5 Practical Ways to Your Best Homeschool Day
/This is a guest post contributed by Lara Chomout. You can learn more about Lara in her bio at the bottom of her post.
I often wish I was “perfect.” As I dream of what this must look like, I imagine the mom I want to be -- the mom who wakes up before the kids, reads her bible, has breakfast ready, dishes put away and a load of laundry going all before the day truly begins. But just as quickly as that dream begins, I roll over in bed, groan, and press the snooze button… over and over again.
I am NOT who I would love to paint myself to be. I’ve shooed my kids in the other room, I’ve told them to turn on the tv or to entertain themselves. When I finally drag myself out of bed, I muster up the energy to make coffee -- but Morning Time? School? “Just give me a second,” as I inwardly yell at all the “should dos.”
Fast forward to bed time when I promise myself tomorrow isn’t going to be like this. Yet, I get stuck in this pattern, only to repeat everything the next day. (Sounds a little like I’m starring as Bill Murray in Groundhog Day).
I share this to assure those of you longing for practical wisdom in this area, that I’m in the thick of this too. I am with you - learning, growing, and making changes as I seek to love my family, educate my children, and grow in Christ. Often, we know the right thing to do - it’s simply doing it that’s so difficult. Yet, as I share, please keep one key point in mind - 2 Corinthians 12:9 says God’s grace is sufficient for us. This doesn’t mean we don’t try to make necessary changes so we can serve our families better, but it does mean that the mornings that don’t go well, we can rest in Christ knowing His mercies are new every morning. He knows we aren’t perfect, and in fact He knows this SO well that He knew we would need a Savior who came to be strong where we are weak.
1- The morning starts the night before
This advice seems simple, but was truly life changing for me. Getting in the mindset of preparing for tomorrow the night before, allows me to eliminate decision-making in the morning hours. My family has much better mornings when I prep and clean our school room, setting out morning time supplies on our table and making sure we have all of our supplies for our lessons ready. We also have better mornings when I prep what should be easy but sometimes, just isn’t - picking out my clothes for the next day, getting the coffee pot ready to make coffee, and having a plan for breakfast in place. I also have much better days when I jot down my to do list for the next day the night before.
Where this can go wrong:
After a long day with my kids, I really don’t want to think about to-dos. I want to get in my pajamas, snuggle in my warm bed and watch a tv show or read a good book. Because of this, I often do not think about prepping for tomorrow the night before.
A practical solution:
Set a reminder alarm, and this is key, do not ignore it. Once that alarm goes off, set a timer for 15 minutes and set to work prepping for tomorrow. Speed clean the school room, pick out your clothes for tomorrow, and write your to-do list. Once that 15 minutes is over, you can evaluate if you feel like you’re ready for the AM and go throw on those pajamas OR you can put some finishing touches. However, try not to spend more than 15-25 minutes prepping for tomorrow. I say this because I want to guard you from not allowing yourself that evening time to wind down and relax before bed - that too, is just as important to your mental health!
2- Take care of you
This one is simple, but so key. Hygiene. I know, I know this sounds so elementary, but sometimes it’s the last thing on our minds (for ourselves). Shower, wash your face, get dressed, throw on some mascara. If you feel good, you usually will be more productive.
Where this can go wrong:
Timing - cannot wake up early enough; and/or last thing on our to do list.
A practical solution:
Take a shower the night before! Turn this into part of your nightly wind down/prep for tomorrow. Another solution is to allow yourself to start waking up earlier than the kids, start by only waking up 2 minutes earlier than their wake time. You may have to literally pray “God, help me to put my feet on the ground” (and that’s okay!). Then, hop in the shower first thing. Each day increase that increment by 2 minutes until you’re up at least 15-25 minutes before the kids. You could even set up (the night before) an “invitation to play” to give your children something to do while you shower, OR let this be the 15 minutes they have for habit training (making their beds, their morning routines, etc).
An invitation to play could be something like setting up toys they haven’t seen in awhile to setting up a craft or activity they can do all on their own.
3- Take 5
Before beginning the school day give yourself 5 minutes to drink a glass of water or a cup of coffee and simply take in the world around you. Pray and read your Bible, even if it’s just one verse you can recite and hold onto the entire day.
Throughout the day, plan to take a few more 5- 15 minute breaks - just as if you were working in an office setting. Give yourself time to step away from the work of the home or of education and to think about something else.
Where this can go wrong:
Simply forgetting.
Children not respecting your “break.”
A practical solution:
Set alarms and explain to your children the need for breaks and rest. Create a game plan for when those alarms go off, and let your children know what they are to do during those breaks. Also make sure you have and a plan for how you’re going to allow yourself to stop what you’re doing to take that break. (Focus on becoming aware of what really “fills your cup” so you can seek to do that during these breaks.)
4- Make a plan (but don’t schedule anything)
I often explain to my friends the difference between a schedule and a routine. A schedule is something you assign times to, where a routine is simply doing things in the same order without attaching a time to it. For example, when I wake up I typically take a shower and then brush my teeth. It doesn’t matter if I wake up at 5:30 am or 9:00 am. Plan a routine for your homeschool morning. If you accidentally sleep in until 9:00 am, start your homeschool morning just as if you were waking up at 7:00 am.
Where this can go wrong:
Commitments, such as co-ops, music lessons, play dates, etc. that do have to have a time scheduled to them.
A practical solution:
Have a different routine for the days you leave the house. Whether that’s planning to do your “morning time” in the afternoon and restructuring your day, etc. The key is to be flexible - and leave margin for that flexibility, while allowing yourself to still get schooling accomplished.
5- Do not lean on your own understanding
Proverbs 3:5-6 says “Trust in the Lord with all of your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
I often forget that I am invited to walk into God’s plan for my day - I instead try to invite Him into MY plan, as if I’m the one who will dictate how the day should and will go. So as I prep for my homeschool morning, I have to remember that this is the day the Lord has made (Psalm 118:24). I want to join God in what he is doing, and I want to allow for Him to lead our day, trusting Him with the details. I know that the above tips can help, but above all, I want to acknowledge God in all of this. What does He have for us today?
When we trust ourselves with our plan for the day over trusting in God, eventually we burn out, wear ourselves out and forget the why behind what we are doing. I do not believe God wants us to be miserable, I believe he has a plan for our days and our lives that is encouraging, comforting, joyful, and brings glory to His name. Pray through how that may look like for you and your family. What is he inviting you to do with your homeschool morning?
Where this can go wrong:
Simply not remembering who the day belongs to.
A practical solution:
Make time in your day (perhaps during one of your breaks!) to focus on God’s word and prayer. Refocus on the “why” as you spend time filling up with God’s word.
We are not perfect, but we serve a God who is. Trust in Him as you plan your mornings, as you clean the school room and as you plan lessons. Every morning will not be exactly how you planned - some will be far more wonderful than you imagined and some will be far less than you imagined. Add practical changes to your life, but remember that the day is God’s - and where we are weak, He is strong.
Lara is a homeschool mom of two in West Texas. She is a graduate of Angelo State University with a B.A. in Mass Media with a focus in Journalism and a B.A. in German. She has a heart for sharing the gospel of Jesus to those near and far who have never heard his name. She blogs at Little School on Avondale and you can find her on Instagram and Facebook.
