About Me

When I was in high school I thought I wanted to be a physical therapist. My mom was a nurse and people assumed I’d follow in her footsteps but nursing seemed a little too intense for me. I was still interested in the medical field and had found a different area that seemed to fit me better. I thought my career choice was set…and then I saw a movie that changed my direction completely. The movie was called “A Circle of Children” based on a book of the same title written by Mary MacCraken. The movie was about a woman who worked with special needs children and it captured my attention in a way that surprised me.

I was just entering my freshman year of college and had to choose a major. I decided to check out what a career in education, specifically special education, would be like. During my first semester I took a class called “early experience” which placed me in a classroom of special needs children at the local school for the disabled. Of course the “labels” have changed several times over the years but back then, the group I worked with was called “moderately mentally retarded.” It was a group of children who would never read or write, some would never even speak clear enough to understand. I fell in love with these children and knew that this was what I wanted to do.

I finished my degree and took a job in the county program for the handicapped. They didn’t have a position in the children’s department so I was working with adults. I loved what I was doing but was challenged by some of the assumptions that the staff believed defined “normal.” It didn’t take me long to see that Iwould not fit in this environment. The next year I taught in a public school “specials needs” class while I was expecting my first child.

After I had my first little boy I knew that what I really wanted to do was stay home with him, so that’s what I did. I have been at home raising children ever since. I now have seven sons, two who are married and five who are still at home. After a brief time in a Christian school, we brought our oldest son home to learn in the third grade. He is grown and now has three children of his own. We have been homeschooling the other boys ever since. After 18 years I’d like to say that I have it all figured out. But in reality, I am learning right along with my boys. Each one has had a different way of learning and we have adjusted accordingly. Every year is something new and different as they each mature and change in their perspective of life.

Three of my boys are finished with homeschooling now. The oldest is a computer programmer, the second is in the retail business, and the third is attending college. All three are excelling at what they do. The younger four are still working with me every day. Next year I will have two in high school, one in middle school, and one in elementary. We have become more relaxed in our approach to schooling over the years as we have learned that some things are more important than others. We don’t stress about or strive for achievement anymore. We focus on the love of learning and I am always amazed at how much more they are willing to learn on their own.

All this relaxing has given me more time to do other things! I am now beginning to work on some projects that have been sort of on the back burner for many years. I have always loved writing and now that I have the time I am finally putting some things together. I have just finished my first novel. I don’t know yet where it will end up but it is in the revision stages and will be submitted to a publisher when it is ready. I am also working on my blogs (UsborneReaders.com and SherylMaxey.com) and on some curriculum materials that I hope will be useful to both homeschoolers and school teachers. Besides all of that, since I now have three grandchildren, I have been learning to sew! So far, I have made three quilts (one for each of the babies), a rag doll, and some puppets.

I’m also a consultant for Usborne Books & More. Years ago, when I was looking for educational resources for my boys, I ran across these books. I was so impressed with their quality, I decided to sell them. 

As I look back, I am grateful and content with where my life has taken me. How about you? Are you able to look back on your life and see that path that has brought you where you are today? Perhaps life isn’t where you thought it would be when you were younger. But I believe that our past shapes who we are. You can choose to be bitter about the past or glad for the experiences life has brought you. For me…I’ll choose to be content.

Enjoy life,

–Sheryl