Homeschooling with Technology Archives

Smart tech, apps, and AI tools that make homeschooling easier — from a former computer programmer and veteran homeschool mom. Meryl van der Merwe helps families use technology with confidence and wisdom: the best apps and online tools, AI for planning and learning (used safely), and practical tips that fit real homeschool days — no jargon, no overwhelm. For homeschool parents who want future-ready kids without feeling behind on tech. Follow the show for a new tip every week.

Best College Application Resources for Homeschoolers

September 16, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

389: Best College Application Resources for Homeschoolers

College applications can feel overwhelming, especially once senior year arrives. In this episode, I share several useful websites that can help homeschool families choose colleges, understand the application process, work through essays and recommendations, and make sense of what happens after applications are submitted.

These resources are useful for seniors, but many are worth exploring much earlier. Starting in middle or early high school gives students more time to think about what they want in a college and helps reduce stress later.

Resources mentioned in this episode

FAFSA
https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa

If your student may apply for financial aid or scholarships, be sure to complete the FAFSA. Parents and students will each need the appropriate accounts, so it is helpful to get those set up before the FAFSA opens.

College Scorecard
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/

College Scorecard is a helpful place to start comparing colleges. You can filter schools by factors such as:

Location
Annual cost
Degree or major
Test scores
Urban or rural setting
Religious affiliation

You can also compare information such as graduation rates, average annual cost, and median earnings after graduation.

Appily
https://www.appily.com/

Appily offers college search tools, virtual college tours, scholarship information, and quizzes designed to help students think about possible majors and what type of college might be a good fit.

Students can also explore factors such as campus culture, demographics, clubs, and other aspects of college life.

Common App Resources
https://www.commonapp.org/apply/first-year-students

This provides a video walkthrough of the Common App.

https://www.commonapp.org/apply/fy-toolkit

The First-Year Toolkit also covers topics such as:

Common App terminology
Testing information
Recommendation letters
Family and teacher brag sheets
Application fees and fee waivers
Financial aid
Resources for international applicants

BigFuture by College Board
https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/plan-for-college/apply-to-college

BigFuture includes information about scholarships, college planning, and the application process.

Resources include:

A 12th-grade college application timeline
What to do after applying
Early Action and Early Decision
College placement tests
General college admission guidance

BigFuture also has a College Planning for Homeschoolers FAQ, which answers questions specifically relevant to homeschool applicants, including questions about high school codes and account setup.

College Essay Guy
https://www.collegeessayguy.com/college-application-hub

The College Essay Guy’s resources extend well beyond the main Common App essay.

You can find information on:

Creating a college list
Early Action vs. Early Decision
Personal statements
Supplemental essays
Recommendation letters
College interviews
Financial aid
Understanding financial aid award letters
Appealing financial aid decisions

There are also free resources for international students, first-generation students, and low-income students.

Start collecting resources early

Even if your child is not yet a senior, consider creating a digital folder where you can save useful college application information. When application season arrives, you will already have resources available rather than starting from scratch.

You can also search the FundaFunda Academy blog for additional articles about college applications, scholarships, and scholarship websites

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group, especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: college, homeschool, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast, Technology

Alternatives to Google search

September 9, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

388: Alternatives to Google search with Jo Ebisujima

Google Search has changed significantly with the addition of AI-generated summaries at the top of search results. For students especially, this can make it tempting to accept an AI-generated answer without ever visiting the original source or checking whether the information is accurate.

In this episode, I talk with veteran homeschooler and educator, Jo Ebisujima, about alternatives to Google Search and why homeschoolers should teach their children to think more carefully about how they search for information online.

Jo shares a variety of search engines and browsers families can explore, including options that emphasize privacy, reduce tracking and advertising, or allow users to search without automatically receiving AI-generated answers.

We discuss:

Why Google’s AI summaries can be problematic for students
Why students need to learn to check original sources
How different search engines handle privacy, advertising, and AI
Alternatives including Startpage, DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, UDM14, Mojeek, Dogpile, Brave, Vivaldi, Bing, and Kagi
Search tools for deeper research
Why students should understand how a free search engine makes money
How parents can turn comparing search engines into a media literacy activity
How to help teens recognize more reliable online sources
Why Reddit, blogs, and other user-generated content should be evaluated carefully rather than automatically trusted

One simple activity Jo recommends is giving your children several questions for which you already know the answers. Have them search for the same information using different search engines and compare what they find.

