As a homeschooling family, we strive to give our children a good, well-rounded education. We want our children to be knowledgeable in many subjects and have a love for learning. We have a desire for our children to learn many different subjects and have a genuine interest in them all. But, we know that is not reality. We just can’t fit it all in. What we can do is get back to basics when teaching our children.
With the influx of homeschooling families, many feel the same way as stated above. They want to do it all. When they learn they can’t or their children get overwhelmed (or the parent becomes overwhelmed) they feel like a failure (I’ve been there). My advice is simple: get back to the basics. The basics meaning: language arts, math, history, and science.
I have tried to be that mom who does an artist study, composer study, hymn study, music lessons, nature journal, science experiments, etc. I was overwhelmed and we were learning nothing. My children began to dread school because it became a race about how much we could get done without having a meltdown. It just didn’t work for us. If that is you, keep reading. It doesn’t have to be stressful or hectic.
I took a step back and got rid of everything except the core subjects of language arts, math, history, and science. We also read a ton of books together. This changed everything. We were having more discussions and had more time to really think through certain topics. We had more time to read the Bible and learn about God’s world around us. It was less about how much we could accomplish in a day and more about quality time spent learning about things that really mattered.
You do not need to keep up with everyone else’s homeschool day. You do not need to study every composer and do an art project every week and be able to identify every bug. If those things are of great interest to your family, do them. But, if you’re anything like me and the idea of adding more and more makes you feel overloaded, don’t do it. Get back to the basics of learning and teach from a place of rest. My new motto is “quality over quantity”.
All those extra things are amazing to study. They can add so much more enrichment to your homeschool. But, they are not necessary for success in home education. If they feel more like a burden or more like something you have to accomplish each day instead of making you feel joyful, get rid of it. No matter how much you try to force something that simply doesn’t work for your family, if it isn’t working, it’s just not worth it.
If your homeschool looks like something with all the extras and it works for you, that’s awesome. But, if you’re like me and those extras make you feel like you won’t ever accomplish it all, get rid of them. Start fresh with the basic, core subjects and enjoy the journey your family is on. Homeschooling is such a blessing and gives you the opportunity to truly get to know your children in a way no one else ever will. Be in the moment and not stressed about all the extras. It goes by faster than we think.
