When I Didn't Have the Motivation

I don't know about you, but sometimes, I simply don't have the motivation for lessons that we need to learn in our homeschool.  Sometimes, I put off teaching something simply because it just seems like too much work or I am not interested in it.

I had a very hard time getting into the Christmas spirit this year.  I think that it is the warm weather here in Africa and the fact that we did not have space to bring our tree or decorations when we moved. However, I know how much I loved Christmas as a little girl and I want my girls to love it too.  Plus, as a Christian, Christmas is such an important and wonderful holiday.  So, after a few weeks of not doing anything Christmas-related, I forced myself to start doing Christmas bible lessons and Christmas crafts with the girls.  And, I am so glad that I did!  They had a fabulous time having Christmas homeschooling and they learned a lot about God's love for them through discussing the Christmas story every day.  Plus, all of the fabulous art projects they made to decorate our house and the yummy snacks we created helped put me in the Christmas spirit.  

The next time that I have no motivation, I hope that I can remember how thankful I am for finding the motivation to teach my girls about Christmas!

Beginning Your Homeschool Year With Excitement

I remember so clearly how excited I was for the first day of each new school year as I was growing up. It was like having a birthday - it clearly marked the beginning of a new level, a new age, a fresh start.  Here are five ways to create an exciting and positive start for your homeschool.

1) Teasers

Nothing gets my children begging for school to begin as quickly as opening the boxes of next year's books.  Getting to see, touch and hear what they will be learning about actually makes them drool.  Talking about the new things they will get to learn in now that they are older (cursive! an instrument! touch-typing!) is a great validation of their continuing progress in learning.

2) Sprucing Up

We always take time before our new year begins to put away all the items we used last year (giving us time to discuss all the things we loved about learning during that time) and clean a bit.  The shelves get wiped down and reorganized, leaving clean and empty areas just begging for the year to begin.  We clean up our learning spaces and sometimes add a new place that would be fun to work.

3) New Supplies

Remember the brand-new box of crayons?  The fresh, unsharpened pencils?  Each year I provide the children with surprises at the beginning of our school year, including things like erasable pens, character pencils, rulers and counting charts.  Older children can be given protractor sets, staplers, binders and sketch books.

4) A Count Down

We do not run on a tight schedule.  We have started our schooling at a different time every year and tend to make our decisions about when to begin based on what is happening in our lives RIGHT NOW and plan around it.  However, we always manage to include a count down to the new school year, even if it is only a week.

5)  Create Traditions

Find a special way your family likes to celebrate the first week of school.  My children love having their pictures taken to mark the beginning of a new grade.  They spend time choosing a location, setting the stage and reviewing the photos to decide if we need to take another one.  Other ideas would include a special meal, a first-day field trip, or a surprise activity after lessons (like roller skating or going to a restaurant with Dad to tell him all about the day).

Whether you are preparing for your first year of learning at home or your tenth, the start of the new year is a wonderful time together.  What helps your family build excitement?

Looking Ahead

"Spring Break" seems to be the breaking point for many families. It is the time of year when parents consider different arrangements for their children if their current situation is not a good fit. We never went back to our school after spring break three years ago. It is the time of year I get more questions about homeschooling than the other three seasons put together.

Spring can be an ideal time to look into other schools or methods of schooling. It gives parents and caregivers the opportunity to visit and tour schools with out as much time pressure. It gives children more time to adjust to the idea of a change. It allows just enough time to gather loads of information about trying something new before it's decision time. It leaves that last quarter of the school year for experimentation.

When we began homeschooling, we decided to try the final nine weeks of the school year at home. That way, we reasoned, if it was a complete disaster we would have the summer to make different arrangements. We had no curriculum, no experience, no sense of certainty that we were doing the right thing.

But we were willing to take the chance.

Now that we are homeschooling, spring break becomes the time of year when I begin to assess our curriculum. I consider changes for the year to come, talk with the children about what needs they feel are not being met and if they would like to consider a different arrangement in any way. I pour over the curriculum catalogues and reviews, I read about the other homeschool families doing the same thing.

Each year, I plan far more than we ever actually manage to fit into our day. I always come back down to earth after the first couple of weeks and root myself firmly in reading, writing, math and excellent historical literature. I am drawn to the same curriculums and activities that are in line with our approach to and goals for homeschooling our children.

