When death or illness invades an academic calendar, it isn't always easy to know what to do in order to still cover "all the bases."  One school year we had four deaths in the family.  Another year my dad had pneumonia which required two extensive hospital stays.  Last week we had a death in the family and we were out of town for two days. 

When students are young, it is easy to just skip assignments, knowing that everything will eventually get covered.  Think of it.  Grammar, history and science take the same body of knowledge and, basically, add more details each school year or rotation through a particular learning cycle.  Math seems to be an exception in that beginning skills must be mastered before moving on. 

With that in mind, when my boys were younger, and there was a family need, we did math when we could.  If there was extra time, we squeezed in history read-alouds and/or science videos.  Our real learning took place in ministering to those in need.  I believe that the teaching of priorities went a long way in making my boys sensitive to the needs of others.

Enter the high school years.  How can a student obtain a credit if the work isn't done, no matter how important or time-consuming a particular event is?  This is where my summer planning comes into play.  During the summer, I planned our school year calendar, trying to put at least two weeks in for the "unknown."  This particular school year was a little tight in that regard, so the less I can grab into that chunk of time, the better.  

We had a couple of days in which we were made aware that death was imminent.  Therefore,   I knew that my mind-set, in regard to academics, should be flexible.  Thus, as I looked through our Tapestry week, our Latin, math, etc., I asked God to show me the high points...where I should spend our time and still cover the material adequately.

For Tapestry, I assigned a short reading about John Quincy Adams.  We were back in town on Thursday, which is when our discussion time is regularly held.  The discussion turned out to be more of a lecture, but that's okay.  We're moving on to Week 13 and Andrew Jackson. 

Sometimes (as in the case of my dad's long hospital stays), two weeks of flex time isn't enough.  I was out of town for 2-3 weeks at a time, twice between January and March.  I had two students in high school, and one a couple of years younger.  Again, I had to ask God for direction in regard to what was important academically.  The general instructions were "do what you can"  and "help each other."

The boys had their assignment charts, and we took two laundry baskets full of books and related paraphernalia.  I was often preoccupied with activities in which I simply couldn't walk away and help a student with a math problem, or help interpret an historical event.  Thus, they asked each other, or left problems blank.  Each day I tried to fit in a half hour in which to answer questions or give explanations.  This wasn't always possible.  Most of the time, it seemed to be easier to simply remind the boys of our focus for the week, teach them that God is sovereign, and leave it in God's hands.

When we got back home, we always had a catch-up day or two.  Lectures filled in our blank spaces in history and science.  We took the time needed to make sure that math was understood.  All in all, within a week, we were back on track as if we hadn't been out of town.

God knows what's going on.  He knows what our kids need for the future, both spiritually and academically.  I think it is important to keep this focus when outside events threated to ruin our organizational scheme.  HE is definitely more organized and goal-oriented than I am, and knows the GRAND PLAN.  It's good to be able to rest in Him.