Summer Reading: Following Curiosity and Finding Beauty in the Everyday

What we love most about summer is how the season invites us to slow our pace just enough to notice the world flourishing right outside our door. The days begin early here on the farm, so before the heat settles in, we're already outside checking and watering the garden, gathering flowers, watching birds dart between the trees, or simply standing quietly with a cup of coffee while the morning comes to life around us. These ordinary moments have become some of our greatest teachers, reminding us that there is always more to discover when we're willing to pay attention.

One of the greatest gifts homeschooling has given our family is the freedom to follow curiosity wherever it leads. Our days are rarely divided neatly into subjects. Instead, one question naturally unfolds into another. A butterfly resting on a zinnia sends us searching for our book on butterflies to study the parts of the insect and their identifying names. A curious bird call inspires an afternoon spent learning about migration, nesting habits, and the remarkable intelligence hidden behind tiny feathers. A walk through the garden becomes a conversation about soil, fungi, ecosystems, and the intricate relationships that quietly sustain life all around us.

The farm itself has become our classroom. Every flower bed, every towering sunflower, every unexpected visitor beneath a leaf offers another opportunity to observe, wonder, and learn together. It is deeply satisfying spending time together reading about the natural world while standing in the middle of it. The pages come alive in a way they never could inside four walls, and lessons have a way of lingering long after the books have been closed.

One of my favorite parts of this season has been watching Avie. She has an incredible way of disappearing into a subject once it captures her imagination. A single chapter often becomes an afternoon of observation. We'll close the book only to find ourselves wandering outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of the very bird we just read about or searching beneath leaves to see if we can find the tiny creatures carrying out their quiet work unnoticed. Her excitement is wonderfully contagious, and more often than not, I find myself learning right alongside her. Perhaps that's the greatest surprise--and joy--of this journey.

Somewhere along the way, I realized homeschooling isn't simply about teaching our daughter. It's about rediscovering wonder ourselves. The books we've read this summer have reminded me how much beauty exists just beyond what we typically notice. They've encouraged me to look more closely, ask more questions, and marvel at the extraordinary design woven into even the smallest corners of creation.

Summer seems especially suited for this kind of learning. Without the urgency of schedules and the feeling that we must hurry to the next thing, we've been able to linger with ideas, revisit chapters, follow rabbit trails, and allow conversations to unfold naturally. Learning feels less like completing lessons and more like living attentively.

That, perhaps, is what I hope Avie carries with her long after she's forgotten individual facts or scientific names—that curiosity is worth following, that knowledge is never truly finished, and that the world remains endlessly fascinating to those willing to slow down enough to notice it.

As we continue rebuilding our gardens, harvesting flowers, watching the seasons quietly shift toward autumn, and spending our evenings on the porch with another book in hand, I'm grateful for these slower rhythms. They have reminded me that education is not confined to a desk or a curriculum. It is woven into everyday life—in conversations over breakfast, muddy boots after a walk through the garden, the song of a mockingbird outside the kitchen window, and the pages of books that encourage us to see familiar things with fresh eyes.

Our Summer Reading Basket

These are the books that have helped shape this season so far, each one shaping our conversations and deepening our appreciation for the remarkable world we share.

• Doctors by Nature by Jaap de Roode — A fascinating look at the remarkable ways animals instinctively use the natural world to heal themselves, reminding us how much wisdom exists within creation.

  
  

• The Bird Way by Jennifer Ackerman — An endlessly captivating exploration of bird intelligence and behavior that has forever changed the way we watch the birds that visit our own farm each day.

  
  

• The Green Kingdom by Cornelia Funke — A beautifully imagined story that reminds us science and imagination are not opposites but companions, each helping us see the natural world with greater depth and wonder.

  
  

• The Secret Language of Birds by Lynne Kelly — A thoughtful invitation to observe, listen, and appreciate the extraordinary lives of birds, encouraging us to become better students of the landscapes we call home.

I'd love to hear from you—what books have found their way to your porch, bedside table, or favorite reading chair this summer? Whether they explore nature, history, gardening, or simply tell a beautiful story, I'd be delighted to add them to our ever-growing reading list.

Until next time, may you find a quiet corner, a good book, and a moment to stop and notice the beauty waiting just outside your door, wherever you are.