Sarah Mackenzie helps your family fall in love with books, and helps *you* fall in love with homeschooling..
Are you intimidated by the thought of teaching Shakespeare?
You’re not alone.
A lot of people struggle to connect to Shakespeare’s work, even if they really want their kids to be familiar with his plays.
What if I told you there's a way to make teaching Shakespeare to your kids enjoyable for them…
…AND delightful for you?
In today’s episode, Ken Ludwig, celebrated playwright and author of How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, argues that the reason so many of us feel like we don’t get Shakespeare is because people don’t know why (or how!) to teach it.
But figuring out how to teach Shakespeare well is worth it, because not only was he groundbreaking in his time, but he has so much to teach us about what it means to be human.
Don’t miss this replay of our live conversation where Ken shares all his best tips on teaching Shakespeare to your kids and answers audience questions.
Plus, Sarah shares her favorite resources for helping kids get excited about Shakespeare.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/how-to-teach-shakespeare
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
Can you believe it? The Read-Aloud Revival Podcast is ten years old!!
That means it’s time for a party! 🥳🥳
Ten years is a long time to have a podcast, but we’re not slowing down anytime soon. We’re having WAY too much fun for that.
In honor of this milestone, I’ve got a Casey Kasem-style countdown for you of the top ten episodes from the first ten years of Read Aloud Revival.
And as a way to say thank you to YOU for listening, if you leave us a review before April 30, 2024, you’ll be entered into our raffle to be one of ten winners of an exclusive, all-around fabulous RAR tote bag (these currently aren’t for sale, so don’t miss your chance to win!)
Ready to party?
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/top-10-in-10
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
When you hear the name Max Lucado, what comes to mind for you?
Max Lucado is best known as a pastor, speaker, best-selling inspirational author, and, in many Christian families, he’s a household name.
His books are written for everyone—especially those who are hurting, lonely, and discouraged. In his writing, he constantly points his readers back to the truth: that God loves you and you should let Him love you.
Max is also an author of children’s books, several of which are favorites around here. 😊
Sarah invited him to Read-Aloud Revival to discuss his newest picture book, Just in Case You Ever Feel Alone, illustrated by Eve Tharlet. It’s a cozy, gentle book, perfect for snuggling up and sharing with your kiddos.
How are stories uniquely positioned to help readers feel seen and understood? Which books did Max Lucado love as a child? And what does he hope his books will do in the lives of his readers, young and old? We dig into all of it.
Listen in to hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/max-lucado
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
Do you ever find yourself wishing you had more time to read?
Oh, every day? (Yeah, we get that.)
We’re pretty confident that every mom wishes she had more time to read.
Carving out a little time to enjoy your own reading life is worthwhile, even in those seasons when you think it’s impossible. (Sarah has six kids, and when three of them were babies age one and under, it definitely felt like an impossible season!)
But reading makes us better humans, better mamas, and better women. It also makes us happier. And that matters.
Why? Because the key to a successful homeschool is a peaceful, happy mother.
When you know you can count on your reading life to be a source of joy and refreshment regardless of how tough the day is, you just might find yourself being a little happier. A little lighter. A little more joyful.
On today’s show, we’re talking about how to make time for your own reading life, even when it feels like you don’t have five minutes to spare.
Listen in for:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/make-time-for-reading
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
We all want our kids to read, right?
If you’re listening to this podcast, it’s probably safe to say that you want your kids to grow up to read more often than the average adult does. We want them to be lifelong learners and avid readers who read for pleasure.
So it’s worth considering how we can cultivate the habits of real adult readers in our kids so that they grow up to be the readers we want them to be. And it turns out some of those skills are actually in direct opposition to how we tend to approach reading with our kids.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/lifelong-reading-habits
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
Today, I’m sharing two recent episodes from my weekly coaching podcast, Circle with Sarah, that is available exclusively to members of RAR Premium.
I wanted to share them with all of you because I think the message applies to most of us.
A lot of us have this funny habit of focusing on getting DONE with the thing we most want to do. Of getting it over with and checking it off the list. It’s maybe more prevalent in our lives than we even realize. And I want to invite you to think about how that impacts your homeschool and how you might find your homeschooling to be easier and more joyful if you’re aware of it.
