do your own thang

at the beginning of the school year, i was so set on waking up early, starting school right away and finishing right before dad gets home from work.

that doesn't always work!

if you are a new homeschooling parent, you will spend the first year trying to un-train your self of the idea of what you think school is, the way school was when you went to school.

get it out of your head!

school or learning does not have to happen on a set schedule, it does not have to consist of the core subjects, it does not have to happen at a desk with a pencil in your hand.

typically, we wake up, sit at the table together and eat and talk and sometimes pray. then we all go our own way for a couple of hours. i might start laundry, do bills or read. the kids play baby, watch a movie, paint, ride their scooter in the basement. whatever they want to do.

then, we regroup, have a snack if we want and talk about what lessons we should get done for the day.

last night, we did school after dinner. after the kids freely played all day, rode their bikes, played with the neighbor boy, we set up school at the dining room table.

we learned from 7-10 last night. i brewed coffee, got everyone a snack and we learned. we did social studies and language arts. learned about the civil war and slavery and ella read a few stories and wrote about it. a few math worksheets for fun, really and we called it a day.

when i don't think or worry about how typical school goes, i am so good at what i do. stop worrying about your schedule, what people will think and just do what feels right.

for me, it feels right to give my kids some free time and space before we start school. we all do better this way.