I’ve hesitated to write this post because our art closet is… well… ugly.
But, I’ve decided to give you this photo tour anyway. It’s a late addition to the Tour of Our Homeschool series.
Picture-perfect art rooms are often more discouraging for me than inspiring. I walk away feeling like I could never make it all so organized and matching and beautiful, and I give up before even trying.
So, because it’s not Pinterest-worthy, I’m hoping the pictures of our homely art closet will show you that working art into your homeschool is totally doable. You don’t need to wait until you’ve built a dedicated She-Shed or made adorable, color-coordinated mason jar labels to get started.
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Each August, I share Our Curriculum Choices for the school year ahead.
It’s always a nice feeling to have a plan in place. All the curricula picked out. All the ducks in a row.
In reality, though, plans change. Ducks get up and walk around. And you know what?
That’s okay.
How you plan out your homeschool week will depend on many factors. The curricula you use, your educational methods, your personality and your kids’ personalities will all affect what your weekly planner looks like (or if you use one at all).
I’ve always considered myself a planner connoisseur (yes, I’m aware I’m a nerd). But when it comes to our weekly school planner, I’ve found just using a very basic spreadsheet for each of my kids works best for us.
”Do you ask a fish how it swims? Or a bird how it flies? No sirree, you don’t! They do it because they were born to do it!”
– Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Just like Willy Wonka was born to invent new candy bars, kids were born to learn!
This isn’t the first time I’ve written about why homeschooling works easily for kids of all ages. They’re even learning on sick days. And, on our recent trip to the lake, I was reminded (yet again) how kids are always learning – even on vacation!
2020.
What. A. Year.
And we’re not even three-quarters of the way through it yet!
Even though I can’t seem to keep track of what day it is right now, I’m at least aware that it’s August. And August in our homeschool means it’s time to finalize and share our curriculum plans for the year ahead.
I don’t want to write this.
I don’t want to spend time looking back when there’s so much to do to prepare for next year! Full speed ahead, I say!
As I type, next year’s curriculum books are staring at me. “Plan ahead with us!” they beckon.
But no. Not yet.
2020. What a doozy!
Most of us are still reeling from the unexpected spin COVID-19 put on the last few months of this school year. And just when we thought things were looking up, we find ourselves in the midst of another set of trials and civil unrest.
It seems like a lifetime ago that I was planning out our curricula and wondering what the year would bring. I definitely didn’t expect all this!
I can’t bring myself to send out “just another post” this week. There’s too much unrest. Too much turbulence. Too much to process to move forward without pausing.
Before we can even attempt to reflect on the last school year or make plans for the next one, we simply must stop and acknowledge all that 2020 has brought so far.
The next stop on this Tour of Our Homeschool is the history shelf.
Early in this shelf’s career here in my home, it had the misfortune of being partly empty. And, since no empty space remains empty for long around here, it’s now become the “History-and-Geography-and-Health-and-Art-and-Bible-and-Character-and-Whatever-Else-I-Can-Cram-In-There” shelf.
We’ve got a lot of ground to cover today so I’ll get right to it. If you missed the beginning posts in this series, click here to catch up.