We have officially kicked off our 2019-2020 homeschool year! Despite my lack of enthusiasm for my 15th year of homeschooling, I am thrilled with all the hope and promise of what a new school year brings. While we do consider ourselves year-round homeschoolers; we make a point to follow along with the rest of the populous when it comes to our official beginning and ending homeschool dates.
This year we are starting a little earlier than normal because we have plans to have an extended Christmas holiday, and I prefer making up that time now verses at the end of the year. It's been super hard to begin school so early for a myriad of reasons, but I know in the end I will be thanking myself, lol.
Yes, we still have gardening stuff going on, but we made a command decision to fit those needs in around our homeschooling. No, it isn't ideal but we're making it work. As of right now I still have pumpkins and tomatoes to can, but every day it's looking like the pumpkins are not going to get processed. Admitting you can't do it all stinks, but once you recognize it at least you can move on.
Our homeschooling dynamics are kind of crazy this year and overwhelming to say the least. I have six children in official grades and two in preschool. I know many are not in favor of traditional preschool programs, but I like to do it, and more importantly I find that my children enjoy doing their own 'school work' at very young ages. Not to mention it gives a solid foot in the door for academics and knowledge that they're going to need eventually.
Even though I've got a lot on my plate with teaching so many ages, I'm confident this it is going to be a great school year. I'm writing this post two days into our first week of school and it's been a rocky adjustment. Not so much in the realm of homeschooling, but in all the other issues of life that have vied for my attention during our school time.
We only took a month off from our traditional homeschool program to focus on the garden, but apparently it was enough to cause upheaval in our normal homeschool flow. Which is why I am beyond thankful I implemented a few key elements to help ease us into the new homeschool year. I'm all about doing whatever it takes to create the best opportunity for us to have an mazing first week of school (even when I knew we'd have some hiccups along the way!). Here's a list of what I did to help our family survive the first week of school.
- Plan, Organize, & Delegate: This first step may seem like a no-brainer, but really it's not. The more prepared you are the more likely your first week (and the rest of your homeschool year) will be a success. For folks who buy a 'box kit curriculum' this can be super easy as most of them come with lesson plans. But, for those of us who combine curriculum and add our own variations this can be an arduous task. Trust me you will THANK yourself in the long run if you don't neglect this step. Of course organizing your books, resources and supplies is essential too. Make sure if you can't purchase everything up front, that you at least make a list of the items you will need as the year progresses so that you can purchase them accordingly. And finally plan to delegate. This would include making sure all family members are involved with the cleaning, cooking, and any other family needs you may have. For me this meant refining our chore charts, meal helper schedule, laundry assistant schedule, and our 'sibling buddy' system. Let's face it you can't do it all, but you can enlist the help of others (even your children) to better enable you to accomplish your homeschool goals.
- Keep Your Expectations in Check: I'm not here to burst anyone's bubble, but it's highly unlikely your first week of school is going to be perfect. After all there are so many new and unfamiliar facets to a new school year, that expecting them to go off without a hitch is setting yourself up for disappointment. I'm not saying have a bad attitude or even expect the worse, what I am saying is expect there to be learning curves and meltdowns from everyone and everything including your brand new curriculum. If all does goes well and there are no problems than celebrate friend, because that is an awesome victory!! But, on the flip side, when those likely set backs come ~ don't consider yourself a failure or doubt your decision to homeschool, simply work through the issues and remember it will get better and easier with each day.
- Create a Simple, Low Key Lesson Plan For The First Week: There is absolutely, positively, no reason to overload yourself or your children the first week of school. Ease back into the homeschool life. Enjoy the process. Plan for some fun-schooling and plenty of opportunities for creative learning. Maybe don't do all the subjects every day or only do half a lesson each day of each subject. Cut yourself some slack, you've got a whole year to get all your academic requirements in, and taking a week to take things slow isn't going to effect the end results.
- Don't Compare Yourself or Your Children to Others: This is a toughie for me. I mean it's so hard not to compare myself to all those awesome homeschooling mamas out there who have it going on ~ Lord only knows I'm the epitome of a hot mess in every area of my life, especially homeschooling. I have to continuously remind myself not to compare myself and my children to others throughout the entire year. One of the main reasons we homeschool is to allow our children to go at their own pace and for us not to be in bondage to any one academic program. The first of the year can be super hard for children, especially if they've had any amount of summer break. Children have a tendency to forget quite a bit over breaks from academics. But, don't worry, within a couple of weeks they usually bounce back to pretty close where you left them at the end of the previous school year.
- Schedule a Celebration Event Concluding the First Week: Completing the first week of school is huge and should be celebrated.You and your children have accomplished something amazing! Your family celebration can be as simple as a family movie night, a special dinner with dessert, or it can be as extravagant as you want it to be. How you talk-up your first week of school celebration will make all the difference. Your children will appreciate the little token of love and appreciation. For our family it varies every year but we ALWAYS take a back to school hike and have a special dinner and dessert to celebrate our first week of school. Even though our family knows our first week of school is going to be a challenge; we all look froward to our mini celebration of all our hard work in getting back into the swing of homeschooling.
**BONUS TIP** Meal Prep for the week: It is no secret that I am a huge plan of meal prepping. When I have the freezer space I am all about once-a-month cooking. Planning to meal prep so that you do not have to worry about cooking the first week of school is like giving yourself an extra special gift each day of the week. It may take a little upfront investment of your time, but ultimately it will lighten your load on a very stressful week. If it isn't plausible for you to meal prep in advance of the week, make a point to plan super easy meals, including quick breakfasts and simple lunches. No need to stress about food and the first week of homeschool.
I wish I could make everyone's first week of homeschool perfect and without any struggles, but I can't. I can assure you each day does get easier and before you know it you will be half way through another school year. Remember to breathe and take each day as it comes. Don't worry about tomorrow or stress over yesterday. Each and every one of you homeschooling mamas is AWESOME. You are doing a great job even when you don't think you are. God is creating a beautiful tapestry through your homeschooling efforts and you are only privy to the tangled mess of strands on the back side; but I assure you, He can see the front side and you will not be disappointed when you reach the end of your homeschool journey. You've got this friends!
With Love & Hope,
Jennifer
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