If you are struggling with a poor fit in your life, now is a great time to step back and consider making a change. There is not a single correct way to parent, to discipline, to educate, to be a family. There is, however, a right way for your specific family. If you do not feel you have found that way, please consider making a change. It might be as simple as choosing a new homeschool curriculum, writing your own lessons this year, or changing the math program for one of your children who is struggling with it. It may be as complicated as switching to a different school, moving to a new town, or beginning a homeschooling journey. Come back to the basics of who your family is, what your needs, goals and convictions are. These will help you find your way to the right fit for your family right now. It may change in six months or a year, but you can spring ahead and try something new.

What are you reevaluating this spring?

Time-Savers

If there is one things all families wish for, it is more time. Here are some parts of my routine that are 'must do' items. They save time and (more importantly, sanity) on my part each day.

1) Look over lesson plans the night before. I often do this while the children are falling asleep - sometimes one of my kids would like me to sit with them while they drop off, so I can be present for them as well as accomplish something.

2) Set out tomorrow's items. After I've skimmed the lesson plans, I make a stack for each child that contains all the necessary books, papers and assignments for the day. I also set out my teaching materials and read-out-loud books.

3) Pack sack lunches. Even if we end up being home, I have one cold meal prepared ahead of time during the day. But if we need or want to go somewhere, we don't even have to think about food. There are already sandwiches and cut apples ready to go!

4) Think about supper. What is the plan for the one hot meal I'm going to serve tomorrow? I can gather ingredients or take things from the freezer. When four o'clock arrives the next day, I won't have to wonder what I'm doing.

4b) I know I already talked about a hot meal, but I often like to make our hot meal over lunch time (we frequently participate in evening activities). It can save a lot of time to enjoy a hot meal over the noon-hour, clean your kitchen, and then it is basically closed until the next morning since you have already completed #3.

5) Read during meals. We enjoy many of the sessions where I read to the children during breakfast and lunch. It keeps me at a slow pace, allows everyone time to enjoy their meal, and stimulates discussion. Plus, you are doing two things at once. I love that.

6) Keep your materials organized. Looking for something you need but can't find is one of life's greatest time-suckers. I am not a very neat person, but I have found that what I lack in neatness I can make up for in being consistent. I keep my school items in the same place, forever and ever, amen. There may be some skewed looking stacks, but I know somewhere in that stack is the 'great science discoveries' book. You know why? Because those are the school shelves and that is the science section. I would never put the book anywhere else.

6b) Take time to put your school things away when you are finished for the day. We used to have a dedicated area (desks, chalk board, etc) for schooling, but we never really used it. So we use our kitchen table and it's been a great choice for us. Instead we have a designated bookshelf that has sections for everyone/thing. We put everything away when it's time for lunch. This helps encourage the kids to pick up (they want to eat!) and facilitates #6.

7) Schedule breaks. It really helps everyone to take ten or fifteen minutes off before they start to suffer brain-drain. I like to include chores in our breaks - Everyone make their beds and pick up ten items in their room! On your marks, get set, GO!

8) When the dishwasher is clean, unload it right away. When the dryer buzzes, fold and put away those clothes. Then they will be empty when you need them. It's so simple to toss the dirty lunch dishes right into the washer. It's discouraging when they are piled all over the counter because the dishwasher is full of clean dishes. These are also more fun when you do them all together.

9) Delegate. You are schooling at home. Your children need to learn practical skills as well as feel good about contributing to their family. Your child is only three? I bet you can teach them how to fold washcloths, knead dough and wipe things down. It takes longer, but it is worth the time investment.

10) Keep an accurate and current calendar. I keep mine on the computer, but cell phone or paper is fine too. And check it every day. You would hate to be that person that the pediatric dentist calls wondering why you aren't there with your children for their appointments (not that it's every happened to me)...

What do you feel costs you the most time in your day? What saves you the most?

My Reason for Homeschooling Daily

Last week, we had a very crazy week.  I got up on Monday morning with a very long to-do list; I really wanted to take the week off from school and just focus on other things.  And I almost did.  Then, I looked at my girls and remembered my goals for them.  In order to help them become the people that God intends for them to be, I must make them a priority.  They are the reason that I left my career and chose to become a stay-at-home mom.  The laundry, vacuuming, dissertation work, etc. are all part of my job, but my primary job is raising my girls.  So, I put my to-do list down and we did preschool.  And, as soon as we got started on our work, I was glad that we did.  Abigail made some amazing mental connections that morning; she learned the basics of addition!  If I had chosen to take a day off, that might not have happened.  While I do think that children and parents do need occasional breaks from school, I was reminded of the importance of planning the breaks and not succumbing to the desire to skip homeschooling.  I can always find a reason to take a day off from teaching my girls, but I am now focusing instead on the reason to homeschool every day.

