Episode 004 - Emily Ridley, Homeschooling Mom turned Private Entrepreneur of "Home Light Academ
Emily Ridley grew up near Hartford, Connecticut. She had what she considers to be a better-than-average middle and high school education, thanks to great teachers in a small-town school setting. Her home was a place where learning was emphasized and encouraged. Learning is fascinating to her on many levels. She graduated from Brigham YoungUniversity in biology in 2000. Emily has home schooled her three children since February 1st, 2008, with the support of her husband, using several different methods and programs, including public online programs through the local district. Her family has been involved in home school groups in Utah and Idaho over the last 7 years. She has taught part time in schools, tutored in several different capacities (age levels, subjects, and settings), and taught classes for home school co-ops. In July 2014, she founded a very small private school called Home Light Academy, which runs out of her home during the traditional school year. Emily's other interests include music, photography, sports, and good books!
Contact Info: homelightacademy@gmail.com
Home Light Academy is meant to be a return, in some ways, to the one-room-school-house days of 19th century America. Each student will be engaged in mastering a body of knowledge and skills at their own pace with one-on-one instruction as needed. Real education happens when students are educating themselves, when they are interested in the material they are studying, when they are driven by a goal of the mastery of that material, and when they are expressing or teaching others what they are learning. The family is central in this process. Parents are the experts on their children; they know them best - not teachers, administrators, or the government. Parents will decide what their children should study and will always be able to see how they are progressing. Family time is very important and needs to be guarded carefully. In the setting of Home Light Academy, the more formal aspect of education need only take half of a typical school day or less, given the efficiency of one-on-one instruction and self-education. As a community of families educating our children, we will be able to pool our resources and help each other along the way. Our mission will be to strengthen our families and our community and to teach our children to educate their minds and spirits so that they can become courageous, wise, caring leaders of their own future families and communities.
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