Ask your children:

Which search engine gave the most useful results?
Were the results noticeably different?
Was AI automatically included?
Were there advertisements?
Does the search engine track users?
How does the company make money?
Which sources appeared near the top?
Which search engine would they choose for future research, and why?

This is an easy way to introduce discussions about online research, digital privacy, source evaluation, and AI literacy.

Be sure to check out Jo’s blog post on this topic, where you can find links to the sites she mentions.

Where to find Jo Ebisujima online

Main blog: https://www.jojoebi.com/blog-2/

193 Little Adventures Club site – I create geography and culture packs – https://193littleadventures.com/

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/193_little_adventures/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/193littleadventures/

Pinterest – https://jp.pinterest.com/jojoebi

Show sponsor FundaFunda Academy

For online classes for homeschool students, including Computer Applications, AI for Teens, computer science, and other electives, visit the Computer page on FundaFunda Academy.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group, especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: homeschooling, Meryl van der Merwe. technology, podcast, search engines

How to Homeschool for Free: A Sample Homeschool Day

September 2, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

387: How to Homeschool for Free: A Sample Homeschool Day Using Free Resources

Can you really homeschool for free?

Yes — but free curriculum usually requires more work from the parent. In this episode, I walk through what a homeschool day could look like using completely free resources for math, English, foreign language, science, history, geography, art, and music.

Rather than giving you dozens of websites to sort through, I focus on a manageable number of resources that can work across multiple subjects and age levels.

Free homeschool resources mentioned

Math

Zearn — especially useful for elementary and middle school math
All-in-One High School — free Christian high school curriculum covering multiple subjects
OpenStax — free textbooks and course materials, particularly helpful for high school
Khan Academy — math plus many other subjects
CK-12 — free online textbooks and learning resources, especially for middle and high school

English

Khan Academy English language resources
Vocabulary.com
Your local library for literature, reading lists, audiobooks, and ebooks
Libby for borrowing ebooks and audiobooks through participating libraries

Foreign Language

Duolingo — a good free starting point for language learning
Mango Languages — often available free through public libraries

Science

CK-12
OpenStax
Science Friday Educate — science lessons that can be filtered by grade level and topic
Library books for additional science reading and experiment ideas

History

The Daily Bellringer on YouTube — short history videos organized into playlists on topics such as medieval history and World War II

Use a video as the starting point, then expand the topic with library books, research projects, posters, LEGO builds, games, or other hands-on activities.

Geography, Art & Music

Google Arts & Culture — explore museums, art, music, geography, games, and virtual experiences

These subjects don’t necessarily need to be covered every day, so they can easily be rotated throughout the week.

The catch with free homeschool curriculum

Free resources can provide excellent content, but parents often need to decide what to use, put lessons into a logical sequence, add supplementary material, provide accountability, and give students feedback.

That takes time.

Paid curriculum and online classes often save parents time because someone else has already organized and sequenced the material. But you certainly don’t need to outsource every subject. Working alongside your children is one of the advantages of homeschooling.

Using AI to plan free homeschool curriculum

AI can also make using free resources much easier.

For example, you could ask AI to help you map out a year of science for an eight-year-old and suggest topics and resources. You can then review the plan, check the resources, and use it as a framework for your homeschool year.

Using AI as a planning assistant can significantly reduce the time required to piece free curriculum together.

Free States of Matter Unit Study

FundaFunda Academy also has a free States of Matter mini unit study available when you join our newsletter. You’ll also receive access to our library of other free homeschool resources.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group, especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: free curriculum, homeschooling, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast, Technology

How to prepare teens for their first social media accounts

August 26, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe 1 Comment

386: How to prepare teens for their first social media accounts

Giving a teen their first social media account can feel a little like handing them the keys to a car. We wouldn’t expect a brand-new driver to figure everything out without preparation, and social media deserves the same kind of intentional teaching.

In this episode, I’m joined by Stephanie Simoes of Critikid for a conversation about what teens need to understand before they start using social media.

