Everyday Educator

What if the secret to classical homeschooling isn't the right curriculum — it's the right habits? In this episode of the Everyday Educator podcast, host Lisa Bailey sits down with Amy Jones and Kelli Wilt to introduce The Habits of a Classical Education: Practicing the Art of Grammar. Together they unpack the five core habits of classical learning, why wonder is the foundation of a truly classical Christian education, and why this book works alongside any curriculum you're already using. Whether you've been homeschooling for a week or a decade, this conversation will remind you why you started.
Lisa Bailey opens by sharing a realization she came to after years of homeschooling her own daughters: the best homeschool days were the ones that were more about home than about school. That insight is at the heart of The Habits of a Classical Education, CC's newest resource — a book that helps families develop the rhythms and relationships that make learning come alive, whatever curriculum they're using.
Kelli Wilt, lead of program development at Classical Conversations, introduces the five core habits using the acronym NAMES: Naming, Attending, Memorizing, Expressing, and Storytelling. Her own strongest habits are storytelling and memorizing — skills she developed almost by accident on long van rides with her children, weaving family history and memory work into the journey without her kids ever realizing it was intentional. She's quick to note that the habits didn't come out of nowhere: they're the fruit of a decade of conversations about how God designed human beings to learn.
Amy Jones, who hosts the Everyday Educator and was a co-author of the book, admits that memorizing is her hardest habit — not because she doesn't value it, but because she had never fully appreciated how foundational it is until working on this book. Her insight is one of the episode's best: the habits aren't subjects. They're a spine, a way of approaching anything new. She walks listeners through the simple exercise of teaching a child something — anything — and noticing that naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling show up naturally in every real act of learning.
The episode's most beautiful section comes when the conversation turns to wonder. Amy quotes a line she encountered in her reading: "You learn nothing without wonder." Wonder, she explains, is God's invitation to his world. It's not an extra. It's the engine. And the habits, properly practiced, don't just cultivate wonder in a child's natural areas of interest — they introduce children (and adults) to wonders they never knew they had. Creation is the curriculum, as Leigh Bortins says, and the habits are the way we learn to read it.
What You'll Learn
The five core habits of classical learning and the acronym that makes them easy to remember (NAMES)
Why these habits aren't subjects — they're the way God designed every human being to learn
Why the habits work alongside any curriculum you already own, not instead of it
How Kelli and Amy each approach the habits differently — and what that means for your own family
Why wonder is not a warm fuzzy feeling — it's an essential component of real education
How the book is organized so that busy moms can read it in sections at soccer practice
Why you don't have to be a perfect homeschooler for this to work — and what the book actually promises
Why the habits apply to adults and older students too — not just little ones in the grammar stage
What it means that education ought to be more about home than schooling
This episode of Everyday Educator is sponsored by:
Classical Conversations just released The Habits of a Classical Education—the long-awaited successor to The Core. This resource helps you naturally integrate the Five Core Habits into daily life, enabling classical, Christian education where relationships and lifelong learning flourish.
It's here! Order your copy of The Habits of a Classical Education: Practicing the Art of Grammar here during the April sale!

Your student is approaching Challenge 4 — and suddenly the words "senior thesis" are everywhere. What exactly is it? Who's involved? And how do you help without taking over? In this episode of the Everyday Educator podcast, host Lisa Bailey sits down with Timothy Knotts, Director of Challenge Development at Classical Conversations, and CC grad and Challenge 4 tutor Daniel Shirley to walk parents through every stage of the Senior Thesis project — from choosing a topic all the way to the live defense. Consider this your field guide.
Lisa opens by clarifying what the Senior Thesis actually is: a two-part project involving a research paper and a live defense in front of an audience that includes parents, peers, judges, and often extended family. It's one of the few programs in classical education that asks students to stand up, present what they've discovered, and answer unrehearsed questions in real time. Terrifying and wonderful, as Tim puts it.
The heart of the conversation is the question of how to choose a thesis topic — and both guests are emphatic: the topic must come from genuine passion. Daniel offers three examples of thesis statements students should avoid — "the government should not be involved in mental health," "the Bible is the most important book in history," and "toothpaste is very important for dental hygiene" — and explains what all three have in common: they're too broad, too generic, or too obvious to be genuinely arguable. Tim adds that the thesis must be arguable not just to others, but by the student themselves. If they're not wrestling with it, they're not discovering anything.
Tim offers a liberating reframe: the thesis statement itself is not set in stone. It should remain in conversation with the research and the writing all the way to the final draft. Students who discover they don't care about their topic two months before it's due — and try to start over — are usually headed for a train wreck. But students who remain open to refining their thesis as they learn more will find the process genuinely rewarding.
Daniel frames the whole project as an Odyssean adventure: navigating by stars, not by GPS. The path is imprecise and full of course corrections. That's not a bug — that's the point. The capstone is meant to ask the student to truly wonder and discover, not to prove what they already think.
What You'll Learn
•    What the Senior Thesis actually is: the two parts, the people involved, and what it's really preparing students for
•    Why a thesis needs to be something the student can't not ask — and what happens when it isn't
•    Three examples of bad thesis statements (and what makes them bad) so your student doesn't make the same mistakes
•    Why the thesis should be treated like an adventure — not a dissertation
•    How the thesis statement should stay in conversation with the research and writing, all the way to the end
•    What parents should and shouldn't do — the vice of excess and the vice of deficiency
•    How to use memoria to help your student find a topic they genuinely care about
•    The role of a mentor (not the parent, not the director) and why the same question lands differently from different people
•    Research avenues CC families may not know about: CC Plus, the Steelman Library at SEU, and Adler's Synopticon
•    What book Tim recommends parents and students read together before Challenge 4 even begins
This episode of Everyday Educator is sponsored by: 
Classical Conversations just released "The Habits of a Classical Education"—the long-awaited successor to "The Core." This resource helps you naturally integrate the Five Core
Habits into daily life, enabling classical, Christian education where relationships and
lifelong learning flourish.
It's here! Order your copy of "The Habits of a Classical Education: Practicing the Art of
Grammar" here during the April sale!

