What home-schooling looks like for one Gainesville teen: ‘We’re just regular kids’

Colt Carroll, 13, looks into a basket full of toys in his room on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. Colt has been home-schooled his entire life. He doesn’t believe in the home-schooling stereotypes — he doesn’t see himself as weird or awkward, he said. “We're just regular kids,” he said. “We just have a different style of learning.” He plays soccer, builds Legos and logs onto Minecraft with his neighborhood friends, whenever his parents — who are also his teachers — let him. And because he doesn’t spend time commuting to and from physical school, he does it all at his own pace.

Colt eats a bowl of fruits and granola for breakfast on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. A typical day starts with Colt’s dad making him breakfast before taking the dogs on a walk.

Colt’s mother, Brenda Tieden; his father, Rob Carroll; their dog, Copper; and Colt gather around the couch on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. “The decision to home-school was nerve-racking,” Tieden said. “We weren't quite sure if we were going to be able to pull it off. But I think we're doing an excellent job.”

Colt flips through a math workbook while working through a lesson with his dad on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. His parents felt they could do a better job than public schools in educating Colt, Rob Carroll said, and so they gave it a try. “They support me on home-schooling,” Colt said. “My mom's good in, like, language arts and history. And my dad's good at math.”

Colt speaks with his Opa and Oma — his grandfather and grandmother, in German — in his grandparents’ house just a couple blocks from his own on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023. Tieden’s side of the family immigrated from Germany to the United States, so she taught Colt some German. Although Colt understands it, he hesitates to speak it. His grandmother spoke to him in German, and he responded in English.

Colt plays foosball with his Oma on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023. He said she’s not very good at it.

Colt practices pitching a baseball with his dad on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023. Sports are Colt’s largest time commitment outside of home-schooling. He plays soccer, baseball, basketball and tennis. He’s tried swimming, kickball and track. “We're involved in so many different sports that I think he gets quite a bit of socialization, maybe even more than public schools,” Rob Carroll said.

Colt watches his soccer team in between quarters of a game on Nov. 11, 2023. Although he’s tried several sports, soccer is his favorite, he said. “In soccer, you get as many shots as you want, as many saves as you want,” he said.

Tieden cheers for Colt after he scored a goal Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023.

Rob Carroll looks over Colt’s shoulder as he completes a math problem on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. While Colt follows some standard curricula for his age, Colt’s parents aren’t afraid to change the home-schooling routine. “It's a constant growing opportunity,” Tieden said. “Every day we learn new things. Every day we decide to maybe do things differently than we've done before.”

Colt sorts through a basket of BattleBots toys in his room on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023. “I don't think I would ever stop home-schooling,” he said. “I really like home-schooling because it's just more simple.”