At the end of each year we take a lot of time off from homeschooling for the holidays and because the first few months of our homeschool year typically have worn us down a bit. I go into each homeschool year excited about the new curricula we’ll be using and the schedule I’ve decided we need to follow. I’m always certain that these homeschooling changes will help make our homeschool journey better than the last. Yet, this homeschool mom has a tendency to over plan even though God has taught me (and obviously is continuing to teach me!) how important it is to live outside the lesson plans and embrace a relaxed homeschool journey.
When I began planning for this homeschool year I was excited to embrace a much more relaxed homeschool journey, but I still planned far too much. I neglected to keep in mind that our family business’ busy season just keeps getting busier. So, instead of planning the majority of our homeschool studies outside of the busy winter months, I decided to just spread things out evenly. Thankfully the holiday season gave me time to reassess our homeschooling plans for the new year and I made a big decision for our new year homeschooling changes.
The winter season is typically when homeschoolers do a lot of their homeschooling studies because of the cold weather. In years past that is what we did as well. However our family business keeps us busy outdoors several hours a day throughout the winter months. So, starting in January we began focusing solely on Math, English and Literature. We simply do not have enough time in our days in the winter to complete any of our other studies well. This means that our spring, summer and fall homeschooling will have fuller days, but we don’t have as many responsibilities during those seasons. We will have to adjust to a new schedule, but we won’t be spread so thin.
My children’s education is extremely important to me, but I do not want to complete any of their studies haphazardly. I want to ensure that they aren’t just getting their lessons done. I want them to be able to really enjoy what they’re learning and have time to truly delve into their studies as well. I believe that Math, English and Literature should be focused on year round because these are the subjects that our children will use every day of their lives no matter what their future holds. It is for this reason that I decided that our winter studies would include only these subjects.
Yet again I find myself truly thankful for a year round homeschooling schedule. We can do less during the winter months as we focus on our family business and then pick up a fuller homeschool schedule when our family business slows down again.
What homeschooling changes have you made already this year?