Does homeschooling have you ready to quit? You're not alone — and you're not failing. In this episode of the Everyday Educator podcast, host Lisa Bailey and 7-year Classical Conversations mom DeDe Adetutu get real about the winter doldrums, talk about why finishing strong actually matters, and share the practical strategies — and a little Yoruba wisdom — that have helped their families push through to the finish line. This one is equal parts encouragement and action plan. Lisa Bailey opens by naming what so many homeschool moms feel but rarely say out loud: February is hard. The holidays are over, the calendar looks long, and even families who genuinely love what they do can hit a wall. Her friend's confession — "I just want to quit" — wasn't a crisis. It was completely normal.
DeDe Adetutu jumps in with a key insight: the winter doldrums aren't random. They're the predictable aftermath of over-investing in holiday intentionality and under-investing in what comes next. We create the problem by making Christmas extraordinary and leaving January with nothing to look forward to. But she also offers a counter-perspective — maybe that emptiness isn't a problem to fix. Maybe it's rest. Winter isn't dead; it's dormant. And the ram, as DeDe's husband says, takes two steps back before charging forward.
The conversation gets practical fast. DeDe shares what her family has developed over seven years of CC: annual photo reviews with the family after Christmas that double as goal-setting sessions, cross-country training that teaches kids what finishing strong feels like in their bodies, inside jokes that double as one-word pep talks, and short interval study sprints that make the final weeks manageable. Lisa adds her own toolkit — 30-minute focused work blocks, purposeful rest days that involve serving others, and the occasional backwards day to break the monotony for younger kids.
What You'll Learn
•    Why the winter doldrums are actually something we create for ourselves — and what to do about it
•    Why finishing strong matters so much more than just getting to the end
•    How a senior cross-country runner's wisdom about the hardest part of the race applies to your homeschool right now
•    The Yoruba proverb DeDe's Nigerian husband shares with their family that reframes what rest is actually for
•    Practical strategies for beating mid-year burnout: interval study sessions, backwards day, British accent memory work, and more
•    Why it's okay to grieve unrealistic goals — and how to adjust them without quitting
•    What a German exchange student's dance move taught DeDe's family about finishing strong
•    Why seniors struggle to finish and what parents can do to help them stay present
•    How a plate of Belgian chocolate and a foundations geography lesson became one of the year's best memories
•    How Candyland might have been designed to teach kids how to handle disappointment
This episode of Everyday Educator is sponsored by:
Summit Ministries
Do you want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endure,
and friends and faith for life? Summit's Student Conferences equip young Christians with
the hope, clarity, and confidence they need to follow Jesus boldly in today's world. It's not
just about getting apologetics answers. Students learn how to live winsomely and bravely in today's world. 
Visit summit.org/cc before March 31, 2026, and lock in the early bird rate. Save an additional $250 when you use the code CC26. Want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endures, and friends and faith for life? Grab their spot now at summit.org/cc
Classical Conversations' new 2026 Product Line
This April, Classical Conversations is launching an exciting portfolio of new products
designed to strengthen math fluency, develop critical reasoning skills, and equip families
with practical tools for classical, Christian homeschooling. From flashcard resources and
reasoning curriculum to hands-on manipulatives and a foundational parent resource, these
releases deepen the classical learning journey for families at every level.
Visit ClassicalConversations.com/WhatsNew/ to explore the entire April 2026 product
collection and start strengthening your family's classical, Christian education today. Don't
miss the special CC Bookstore sale from April 7 - 28!

