Most homeschool parents have the same thing on their phone: hundreds of photos of their kids learning, and no real plan for them. Matraca Rehkemper, a homeschool mom of four and children’s author, asked the question out loud in a short video: what are you actually doing with all those pictures?
Catching up on a whole school year at once
Matraca says setting up her account took about two minutes. Then she went straight to Bulk Import. Instead of adding photos one at a time, you pick up to 50 at once from your camera roll and choose which child they belong to. The app uses the date each photo was taken, so every moment lands on the right day of your school year.
Next, Homeschool Moment writes a short educational description of what is happening in each photo and tags the subject. In her words, “that random picture of your child doing a science experiment, it becomes an actual documented learning moment.”
A portfolio you can print or send
Every moment you save can go into a PDF. You can download it, send it to an evaluator or your school district, or print it for your own records. For families in states that ask for a yearly portfolio, this is the part that saves the most time.
It fits how you already homeschool
One of Matraca’s favorite parts is that the app does not care which curriculum you use. Lessons at the table, a nature walk, a project in the kitchen: it all counts. She also points out a few things that make it easy to keep going:
- More than photos. You can save short videos, voice recordings, PDFs and worksheets too.
- A timeline. Every moment is sorted by date, so you can look back at the subjects and activities you covered.
- Help from another adult. You can invite another parent or caregiver to add moments, so the records do not all fall on one person.
- Profiles, badges and stickers. Each child gets their own profile, and you earn badges and stickers as you keep documenting.
Why it matters
“Our kids are learning constantly, and sometimes the moments we aren’t even thinking about documenting end up being the most meaningful.”
Matraca’s point is simple. Homeschooling is more than checking boxes on a curriculum, and the records should reflect that without becoming another chore. As she puts it, Homeschool Moment gives her family a way to capture those experiences “without turning record keeping into an overwhelming responsibility.”
Try it yourself
Homeschool Moment is free to start on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Android. Start with Bulk Import and see how much of your year is already sitting in your camera roll. You can follow Matraca on Instagram at @matraca.rehk.
Disclosure: Matraca was paid by Homeschool Moment to make this video. The words in the quotes are her own.
Document Your Learning Journey
Homeschool Moment helps you capture learning activities and writes the educational captions for you. Perfect for building portfolios and meeting state requirements.