Many parents have been making the transition from regular school to home school recently. I remember vividly when I made the decision to home school my oldest child. I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into and so I did what I think many people do- I stuck with what I knew. As a trained and seasoned teacher, I did what I was trained to do- I tried to recreate a classroom at home.
It worked about as well as you might expect- my son was done with all of his work within the first twenty minutes. Everything. Then my toddler decided that she needed more attention and afterwards, we were truly done for the day. I quickly learned that home school is very different from the classroom.
“Home school looks different than what you will see in an average classroom. The goal is not to replicate the school room, the goal is to create an environment that is crafted to help support your own child’s learning. It is what you make it.”
Here are a few ideas to keep in mind while crafting your version of home school excellence:
- Define a school space. School does not necessarily need to be done in its own room! My original school area was our kitchen table. It just needs to be a space in which your child can work without too many distractions. It is also helpful to have access to a table or a surface on which to write. School can happen anywhere, but it is helpful to have a central space in which the materials that you regularly need are within reach.
- Create a routine that works for you. Perhaps your children work best and think the clearest before noon. If you are a family of early birds, create a schedule in which children wake up via alarms, get dressed, eat and are ready to learn by the time you set in the morning. If your family cannot get out of bed before eleven o’clock and afternoons/ evening is when you are the most productive, then set expectations of when everyone should be awake, fed, and ready to learn a little later in the day.
- Take time to experience things! In early elementary, allow at least one day a week for a field trip day. My kids and I took these field trip days when they were younger and it breaks up the week really well and gives wonderful experiences that enrich your children’s vocabularies and their perspectives.
- Have everyone help out. Everyone will be home and that means extra mess. Even young children can help with some of the chores. I taught my toddlers to wipe off the table and fold towels. By early elementary, they were folding and putting away their own clothes. (Not perfectly- but hey, at least I wasn’t doing it!)
- Realize that school will not take all day. Early elementary should only take an hour or two per day. Late elementary should take a little longer, but again it will not take the six hours of a regular school day. As part of your child’s routine- encourage playing outside, giving daily “quiet time” and reading or looking at pictures independently.
Another great help? Have your older children help teach the younger children. By explaining ideas and teaching concepts to others, it helps cement the learning for the older child, while simultaneously benefitting the younger sibling.
You can home school your children! Like anything, it takes a little time to adjust and tweak what works for your crew. Don’t try to replicate school- or anyone else! What works for your best friend’s family might not be best for yours. Just breathe and take it one day at a time. It’ll get easier and you will find that routine and rhythm that works for your crew.