We discuss six important areas parents should consider:

Platform safety – Understanding the specific risks and safety settings of the platforms your teen wants to use.
Readiness and maturity – Thinking about whether your teen is ready to handle comparison, social pressure, and other challenges that come with social media.
How social media platforms work – Helping teens understand algorithms, engagement, attention, and why platforms are designed to keep them scrolling.
Online safety – Teaching teens about scams, privacy, location sharing, digital footprints, and unsafe contact with strangers.
Critical thinking and media literacy – Recognizing logical fallacies, evaluating claims, checking sources, and identifying misleading statistics and graphs.
What to do when something feels wrong – Making sure teens know when and how to involve a trusted adult.

We also talk about practical ways parents can prepare their teens, including modeling healthy social media habits, discussing questionable posts together, and creating a social media agreement before giving them an account.

Resources Mentioned

Kids Safe GPT
A tool parents can use to learn about potential safety concerns related to apps, platforms, games, and other online activities.
https://smarterx.ai/kid-safe-gpt

How Social Media Platforms Work – Reel
https://www.instagram.com/reels/DZVUXadtdJL/

Interview with Fareedah on Online Safety
https://critikid.com/online-safety

Be Internet Awesome – Google
Free resources for families covering online safety and digital citizenship, including family guides, activities, and the Interland game.
https://beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com/families

Social Media TestDrive
Interactive simulations that allow students to practice making decisions in realistic social media situations. Topics include digital footprints, privacy, breaking news, online identities, advertising, and healthy social media habits.
https://socialmediatestdrive.org/

Critikid Social Media Simulator
A safe, simulated social media feed that helps children and teens identify problems such as emotional manipulation, unsupported claims, unsafe trends, clickbait, misleading data, scams, and privacy risks.
https://critikid.com/courses/social-media-simulator

Critikid Media Literacy Resources
Lessons and worksheets that help students develop critical thinking and media literacy skills.
https://critikid.com/worksheets/media-literacy

Or buy both together in the Media Literacy Bundle: https://critikid.com/bundles/media-literacy-bundle

Free media literacy resources:
https://critikid.com/resources (scroll to bottom)

Critical Thinking in a Digital Age
A half-credit course for students in grades 7 and up created by Critikid and FundaFunda Academy.
https://www.fundafundaacademy.com/product/critical-thinking-for-the-digital-age/

FundaFunda Academy Computer Applications
This course teaches students practical computer skills while also covering digital literacy, online safety, scams, strong passwords, and responsible technology use.
https://www.fundafundaacademy.com/product/computer-fundamentals/

One Important Takeaway

Teens need practice navigating social media before they are expected to manage it independently. Talk through examples with them, teach them what warning signs to watch for, and make sure they know they can come to you when something online makes them uncomfortable.

If you know a family with a teen who is getting close to opening a first social media account, share this episode with them.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: critical thinking, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast, sociaal media, Teens

Is AI Helping Your Teen Learn—or Doing the Learning for Them?

August 19, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

385: Is AI Helping Your Teen Learn—or Doing the Learning for Them?

AI can be an incredibly useful learning tool for teens—but only when they use it in ways that support their own thinking and skill development.

In this episode, I share a framework parents can use to help teens decide when AI is appropriate for schoolwork. The key question teens need to ask is: Will using AI help me learn something, or will it help me avoid learning it?

We look at situations where teens should not use AI, including:

Writing assignments designed to develop their own thinking and writing skills
Questions asking for their personal knowledge or opinions
Math, science, coding, or other problems they haven’t genuinely attempted first
Avoiding assigned reading
Submitting answers or language they don’t understand
Allowing AI to make decisions for them
Any assignment where the teacher has prohibited AI use

I also share productive ways teens can use AI. It can re-explain a difficult concept, generate extra practice questions, provide feedback on a draft without rewriting it, help brainstorm ideas, identify gaps in understanding, practice for an interview or oral exam, and suggest search terms or resources for research.

Finally, I give teens four questions they can ask themselves before using AI for schoolwork:

Am I allowed to use AI?
What am I losing by using AI?
What am I gaining by using AI?
Will I be able to explain the final result?

These questions can help homeschool parents move the conversation beyond simply telling teens whether AI is “good” or “bad” and teach them to make thoughtful decisions about how they use it.

