Authors

Tanya Warpula

BookShark Advisor

ABOUT OUR AUTHOR |Tanya Warpula is a multifaceted individual, whose life is characterized by a passion for education, photography, and adventure. She is a skilled professional photographer, capturing important moments with an artistry that reflects her keen eye for detail. Also a dedicated BookShark Advisor, Tanya has been instrumental in guiding families through enriching journeys.  Tanya's commitment to education extends to her role as a mother, as she homeschooled her five children, imparting not just knowledge but a love for learning. Being a Navy wife, she embraced a life of resilience and adaptability, navigating the challenges of frequent relocations with grace.

Sarah Hercules

ABOUT OUR AUTHOR |

Sarah is a homeschooling mother to six children, three of whom have special needs. She has always had a passion for education. She taught English at a private school in China and was a middle school English teacher in the US. Sarah is also an accomplished musician; she has performed in multiple music halls across the country, including Carnegie Hall in NYC.  She currently continues to teach piano and voice lessons in addition to homeschooling her amazing children, reading every book she can, and laughing as much as possible. 

With Sarah coming from a public school background, and a career in public education, homeschooling was never in her life’s plan. However, over ten years ago, that life plan changed and she has been enjoying her homeschooling journey.

 She loves what homeschooling has done for her family, in bringing them closer together and the memories they get to make. While it took some time to find the right curriculum for her family, they have been using the BookShark curriculum for six years now and it has been the best decision.

 Sarah is passionate about encouraging parents in their homeschooling and family life. She loves showing families that homeschooling can be done anytime, anywhere, and on any budget! You can follow her homeschooling journey on her YouTube Channel: youtube.com/herculeanhomeschooling

Rachel Davis

About the Author

Sharon Miller

ABOUT OUR AUTHOR | Sharon Wilson Miller is originally from southern California but now lives just outside Chicago with her husband and is a homeschool mom of 2 (9 and 11). Sharon holds a BFA in Theatre Studies from DePaul University, she spent many years as a Stage Manager working regionally and on some large-scale touring musicals. Sharon is also a licensed massage therapist and enjoys her work as an Advisor for BookShark.

Ximena Avalos

ABOUT OUR GUEST|

Hi I'm Ximena! Mother of two - one graduate and one in 10th grade. Our homeschool journey started in 2014. We loved learning through piles of readers and cuddling up on our couch with a good “read aloud". Beyond our academic adventures, our family shares a love for travel, gourmet experiences, and cozy movie nights.We are big fans of The Office and we love laughing together out loud. I love encouraging other homeschool parents through fun and practical tips, along with my bff!

Check out our website at www.chipsnsalsahomeschooling.com

Angela D'Antonio

ABOUT OUR AUTHOR| 

Angela Marie D’Antonio is an online Barton Dyslexia Reading and Spelling Tutor.  She has been homeschooling her two daughters for over a decade, beginning with preschool and continuing through high school. For four years, she worked in sales and customer service for a homeschool curriculum company. In her free time, you may find her cooking, watercolor painting, gardening, hiking, or taking college-level continuing education courses for fun. 

Melissa Thierfelder

Melissa Thierfelder is a former early childhood teacher who lives in Wisconsin with her husband and three children. 

If she’s not actively homeschooling her three kids, Melissa is running her kids to activities, baking for the local farmer’s market, working in her garden, or reading. Melissa loves a good historical fiction book; her current favorite is the Outlander series. Melissa and her husband take a secular approach to homeschooling their three children.

Melissa also has a homeschooling YouTube channel, The M Word by Melissa, that focuses on homeschool encouragement, curriculum flip-throughs, and all the fun of homeschooling. 

Monica Olivera

Monica Olivera is a homeschooling mother of two, author, and a freelance education writer. Her site, MommyMaestra.com, helps Hispanic parents get more involved in their children's education by providing resources, tips, and opportunities.

She is also the author of The Latino Family’s Guide to Homeschooling and the Heritage Journal Series. Her education articles have appeared in numerous online sites such as NBCNews, Woo! Jr., and PBS SoCal. 

Shruti Gupta

Shruti Gupta lives in Tupelo, Mississippi, where she has been homeschooling for the last eight years. Whenever she feels the need for sanity, she meditates. Her two sons, Kabir (age 11) and Arjun (age 8) love homeschooling with BookShark. While Kabir loves to read anything and everything, Arjun loves science books and experiments. While Kabir loves imagining stories in the backyard, Arjun loves digging and constructing in the backyard. They fight like normal siblings, yet they can work as partners too, as they did in Children of The Sun: A Child's Journey Through Our Solar System.

Shelly Bergman

Shelly Bergman is a homeschooling mother of two children ages 2 and 7. After trying various educational options including private Montessori school, museum-affiliated PreK, public schooling, and homeschooling, she and her children fell in love with the hands-on, literacy-based curriculum of BookShark.

Shelly blogs about her family's travels and lifestyle at DIY Mama.