Scheduling Home School in the Summer Months

I have heard many moms say that one of the best things about getting back to school in the fall is getting back to a schedule. Even though the summer months are a time to loosen up our schedule, I have learned that we lose too much momentum if we throw out the schedule completely in the summer! My home runs in a much more orderly, peaceable way and we remain productive if we stick to a schedule during the summer months, even if it is less structured.

I do plan school for the summer months, but it is more in the form of mini family projects. Saving the things that I find too time consuming to incorporate into the regular school year for the summer months works well for us. Another reason I like a summer schedule is that it encourages my children to manage their time well on a consistent basis. I have also found that it is not profitable for my children to have too much free time. It seems that free time evolves into bickering, laziness and the typical "I'm bored!" Keeping a schedule tends to keep these problems in check.

If you have never scheduled summer before, or at all, here are some simple steps to planning and implementing a summer schedule:

1. Seek the Lord

Remember to go to the Lord in all things, even our schedule! Seeking Him in this will help us to gain perspective for our days and keep our priorities in order.

2. Get your husbands input

I encourage you to always seek your husbands input when scheduling. Many times my husband will mention something that he would like us to do that I never would have thought of. I would not have known about this if I didn't ask for his input! He also helps me keep reasonable goals and a reasonable perspective on our days. Since I have a tendency to want to do too much, I appreciate his help immensely with this.
This is also a great time to discuss areas of weaknesses in our children that we would like to help them overcome. The summer months allow more time to hone in on things in my children that need some additional training, and also allows us to spend more individual time together to study God's Word and grow spiritually. This is also a great time to review our school year, and I can share my struggles and victories with my husband and he gives me so much wisdom on how to practically solve my problems and encourages me to continue in the good things.

3. Ask yourself "How can I bless my husband with our summer?"

When summer comes, there are often additional chores around our home that need to be done. Don't leave chores for your husband because it is a "man's job", but seek to relieve his workload around the home by helping or even completing these jobs for him.
Again, ask your husband what he would like some help with. He may not want his toolbox organized by you, but he may need help with other projects! One example is our garbage. We do not have garbage pick up where we live, so on the weekends or sometimes during the week my husband has to load up the garbage and take it to the dump. One day I thought, why am I leaving this up to him? He really doesn't like taking care of it, especially after it has been sitting for a week! Now I am purposing to take a bag or two to the dump when I leave the house. Since the dump is only a few minutes down the road it is a simple chore that blesses my husband.

4. Brainstorm a list of things that you have been wanting to do with your children, your home and any other areas.

As a homeschooling mom, most of my day is taken up with school. I often don't have time for bigger home projects, and I find that I have to eliminate many things I would like to do so we can stay on track with our studies. The summer months are a great time to tackle those big (and little) projects that always seem to get pushed to the side during the school year. This summer, some of the things I would like to accomplish are:

Clean & organize basement

Set up the sewing room

Scrapbook with children

Rubber stamping and card making with the children

Embroidery projects with the girls

Painting the children's bedrooms

Hold a yard sale

Complete a bird unit study

Gardening and learning about harvest and preservation

I have also asked my children for some ideas for things they would like to do this summer. They have all kinds of things they would love to do with mommy! This allows us to complete fun projects and spend time together in a way that we do not get to do during the school year.

After you have this list, you can easily prioritize what you want to have done, and schedule them into your day. You will be amazed at how much you can accomplish by doing this!

4. What are some routines in your school year you want to keep in the summer?

Keeping a morning routine helps us from getting into the Saturday morning attitude, where we lounge around, eat at no particular time, and the day goes by with nothing completed. While that works well on the Sabbath, it doesn't work well every day of the week! Our schedule will continue to include quiet time for my children to spend with the Lord, our family Bible reading and Scripture memory work. I also have afternoon and evening routines to keep us on track.

Just listing five things in order that you want done during these times can help keep your momentum through the day. The reason I do morning, afternoon and evening routines is because I noticed we had a tendency to follow the schedule at full pace in the morning but somewhere around 10 am we would begin lose sight of our day. By having these routines in place, it keeps us on track and provides some accountability to all of us. Also by keeping these routines the same all the time seems to make it easier to get back into the school year and I do not have to retrain the children each new school year.

