Homeschool Tip #2 Make the Most of the Summer Months

Summer is upon us, or will be very soon. For some homeschool families it means a complete break from school, for others it is a change of pace, and for a small percentage of families, nothing changes since the family stays on the same schedule all year round. Wherever you fall, the summer time is a good time to make positive changes in your homeschool.

Assess Your Failures and Successes

Take a long look at your previous school year, talk to your spouse and children about it. Decide what you did right and what you did wrong. Did our daily schedule work? Did we spend too much time on one subject and not enough on another? Is there a better way to organize our day so that there is less stress? Is there a way that we can do this better? 

Make Curriculum Changes

I am a strong advocate of making a curriculum choice and sticking with it throughout a series, but sometimes curriculum just needs to go, and the summer months are the best time to do that. In June or July, I used to enjoy taking an entire afternoon to visit a homeschool supply warehouse to purchase textbooks for the upcoming year and choose new curriculum. If you do not have a homeschool supply near you, go online and look at textbooks. There are a number of curriculum review sites.  A couple of good ones are: http://cathyduffyreviews.com and http://www.homeschoolreviews.com

Set Aside Time For Reading

There is great value in reading to your children, and if you have not integrated a reading time into your family life, the summer is a wonderful time to start. Go to the library, choose a classic, and sit down with your children and read to them for 30 minutes a day. A brief discussion of the book, having them draw or do art projects associated with the story while you are reading can be recorded for school work.  

Learning Without Books

Not everything of value in life can be learned from textbooks. Children learn in many ways, and it is one of the most beautiful things about homeschooling. Use the summer months to teach your children to bake, cook, clean house, plant a garden or take up a new hobby. 

Spend Quality Time

Pack a picnic, and if you can't go somewhere, take the picnic into your yard, sit down with your children and just talk. Take walks. Spend time with your children when they are free to talk to you without the pressure of school work and activities. It is amazing what you can learn about your children, and what they can teach you. 

Finally, enjoy the summer months. The time when you have to get back to a more hectic schedule is just around the corner.  

-Joy