Turn roads into home classrooms

Trade our desks for deserts, coastlines, and campsites to provide our children with a travel-based, real-world inspired education.

Author: David Saul and Karstin Saul

At 9 a.m., our 15-year-old daughter Kinlee logs into her high school English class from a campground in Florida.

Meanwhile, our eight-year-old son, Zeke, is doing some Montessori-style learning outdoors. Tomorrow we head to the Everglades for an immersive learning experience for the whole family. Later, Kinley will be able to watch footage of the day’s lessons on her laptop, perhaps under the stars on a picnic table next to our RV.

While visiting every state in the continental United States, the only way we can keep our kids on track academically is to rethink school and choose Education options designed for mobilitywithout a zip code.

We didn’t set out to become a “digital nomad family.” We started out as a family in Asheville, North Carolina, doing what so many others have been doing during the pandemic: working remotely while doing online learning at home with our kids.

Between lockdowns and Zoom calls, a bigger question is starting to emerge: What kind of life can we create together if work and school no longer need to be tied to buildings?

The idea didn't come easily. One of us has always dreamed of living small and traveling full time. The other was a civil engineer who had been a “numbers guy” all his life and needed proof that it actually worked. The pandemic has given us space to imagine different paths.

Once we realized we could sell our house, get out of debt, and Maintain our remote revenuethe dream becomes tangible. We committed to spending a year on the road, promising our kids and ourselves that if something didn't feel right, we would stop. We are now entering our fifth year.

in the time we spent Live, learn and work from our RVswe’ve found that the key to getting kids motivated to learn and on the path to success is to integrate educational opportunities into their daily lives.

Two children, two learning paths

As a family with a 15-year-old daughter and an 8-year-old son, one of the most important lessons we've learned is that flexibility is critical. Kinlee is in high school and excels in structure, challenge, and connections with peers.

After thoroughly researching online and homeschool options, we chose Crimson Global Academy (CGA), Kinlee participates in live, interactive classes with students from around the world. CGA’s rigorous coursework and hybrid model (a combination of live and recorded classes) allowed her to keep up with her studies even while traveling. More importantly, such learning taught her a sense of responsibility. She managed her schedule, took responsibility for her work, and became more confident and independent.

Learning looks very different for Zeke. At his age, we tend toward curiosity and movement. His education is a blend of workbooks, hands-on projects, and what we call “place-based learning.” If we were in the Everglades, we would turn it into a fun science lesson. A trip to the zoo turned into biology. National parks become living geography and history lessons.

world as curriculum

One of the most powerful transformations we see is learning how to persevere in life.

Kinley has had the experience of being in class learning about a concept (whether it was geology, history, or environmental science) and then finding herself standing in the classroom weeks later. Walking through Yellowstone, exploring Banff, or paddling on a mountain lake near the Grand Tetons makes abstract ideas concrete in a way that textbooks can't.

For Zeke, learning rarely involves sitting still. He absorbs more information outdoors than at his desk. Instead of trying to force learning into strict time periods, we let his curiosity guide him.

Socializing on the road (yes, really)

One of our most common questions is how to maintain social relationships, especially for younger children who are unable to participate in face-to-face activities organized by their schools. The truth is, your life on the RV can be just as social as living in a home in a zip code, maybe even more so.

RV communities are filled with families. Especially during the winter months, hundreds of full-time traveling families gather in places like Florida and Southern California. We spent this winter at an RV park in Orlando with 40 or 50 kids. Kinley and Zeke have been attending drama classes and park parties, and even an RV dance. Because of our nomadic lifestyle and her online schooling, Kinlee has friends scattered across states and countries, and thanks to CGA, she will meet classmates in person at organized gatherings.

Instead of being surrounded by the same peers year after year, our children encounter people of different ages, backgrounds, and perspectives. This diversity makes their world so much more than we can imagine.

What makes the digital nomad lifestyle work

Living in an RV full-time doesn’t mean constant movement. In the winter, we stay for a few months. During the summer we are more mobile, but we try to avoid one-night stays whenever possible. Balance is important. Here are some things we learned while studying and living on the road:

Choose the right RV. For long-term travel, space and privacy are non-negotiable. Everyone needs their own area.
Plan learning around life, not the other way around. Some days are academically heavy. Others focus on exploration. Both counts. One week might feature a science lesson about ecosystems culminating in a boat trip in the Everglades, while another week combines a history lesson with time in a historic western town near a national park.
Invest in the community. Whether it's a CGA, a local course or an RV family group, connections are essential.
Divide and conquer based on your strengths. Zeke does a lot of Montessori inspired activities because Kearstin used to work in a Montessori school. David, who has a civil engineering background, usually leads in math, while Kirsten focuses on reading, writing and spelling.
Let children take the initiativeespecially as we age. Responsibility breeds confidence.
slow down. This lifestyle works best when it is intentional rather than rushed.

Cultivate curious, capable people

We both had traditional educations – public and private – and we didn't think this lifestyle was “better,” just different. Our children are given choices. They can focus on things that excite them. Kinley discovered a love for journalism, spurred by years of travel journaling. Zeke learns best when his hands and feet move.

The most important thing to us is that our children are engaged, growing and happy. Every December, our family sits down and asks: Is this still working? So far, the answer has always been yes.

open invitation

We don’t believe there is only one right way to live, travel or learn. But we do believe that the world is bigger than four classroom walls and that education does not have to be limited by geography.

For families who like adventure, flexibility, and deeper connections, know this: It's possible. The road can be a classroom. Curiosity can be a lesson. Learning can happen anywhere.