You may already recognize his voice. For thousands of Classical Conversations families, Charles Hall — known simply as "Internet Grandpa" — has become one of the most beloved figures in the homeschool community, reading rich living books aloud on YouTube and blessing families he has never met. In this episode of the Everyday Educator, host Kelli Wiltsits down with Mr. Hall to talk about how it all started, what it means to hear a human voice read a story, and what happens when faithful work runs into unexpected obstacles.
Charles Hall never set out to become Internet Grandpa. It started simply — reading picture books on YouTube so his grandchildren, scattered from Florida to Pittsburgh, could hear his voice. He made the videos unlisted at first, then figured there was no harm in making them public. What followed was something he never anticipated.
CC families discovered his recordings, and comments began pouring in — parents of struggling readers, moms multitasking through housework, kids making the transition from Foundations into Challenge who needed a warm, steady voice to carry them through books like The Secret Garden and Carry On, Mr. Bowditch. His subscriber count passed the number of friends and family, and Internet Grandpa was born.
Kelli opens the episode by sharing her own family's story — her daughter found Mr. Hall's recordings at exactly the right moment, helping her step into independence as a learner while her mom worked nearby. It's the kind of testimony that appears again and again in his comment section.
The conversation turns to why the human voice matters so much. Mr. Hall connects it all the way back to the womb — children hear their parents' voices before they are born, and that bond between voice and love is something no machine can replicate. Jesus, he notes, did most of his ministry through storytelling. People haven't changed much in 2,000 years.
He closes with a story about his son Christopher — a boy who hated reading, until his dad started leaving him at cliffhangers. One night his wife found Christopher in bed with a flashlight, finishing the chapter himself. That's what Internet Grandpa hopes for every child who hears his voice.
What You'll Learn:
- How a grandfather reading Narnia to his kids 40 years ago eventually became a YouTube ministry for thousands
- Why stories told by a human voice still matter in an age of AI — and what children hear even before they are born
- How Internet Grandpa's recordings have helped struggling readers, busy moms, and kids transitioning into CC Challenge
- The cliffhanger trick he used to turn his reluctant reader son into a flashlight-under-the-covers reader
- How to support, pray for, and stay connected with Internet Grandpa right now
 
Resources:
https://www.youtube.com/@InternetGrandpa
 
This episode of Everyday Educator is sponsored by:
Summit Ministries
Do you want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endure,
and friends and faith for life? Summit's Student Conferences equip young Christians with
the hope, clarity, and confidence they need to follow Jesus boldly in today's world. It's not
just about getting apologetics answers. Students learn how to live winsomely and bravely in today's world.
Visit summit.org/cc before March 31, 2026, and lock in the early bird rate. Save an additional $250 when you use the code CC26. Want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endures, and friends and faith for life? Grab their spot now at summit.org/cc
 
Timestamps
00:00 — Welcome and Introduction
01:06 — How Did Internet Grandpa Begin? The Origin Story
01:53 — Reading Narnia to His Kids — 40 Years Before YouTube
02:22 — Recording for Grandkids Far Away and Going Public
03:05 — How CC Families Discovered Him
03:29 — Kelly's Personal Story: How Her Daughter Was Blessed by His Recordings
04:20 — What Drew Him to CC Challenge Books
06:03 — Early Books: The Secret Garden, Carry On Mr. Bowditch, Number the Stars
06:43 — When He Realized He Had Become Internet Famous
07:12 — The Comments That Have Encouraged Him Most
08:01 — Why Reading Aloud Still Matters: Stories, Hearts, and the Art of Attending
08:20 — Why Jesus Told Stories — and Why People Haven't Changed
09:52 — Why a Human Voice Is Different from AI
10:32 — What Children Hear Before They Are Born
11:41 — How He Hopes These Recordings Support Parents at Home
12:24 — Adventures in Odyssey, Car Trips, and Multitasking Moms
12:46 — What He Hopes Children Remember Years from Now
13:57 — The Demonetization Challenge: What Happened and What It Means
15:01 — The Difficult Decisions Demonetization Has Created
16:50 — Rumble and Patreon: Exploring New Platforms
19:09 — What the Ideal Platform Would Look Like
22:04 — How to Support Internet Grandpa Right Now
24:52 — What He Has Learned Through This Season of Difficulty
25:36 — Trusting God When the Path Is Unclear
27:48 — An Encouragement to All CC Families: Cultivate a Love of Books
28:15 — The Story of His Son Christopher and the Flashlight Under the Covers
30:06 — Prayer Requests and How to Stay Connected
31:15 — Where to Find Internet Grandpa: YouTube, Facebook, and CC Connected
31:50 — Closing Words from Kelly and a Final TTFN from Mr. Hall

