Carpool: Kyle Blackmer on Making Commute Time Good Time

It's not merely where you are going, but how you get there, that matters. And as we often find ourselves going places in cars, it is worth stopping to consider how we spend our car rides. In this week's episode, we welcome back to the podcast Mr. Kyle Blackmer for a discussion of the daily commute. Whether we carpool or ride solo, Mr. Blackmer helps us to reframe how we approach this daily endeavor which can easily become, at best, dead time and, at worst, dreaded time. Kyle shows us how the car, with the right attitude and a little creativity, can become its own classroom. He encourages us to think about how we can best use this time by praying, engaging in good conversation—at times mere fun, at other times more formative–, listening to good music and books, and celebrating. Chapters 00:45 Introduction: reframing the daily commute 3:20 How can we make carpooling more fruitful for our sons? 5:43 The car as a classroom: the first and last period of the day 6:22 Four modes of teaching in the Car 6:45 Prayer, especially the Rosary, especially in the morning 9:28 Car as a place for friendship, shared life 10:55 Conversation in cars 16:20 The art of asking good questions and listening 17:15 Tuning into the boys in front of you 19:16 Setting guidelines for your carpool 21:10 Being intentional about what you listen to 25:35 Audiobooks and classic rock 27:50 Celebrating the in little ways 31:20 Finding moments for little points of correction 33:30 Advice for solo commuters 35:50 The last three minutes: preparing for your return home Recommended Audiobooks for the Road The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart Seabiscuit by Charles Rivers Editors Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame Treasury for Children by James Herriot Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingallas Wilder The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs The Once and Future King by T.H. White The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells The Complete Father Brown Collection by G.K. Chesterton A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller Also on the Forum On Home as Social Hub: The Importance of Hosting Our Sons and Their Friends with Tom Royals Friendship for Fathers: John Cuddeback on Living and Teaching the Art with John Cuddeback Sarah Mackenzi on the Read-Aloud Family with Sarah Mackenzi