Kolbecast

262 Childlike Joy for Our New Pope with Katie Bogner

AMDG. “Don’t feel like it’s too late— you can pick this up and study and learn about it anytime you want.”  
Author of the brand-new book We Have a Pope Katie Bogner and Kolbe kindergarten teacher Kimberly Wolf join the Kolbecast to share their experience talking to young students about the new pope and papal election process. Katie explains the inspiration behind her new book, how she simplified her explanation of a papal conclave to make it appropriate for young readers, and what her writing process looks like (“They have all actually started as really detailed spreadsheets,” she notes). Kimberly shares stories of watching the papal election with her students and the questions they asked, as well as how she used Katie’s resources in her classroom. The duo reflects on avoiding politics in the midst of papal news and the importance of continuing celebration. “Ride this wave as Catholics,” Katie says, “Keep celebrating.”  
Related links: 
We Have a Pope published by the St. Paul Center & illustrated by Kortnee Senn of Studio Senn 
Follow @stpaulcenter @emmausroadpublishing and @katherine.bogner on Instagram. 
Kolbecast episodes mentioned & relevant: 
184 Hope & Wonder and 248 Intentionality & Purpose for Lent & Holy Week with Katie Bogner & Shari Van Vranken 
Spotlights on Kolbe Academy’s online elementary program: 
81 The When and the How of Online Elementary 
82 Move & Groove 
122 Bridge Year 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

261 Lisa Popcak - Make It about Relationship

AMDG. In a continuation of last week’s episode, Lisa Popcak shares her advice for new homeschooling families, including what aspects of education matter most and what worked in her own family. “I had promised her… you will be 100% fine,” Lisa recalled. “And sure enough, she got recruited by her college… and got almost a full ride to be a pre-med student.”  
Lisa reflects on her children leaving the home for college, navigating hard seasons in the home, liturgical living, and so much more.  
Kolbecast episodes mentioned & relevant: 
260 Flow & Connection through Learning, the first part of our conversation with Lisa Popcak 
255 Family Life as Liturgy with Dr. Greg Popcak 
131 It’s All about Relationship with Danielle Bean 
62 Due Diligence with Darren Jones of the Homeschool Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) 
105 Not Just for Special Occasions 
Related links:  
CatholicHOM (Households on Mission) 
CatholicCounselors.com 
More2Life Radio & podcasts 
Books by Dr. Greg & Lisa Popcak 
Momfidence podcast 
BeDADitudes podcast 
Hold On to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More than Peers by Gordon Neufeld & Gabor Maté 
Books by the Popcaks mentioned in this conversation: 
Discovering God Together: The Catholic Guide to Raising Faithful Kids 
Parenting Kids with Grace (birth to age 10) 
Parenting Your Teens and Tweens with Grace 
Once upon a Lifetime Podcast 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

260 Lisa Popcak on Flow & Connection through Learning

AMDG. Catholic podcaster and co-founder/vice-president of  CatholicCounselors.comLisa Popcak shares her wisdom on homeschooling and raising children in the faith. Lisa advocates for “flow” rather than structure in the homeschool day and paints a picture of what a rich— but achievable— prayer life looks like in a busy home. “We have to get away from the idea that our prayer life has to be rigorous,” Lisa says. “If our children are called to a rigorous monastic life, God will give them the grace for that. We have many saints who were… and many saints who went a different way.”  
 
Kolbecast episodes mentioned & relevant: 
255 Family Life as Liturgy with Dr. Greg Popcak 
131 It’s All about Relationship with Danielle Bean 
Related links:  
CatholicHOM (Households on Mission) 
CatholicCounselors.com 
More2Life Radio & podcasts 
Books by Dr. Greg & Lisa Popcak 
Momfidence podcast 
BeDADitudes podcast 
Hold On to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More than Peers by Gordon Neufeld & Gabor Maté 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

