Homegrown: Guidance and Inspiration for Navigating Your Homeschooling Journey

by Amber O'Neal Johnston

Homeschooling is the fastest-growing form of education in America, and it's here to stay. If you're a homeschool veteran, finishing up your first year, or are just homeschool curious, Homegrown is destined to become a go-to resource.

This collection of 30 original, thought-provoking pieces from a diverse group of contributors covers common questions such as
· What fuels families to educate children at home?
· How do relationships, culture, and vision affect the decision to homeschool?
· What roles do spouses, friends, extended family, and communities play in our ability to homeschool?
· How do culture, heritage, history, and legacy seamlessly intertwine with reading, writing, and arithmetic?
· Why is raising our kids this way so important, and how do we prioritize it?

Whether your aim is to nurture your child's passions, support their individual learning style, or connect with a community of like-minded families, this book will be your trusted companion every step of the way. Spanning age, race, ethnicity, political beliefs, geography, religion, family size, educational philosophy, and more, the essays in Homegrown provide parents with guidance and inspiration to kickstart or refine their homeschooling practice with creativity, connection, and confidence.

Genres: Nonfiction, Education, Family, Parenting

1 pages, Audio CD

Published August 12, 2025

About the author

Amber O’Neal Johnston is the author of A Place to Belong, a guide for families of all backgrounds to celebrate cultural heritage, diversity, and kinship while embracing inclusivity in the home and beyond. She is a regular contributor to the wildly successful Wild + Free homeschooling community, a frequent podcast guest, and a coveted speaker at homeschooling, parenting, and education conferences.

Amber lives in Georgia nestled among pine trees, hammocks and ziplines with her husband Scott and their four children. Her happy place is the back porch on a rainy day, preferably with a giant mug of hot tea and a good book. And although she was raised in the air conditioning, somehow the woods is where she feels most at home these days.

When they have the chance, her family enjoys extended worldschooling trips to immerse themselves in other cultures, so you can often find her researching their next home away from home. Amber writes and speaks about the beauty of an inclusive, culturally and socially conscious home environment, and she enjoys sharing diverse literary mirrors and windows on Heritage Mom website and @heritagemomblog (IG).

Reviews

[Shelley Vaughn]

In a sea full of homeschool books, I was a little worried this would mainly be filled with platitudes, but I was wrong!

I think what makes this book work so well is that is offers a wide variety of voices, circumstances, backgrounds, and education styles. It's not an echo chamber. You hear from homeschoolers walking through divorce, chronic illness, loss of loved ones, cultural differences, and even a couple homeschool dads! My favorite section was on community. It's a sweet and honest reminder of both the beauty and challenges of the homeschool way of life.

[Bethany Gatlin]

4.5 ⭐️ I found myself wanting to pick up this book almost constantly when I had a free moment. I really enjoyed the diverse experiences throughout. I especially loved the essays from the authors with a Christian worldview, in which there were many. I finished feeling encouraged and grateful. Overall, a really enjoyable read!

[Ginny Yurich]

The depth and breadth of this book is phenomenal!!!!! I learned a lot and was so encouraged reading it.

[Chelsea]

I wanted so much to like this book! If you follow any of the writers within the book then it’s all a repeat of their books/blogs. Basically a cliff notes version of the Homeschooling section at the bookstore. Nothing new, added or inventive, repetitive.

If you are new to homeschooling then this may be a good intro to other writers you can rabbit hole into reading.

[Morgan O'Sullivan]

This book wasn’t bad, but it’s probably better for those who are either new to homeschooling or curious about homeschooling. The contributors are fantastic, but I’ve read many of their own books, listened to their podcasts, or follow their content in some way so much of it felt redundant. This would definitely be a great introduction to some of the most encouraging voices in the homeschooling community for those just beginning to dip their toes in though!

[Crystal Pollard]

I wanted to like this book but it was such a waste of time. I felt like I was reading through a catalogue of different authors giving me the summaries or short pitch of their book or books. Some of the chapters were awful and I guess it is good thing I know I do NOT want to read any of their other work and some chapters were okay. Some of the authors contributing to this book are great authors but if you read the back cover for their other books you would basically have the information included in this book. You'd be better off just buying one of their books.

