The Orchard Homeschool Community was born from a group of moms who were determined to give their children the gift of time. Time outside, time to play, time to let their imagination run wild, time to be with family, to develop passions, chase interests, get lost in a great book, to experience life to the full the way God intended. In the Fall of 2020, we began to meet outside once a week at what we call Nature Group. We loved watching our kids delight in the wonders of nature. Our community began to grow and we saw that we were not the only ones with this call to do things differently with our children. We began to ask, “what if we joined together?” “what if we created a place for families like us?”

Here is the story from the perspective of one of our founding members, Casey:

“When I became a mom, all I knew of homeschooling was that one kind of weird family in my hometown. They all played violin by age 7, and as far as I knew, never came out of their house unless it was to perform at the Church Christmas Special. 

I grew up in public school, and I wasn’t weird. I was pretty popular actually. I went to school to see my friends. The actual learning part felt intimidating though. I was terrified of being called on to read aloud, getting a wrong answer, or a classmate overseeing the grade on my worksheet in bright, red ink.

I sugar coated my whole school experience for most of my adult life, but when I had my own children, I had to get honest with myself. I did not enjoy school. For 12 years, I felt anxious, nervous, and uncomfortable daily. I knew I couldn’t knowingly send my kids into the same experience. But I also wanted them to have friends, a community, and a full childhood.

I met Kate when our firstborns were just babies. We began having regular play dates, and I loved her heart for children and her passion for family and intentional mothering. We were both interested in homeschooling, so we would constantly share podcasts and talk about the different methods and dream of what our kids’ childhood could look like. We wanted more freedom to follow interests, more time to make memories and let our kids learn at their own pace, and more natural learning through nature and living books. One by one, we slowly formed our little tribe of mommas with a similar vision.

For the last few years, this tribe has met weekly with our littles for what we lovingly call Nature Group. My boys look forward to it every week (and so do I!) I’ve watched them thrive getting to be free and play outside with their friends for hours. They study bugs while dipping their toes in the river. They swap snacks as Miss Kate reads them a story. 

I never knew there was a third option. An option C. A way for my kids to learn and play, to be with peers and go at their own pace. A way for me to be with them, while also not feeling like the weight of their education is all on my shoulders. A way for them to grow up without even having the words “weird” or “popular” in their vocabulary. 

What started as a small group of mommas wanting something different for their kids has expanded to so much more. We have seen the need in our community, and after so much thought and prayer, The Orchard was formed. It’s a place to have children come together weekly, for nature study, lots of stories, creative time, and so much more.”

-Casey Troyer

The Orchard story belongs to many families who had the courage to step out of what was normal and into something wild, unpredictable, and beautiful. The journey of homeschooling does require much, and we believe that no family should have to do it alone. We invite you to join us as we take this amazing journey together.