How Homeschooling Parents Use PBS KIDS

According to the U.S. Census, the number of U.S. households that were homeschooling doubled at the start of the 2020-2021 school year compared to the prior year. For some, homeschooling has always been the first choice for education. For others, it’s a whole new world. Whether a homeschooling novice or veteran, parents are always searching for resources to supplement their curriculum.

Sabrina D. of Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts is a homeschooling veteran. For her, PBS KIDS is an obvious addition to her curriculum.

“It can be hard to be a homeschooling parent. You need as many resources as possible,” she said. “PBS KIDS is just one other tool in your tool belt.”

Robert P. of Star, Idaho, is a former teacher and U.S. Army veteran who now homeschools his four children. He’ll often turn on PBS KIDS’ programming for his youngest son when in need of entertainment. His son loves to watch the shows and then run to tell Robert stories about what he learned. And Robert knows that his son is watching quality content.

“It’s PBS,” Robert said. “I feel like anything on PBS is a lot safer than I can find anywhere else. I stay with what I know is safe.”

Sabrina turns on PBS KIDS programs that correspond with her lesson plans when she is working with one child and needs to keep the others engaged. She also relies on PBS KIDS when she needs time to focus on tasks around the home.

“Not all screen time is created equal,” she said. “In real life, I need my kids to watch TV. I have things to get done and that’s true for everyone.”

Robert has his kids take notes when watching PBS programming such as “Outdoor Idaho” and “Science Trek” to help them process the information. He often has the older children tune in for “NewsHour” and political debates.

“I want them to be engaged with the decisions that are made,” he said. “One thing I love about PBS is you don’t see the issues how they’re presented on other news channels. They can watch PBS and have a good discussion.”

“Wild Kratts” is a favorite of Sabrina’s first grader who spouts off fun facts like that Komodo dragons smell through their tongue. “She’s a walking encyclopedia of animal facts,” Sabrina said. “It empowers her.”

During the Christmas season, Sabrina tries to keep the lessons lighter and more engaging. This past year, she created a world geography unit that focused on a specific country each week. Sabrina used episodes of “Let’s Go, Luna!” to complement her teachings.

“My kids thought it was really cool to see things on the show that we had learned,” she says.

“Sometimes they would learn something new, like that chocolate comes from cocoa beans.”

An additional resource in Sabrina’s household is “Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum” episodes and the corresponding books “Ordinary People Change the World" by Brad Meltzer. Each story is about one person who has shaped history and provides background about that person’s childhood.

“What I really like about the books is that each person has a value statement at the back of the book,” Sabrina said. “I like them because my kids are learning about real people and they’re also learning about how to be better people in the world.”

For homeschooling parents who are unsure how to add PBS KIDS content to their teaching toolbelt, Sabrina suggests that those with younger children begin with “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” because of the program’s focus on character traits.

“And for older kids, I would personally start with ‘Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum’ because history can be harder to teach for homeschooling,” she said.

As for Robert, he implores other homeschooling parents to visit PBS when they’re searching for ways to make a lesson plan more interesting. “I know that Idaho PBS is a one-stop shop to add to my curriculum,” he said. “It’s just a plethora of information and it’s engaging to kids.”