[Calley]

I was familiar with about 1/3 of these authors prior to beginning this book. They are the authors of the essays that I actually liked and found helpful. Their essays felt like faithful summaries of their larger works.

The remainder of the essays were either irrelevant to me or were far too feelings-oriented for my liking. These chapters were filled with a lot of platitudes and a lot of therapeutic "fixes" to problems that would actually be solved by just acting like an adult instead of a victim. I was not impressed by these chapters, but at least I learned what authors NOT to read in the future.

I could see this being helpful for someone who is brand new to homeschooling and wants a quick way to be exposed to many authors. But as someone who has been homeschooling for over 2 years (and has been preparing to homeschool since about 8 years ago), I didn't get anything new from this book.

[Anna Caranci]

While not every chapter/author applied to my family, there were certainly specific ones that were an encouragement and gave ideas for me to ponder.

[Courtney]

A lovely collection of essays by home educators. Most essays were encouraging and idea-sparking; two made me stressed out and feel like I’m failing my kids.
Overall, a good before-bed read.

[Brittney]

I’m planning to homeschool my girls starting next year and am just diving into all the things. There is so much content out there it’s honestly overwhelming. I liked this book because it offered different perspectives and took you into the worlds of these families. I feel like I gained a lot of valuable insight.

[Meredith Hourihan]

Beautiful collection of inspirational essays on navigating home education. Would recommend for anyone starting out on this alternative path, or for anyone in the thick of the middle years. As always, Amber draws from myriad perspectives and experiences across the spectrum of home educators, offering a well-represented collection of voices. Many of the essays come from a Christian worldview. Even as a secular homeschooler, I found solid advice and encouragement relevant to our situation. I skipped a couple essays that didn't quite resonate with me, but on the whole, a thoughtfully curated collection!

[Kathleen Garber]

I was super excited to review this book as a homeschooler myself who knows of quite a few of these women and men. I love the idea of essays because you get a bunch of viewpoints in one book instead of just one.

The book is edited by Amber O’Neal Johnston whom you might know as Heritage Mom. Other big names I recognized were Ainsley Arment, Sally Clarkson, Julie Bogart and Leah Boden. Although I found I knew a few others by their website, just not their name. I also found quite a few I didn’t know but luckily their author bio at the end of each essay makes it easy to look them up and get to know them.

The book is set up with each essay under a certain heading: The Beauty We Find At Home, The Elements We Rely on Most, The Roadmap for Forging Our Way, The Relationships That Carry Us Through, The Belonging We Crave, The Encouragement That Spurs Us Ahead and The Vision Inspiring Our Days.

I love that a wide variety of homeschooling styles, family styles and circumstances are shown here. Many are Christian but I don’t think all of them were. There were large families, smaller families, divorced families and families facing hardships.

The stories about divorce, chronic illness and loss are a bit difficult to read but contain helpful advice to those going through something similar. Even if you are not, it might help you remember to be kind to other homeschoolers. You never know what they are going through behind the scenes.

My favourite quote:

“We believe that for homeschooling to be possible, our families, our lives, and our health must be in perfect order. But I’ve come to believe that homeschooling is for the hard times; it’s the glue that holds us together as we face trials.” – pg 227 by Alisha Roth @littlewomenfarmhouse

[Samantha]

Homegrown gave me the encouragement I needed to step into the new homeschool year with confidence. The essays are rich with wisdom and heart, reminding me that homeschooling is not just about academics but about shaping a family life where love and learning flourish together. This is a book I know I will keep close by, ready to revisit whenever I need fresh perspective or renew inspiration as I need.

[Lindsey]

This is a good collection of essays for any parent considering homeschooling or in the thick of it. I would also recommend it as a resource for those with family/friends who oppose or challenge your decision to homeschool, so they can gain exposure to other parents who share and support your family’s vision of educating at home.

