Homeschooling Through The Chaos

I’m not going to lie: this whole year our homeschooling has been nothing short of chaos. 2018 has presented us with a plethora of new situations and new opportunities to see just what we could handle. It has required us to be flexible and change our idea of what homeschooling should, and can, look like. The past nine months have required us to adapt, change, and really think about what is important for both our education and our family. Yet through it all, I think it’s safe to say that we are better for it.

Starting Out In Uncharted Territory

It started in January when I joined a homeschool curriculum review crew. The kids and I were all super excited to be able to try out new curriculums in our home. This presented an amazing opportunity for us. However, it also added an unexpected element that we were quite ready for – chaos. With all of these new curriculum options, we were constantly trying out and learning how to use new things. Some of these items were just supplemental, like this Paddington Bear review. Others, like Drive Thru History, were full curriculums we kept using long after the review period ended. And sadly, some we found were just not a good fit for us. We completed the reviews as best we could, but went our separate ways when the post was finished.

Yet each one offered us the opportunity to challenge ourselves. We tried new things and attempted to make each and every one priority. However, adding in a multitude of new curriculums, often three or four at a time, often had us moving core items aside for days or even weeks at a time. Some days we solely worked on review curriculums in order to give our best effort to the vendors. Some days we worked a little longer than we all would have preferred to. Each day we did our best to adjust to this new reality.

Big Family Changes

The next big change was one we didn’t realize was going to impact our homeschooling quite so much – renovating a house. This project took more than a year to complete and while we did a lot of it on weekends and after school, the spring of 2018 required more than just a few hours here and there. Before we knew it, entire school days were being devoted to life skills in the form of whatever projects needed to be worked on that day. Our whole family was involved in this process from start to finish and the kids were no exception.

These are skills, however, that the kids will be glad they have. Along the way, they learned how to safely bring down a chimney, check electrical circuits and wires, lay flooring, prep walls, and even paint. We didn’t take every day off to work on the house, but we did take quite a bit of time. And when it came time to finish and move, we took an extended spring break that allowed us to put down our books completely and work together.

Summer School

All of the chaos of the first part of the year led to a big decision for us, and a first – year-round homeschooling. While we didn’t call it that exactly, we did spend the majority of our summer schooling part-time as we worked to both finish up some of the previous school years materials and work on some review items. We did our best to keep it light, keep it relevant, and keep it fun all while balancing the kids’ desire to have a summer off.

Sadly, schooling through the summer left us all wanting that traditional break we were so accustomed to. The kids love the free days of summer and I love the break and change of pace. For the kids, summer is a time they can pursue their own interests. For me, the summer is a time to evaluate last year and think about the upcoming year. Without that break, we just weren’t ready to start the new school year in mid-August when we typically would. Instead, we pushed the official start of our school year to mid-September giving us all the break we needed.

Starting Late

Starting our school year late was strange for all of us. As I write this, we are only a couple of weeks into our year, yet it doesn’t feel that new. We are surrounded by many familiar resources and curriculums, some of which we began over the summer. This new school year honestly feels less like a new year and more like a continuation of last year. Even though we are starting out slowly and working up to a full course load, the kids and I are adjusting faster than in years past.

Our first week back to school was even quite different. Instead of starting out right in a course or two, we began with cumulative learning. A combination of interest-based learning and current events occupied the majority of our early days. It was the laxest first few days of school ever, and while different, felt so much more real and natural than years before.

Homeschooling Through The Chaos

Life is busy, I think we can all agree to that. Whether you are a full-time stay-at-home parent, a work from home parent, or a parent working outside of the home, there is always an element of surprise in the realm of homeschooling. Lessons that take longer than anticipated, curriculums that don’t work out as planned, and even illness can all throw a monkey wrench in even the best-laid plans.

Yet, through it all, our goal as homeschoolers should be to always look for the learning that did happen, rather than focus on the learning that did not. The opportunities for both academic growth as well as character growth cannot be discounted simply because your homeschool looks less and less like a traditional school. Even when school days resemble something akin to wrangling a herd of wild dogs, education is still happening. When the demands of life overtake the necessity of an education, homeschoolers still have ample opportunities to teach life skills, coping, time management, and character skills. We can instill in our children the importance of helping out when the laundry pile towers over the washing machine. We can show them how to create schedules and balance a busy day, and teach the importance of deadlines, due dates, even when to say no to another request. Busy days and even seasons offer us the chance to show our children how to balance a stressful time with grace and ease… or how to apologize and make amends when our patience runs out.

In fact, most homeschoolers will tell you that their goals are to not replicate the public school systems. That our ideal days do not have our children tied to desks, textbooks, and memorizing facts for hours a day. Instead, we would rather teach them the skills they need to survive. Show them real-world math in the form of budgeting and cooking instead of the Pythagorean theorem. Explain science through nature walks and exploring space instead of reading dry textbooks. Make history come alive through living books, biographies, field trips and engaging history programs, instead of teaching about Mesopotamia simply because they are in the sixth grade.

It’s not always easy when life becomes so busy, change becomes so normal, that your homeschool starts to feel like it takes a back seat. And I am not advocating skipping school on a daily basis in favor of trips to the beach or lazy days with each member of your household doing their own thing. However, I am here to let you know that you can homeschool through the chaos if you are willing to. If you are willing to do the work you need to, look for the opportunities to teach as they come up, and remind yourself that in homeschooling you have the freedom to determine the course of your child’s education.

Every day won’t be chaotic. And even after nine long months of chaos and change, uncertainty and stress, we are finally finding our new normal. Our new school year is off and running, different than all the years before. But if I am being honest here, I could have said that last year as well. Each new year is different simply because we are different. Interests change. Kids grow. And needs shift. Yet, through it all, one thing remains the same – my commitment to provide my children with the best possible education I can. With that in the back of my mind every day, I have learned that it doesn’t matter if life sometimes dictates something different than I would prefer. As long as I remember that their education is the priority, and make sure that what we are doing is serving them in an educational capacity, I know I can continue to homeschool, whatever the chaos may bring.