Escapees March/April 2016

Mining for Pecos Diamonds in New Mexico.

The Drawbacks Of course, living in 350 square feet on wheels with your entire family, has its own set of drawbacks. The average RV family must ¿ t all their belongings, including roadschooling supplies, in a space slightly larger than 10 percent of the average American family’s home of 2,500 square feet. Also, extended family support, including grandparents, are left miles behind. This can put a strain on fami- lies and requires strong and consistent communication to maintain healthy foundational relationships. It’s import- ant for roadschooling families to make visits to extended family a priority on their journey. Sometimes that takes the form of bringing your rig home for the holidays while other times extend- ed family has opportunities to share adventures with multiple generations that might not have otherwise been possible if the family did not travel full-time. While roadschooling may not be a good ¿ t for every family, for those families who are drawn to the lifestyle, opportunities to turn knowledge into wisdom are plentiful at the crossroads of education and adventure.

“Unearthing, uncovering, digging deeper; a week’s worth of work sheets on the subject could not have yielded the same results.”

cos Diamonds and shared where she had mined them. This experience had mystery, intrigue, precious gems and a secret location—all the markings of a grand adventure. Before I knew it, we were packed in our truck, heading two miles to the spot this camp host had clued us in on. There, along a rusty, barbed wire fence, among prickly pear cactus on a dusty trail, we found thousands of sparkling Pecos Diamonds. Pecos Di- amonds are double-terminated quartz crystals that range in color from burnt orange to a creamy buttery yellow. “Why are these here?” “Who ‘cut’ them like this?” “How much are they worth?” The questions from my enthusiastic learners increased in proportion to their bulging col- lections of crystals. I promised we would fully explore this naturally occurring phenomenon when we returned to the camper. As the sun set behind a dusky desert mountain range, the kids were giddy as they plucked handfuls of “diamonds” from the earth.

We learned about solutions and saturations. We learned about geology, geography and new-age mysticism. And, we learned how delicious home- made rock candy was and more on a break from learning, and I guarantee you, my kids absorbed every min- ute detail of this impromptu lesson because of the method in which we learned it: unearthing, uncovering, digging deeper; a week’s worth of work sheets on the subject could not have yielded the same results.

Resources for Roadschooling Resources abound for families looking for more infor- mation on roadschooling. Support sites such as Fulltime Families ( www.fulltimefamilies.com ) provide resourc- es and host nationwide rallies where people considering this lifestyle are welcome to attend and learn first-hand the pros and cons from other traveling families. In addition, a top-rated iTunes podcast, Roadschool Moms ( www.roadschoolmoms.com ), details the challenges and benefits of mobile education in a weekly live Internet radio broadcast.

Back at the camper, a quick Internet search yielded a mul- titude of lesson plans about crystal creation, but I knew the one that produced rock candy at the end would be sure to keep my road schol- ars’ attention.

Kimberly Travaglino is the author of the best seller, How to Hit the Road; Making Your Family’s Full-Time RV Dreams a Reality , co-founder of Fulltime Families RV membership club and one half of the dynamic podcasting duo at Roadschool Moms. Her family of six has been traveling the country via RV since 2010. They have been to 39 states to date and have no end to their journey in sight. For more information about adventuring across America as a family, visit www.fulltimefamilies.com .

22 . ESCAPEES | March/April 2016 | www.escapees.com