How Macbeth Became the Beginning of LitPads
I homeschooled for 12 years. For most of that time, my children and I were always in the middle of a novel. I loved reading aloud, stopping to ask questions, and helping them see what was happening beneath the surface of the story.
But as they grew older and read more independently, I noticed something: they could finish the assigned pages without fully comprehending what they had read. I went looking for literature guides that could help — and most of what I found felt like little more than lists of questions and answers. They could confirm a student remembered what happened, but they rarely encouraged a child to think critically, analyze a character, or make meaningful connections within the text.
I created LitPads because I couldn't find what I was looking for. Not a workbook. Not a faith-based program. Not a classical-education curriculum that requires you to read three books about pedagogy before you can use it. Just a well-made guide I could hand to my child and trust.
Why I Started With Macbeth
Three years ago, I decided to create my first guide. I intentionally chose Macbeth — an ambitious place to begin, but that was part of the reason I chose it. I knew that if I could help students understand a challenging Shakespearean play, the same approach could work with other works of literature.
At the time, we were homeschooling alongside another family, with students ranging from ninth through twelfth grade. Because the language was difficult and unfamiliar, we read the play together. Then the students worked through the guide I had created.
Their first reaction was exactly what you might expect: “Why do we have to read this? We don’t understand.”
Instead of rushing them through the plot, we slowed down and explored the play from several directions — vocabulary, act-by-act questions, character analysis, important quotations, and the historical context Shakespeare was writing for.
Gradually, something changed. Once the students began to understand the context and language, they discovered humor they had initially missed. They became invested in the characters. Famous quotations were no longer isolated lines — they understood who said them, where they appeared, and why they mattered.
That was the moment I realized this could become something more.
What I Actually Believe
Literature is one of the best tools a child has for learning to think. Not because it's on a reading list — but because good stories ask real questions. About people. About choices. About what matters and why.
That only happens if the guide gets out of the way and lets the book do its job.
Every LitPads guide is built around that idea. No busywork that proves a child read something. No fill-in-the-blank that teaches them to skim for answers. Just questions worth thinking about, and a structure that makes the conversation happen naturally.
What LitPads Is (and Isn't)
You don't need to adopt a philosophy to use LitPads. There's no classical-education framework to learn first, no worldview lens, no method you have to buy into. Just a good book and a guide that asks the right questions.
In the early years, you open it and read together. As they grow, you hand it over and step back.
For independent readers, a complete answer key is included — so you can evaluate your child's work with confidence even if you haven't read the book yourself. The activities are self-explanatory. The learning actually sticks.
You get your time back. Your child gets a guide that treats them like a thinking person.
Where I'm Going
I started with the books most parents quietly dread — Shakespeare and the high school classics that feel too dense to tackle without help. After Macbeth came Lord of the Flies, and the guides keep growing from there.
I'm building the full arc — from first stories to Shakespeare — one guide at a time.