259 Seeing the Story - Classical Reflections on Art

AMDG.  “I always knew I liked these things and I knew they were beautiful, but now I know why.”  
In a special sneak peek episode, Kolbe Academy team members Carol Gilpin, Stephanie Foley, and Therese Prudlo join the Kolbecast to discuss the brand new art history and architecture book. The trio discusses the layout of the new art book, revealing the thought process and design work that went into the new text. “It’s like we’re having a conversation with that artist… a real human connection,” Stephanie reflects.  
Whether you are considering purchasing this book for your children or interested in picking up a beautiful, readable art book for yourself, this episode is a must-listen!  
Related Kolbecast episodes:  
194 Visual Literacy with Amanda Shepherd 
249 Stories Crafted with Care featuring Carol Gilpin, Stephanie Foley, and Stasha Becher 
186 Full Circle (of Fifths) and 201 The Soundtrack of Life with Carl Hasler and Olivia Knuffke on the topic of music 
Links mentioned & relevant: 
Pope John Paul II’s Letter to Artists 
Art History text 
The “Not-Artistic” Parent’s Guide to Art Appreciation with free download/preview of artist spotlights 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

258 Seeking, Finding, and Building Community -- Groups & Extracurriculars

AMDG. Do you worry about finding a strong community for your children outside the home? Homeschooling moms Dee-dee and Krysten join the Kolbecast to share about their homeschool communities. Filled with practical advice and anecdotes from their years of experience, Dee-dee and Krysten’s conversation makes building a thriving community feel accessible to anyone.  
Dee-dee started her own homeschooling group after moving to an area that didn’t have a strong homeschooling community. What started as a small gathering in Dee-dee’s household snowballed into a huge community of homeschool families. “The most successful groups are the ones that grow organically,” Deedee notes. Her homeschool group now offers copious enrichment activities such as drama, theatre, and a brown bag lunch program for the needy in the community. 
Krysten runs the largest homeschool group on a military base in the nation. Krysten addresses the ins and outs of running a homeschool non-profit organization, from cautionary tales to inspiring successes in evangelization. “God will open the doors that need to be open,” Krysten says. “Lean into what God is calling you to do.” 
Related Kolbecast episodes: 
214 A Long View with Charles & Dee-dee Mihaliak 
155 Mission Intent: Pathways to Serve and 156 Mission Intent: Formed to Serve with and about homeschooling military families 
105 Not Just for Special Occasions addressing socialization 
3 Dramatic Arts and 73 Through Beauty and Technology with Dolores Mihaliak 
208 A Mosaic of Experience and 246 Orientation toward the Eternal with Kolbe Academy alumnus Charlie Mihaliak 
Relevant links: 
School & Co-op Partnerships with Kolbe Academy 
Adoro Te, the homeschool group that Dee-dee and her family helped found 
Cultivating Friendships and Enriching Social Activities for Homeschool Students from the Kolbe Academy Help Center 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

257 Integrated Catholic, Classical Education in Middle & High School

AMDG. What do parents need to know before their children enter middle school or high school? Curriculum Director Maggie Hayden and Principal Nicole O’Connor are back once again to discuss classical education at the 6-12 grade level.  
Maggie and Nicole share their years of expertise working with students, outlining what parents and students can expect both developmentally and academically as they transition from elementary school to middle school and from middle school to high school. The duo emphasizes the importance of exploration, curiosity, and integration; explains why literature and grammar are the focal point of the middle school years; and details why the Classical Composition course is so highly recommended through middle and high school. Next, Maggie and Nicole turn their attention to high school, discussing the methodology behind Kolbe’s program, the “big questions” the program centers around, why “religion” becomes “theology” when studied in high school, and so much more.  
Related links: 
Summer Reading Program 
How to Get Started at Kolbe 
Kolbecast episodes mentioned & relevant 
243 Drawing Distinctions – Classical Education, Liberal Arts, and Liberal Education 
256 An Education That Reflects God’s Beauty 
61 Middle Ground with middle school teachers Alex Pischke & Amanda Hayes 
203 Guided Freedom with Classical Composition teachers Sarah Foulkes & Grace Berg 
14 We Don’t Think Those Words Mean What You Think They Mean with Nicole O’Connor discussing the classical subjects of Logic & Rhetoric  
Kolbecast Humanities series:  
220 Decoding Mythology to Reveal Christianity  
225 On the Same (Greco-Roman) Page  
229 Take a Note from Homer  
234 Adding Color to What Is Black & White  
239 Divine Plot Twist 
245 The Odyssey’s Allegorical Outlook 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