Resources Mentioned

AI for Teens class at FundaFunda Academy
Students learn how AI works, explore useful AI tools, and learn how to use AI while preserving their own thinking, ideas, and creativity.

NotebookLM
An AI tool that can help students engage with material in different ways, including alternative explanations and learning formats.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology, Uncategorized Tagged With: AI, homeschooling teens, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast, Technology

A Student’s Perspective on Essential Tech Skills for High School

August 12, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

384: A Student’s Perspective on Essential Tech Skills for High School

In this episode, Meryl talks with high school senior Ada Anderson about the technology skills she has found most useful throughout her high school years.Ada shares the tools she uses regularly for school, scholarships, personal projects, and staying organized. She also talks about some of the tech skills students are often expected to know even though no one has actually taught them how to use them well.

In this episode, we discuss:

The tech tools Ada uses most often, including Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, and Canva
How she learned her technology skills through trial and error and formal classes
Why learning these skills before high school can make later classes easier
How often high school classes require students to create presentations, posters, and videos
Why knowing more than the basics of Google Sheets can be especially valuable
Why learning how to figure out unfamiliar technology may be as important as learning individual tools
How Ada uses Google Sheets to organize scholarship applications
How Canva and video creation skills can be useful when applying for scholarships
Tech skills that high school students are often assumed to know but may never have been taught

One important takeaway from Ada’s experience is that students benefit from learning technology skills before they urgently need them. By the time they reach high school, they may be expected to collaborate in Google Docs, analyze information in spreadsheets, make presentations, create videos, and learn unfamiliar digital tools independently.

Resources mentioned

FundaFunda Academy Computer Applications – This full-year course introduces students to a wide range of practical technology skills. Students can choose the instructor-graded asynchronous version with weekly deadlines and opportunities for online collaboration, or a self-paced, parent-graded version that families can reuse with multiple children.The course is available for students from 7th grade up and is designed to help students become comfortable learning and using new technology independently.

Free High School Tracker – This Google Sheet helps families keep track of information students may need later for college and scholarship applications, including courses, GPA, activities, and volunteer hours.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: High School, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast, Technology

AI Through a Teen’s Eyes with Sofia Alvarez

August 5, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

383: AI Through a Teen’s Eyes with Sofia Alvarez de la Hoz

In this episode, Meryl talks with Sophia Alvarez de la Hoz, a former student in Meryl’s AI for Teens class. Sophia shares what she knew about AI before taking the course, what surprised her, and how her understanding changed as she learned about topics such as large language models, AI ethics, red teaming, and responsible use.

Sophia also explains how she currently uses AI tools for schoolwork and personal projects. She discusses using NotebookLM to study and an AI image generator to develop the design for her eighth-grade graduation cap.

The conversation addresses an important question for homeschool families: How can students use AI for support without allowing it to do the thinking for them? Sophia shares practical strategies, including asking AI to explain a concept without revealing the answer and recognizing when the tool is completing too much of the learning process.

Resources Mentioned

AI for Teens class from FundaFunda Academy:
AI for Teens is a one-semester, half-credit elective designed for students in grades 7–12.

NotebookLM:
https://notebooklm.google.com/

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: AI, artificial intellegence, homeschooling teens, Meryl van der Merwe, Technology

Summer Tech Challenge 9: Build a Website

July 29, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

382: Summer Tech Challenge 9 – Build a Website

Creating a website may sound intimidating, but today’s free tools make it surprisingly simple. This challenge gives you and your children a low-pressure opportunity to experiment with website design and discover how useful this skill can be.

Why should teens learn to build websites?

A simple website can be useful for:

Promoting a teen’s small business, such as photography, babysitting, tutoring, or lawn care
Sharing information for a Scout troop, 4-H club, sports team, or community organization
Creating a portfolio of artwork, writing, photography, coding projects, or other accomplishments
Providing additional evidence of a teen’s skills on college, scholarship, internship, or job applications
Collecting information about a family hobby, favorite books, movies, or summer experiences

The goal of this challenge is not to produce a professional website. It is to become comfortable enough with the process that you and your children will be willing to create one when a real need arises.

Website-building tools to try

Canva

Canva is my first recommendation for this challenge because it is easy to use and will host your website for free. You can design the pages visually and publish the finished website with a Canva link.

