On common question I get from people who do not homeschool is "How do you have the self discipline to get up every day and do school?" I find the questions interesting, since almost always these same people have the self discipline to get up, take their children to school and get themselves to work. It is probably more about scheduling than self discipline at our house. Doing school for us isn't a problem because we enjoy doing school! The real problems happen when we have to be self disciplined and flexible at the same time! LOL
Okay, here is what I mean. With homeschooling there can be a lot of distractions. For instance, last Tuesday I woke up on what was day 6 of our new school year, looked around my house and wondered how in the world we had made such a mess on only 6 days??? Things had quickly gotten to a point where I knew I couldn't function anymore. So I called a meeting. I told the kids we had to come up with a plan to get the house under control, do school, me to do my online job every day, and still have some FUN! Honestly I had a plan in mind, but it is always much easier for my kids to let them come up with the plan with my guidance, than to impose my plan on them.
So, we made a plan. What time we would get up. How many times a day we would tidy up, what Mom's work time is, what days we would go out and have fun, and what time bedtime is. Whew, things are going SO MUCH BETTER! However, I know that this plan will only last so long and then there will be more bumps in the road that get us off track. The schoolwork will get done, but the house will become a disaster again and I will be up to 3:00 am getting my online work done.
When that happens it will be time for another meeting! The whole thing is a process, not a set in stone plan. We have to have the self discipline to get it "all" done, but we have to have the flexibility to let life happen and not take our plans too seriously. It's a constant battle!
And yes, there are days I wake up and DON'T want to do school! LOL So those days we usually switch our focus and do something fun. If the reason is that the house is a wreck, then we have a day of housework. (Those days remind the kids to keep their chores up for sure! LOL)
I think the important thing to remember is that homeschooing is about more than what happens in any given day. It's about the whole process and the cumulitive learning that takes place. So if a day is lost here and there to housework or FUN, that's okay. We just get back on track and keep moving forward. The important thing is teaching my kids more that just the 3 R's, I am teaching them about life! And that takes a lot of self discipline and flexibility! LOL
I laughed because this sounded EXACTLY like our family!!! LOL! Out of the blue, my kids hear my voice cheerfully calling, "Family meeting!" The topic can be anywhere from schedule adjustments, cleaning the house, special devotion God laid on my heart, prayer needs... you name it. We have probably had a meeting about it. When the house gets out of control or a wrench gets thrown in our schedule, you can bet those wonderful words will echo down the hallway in a sing-songy way... "Family meeting!"
I am pondering and praying about our numerous activities this year and realizing how much I need to remember what our overall goal of hsling really is! Thanks for this post.
Balance is the key word here. Remember that we are living a life. School is not our life, housework is not our life, play is not our life. These are part of our life. Our life revolves around our faith and our home. We have the opportunity to live out our faith and our life with our families. We experience together a lifelong learning about God and his creation.
Most of the time those who use the public school let it become the center of their lives because it sets the schedules, vacations, fun times, family times, etc.
This sounds just like us...constantly revamping and making it work. Thanks for reassuring us all that it's normal!
Penny
http://seedsanddreams.blogspot.com/
We have homeschooled our children from the start and we love every minute of it! This is my place to share my thoughts on homeschooling, my kids and living for the Lord. All the while being a little outside the box!!
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