On Things that Have Worked in Our Homeschool

We started school this week.

Our fourteenth year of homeschooling.

It feels shorter. It feels longer.

It seems like we’ve always lived this way. It feels like we are still figuring things out.

It was the best of times, it was (admittedly, sometimes) the worst of times.

I’ve now got a senior and a seventh grader at the table with me; half of the what I started with fourteen years ago.

That means, by God’s grace, I have worked myself out of a job with other two.

It’s unreal to think our homeschool used to look like this…

Sippy cups.

Meltdowns.

Picture book read alouds.

Weekly library trips.

A nursing baby.

Drawing letters with crayons.

Nap time.

Audiobooks and Lego.

Tea parties with stuffed animals.

Math in PJs.

Forgive the nostalgia; we drop this one off at college in two days…

So, we’ve been at this a while and I have found over the years that some things work better than others. I’m at that point in our homeschool journey where I can look back and have some perspective.

Usually, the mistakes are glaringly obvious. It’s important to notice these and course-correct.

But it’s just as beneficial to notice what did work. Most of these rhythms are still a part of our homeschool because, well, they’ve worked. Maybe they will bless your family, as well.

Living in the seasons
I mean this both by the calendar (who doesn’t love a themed poetry and teatime?) as well as the stages of life. When my boys were little, our homeschool was a lot more about therapy than it was academics. There were days I spent most of our school day chasing a toddler and putting out (thankfully, proverbial) fires. I fought the urge to feel behind and instead pressed in to my children’s needs at the time. Were we “behind” in math? Did we leave some books unfinished or miss others entirely? Sure. But it all shook out in the end.

Beginning the day with beauty, i.e. “Morning Time”
Eat the frog, yes, but not until you’ve had your tea.
Poetry, teatime, music, singing, and art were a normal thing in our home. Yes, even for boys. Yes, even in the teen years. (Pro tip for moms of boys: if you feed them, they will come.) Learning and growing and discussing and arguing ideas is normal. Being together a lot is normal. Enjoying each other’s company while learning is still normal.

Getting back on the horse every time we fell off
And we fell off a lot. But you only lose if you quit.

Consistently focusing on small things makes a big impact. Rhythms and routines are the lifeblood of your homeschool. And your philosophy of education. But I digress.

Little drops of water,
Little grains of sand,
Make the mighty ocean,
And the pleasant land1.

A little bit of math.
A little bit of reading.
A little bit of writing.
Some every day
goes a long way.

Being outdoors a lot
Charlotte Mason says, “never be within doors when you can rightly be without.” We tried really hard to abide by this, especially in the younger years. We’d eat, read, and play outdoors and it was a wonderful use of our time.

Reading aloud far beyond when most people stop
As in, we still read aloud together. Mostly novels and poetry, but histories and spiritual growth books at times, too. It’s still an expectation that if we sit down for breakfast or lunch together, someone will read something aloud.

Finding Charlotte Mason
Her principles shaped our school years in the best way. Ambleside Online may have saved our high school years. I am eternally grateful.

Having 1-on-1 time with each kid daily
I scheduled 30-minutes of 1-on-1 time with each kid into our morning. Some times that time was spent doing therapy. Sometimes it was spent teaching someone to read. Sometimes it was spent working on math problems. Sometimes I just sat and listened as he talked about ideas in his head. Sometimes we played a game. Sometimes we were interrupted multiple times. Sometimes 30 minutes was just not possible so we did what we could fit. Even five or ten minutes of undivided attention makes an impact.

Having a group to do life with
We couldn’t find one, so we made one. We went from blueberry picking and playing Sharks and Minnows to hosting formals and graduations. Community is a non-negotiable element to homeschooling.

Continuing my own education
I learned that I could be in charge of my own education. A piece of paper doesn’t make me educated. Even though I have one, I don’t need a degree to prove that I can learn. Education is available to everyone at any age and it doesn’t have to cost much. Read, and then read some more. Discuss ideas with others who read. If you don’t know the answer to something, find it out. Listen to podcasts. Take free classes from a big University online. Learn alongside your kids. With libraries and the internet, there is no limit to what you can learn.

Trusting in faith, not formulas
I stopped looking for the “right” curriculum and the “best” approach. I prayed. I quieted the noise of the bursting homeschool movement that touted experts at every turn. I read books. I found like-minded people a few steps ahead of me and asked questions. I trusted that God would lead me to what He wanted for our family. In many ways this was unique. In many ways this was commonplace. I stayed flexible, learning that what works one year may not work the next. What works for one kid may not work for another. I committed instead to educating my actual family, using whatever resources we had access to, in whatever season of life we were in.

And that ended up being the right curriculum and the best approach. Soli Deo Gloria.

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Till next time,

Cindy