children, they may not remember the details of their baptism, so showing them photos of that day and reading a book about it (especially for older siblings) can be a wonderful way to talk about the day they became a Christian! Check out this Orthodox Baptism Package. All 4 of these books are sold individually or as a bundle by Potamitis Press
One of my goals for the New Year is to “write it down”. Check out these Orthodox resources that will aid in this goal including the Journal of Thanksgiving by Ancient Faith which has lines to record gratitude for every day of the year for 3 years.
Breakfast is usually the time of day we do our saint study. I keep a cookbook stand on the table opened up to the saint of the day. We eat all our meals together at the kitchen table (a practice I am trying very hard to establish). We start with prayer before our meal and after I have eaten a little bit, I begin to read the story of the saint of the day from our My Synaxarion Series. This usually takes just a few short minutes, and since the children are eating, they are a captive audience! It’s the perfect time to set aside to read.
My Review: One of my priorities as a mother raising children in the Orthodox Church is to share with them the stories of those Christians who have fought the good fight, have finished the race, have kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7). Each volume includes a collection of detailed Saint Stories written with children in mind (ages 5+). This is a super incredible option for families attempting to create their own Synaxarion reading library for children.
My oldest turned 7 this year, and up until this point we have been using a very simple book to help guide her through the Divine Liturgy. I was so pleased when I discovered Christ Amongst Us by Newrome Press. This book is both an easy to understand commentary on the Divine Liturgy according to the writings of the Holy Fathers and includes the text for the Divine Liturgy according to St John Chrysostom.
When it comes to teaching my children about the Orthodox Faith, it is very valuable to have trustworthy resources. When asked if I was willing to review The Good Samaritan: A Children’s Catechism, I was ecstatic since I have been searching for a book just like this!
Take a peak inside the newly released coloring book Beautiful Days by Ancient Faith Publishing showcasing “every day Orthodox living” which includes common scenes they might see in your home or in your community. My girls especially loved the icons that they recognized from our home! This coloring book is perfect for a beautiful day of coloring, or throw it in your church bag for a quiet activity for busy hands. One feature I especially love is the pages are perforated which makes for a clean tear when the time comes to remove their masterpiece!
If you have a small child and you are looking for age appropriate Orthodox children’s books, then this is the list for you! The target age for these books is 0-3 years old, and I’ve broken it down based on age. As a homeschool mother of 3 (soon to be 4) young children, I know how important it is to have good books for my children. I’ve only included books that we have read, own and loved so you can be confident that these books are tried and true.
In order to consistently read the scriptures or daily saints with my children, I’ve found that having a cookbook stand with either the Bible or a Saint book that lives on the table has helped tremendously!
Day in the life of an Orthodox Homeschool mom of 4. After a lot of trial and error with different routines, I feel like we are finally landing on something sustainable for us. I find myself really enjoying our days together. I go to bed thinking about the next day, and wake up excited to begin again. So my hope in sharing these glimpses is to show a few snap shots of our day (with time stamps) and give you an idea of what our morning looks like right now. Bear in mind, I have 4 kids ages 1-8. With a 1-year old, our schedule feels like its always changing, so this is what is working now.