What is a Next Step Homeschool Mom?

As the end of my homeschool journey approaches, I've been thinking a lot about how to describe the next step. I still have a few years remaining, but as I prepare for the next stage, I don't have a good way to describe it.

Many words come to mind about this transition.

  • Former homeschool mom
  • Retired homeschool mom
  • Veteran homeschool mom
  • Renaissance homeschool mom
  • Not mention homeschooling and just talk about the next stage

I even brainstormed some of these with ChatGPT, and none feels quite right. They all are accurate, but none quite capture how I want to describe this transition.

I want to acknowledge the time, effort, and dedication I poured into home-educating my children. It was a profession and a calling.

I also recognize that my “formal” homeschool days are ending, but I will always be a homeschool mom. Homeschooling is a way of life and a mindset that is now a part of who I am.

So, how do I describe who I am becoming?

As I was driving around town one day, I had a thought. I'm a Next Step Homeschool Mom!

Since I had been having a conversation with ChatGPT, I asked what it thought of the term. I love the definition it gave.

“Next Step Homeschool Mom: A mom who has successfully completed the homeschooling of her children and is now ready to take the next steps in her personal, professional, or volunteer life. This term emphasizes progression, new beginnings, and the pursuit of fresh opportunities and goals.”

However, I would change “has successfully completed” to “has successfully completed or is close to finishing” as we often begin this transition to the next step before our last child graduates.

Are you approaching the end of your homeschool journey? The Next Steps Workbook walks you through exercises that explore the five steps of thriving as a Next Step Homeschool Parent. This is the resource I would like to have had when I started thinking about my next steps.