Perhaps you’re new to homeschooling and feel a little bit lost. Perhaps you’ve been homeschooling for years and feel a little bit lost. We’ve been in both places.
If you’ve ever found yourself thinking…
Can I really be the primary educator and mentor of my children?
What if I don’t homeschool my children the right way?
How on earth can I choose between all these homeschooling methods?
What if I choose incorrectly?
What if I fail?
Believe it or not, we’ve struggled with these same questions, too! Over the years, we’ve chased many different ideas but have fallen upon one that has become the driving force behind all of our learning endeavors.
Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33 (KJV)
You see, we won’t be able to teach our children everything because God is infinite, and there are an infinite number of things to learn as a result. What does it matter if we attempt to gain the whole world of knowledge that lies before us and lose our souls in the process?
Maybe you’ve been doing this homeschool thing and are struggling to regain the passion and excitement you once had about learning with your family. Somewhere along the way, you may have lost sight of what matters most. In the midst of homeschool tasks and checklists, you’ve lost sight of the idea that homeschooling is mostly about relationships – with God, with family, and with fellow man.
The pursuit of beauty and truth can be fleeting in the midst of our daily tasks. There’s so much to do that we don’t feel like we can fit it in to the limited time we have. For our family, the thing that was so easily lost was a heart of worship and discovery. That’s when we started to piece together that which is lovely, true, and beautiful to integrate it into our learning experiences. It’s the driving force behind everything we offer on our website. It’s also the driving force behind our Script-n-Scribe writing program and Mission: Great Commission curriculum. In Script-n-Scribe, we incorporate the beauty of art and poetry into the building of writing skills so that it becomes a part of seeing God’s hand through the use of words and art. In Mission: Great Commission, we seek to discover what God has done through the hand of creation and through the hand of missionaries across the world while also integrating hymns, scripture, fine arts, geography, history, and science for a core program for families. Recently, we’ve started writing high school lesson plans to help parents with the somewhat daunting task of homeschooling high school.
Meet the Team
Gary and Brandy are a husband and wife team who met on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Setting aside their experience in engineering and operations, they embarked on the homeschool journey together and now enjoy serving other homeschool families through their support and resources at Half-a-Hundred Acre Wood. Every person in our family plays and important part in what we offer!
Gary Ferrell. Editor, Shipping & Receiving, and Customer Support. He’s the calm guy.
Brandy Ferrell. Research and Content Development. Website Maintenance. She’s the idea generator.**
Stephen Ferrell. Research, Content Review, and Feedback. He’s the guinea pig.
David Ferrell. Research, Evaluation, and Edification Department. He’s the constant encouragement in our home.
Levi Ferrell. Content Development: Design & Evaluation. He’s our bona fide product tester.
Isaac Ferrell. Packaging Assistant and Product Durability Tester. Enough said.
As of 2024…
Our eldest son will be entering his senior year of college in the fall, double majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology. This summer, he will complete his second research position with Oak Ridge National Laboratory at the University of Tennessee. One of his greatest joys remains singing in the church choir. Earlier this year, he auctioned his hair for missions. He had to endure walking around campus with that horrid haircut for 24 hours — without a hat.
Our second high school graduate is planning* to major in mechanical engineering with a concentration in mechatronics. I’m still a bit shocked by this choice, as he’s a writer at heart. But he enjoys tinkering, and physics has been his absolute favorite science course in high school. He has served as a missionary to Honduras with the Hearts & Hands mission team with his dad and younger brother.
Our third son is finishing up his freshman year in high school and plans* to go to trade school for welding and/or heavy equipment construction and operation. (He has wanted to work in the construction industry since he was two years old.) He’s still considering whether he’ll work towards an associate’s degree as he completes his high school years. He also serves as a missionary to Honduras with the Hearts & Hands mission team.
Our fourth son is finishing up fourth grade. Who knows what he plans?!?*
That’s us in a nutshell! We’d love to hear from you, so feel free to give us a shout – either on social media or via email. You can find our contact info at the bottom of our website!
*Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21
We’re honored to be hiking this journey with you!
Literally, we’re a hiking family and love to experience the great outdoors although we’re not very coordinated or athletic.
**Brandy Ferrell, B.S. Engineering, M.S. Secondary Education (Mathematics Concentration), enjoys connecting and integrating multiple subjects into a unified study that encourages the cultivation of wonder, beauty, and compassion. In developing content, she not only uses her past experience in engineering and public/private school teaching (Grades K-12 science/math), but she also pursues continued educational training in other subjects, such as reading, writing, and literature. As a a speaker, writer, and tutor, Brandy enjoys providing educational support and encouragement to families as she grows in her own knowledge and understanding of education. Although Brandy has served in many capacities outside the home, her greatest joy rests in God’s call to be a wife and mother, a blessing (and challenge!) that exceeds all that she ever hoped or imagined.