256 An Education That Reflects God's Beauty

AMDG. “They are children of God and they are worthy of an education that reflects God’s beauty.”  
What does a classical education even look like in grades K-5? Curriculum Director Maggie Hayden and Principal Nicole O’Connor join the Kolbecast to answer just that question. Maggie and Nicole explain how they rebuilt the Kolbe elementary curriculum to reflect classical methodology and principles of Ignatian education. “We were looking at what things the little kids have to know in K-2 to be able to do third through fifth, then sixth through eighth grade, and up to high school,” Maggie explains.  
Maggie and Nicole discuss what goals are appropriate at each grade level, and areas of concern to watch for; break down the reason behind the recent curriculum development and the Catholic, classical methodology that inspired Maggie and Nicole’s work; dismantle misconceptions about classical education; give sneak peeks at new materials coming soon; and pack in dozens of helpful tips for parents of K-5 students.   
Kolbecast episodes mentioned & relevant 
243 Drawing Distinctions – Classical Education, Liberal Arts, and Liberal Education 
248 Intentionality & Purpose for Lent & Holy Week with Katie Bogner & Shari Van Vranken (guest cohost: Maggie Hayden) 
100 In the Beginning with Kolbe Academy co-founder Mrs. Dianne Muth 
247 Lightbulb Moments for Young Readers 
197 Tools in a Toolbox: Student Support Services 
203 Guided Freedom, a conversation about Classical Composition 
Other relevant links: 
Implementation of Ignatian Education in the Home by Kolbe Academy co-founder Francis Crotty 
Kolbe Academy’s Student Support Services 
Learn more about Kolbe’s early education programs by reading the posts below—and download a free week-long preview of each program to explore for yourself:
Nurturing Little Hearts – Read about Kolbe Academy’s Preschool Program + Download the Preschool Preview: A Week to Explore
Welcome to a Year of Wonder – Read about Kolbe Academy’s Kindergarten Curriculum + Download the Kindergarten Preview: A Week to Explore
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast! 

255 Family Life as Liturgy with Dr. Greg Popcak

AMDG. Host of EWTN’s More2Life podcast, founder of CatholicCounselors.com, and developer of the CatholicHÔM app Greg Popcak joins the Kolbecast to share his wisdom on making your home into a living, vibrant domestic church. “What does a domestic church spirituality even look like,” Dr. Popcak asks, “that would treat family life— the craziness, the busyness, the scatteredness of family life— as a feature, not a bug, of Catholic spirituality?”  
In today’s episode, Dr. Popcak reveals his insights from years of counseling homeschooling families and parents, including some common pitfalls to beware of; explains what an “emotional bank account” is, and how to make sure your children’s stay full; analyzes the scientific data on how to raise your children into faithful, Catholic adults; reveals where burnout comes from -- and how to treat it; unpacks what we mean by a “domestic church,” and how you can make your home into one; and shares his advice for those interested in pursuing a counseling career.  
Whether you’re a homeschooling parent looking to deepen your family connection and faith, or a student considering a future career in counseling, this episode has something for you. 
Links mentioned & relevant: 
CatholicHOM (Households on Mission) 
CatholicCounselors.com 
More2Life Radio & podcasts 
Books by Dr. Greg & Lisa Popcak 
Related Kolbecast episodes: 
188 Challenges as Opportunities and 219 The Upside of Anxiety  with Dr. Kevin Majeres 
250 Made for Relationship with Kenna Millea 
66 Bonhomie à la Kolbe, which features a discussion on domestic church 
254 Art & Laraine Bennett Offer Freedom from Anxiety 
Have questions or suggestions for future episodes or a story of your own experience that you’d like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Send your thoughts to podcast@kolbe.org and be a part of the Kolbecast odyssey.  
We’d be grateful for your feedback! Please share your thoughts with us via this Kolbecast survey! 
The Kolbecast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most podcast apps. By leaving a rating and review in your podcast app of choice, you can help the Kolbecast reach more listeners. The Kolbecast is also on Kolbe's YouTube channel (audio only with subtitles).  Using the filters on our website, you can sort through the episodes to find just what you're looking for. However you listen, spread the word about the Kolbecast!