Schooling Amidst A Crisis

The past month, my mother-in-law has been hospitalized. This stressful situation is further complicated by the fact that my husband and I are in partnership with his parents as farmers, so her workload is passed around among us, along with our worry over her. There are also her personal things (bills, cleaning, rescheduling) to be tended to. We also like to have one of us at the hospital when the doctors come around (there are six of them, and they come at random times). So our life has been a little messy and everything that can give, has gone.

We started fall harvest (THE busiest time of year on our farm) and my husband had an emergency appendectomy.

We had intended to begin school on August 1st this year, but that was not a possibility. I decided to wait until my mother-in-law was out of the hospital, but as the weeks stretched on and the pressure from other responsibilities increased, I began to have concern as to whether there would EVER be a "good time," so after discussion with my husband and children we started school this past Monday.

Did we finish *everything?* No. But we were so happy to be back around the kitchen table together. The next morning, I was needed at the hospital very early, so a sitter watched the kids and we fit the rest of school from the previous day's plans into the afternoon. It took two days to complete what would normally be fit into a morning, but we are able to be flexible about when and where we can work on it.

While my dyslexic middle child was in tutoring sessions yesterday afternoon, I worked on phonics with my first grader while my fifth grader did his math lesson. We listened to a song based on our memory work on a CD in the van going to and from the tutoring session. My oldest child read out loud to us from one of our literature study novels.

Is it perfect? No. But it was fun and satisfying. My daughter (six next month) took a lot more from the Native American Indians lesson for the older children than I imagined she would. Her journal entry was about it. Was I able to do everything according to the plans I had laid out? (Laughing) No, but does anything ever work that way?

The most enjoyable part for me was the undivided attention and time I was able to give each child separately. I have felt pulled in so many directions and had so many hats to wear lately, my connected relationship with each of them has been put to the test. It was so wonderful for me to have conversation with, lap time for, and intense interest from each of them without having to worry about what I should be working on instead.

I was doing exactly what I am meant to. The most important work I will ever do is raising these children, and I'm so thankful that homeschooling is a part of that for my family right now.

Seeds of Wisdom --- Finding Your Motivation

As wonderful as homeschooling can be, it can sometimes be difficult to find the motivation to do it everyday.  Today, the Seeds of Wisdom panel question is "How do you motivate yourself to homeschool (particularly when you are sick/tired/busy/etc.)?"

Aurie

I have time worked into our daily schedule, so it is really routine for us right now. I've made a comittment to educate our girls, and nothing is more important than that!

Jessica

Homeschool is so much fun - I have a problem keeping myself motivated to work on other things! But seriously, it is the same for me as it is for Sam. I have the entire year planned, and I want to stay on track so we can finish. If there is something that gets rough or I begin to dread, that is my clue that something is amiss in my planning or the curriculum. I start trying to figure out what's not working and go from there. If I am sick or overwhelmed, we take the day (or maybe just part of the day) off. It's amazing how the flexibility of homeschooling can work toward fitting all those lessons in even when it feels like there isn't time for anything! We front-load our weeks in order to leave Fridays mostly open, which gives us extra catch-up time if we need it. We also like to work right up to Christmas and take a shorter summer break. It all works out in the end. Remember, you can homeschool on the weekend if you want! M-F from 7:50 - 3:30 is not the only time your children can learn.

Marla

I think about my ultimate goals for my girls and remember that daily instruction is the only way to achieve those goals.  It also helps that Abigail gets up in the morning and almost immediately asks to "do school" - how can I say no!  

Nessa

Knowing that the path to their futures lay in my hands motivates me to get up and give them everything I've got everyday ♥

Sam

I remember that I have all of our weeks planned for the year, and if I mess up a week, I have to redo all of that work. We do a 4 day week, so I give us the option every week of either taking Monday or Friday off. We end up taking Monday more than Friday, as Sunday is the busiest day for a minister's family. It is nice to have that flexibility built in.

