Another school year is upon us! (At least that’s what people are telling me… I personally am in denial)
I still plan to squeeze every last drop of fun and rest that I can out of this summer, but I also know that my future self will thank me if I make some solid school plans for the year ahead.
Every year we’ve homeschooled I’ve shared the curricula and resources we’ve used. (Check out the first post in the series – Our Curriculum Choices Year By Year – to start at the beginning).
If you haven’t yet read Part 1 of this series, do that first or the rest of this won’t make as much sense: How to Plan the Best Summer Break for Your Homeschool Family: Part 1
In Part 1 we covered the first two steps in planning a great summer break for your family. As a reminder those steps are:
Hopefully, those two initial brainstorming steps were accomplished in the time it took your kids to binge watch a season of Bluey.
Now that you’ve got your goals and you’ve researched the “tools” you’ve got at your disposal, keep reading to find out what to do next!
What’s the best way to approach summer break if you’re a homeschooling family?
Like the rest of homeschooling, there’s no one right method. Some families “do school” year round. Other families unschool – their relaxed school year is indistinguishable from their summer break. And some (like my own family) create a light structure, but take a break from some or all of their usual school work.
No matter how you do it, the keys to success are…
From my family to yours, I wish you a joy-filled Christmas season and a blessed year ahead!
If you need a break from wrapping presents and chauffeuring the kids, take a few minutes to check out the most popular Sensible Homeschool posts from this year and all time!
Kids in first, second, or third grade are at such a fun age! They’re still young enough to be intrigued by a lot of things. But they’re older and much more capable than they were just a few short years ago.
We can use this innate curiosity and increased capability to our advantage as home educators.
There are two different types of planning that are important in homeschooling. They are…
…“Big Picture Planning” and “Detailed Planning”.
The Big Picture Plan is a zoomed-out view of our kids’ entire education. All the subjects. All the years. Everything from ABC and 123 up through high school graduation.
I recently found this never-published post of mine from four years ago. In the Covid blur of early 2020, it got lost in the shuffle. But, better late than never, right?
My three homeschooled kids are currently in 9th, 6th, and 2nd grade. It’s been fun to look back at this glimpse into our lives four years ago when Oldest was in 5th grade, Middle was in 2nd grade, and Youngest was still a preschooler!
I’ve always loved “Day in the Life” posts – especially when I was a new homeschooler trying to figure out what those crazy homeschool people do all day.
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If there’s one thing I’ve learned in over a decade of homeschooling, it’s that learning can happen anytime, anywhere, and in many different ways.
We definitely don’t need to be in a classroom. And it doesn’t even have to be a school day!
In past posts, I’ve shown how kids are always learning – on weekends, on vacations, and even when they’re bored, sick, or having a bad day. This past New Year’s break I was reminded, yet again, that kids are always learning… even on a holiday!
May you and your family be blessed this Christmas season as we celebrate the birth of our Savior!
Merry Christmas to you all and I hope you have a safe and happy New Year!
Warmest wishes,
– Sensible Homeschool
One of my new favorite t-shirts says, “Hold on. Let me overthink this.” It’s perfect for me.
I’ve always been a Type-A, planner-loving, I-prefer-my-ducks-in-a-row momma. I tend to over-analyze and over-complicate most things – especially when it comes to our homeschool.
Thankfully, over a decade of homeschooling has mellowed me out a little bit. I’ve seen firsthand how powerful spontaneous teachable moments can be. I’ve witnessed my kids retain more from playing made-up games than from carefully crafted lesson plans. I’ve realized that it’s less about finding the “right” curriculum and more about nurturing relationships and encouraging a love of learning.
