traditional school! Because the kids had one-on-one birthday because it’s fun and special, but we’re also time with Michael, they really improved quickly. Also, conscious of the fact that they don’t need anything what is nice about homeschooling is that you have the new. Thankfully the kids don’t really ask for ‘stuff’. flexibility of teaching them when they are interested and engaged in a subject, and often we were able to WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD ANYTHING incorporate our travels and things they had seen first- ABOUT THIS EXPERIENCE? hand into their learning, so it was relatable to them. Kids always learn best when they are interested in The travelling we’ve done as a family has only what is being taught! strengthened our family bonds and expanded our horizons. We have all seen and learned so much from WHAT DO CHILDREN LEARN ON A TRIP our experiences and have gained a new perspective THAT THEY WOULDN’T LEARN AT SCHOOL on our world and the people and places in it. We’ve AND THE MOST VALUABLE LESSON TO also made so many new friends in every corner of TEACH THEM FOR YOU? the world, which has given us a deep connection to each place we’ve visited. It is so liberating to have this Of course there are the incrediblelessons of connection to other places -- to not feel anchored geography and culture. Travelling teaches kids so to one specific spot or tied to one way of living. In many lessons about the world, about people, foods, many ways it frees you up to learn and try out new languages, different cultures, etc. — and those are ways of living, all the while confirming the ideals and things you simply can’t learn as well from a textbook. beliefs you hold most dear. While our horizons have Being ableto experience first-hand the differences, been expanded, the ground we stand on has become really opens their eyes to the world and gives them stronger. And I think our children can feel that too: a a tangible concept of the world. When you mention a greater sense of ourselves with a clearer context of country in South America, for example, my kids can the world around us. remember the colours, the smells, the friends we met, Collectively, I think we will all look back on that year the foods we ate, etc. — it isn’t ust a shape on a mapj and feel it made us an even closer and stronger family. to them. We have happy memories that will last a lifetime and a Also, my children witnessed what it was like to live renewed outlook on life that will hopefully shape the simply and happily in countries all over the world. We way we will live and the values we will hold most dear. met so many people living with so little, who were happy and content in their lives. Whether it was our surf instructor in Chile, or our happy tuk-tuk driver in Sri Lanka, my kids were able to see that being ‘rich’ in life does not always mean having a lot of money or prestige. We also learned how little we actually need to be happy. We each spent a year living out of a small suitcase, wearing the same few outfits on rotation, sleeping in rented beds with just a few personal possessions to hand, and yet none of us missed the things we left behind. The kids spent a year without any toys, apart from the few items they could fit in their backpacks, yet they managed to play all sorts of imaginative games, staying entertained and happy all year long. It wasn’t easy to part with all the things we thought we needed, but it was very liberating once we did. I hope we can always be reminded of those simple, happy days. I don’t want to go back to needing and wanting ‘stuff’ in my life. Even now that we are creating a home again, I have this niggling feeling at the back of my mind of wanting to shed belongings instead of collecting again. Michael and I Find out more about the Adamo family’s have struggled a bit with birthdays and holidays. We journey at www.somewhereslower.com want the kids to be able to unwrap something on their and instagram @courtneyadamo 21