Tracy

Routine and having the lessons already planned are key for me. Also, I think it's important to know yourself. For instance, if I start making too many exceptions or becoming too flexible within a given week, it's hard for me to stay motivated. I have to be rather rigid with our schedule simply because I know myself. So if flexibility motivates you, allow yourself room for flexibility. If routine is your motivator, than allow for that. If fun crafts and activities motivate, plan for them. Sometimes, just the fact that I need something to blog about is accountability to put the extra work into it. Find what works for you!

How do you motivate yourself?

Seeds of Wisdom - Motivating Children

Sometimes, it can be hard to motivate children to do their schoolwork.  They may be tired, frustrated, bored, or simply not in the mood to work.  Figuring out how to motivate our children can sometimes be a huge challenge to homeschooling.  Today, our panelists answer the question: How do you motivate your child when he does not want to do his work?

Aurie
I haven't run into this much {yet!} so when we do I switch gears. If she is getting antsy while doing table work I'll pop on a music cd and we'll do a silly dance to get some energy out and then we go back to finish up.

Beth
I think it would depend on the age of the child. Children who are younger would be treated differently than older children. If the child is having trouble with a particular subject also, you might change up the way you are teaching the material.

Heather

I think there is a big difference in not wanting to do schoolwork and being frustrated by the work. If they simply don't want to do it, then I take the approach of telling them that we can't move on to something else until they finish their... work. Usually that works pretty well. If they are frustrated by the work, I try to figure out why. Are they bored with it? If so, spice it up a bit. Play a game, sing a song. Make it more interesting. If they're not understanding the concept, I will try to present it in a different way. If that doesn't work, taking a break for a few minutes and coming back to it will typically help us.

Jessica

For my kids, it is a hard and fast rule that lunch begins *after* your work is done. This is a terrific motivator. Often, I have found that if I sit with them, they can work through it when I have a helpful attitude. I also sometimes sug...gest that they lay aside the project that is frustrating them and work on a different assignment for a break. A change of scenery can also be a good change - I might say something like "that looks like an uncomfortable place to read, why don't you sit on the front porch?" Keeping things fun in the first place is most helpful, but kids have their "off" days just like anyone else, where patience and a stiff upper lip come into play for me as the parent.

Marla

I try to make all of her activities fun and built around her interests in order to avoid a problem with motivation.  I also use a sticker chart.  She receives a sticker for "doing good work" in each of our five subjects.  She really likes to see the stickers on her chart and will often work hard just to get the sticker.  If I can tell that it is going to be a rough day, I sometimes tell her that if she gets all 5 stickers, we will get a special treat.  When I taught in public school, I used reward charts.  My students each started a work session by choosing what they wanted to work for (time with a toy, a sticker, etc.).  During our work session, I would periodically give the students stars; at the end of the work session, the students who had the required number of stars got their reward (I made sure that the students almost always got the required number of stars).  Because I had control of when the stars were given out, I could give stars faster to children who were having a rough day and needed extra motivation.  I will likely change from our current sticker chart to something more like the star system for Abigail in the near future.

Sam

I tell him that the longer he stalls, the longer it will be before he is free for the day, and that he is not free until that work is finished. I really believe you need to let them know that the ball is in their court. The work is not a suggestion, just like when you are out of the house and working. You can't play or get paid until you do your job.If there is frustration I work with them very closely to see what is going on- we may step back, drill on what isn't being mastered, or see if we need to supplement or switch the curriculum.

Shamberly

I haven't hit too many spots like this yet, but so far my go-to options are to either take a break from the subject he is frustrated with, then coming back to it at another time, after there's been time to refresh a little... OR, I try to t...urn the school work into a game... For example, pulling out dominoes to do counting and addition or matching... Also, I'm not against the reward system :o) If he completes his school work - especially the tough parts - then afterwards, he can choose to do a favorite activity such as going to the park or swimming or playing a game or doing arts & crafts, etc... anything that involves doing something active and/or engaging the mind (rather than something like rewarding with candy or another type of junk food, or playing video games, etc...) Usually, the motivation of working toward a reward or the rejuvenation time given will help him focus on his work and get it done.

Tracy

I have a timer set for each activity (10-15 minutes). If the kids are just not wanting to do the work, then I remind them they have to try their best for 15 minutes and then we can move on. If I see one of the kids is not making an effort, ...than the extra time it takes to complete that page comes out of the next fun activity. I also break up our schedule a lot, with 15 minutes on a work page, 15 minutes on a craft, 15 minutes on drillls, 15 minutes on a puzzle, etc. As Heather said, I deal with frustration much differently than lack of motivation.