Our morning routine looks something this:

1. Awake/Eat Breakfast

2. Get dressed

3. Brush Hair and teeth

4. Make bed

5. Clean bedroom

Our afternoon routine looks like this:

1. Wash hands before lunch

2. Help with lunch and eat

3. Clean up after lunch

4. Get ready for story time with mom

Our evening routine looks like this:

1. Family Devotions

2. Pick up anything around the house

that is yours and put away

3. Get pajamas on

4. Brush hair and teeth

5. Mom will tuck you in

Because these things never change, we find our children often do them by habit and without reminders, which was the goal for having these routines in the first place :)

5. Set some goals for you children and yourself

As I mentioned before, my husband and I often discuss areas of strength and weaknesses in our children. We try to take an area to focus on in each child and discuss how we can help them. We will pray over these areas and seek the Lord and the Word on how to help our children overcome this weakness. Depending on the ages of our children we will also include them in discussing this weakness and will set a plan for working on it together. Of course, this is good practice to do all year long, but in the summer we have more time because we do not have our regular school work in our day. It is best to fill that time with the Lord instead of activities that are of no eternal value.

I also find that I have more time to spend with the Lord in the summer. It is a good time for me to refresh spiritually and even work on my own areas of weakness through spending more time with Him.

To me, the summer is a great time to focus on organization in my home as well as reading more. I like to read books on educational methods, research and evaluate what worked and what didn't in the past year, search out curriculum, and find new resources to use in my schooling. For some reason during the school year, books about schooling are the last thing I want to read! But in the summer, I love to read as much as can to encourage and prepare me for the upcoming school year.

The summer can be a blessed time of refreshing and opportunity! I look forward to those warm sunny days, when we can grab our books and read outside, or head to the park for a picnic. A schedule doesn't restrict us from having fun, but rather creates time for more fun because we know each day the important things are still getting done. I can go to sleep at night with a feeling of accomplishment, and my husband can safely trust in us because he knows our days are planned and purposed.

6. Seek ways you can bless others with your time in the summer

Do you have friends or family that you do not get to visit with often? The summer months offer a great time to invite others over for lunch, or even to visit those you may not see often. Be careful that you do not fill your time with busyness outside the home, however, be creative in seeking to find ways that you can be a blessing to others with your extra time in the summer.

One way we have done this in our family is to have a visiting day every other week. We make a list of friends and family and plan a route to visit them. My children often make a card or draw a picture for the person we are visiting. We try to focus on those who are widowed, elderly, or needing encouragement.

Pray about this extra time that you have when school is on break in the summer, and ask the Lord to show you how to use this time wisely so that you can bless others. I am sure He will show you many things that your family can do.

Lastly, have fun and enjoy this short season of warm sunny days with your children! You can have a purposeful and fulfilling summer that will be enjoyable for all and avoid boredom with some time planning ahead.

Author Info:

Stephanie is a homeschooling mother of 3 and owns A High And Noble calling, a blog to encourage and inspire women in their noble callings as homemakers, wives and mothers. You can read articles, find resources, and inspiration for your high and noble calling at http://www.ahighandnoblecalling.com

Self-Directed Learning - The Seven Benefits of Designing Your Own Education

Taking the initiative to design your own education may be a foreign concept to us who live in a society that has accepted institutionalized education as the only means to acquire knowledge.

Nevertheless, self-directed learning has not lost its power to yield a high quality education that will not only bring joy and fulfillment, but also lead to a fruitful life that will benefit the student himself, and be a blessing to many others.

Self-directed learning is a very natural process. All of us are continually engaged in one self-directed activity or another.

It's undeniable. The human race was created to live a creative life. Whether it's on the computer, pursuing a hobby, sport, or even designing our home, we are constantly striving to increase our expertise in some area of our life.

Strangely enough though, most of us do this only in our free time. We separate our work from our passion. Our daily aim is to accomplish the requirements imposed by others, and in our free time we pursue the requirements of our heart.

It doesn't have to be that way. Your passion can become your career. You can be an expert in anything you want to if you learn to master the art of self-directed learning.

Self-directed learning has a lot of benefits. These are only seven of them:

• You choose the content. Contrary to a curriculum designed by experts, you can pick and choose what you are going to learn, and who you are going to learn from, according to your personal level of knowledge and unique preferences.

• You determine the schedule. You can adapt your learning process to your personal agenda, without depending on time schedules imposed by others.

• You learn with passion. Since you are pursuing the topic that has always burnt in your heart, there is no place for boredom. Your main occupation in life should be fun!

• Self-directed learning produces a deep sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. You are engaged in what you were created to do!

• Self-directed learning will eventually lead to a productive life. After a season of delving into a subject with passion, the fruit will start to show. You will have gained a level of expertise.

• At this point you will naturally develop entrepreneurial skills. Now that you are an expert in your field, others will look to you for help, and be willing to pay for it too!