Strikingly

Strikingly is another free option that makes it easy to create modern-looking websites.

Google Sites

Google Sites takes slightly more time to learn, but it is free and works well for simple websites, portfolios, and collaborative projects.

When you get stuck, begin with the tool’s help section. You can also ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude, or another AI assistant to walk you through the specific problem.

This week’s challenge

Work alone or with your children to create a simple website about something you enjoy. Possible topics include:

A family hobby
Favorite books or movies
Places you visited this summer
A collection of artwork or photographs
A small business or service
A club, team, or community project

Links and resources

2 Videos on how to use Canva to create a website

Entering the Summer Challenge

Share what you did in the challenge on one of the FundaFunda Education Instagram or Facebook posts or in one of these Facebook groups:

If you are not on social media, email your entry to meryl@fundafunda.com, and it can be shared on your behalf.

Each week, one participant will win a FundaFunda Academy unit study of their choice worth $20. Everyone who participates during the summer will also be entered into the grand prize drawing for a $50 gift card.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: homeschool technology, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast

Summer Tech Challenge 8: Create a Video Recommendation

July 22, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

381: Summer Tech Challenge 8: Create a Video Recommendation

Video creation is becoming an essential skill for today’s students. In this episode, homeschool families are challenged to create a short recommendation video using Canva. Whether you’ve never edited a video before or you’re ready to build your skills, this challenge provides a simple way to get started while creating something useful to share with others.

Students / parents can recommend anything they enjoyed this summer—from books and games to museums, podcasts, travel destinations, or homeschool resources.

In this episode

Why video creation is a valuable college and career skill
Why Canva is an excellent beginner-friendly video editor
How to create a 30–60 second recommendation video
Ideas for topics to recommend
Ways to use images, stock photos, AI-generated images, and video clips
Adding text or recording a voiceover
How AI tools like ChatGPT can help when you get stuck
How to enter the Summer Tech Challenge

Summer Tech Challenge Prompt

Create a 30–60 second recommendation video about something you enjoyed this summer.

Ideas include:

A favorite book
A board or card game
A museum
A vacation destination
A podcast
A homeschool resource
Anything else you’d recommend to others

Use Canva to combine images, video clips, text, and/or a voiceover into a short video.

Mentioned in this episode

Canva for video creation
ChatGPT for troubleshooting while creating videos
FundaFunda Academy Computer Applications course (self-paced and teacher-graded options)

Entering the Summer Challenge

Share what you did in the challenge on one of the FundaFunda Education Instagram or Facebook posts or in one of these Facebook groups:

If you are not on social media, email your entry to meryl@fundafunda.com, and it can be shared on your behalf.

Take a look at show sponsor, FundaFunda Academy to see what they offer for online classes and web-based unit studies.

Join our Facebook Group especially for the listeners of this podcast! You can ask questions and get advice as you try integrating technology in your homeschool.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and give a rating and maybe even a review! Subscribing will help you make sure you never miss an episode

Filed Under: Homeschooling with Technology Tagged With: homeschooling, Meryl van der Merwe, podcast, Technology, Video creation

Summer Tech Challenge 7: Create a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Story

July 15, 2026 by Meryl van der Merwe Leave a Comment

380: Summer Tech Challenge 7: Create a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Story

In this week’s Summer Tech Challenge, learn how to turn Google Slides into an interactive choose-your-own-adventure story. This activity combines creativity, planning, writing, and technology while giving students a fun way to present what they’ve learned.

In this episode

Why choose-your-own-adventure stories are such engaging learning projects
How this activity builds research, planning, and creative writing skills
Real classroom examples from FundaFunda Academy courses
Why Google Slides is an excellent tool for interactive storytelling
How to map out your story before building it
Creating hyperlinks between slides to allow readers to make choices

Summer Tech Challenge #7

Create a summer-themed choose-your-own-adventure story using Google Slides.

Your story could include:

A family vacation
A trip to the beach
A day at the pool
Camping adventures
Any original summer adventure you can imagine

Tips for Success

Plan the story on paper before opening Google Slides.
Create all of your slides first.
Use hyperlinks to connect choices to different slides.
Add images after the story structure is complete.
Remember that not every slide needs to offer a choice—some simply move the story forward.