What if the most important thing you teach your child has nothing to do with curriculum? In this episode of the Everyday Educator podcast, host Emma Bortins sits down with her mother-in-law and Classical Conversations founder Leigh Bortins to discuss the ideas behind her new book, The Habits: Practicing the Art of Grammar. Together they explore how naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling build the foundational habits that help children — and homeschool families — truly flourish. If you're a homeschool mom looking for a classical Christian approach to raising lifelong learners, this conversation is for you.
Leigh opens by sharing how it took her twelve years of homeschooling to truly understand what her husband had been telling her all along — that what children need most is consistency. It wasn't until she had a second set of young boys while her older sons were teenagers that the power of habits became undeniable. The routines she had built into Robert and John made it possible to keep the family functioning; without them, the whole thing would have fallen apart.
From that personal foundation, the conversation moves into the heart of the book: a framework of five habits — naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling — that Leigh calls the building blocks of a grammar education. These aren't abstract academic concepts. They're what every good mother already does instinctively: naming the dog, teaching a toddler not to touch the stove, helping a child memorize where mom will be in Walmart. The point is to recognize these habits, name them, and practice them with intention.
The episode takes a fascinating turn when Emma asks about AI and technology. Leigh's position is clear: children under 12 don't need screens at all. Not because technology is inherently evil, but because children who never learn to entertain themselves, sit still, or be alone with their thoughts will struggle with self-control for the rest of their lives — with or without technology. The habits of self-governance have to come first.
The episode closes with Leigh's single most important piece of advice for new homeschoolers: find a mentor. Not a curriculum. Not a method. A person who seems to be doing it well and is willing to let you watch.
 What You'll Learn
- What the art of grammar actually means — and why it's about far more than memorization
- The five core habits of the grammar stage: naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling
- Why Leigh says attending is the one habit she'd tell every family to start practicing today
- How habits shape not just academic ability but character, self-control, and spiritual formation
- Why parents need to self-assess their own habits before they can effectively pass them on
- What Leigh thinks about AI and technology — and her recommendation for families with children under 12
- Why feeling inadequate to homeschool is universal — and why it's not actually the obstacle you think it is
- How the habits formed in the grammar years show up years later in college anatomy and chemistry courses
- Where to find Leigh online and which books to read alongside The Habits
 
This episode of Everyday Educator is sponsored by:
Summit Ministries
Do you want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endure, and friends and faith for life? Summit's Student Conferences equip young Christians with the hope, clarity, and confidence they need to follow Jesus boldly in today's world. It's not just about getting apologetics answers. Students learn how to live winsomely and bravely in today's world. Visit summit.org/cc before March 31, 2026, and lock in the early bird rate. Save an additional $250 when you use the code CC26. Want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endures, and friends and faith for life? Grab their spot now at summit.org/cc
 
Timestamps
00:00 — Welcome and Introduction
02:22 — Leigh's Reaction to Being Interviewed by Her Daughter-in-Law
03:10 — What Took So Long to Understand: The Role of Habits in Homeschooling
04:13 — How a Second Set of Young Boys Changed Everything
05:14 — What Her Husband Was Saying All Along — and When She Finally Heard It
06:40 — What Is the Art of Grammar? Beyond Memorization
07:33 — The Five Habits: Naming, Attending, Memorizing, Expressing, Storytelling
09:33 — Expressing and Storytelling in Everyday Family Life
10:19 — What Happens in Families Without Habits
12:04 — Emma's Daughter and the "Tell Stories, Dance" Moment
13:49 — It's Not Just What Students Know — It's How They Learn
15:45 — The One Habit That Distinguishes Flourishing Students: Self-Control
17:08 — Parents Must Self-Assess First: More Is Caught Than Taught
18:47 — Sitting on Daddy's Lap: Three Very Different Experiences
19:50 — Slowing Down in a World That Moves Too Fast
20:15 — AI, Technology, and Homeschooling with Humans
21:19 — Leigh's Recommendation: No Screens for Children Under 12
23:14 — Having the Conversation with Your Kids About Why
24:15 — How Habits Shape Character, Not Just the Mind
25:23 — You're Not Being Raised for Yourself — You're Being Raised to Serve
26:06 — The Story of Jonah's Timeout and What It Revealed About Siblings
27:15 — The Connection Between Intellectual Habits and Spiritual Formation
29:09 — How to Cultivate Spiritual Habits at Home: Find a Mentor
31:27 — There's No Single Answer — Fit the Liturgy to Your Family's Schedule
31:58 — Encouragement for Parents Who Feel Inadequate to Homeschool
33:55 — What Second-Generation Homeschoolers Bring to the Table
37:03 — If You Could Only Start One Habit: Attending
38:09 — Situational Awareness and Why It Matters for Everything
40:35 — How Early Habits Prepare Students for Logic, Rhetoric, and College
41:47 — What CC Students Say When They Call Home from College
42:32 — Thank You, Closing Thoughts, and Where to Find Leigh