Sarah Mackenzie's Blog

What is your calling in life? 

For poet, songwriter, and academic, Malcolm Guite, it’s unequivocally clear—to be a storyteller. 

Today on the podcast Audrey and I chat with Malcolm about the first volume in his new retelling of the classic King Arthur stories, Galahad and the Grail, illustrated by the incredible Stephen Crotts and published by our friends over at Rabbit Room Press. 

Not only is Malcolm adapting the legends of King Arthur, he’s doing it in poetic ballad form, which means...

We know that we want our kids to love to read. And it’s important (really important!) to give them the best chance fall in love with books. That’s why so many of us get worried when we have a child who doesn’t love reading. It’s a valid worry.

What can be done about it?

On today’s episode of the podcast, I share ideas for what to do when your child doesn’t love reading. We can’t exactly make our kids into readers, but we can give them the best chance possible that they’ll become readers ...

We all want to build those meaningful and lasting connections with our kids. 

Around here, we’re usually talking about doing that through books and reading aloud. But how do we extend these connections into our everyday, ordinary parenting moments?  

Today, I’m talking to one of my favorite people to listen to when it comes to relationships. Dr Matthew Breuninger is a clinical psychologist and author of Finding Freedom in Christ: Healing Life’s Hurts and in this episode he shares how safe,...

Today, we’re revisiting a listener-favorite episode that has some advice and an activity that I think are perfect for this time of year in our homeschools.

Jon Acuff, author of All It Takes Is a Goal, joined me a while back for a perspective-shifting conversation about setting and achieving goals for our homeschools, and how looking back at our best moments, from major milestones to pockets of joy, helps us envision the kind of future we really want. 

Jon also shares some practical tips fo...

We talk a lot around here about the incredible impact stories have on our kids. They build empathy and connection, letting us walk a mile in another’s shoes. And some stories also help us see what it looks like to be brave and courageous, even in the face of fear or daunting challenges.

Today, Audrey is back to talk with me about how stories inspire courage in our kids and ourselves and can connect us to profound truths, no matter how fantastical the setting.

Why do we read aloud to our kids? Especially those who can read to themselves? 

This is a topic that comes up all the time at Read-Aloud Revival and it’s one I’m super passionate about. It’s foundational to what we do around here and I firmly believe it’s vital to our kids becoming lifelong readers. 

In this episode, we’re talking about the impact reading aloud has on our children, regardless of their independent reading level. Research shows that there are many benefits to reading aloud t...

Today’s episode is a special treat featuring the return of a listener-favorite guest who happens to be one of my favorite people, too.

Back on episode 209, my eldest daughter, Audrey, joined me to share her perspective on what it was like growing up in our bustling homeschool family. Ever since that episode aired, listeners have asked for updates on what she’s up to and how she’s doing. Suffice it to say, she’s had a few more adventures since we recorded that episode!

So I’m delighted to ...

If I were to ask you if your life ever felt tranquil, you would probably do one of two things: bust out laughing or look at me like I was from another planet.

I get it, I really do. 

Which is why I’m so excited to have the author of one of my absolute tippy-top recommended books with me today. Laura Vanderkam is a time management expert, mother of five, and the author of Tranquility by Tuesday: 9 Ways to Calm the Chaos and Make Time for What Matters. 

Laura suggests that to bring more t...

What if I told you there’s an Icelandic Christmas tradition where the whole point is to spend an evening sitting around, sipping hot cocoa, and reading books?

Sign me up, right?

Today, we’re talking about Jolabokaflod, which loosely translates to “Yule Book Flood,” how it started, and how you can bring the magic of this bookish tradition into your home this Christmas.

We all know there is no shortage of Christmas picture books out there. 

But for a book to make it onto my kids’ Christmas stack or onto a Read Aloud Revival Christmas Book List, it has to be excellent. 

And the books we choose for Christmas School? Those are the ones that go above and beyond excellent and are some of our most treasured, tippy-top favorite Christmas read-alouds.

Today, I have the author-illustrator of one of my all-time favorite Christmas picture books, Red and Lulu, wit...