I enjoyed the variety of voices and perspectives included in the collection, though some of the essays felt more or less relevant based on my faith, life-stage, etc. A handful of the essays were a little weaker than the others, but I think it’s just a matter of which contributors write for a living/side-hustle versus those that don’t write regularly in this format.

All in all, an encouraging read! I’m glad books like this are being published to showcase the way families of all backgrounds are taking charge of their children’s education and finding innovative ways to nurture young minds, hearts, and souls.

[Emily]

To say that this collection contains a diverse perspective on homeschooling is frankly absurd. As a secular homeschool parent, I was looking forward to hearing from a diverse group of homeschool families. Over 90% of this book is essays by religious homeschoolers. I'm definitely used to being in the minority as a non-religious homeschooler, and I knew that some of the contributors were religious before I read this collection. However, this book felt more like a guide on how to be a good Christian homeschooler, with more Bible verses being quoted than educational information being shared (unless you count Charlotte Mason, she's all over this thing). I still enjoyed hearing stories of people who have different approaches from me, and I took away a few useful tips that I'm looking forward to implementing in the coming year, but if you're looking for something diverse, this ain't it

[Stevi Lorenz]

This was a well crafted collection of homeschooling stories from several different families. I enjoyed all the different perspectives and experiences, and I think this could be a really great insight into homeschooling for those interested (especially those who still have outdated notions of what a homeschooling family looks or acts like) and inspiration for anyone on their homeschool journey. Of course there were things that didn't resonate with me, and even things I didn't necessarily agree with, but the beauty of homeschooling is that every family is different and every story is worth telling.

[Heather]

As a, do I dare say, veteran homeschool mom (15 years), I've been slowly reading through this collection of essays over the past year. I enjoyed reading about others' experiences and gleaned a lot of wisdom from the variety of parents represented in this book. The final two essays were some of the most impactful for me as those spoke to where our battle as homeschool moms often lies- the mind and the heart. I'd definitely recommend this resource for anyone just beginning or in the thick of homeschooling.

[Danielle Doroff]

I wanted to love this book because I enjoy Amber’s other books. I appreciate the cultural diversity this book reiterates and how black and brown people have immeasurable value in the homeschool community. That was my favorite part of the book. The rest of it felt like an echo chamber of typical homeschool reels you see on social media.

[Becca Bell]

Really enjoyed this book! I really loved the format and the different viewpoints from several different homeschoolers. There were representations from many different walks of life and the info they shared was so valuable even if it were about experiences I would never face in my own homeschooling journey.

[Elia]

As a homeschool Mom of the past few years. This book filled my heart with a lot of support and joy. That is the scary part about homeschool you don’t know if it’s going to work out. You don’t know if it’s going to be the right thing or survive whatever your life is going through. This was a lovely book. I would highly recommend any homeschool Parent to read it for encouragement.

[Paige Wilmer]

I was hoping for more of a "how-to" and this was more "why you should". If you are a Black Christian interested in homeschooling, this will probably really speak to you. As a white atheist, though, I had a harder time relating (less because of race, more because of the religious motivations behind most of the essays).

[Laura McGinnis]

This is a great collection of homeschool parent stories. I really enjoyed reading how each parent got into homeschooling and seeing a glimpse of what their homeschooling is like. It was very encouraging to read and it gave me some good ideas that I want to start implement. I highly recommend every homeschooling parent reads this book or any parent that is thinking of homeschooling.

[Jasmine Pulley]

I enjoyed these little anecdotes from various homeschooling parents, but because of the format, most of them felt like blog posts that ultimately did not offer much new depth or insight. But still, a nice bit of homeschooling encouragement in the middle of the year.

[Brettnay Brazzell]

Not in my top favorites for homeschool books, but it did give many different perspectives and truths.

[Katie Slessinger]

I loved that this book brought more diverse perspectives on homeschooling into view. I’ve read a LOT of homeschooling resources over the last several years and they can tend to get redundant once you’ve read the “big ones,” but this was a fresh batch of new ideas and experiences.