How You Can Cast Aside Traditional Learning As A Family

Elisha was a few months old and I was already pregnant with Elyssa when I decided to cancel my cable subscription. If you do the math, it’s been almost 16 years since I stopped paying for cable and I’m still proud of that choice.

I looked up what the average cable bill in the USA is and Google says it’s about $85 per month. If that’s accurate, I’ve saved a total of $16,320, and if that were going into an interest-earning savings account, whoa… let’s just say it adds up.

See it. Stream it.

When the Chromecast Streaming Media Player was released in 2015, I just knew I had to have it. It’s really affordable at $35, and all you have to do is plug Chromecast into the HDMI port on your TV and to power and stream your favorite entertainment right from your phone with just a tap from all of your family’s devices.

We’ve been streaming our favorite movies and shows on Netflix (old sitcoms like F.R.I.E.N.D.S or the new series like One Day At A Time), listening to our favorite playlists (even breakup songs, when needed), and we even stream wellness videos from YouTube, like yoga, meditation, and zumba.

One of the coolest features of the Chromecast Streaming Media Player is that I can use my phone as I normally do while streaming to our living room TV. My Chromecast Streaming Media Player device does not display what is on your screen, but what you tell it to!

I haven’t tried You can also start streaming with just your voice, hands-free, with the Chromecast Streaming Media Player and Google Home working seamlessly together.

The Chromecast Streaming Media Player has definitely made my life easier, but it’s not just when it comes to entertainment.

I have been in college for over two years now and it’s been quite a ride. I have a 3.9 GPA and I don’t know how that’s been possible all between running my business, raising my kids, homeschooling, and dealing with marital problems and my recent separation. 

But I’ll tell you this – the Chromecast Streaming Media Player has been a huge help because the past two years, I’ve been going to school exclusively online and Chromecast Streaming Media Player allows me to work on my lessons in my living room, so I can make the most of my online learning experience.

Looking at my coursework on my big screen TV helps me tremendously because I don’t have to read the small print. After I turned 40 my eye-sight started to decline, and there’s too much scrolling if I enlarge the page on my MacBook screen. 

The first semester was tough because one of my textbooks was like twelve inches thick and the font was tiny, so my eyes hurt a lot, even when wearing my reading glasses. I don’t mean to sound dramatic, but I really feel it was a miracle I survived passed that class. 

It’s so helpful that I can minimize the screen I’m casting and work on another screen, take notes, or even complete open book quizzes when I use the Chromecast Streaming Media Player. I have never liked the split-screen solution to work or study, plus, the experience is absolutely wireless!

I value saving money and being an intentional steward of my money, so even though I need to pay my tuition, I can save by purchasing an ebook version of my college textbook or by renting it on a reading shelf, which I can read on the big screen. 

One of the things I love about going back to school is that I get to share what I’m learning with my family. Since I’m majoring in Marriage and Family Studies, much of the information in my core classes is important to share with Elisha and Elyssa, my teen daughters. We sit in front of the TV to watch educational videos, educational films, documentaries and presentations, and we have wonderful discussions to help us bond and learn together.

Even though some of the material is too advanced for my little one, she has benefitted a lot from this learning experience. A lot of people are impressed by her reading level, and yes, we do read a lot in my home and we are self-confessed word-nerds, but besides that,   I found that watching educational television with subtitles and captions turned on greatly improve kids’ reading speed and comprehension. 

I love that we cast aside traditional learning as a family (pun intended) and have a balance between consuming both entertaining and educational content and that we use the same device to do so. With our Chromecast Streaming Media Player, our television is both our playground and our classroom. We can even do some of their homeschool assignments if we choose to.

Another benefit I get from casting my college classes is that my daughters understand how much sacrifice it has taken for me to go back to school and also that they get an idea of the amount of effort they will need to put into their college coursework once they enroll.

Sometimes it’s hard to choose between tradition and technology. It’s not easy to let go of what we’ve known and embrace the discomfort zone, but as someone wise once said: the hard is what makes it great. 

How do you cast aside traditional learning as a family?  Share in the comments below and learn more about the Chromecast Streaming Media Player and follow @BestBuy and @madebygoogle to stay updated.

Founder of the Positive MOM® and creator of the S.T.O.R.Y. System: a blueprint to craft and share powerful stories that will transform your results and help others do the same. Dr. Elayna Fernández is a single mom of 4, an award-winning Storyteller, Story Strategist, and Student of Pain. She’s a bestselling author, internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, and 5x TEDx speaker. She has spoken at the United Nations, received the President’s Volunteer Lifetime Achievement Award, and was selected as one of the Top Impactful Leaders and a Woman of Influence by SUCCESS Magazine. Connect with Elayna at thepositivemom.com/ef and follow @thepositivemom. To receive a gift from Elayna, click HERE.

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