If you would like this kind of encouraging boost each week, get RAR Premium and you’ll get instant access to all of the Circle with Sarah podcast episodes and new episodes every Monday.
I think it’ll make a difference in the peace and joy you experience day to day in your homeschool. Head to RARpremium.com to learn more.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/doing-not-getting-done
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
This year at Read Aloud Revival, we’re focusing on reading for joy.
It’s so easy for reading to become another thing on your to-do list, but when we make reading a source of joy, of respite from our busy lives, it’s like running into a clear creek on a hot, dusty hike. Nurturing your reading life nurtures you, which in turn helps us be better moms, better homeschoolers, better parents, better women.
Today I’m joined by Jennifer Pepito, creator of The Peaceful Press, which offers fabulous curriculum for homeschoolers, and she is the author of our spring RAR Premium Mama Book Club pick, Mothering by the Book: The Power of Reading Aloud to Overcome Fear and Recapture Joy.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/how-books-make-us-better-moms
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
There is something kind of tragic that happens when our kids become readers of their own right. It doesn’t always happen, of course, and there are ways for us to prevent it. But it’s awfully common. That thing I’m talking about? When reading starts to feel like school.
It happens to all of us at one point or another, and it’s very common especially at this time of year when school is well underway. Parents will notice a significant drop in how much their kids are reading for pleasure…if they’re reading for pleasure at all.
Obviously this isn’t what we want for our kids. But it’s easy to feel frustrated or panicked that our kids no longer seem to enjoy reading.
The good news? This is simpler to guard against than you might think.
Today, I’m revisiting an episode from a few years ago about what to do when reading becomes a slog. What do we do when reading starts to feel like school?
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/when-reading-isnt-fun
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
What are fairy tales? Why do we love them so much? And why do these stories continue to capture the imaginations of countless generations?
To help me answer those questions, I’m welcoming author Sarah Arthur to the podcast.
Personally, I fell in love with Sarah’s writing through A Light So Lovely, on the spiritual legacy of Madeleine L’Engle. And when I found out she was working on a young adult fantasy, and that it was a sort of love letter to fairy tales? I had to have her on the show.
She joins me to talk about what makes fairy tales so powerful, the benefits of embracing the imaginative and the fantastical in our reading, and lots more.
Sarah Arthur is the author of a dozen books for teens and adults, including the bestselling Walking with Frodo: A Devotional Journey through The Lord of the Rings. After over 25 years working with youth she plays a wicked game of Four Square—but absolutely refuses to eat cold pizza from a box, ever. She has served as preliminary fiction judge for the Christianity Today Book Awards, was a founding board member of the annual C. S. Lewis Festival, and co-directs the Madeleine L’Engle Writing Retreats. She’s a mom of sons, a writer, and today’s highly esteemed guest.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/how-fairy-tales-enchant-us
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
Today, I’ve got another Best Of RAR episode for you.
I wanted to revisit this episode because it feels extra relevant this time of year as we’re thinking about setting goals and resolutions for the year ahead.
Personally, I tend to feel a little overwhelmed by it and I bet some of you can relate.
And when it comes to books and goals for our reading lives, one of the things we hear at Read Aloud Revival all the time is, “There are so many books and so little time!”
There are SO MANY good books we want to read aloud with our families and we’re always trying to figure out how to fit more in. But we don’t want our read-alouds to become merely another item on our lengthy to-do lists. So how do we quell the bookish overwhelm?
That’s what I’m breaking down in this replay of an Ask Sarah episode with that exact question.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/how-to-quell-overwhelm
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
Today we’re airing one of my favorite episodes from last year, all about Jolabokaflod, which is a Christmas “book flood,” in the Icelandic tradition.
What if I told you this tradition makes your life easier, not harder?
During Jolabokaflod, you gift members of your family with new books, and everyone drinks hot cocoa and spends the whole of Christmas Eve reading. If I didn’t get your attention before, I’ve got it now.
There is so much that happens this time of year that adds to our to-do list, that puts more on our plates, but Jolabokaflod is truly a joy. It is a moment of rest and refreshment for you too.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
I hope you bring this tradition to your family and that you have a wonderful, wonderful Christmas.
Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:
Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/how-to-jolabokaflod
Join Sarah for the FREE Workshop: 3 Simple Steps to A Fairy Tale Summer
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