• The inevitable step is financial freedom. Voilá, your passion has become your career!

Author Info:

I'd like to invite you to go for it! Visit http://www.Self-DirectedLearningForSuccess.com for tips and tools for creating and growing in your own learning process. Learn how to teach yourself in my FREE e-book: "The Power of Self-Directed Learning", and my FREE e-course: "Seven Steps to Consistently Change Your Life."

From Bettina Langerfeldt, who teaches people how to pursue their God-given gifts and talents by designing their own education with self-directed learning.

© 2008 Freedompioneer

Homeschool Statistics - Over 1 Million Homeschooled Kids in the US Alone!

The latest homeschool statistics show that over a million children in America are currently homeschooled. The popularity and success of home education is growing larger each year as the public school system experiences crowding, more violence, and a decrease in the education levels for students. It proves to parents that homeschooling is very important and might be an education choice to consider for the upcoming year.

Homeschool statistics indicate that children who are taught at home receive higher scores on their standardized tests than children who are taught through a public school. The point average for homeschoolers was, in some cases, almost 70 points higher than the national average for public school children. This is a positive indication that individual teaching time makes a difference as does a quiet environment to study in. In home discipline is also important in being able to study in a more controlled environment.

It takes less time to homeschool a child than it does for the child to go through a regular day in public school changing classes and doing extra activities. Homeschool statistics show students who are taught at home are more mature in their level of learning and socialization skills than those who are not. The studies also show a higher level in spiritual growth, cognitive skills, academic skills, and social skills.

It has been shown through homeschool statistics that religion is not a deciding factor in the decision to homeschool a child as it used to be. Many parents who are not religious have decided to homeschool their children simply because of how bad the public schools are becoming. The household income for homeschool families is about $50,000. With regards tot he budget, it only costs about $500 a year to home school one child. It could cost more to purchase uniforms, field trips, lunches, and gas to take a child to and from public school.

The parents who were included in the homeschool statistics stress that it is very important to teach children morals and values along with math, reading and the other core subjects. The entire point behind the innovative idea of homeschooling is to provide the child with a better means of learning and teaching environment. This is definitely not something public school instruction provides. While these statistics are important in showing the benefits of homeschooling, it is necessary for parents to get together to decide what is best for their children.

Author Info:

Click here to find out more and get the Complete Homeschool Guide!

Home School Curriculum - Mistakes to Avoid When Purchasing

Homeschooling involves making some decisions. At first, many of those decisions involve purchasing curriculum or books. Here are some common mistakes people make and the solutions to help you avoid them:

1. In a hurry to buy curriculum - When you decide to home school you may be excited to go out and buy everything you see. The most important thing you can do to avoid this mistake is to get to know your child/children. Watch them for a while when they play and interact with others. Do they like to be alone or with others? Do they enjoy reading? Do they enjoy filling in notebooks or workbooks? Do they hate reading? These are all questions that will help you determine how your child learns best. You can also look into having them take a learning style assessment to see how they learn best. While you are observing your child, start exploring the different home school approaches and how they might fit in with your personality and that of your child/children.

2. Buy a curriculum because someone else likes it - Have you ever gone to a restaurant that someone else just raved about and you didn't think it was all that special or you hated their food? Making curriculum choices are certainly more important than choosing a restaurant, but the point is that just because someone else likes a curriculum, it doesn't mean that it is right for you and your family or that you will like it. Accept the recommendation from that person and then research it fully to make sure it fits in with your personality and the learning styles of your children.

3. Buy more than you need - Realize that not every subject needs a curriculum and that you don't have to purchase every part of a curriculum. Science and History can easily be taught from good books and life experiences. Math can be taught using workbooks, but can be enhanced with money, M&Ms and other hands on resources. If you have taken some time to write down your goals and what you think you need for each child, you can avoid buying too much and getting frustrated. Remember that less is better. You can always buy more later or add to what you have. If you have too much to work with you will get frustrated and might frustrate your children by piling on too much work and causing them to lose their desire to learn.

Everyone is going to buy at least ONE thing that they didn't need. You can't avoid all purchasing mistakes, but with a plan and some guidance you can purchase more of what you need and less of what you don't need. Sit back and determine your goals for your children and what you want to accomplish taking into account their learning style, and you will avoid many mistakes when it comes to purchasing home school curriculum.

Author Info:

For more tips on homeschooling, grab your free report "How to Homeschool using the Best Resources" at http://www.homeschool-how-to.com Heidi Johnson specializes in helping families find resources to simplify and improve their lives.