I was pretty ambitious when I first started homeschooling. I was a preschool teacher and had a college degree so I knew what to expect, right? Wrong. I don’t care how much schooling anyone has, nothing can prepare you for homeschooling, except homeschooling. At first I attempted to turn my basement into a “classroom” complete with a whiteboard, overhead projector (do people even still use those?), a flag, desks and posters… plenty of posters. For the first couple of years it seemed to work. I even recruited a neighborhood girl to join in on the fun. Then, as the kids got older, it did not seem to work anymore. The “classroom” style was not a good fit. The problem was, it seemed to mold us into an unhealthy routine. I was so dependent on making sure the school day was completed according to schedule that I missed out on many important aspects of daily life. Household chores were neglected, farm chores seemed like they were always in the way and discipline and character building would seem to be more of a nuisance instead of an expected part of the day.

Once I became more relaxed in our schedule, it was obvious that we were in an environment where children were encouraged to learn and grow, not just complete a set amount of worksheets. Having this more relaxed attitude and mindset opened up so many exciting doors for us. We were not afraid to sign up for local science fairs or enter animals or recipes in local fairs. We made time for these types of activities without the fear of not completing the grade three math workbook for the year. Of course we stick with a schedule when we can, but it was more relaxed. Not so the kids could just bum around the house all day but so they could spend their free time learning how to cook new recipes or take up new and interesting hobbies such as flint knapping or archery.

Another aspect of our relaxed approach has been dedicated an hour a day to each one of my school-aged children. This means, after we do our group work together such as Bible, missionary study, science and history, I devote an entire hour to each kid. Right now that is three hours out of my day. This has worked wonders in relaxing and calming my kids nerves. They know that they have their hour with me to help them with math, spelling, reading or whatever they need help with. Sometimes the kids spend the whole hour with me. Other times, they might say after 30 or 40 minutes that they feel fine doing the work on their own without any help. The important part is, that had my attention without the other older ones begging me  to help them with their math or their spelling. This method has worked wonders in our homeschool because the children don’t feel like they are fighting for my attention throughout the day, they know they will receive it when it is their time. It might be in the morning or the afternoon. It might be before or after they have to sweep the floor or water the plants, but they are reassured that on a school day, it will happen.

I like order and I like schedules but when it comes to homeschooling and homeschooling with five children in the home within a wide range of ages, flexibility has to be the name of your game. And honestly, that is okay. It is perfectly fine. We do not need to recreate a classroom in our home but rather we need to let our children know that they are important to us, loved and a blessing to the family. When they know this, the learning will just come.