Give Your Homeschool Day the Right Start
Thursday, March 28, 2013 at 5:00AM
Giving your children a predictable, happy, and faith-filled start to the day can make such a huge difference in everyone's life.
Do you struggle with a good start to your homeschool day?
On days when we get a good start our day usually turns out well. The days where I have not been diligent about our morning routine, or slept in late myself, do not usually progress as well.
One of the reasons I love homeschooling so much is the flexibility it gives us. I have found, however, that being too flexible with our mornings just doesn't work out well. I can allow everyone occasional times to sleep in, and as long as we still follow our same ROUTINE we're all good.
Allow me to share with you what works in our home. Maybe it can help you, too.
Mom Gets Up Before The Kids
(I will preface this post by saying I not longer have babies in my house. We don't struggle with getting up in the middle of the night or getting up at insane hours in the morning. If my son is up before 7:00 a.m. he knows he is to play quietly in his room until it's time for everyone to be up.)
I do remember the days of babies, though, and if you are the mom of little ones please let me encourage you. It took years of training and consistence with morning routines, but now we are reaping the rewards.
I try to be up at least an hour (hopefully two) before my children. I need this time for my own sanity. I do my devotions, exercise, take a shower, or get things set with my blog for the day.
I set a timer for THIRTY MINUTES and that is my online time. I cannot afford to get sucked in for any longer than that!
I grabbed this Bible study ebook bundle this week, so now I have plenty of good Bible study resources for myself. If I don't spend time with God in the morning, my day never goes well.
If I'm really lucky my husband wakes me up with a cup of coffee and a Bible verse of encouragement, but most mornings he leaves at 4:45 a.m. for the gym. I can't get up THAT early! I do enjoy my sleep.
Typically my alarm rings at 6:00 a.m.
Give Kids a Reason to Join You
If you have children (especially preteens) who willingly hop out of bed for the school day I applaud you.
I do not. They need some inspiration. {I'm also a bit of a task master and make my child who would love to lay in bed all morning set an alarm.}
Recently a friend of mine shared with me that when she wakes her children she tells them something like "You can join me in the schoolroom for a fun art activity in 30 minutes!" or something similar. This motivates children and gives them a good start.
Just this week I woke up my preteen at 7:15 (she wasn't happy, as usual!) and told her would be coloring Easter Eggs in the kitchen in 30 minutes. She was downstairs in 15 minutes flat!
This same friend also plays fun music to get her children out of bed.
My own mother used to come in my bedroom and turn on my music boxes (I collected them) and sing and dance until I had no choice but to laugh. I have such fond memories because of this. What a powerful memory from my own mom.
Make a Yummy Breakfast
I struggle with this because I've never been a big breakfast cooker.
Even just putting store bought cinnamon rolls in the oven in the morning makes my kids happy.
I have discovered a wonderful overnight oatmeal recipe that makes our mornings VERY simple.
Chocolate chip pancakes or waffles are also another favorite.
Lately I have been trying lots of different smoothies for the kids.
Bacon is my daughter's love language. I try to make lots of bacon!
Whatever you do, make breakfast a time where everyone sits together to begin the day as a family. My husband is never home for breakfast, so it's just the three of us, but I try to be consistent about that.
Do The Same Thing After Breakfast Each Day
During and after our breakfast we are having devotions. I will read out of each child's devotion book and then we pray together. Even if they don't seem interested I do it anyway. You never know what goes on in those little hearts.
We have a special place right in our breakfast nook for Bible study resources, our Charlotte Mason verse box, and a journal.
Our favorite devotions come from Tommy Nelson:
- Jesus Calling (teen edition, which is great for ME, too!)
- Grace For The Moment - 365 Devotions for Kids
- Grace For The Moment - For Adults
I try to keep our breakfast room area neat (we also do a lot of school here, so sometimes that's hard), so the kids can feel free to relax into the day.
This peaceful environment has made all the difference.
After Bible study we always watch that day's edition of CNN Student News, and then we are ready to tackle the essentials of our day.
Depending upon the child and the season we are in, I may have made schedules and assignment lists.
Other days I want to be a bit more unschoolish (is that a word?) and I won't hand out the assignments.
You have to know your children and how they function most productively.
Remember:
- get up before your kids
- give them a reason to get up
- feed them a yummy breakfast
- have one consistent activity after breakfast
What do you do to give your homeschool day a good start?
Reader Comments (10)
I always enjoy seeing how other moms get their day started. Nothing good ever comes of me sleeping in! LOL! We've never watched CNN Student News, but that's a great idea. I noticed today that they are discussing the Supreme Court and same sex "marriage". Ugh. Thanks for the tips, have a great day!
I am right there with you, Mary. It seems like we have very similar ways of homeschooling. Would love to chat anytime. I also have to have that alone time in the mornings. I do wake up at 4:45 though. It took YEARS to get to that point but I'm so thankful I'm there.
We always eat breakfast together. You need to try the cinnamon rolls in the waffle iron. Two minutes and they are done. Drizzle the icing (mixed with milk and powdered sugar to make it pourable) and you're done. My boys love it and it's so quick!
I have to disagree with almost all of this. Mornings are not my friend. Never have been. So I use my evenings for my alone time. I do at least get up by 8, along with by oldest, who can wake up before dawn, and get her settled with breakfast. It's usually something easy like cereal or yogurt. She's at the age that she can get these things herself which I encourage and I make some coffee. Need the coffee. While that is brewing I get dressed in nonpajama clothes. I feel more awake and motivated if I'm dressed in everyday clothes. Then I sit down drink coffee, check the weather and news. When my oldest is done with breakfast I have her get dressed as well. By now it's around 8:30 and I go get the little one and get her breakfast and dressed. By 9 we start our schooling.
This is the best I can come up with for a nonmorning person like myself working with an early riser like my daughter. The girls tend to bicker if they eat together in the morning, it's too early for that so that's why their breakfast is separated. I'm not usually hungry until around 10 which is when we have a small break and get ready to run errands if needed.
Great advice, Mary! The morning "mood" definitely sets the tone for the remainder of the day at our house!
These are really good ideas. Being a "newbie" home schooling mama, it's great advice!
I am on the "mama w/ young 'uns" end of the spectrum. So trying to implement what you do every morning is a killer of joy. I know it's temporary though. I'm learning with little ones, it's better for me to have a rhythm rather than a structured schedule that makes everyone miserable. But there are a couple of things that even at the stage I'm in are certainties in the morning. One is breakfast together with the kids and me. The other is reading a page from our little ABC devotional book. Both my kids love it, and we seem to all have a better day when those two things happen.
I'd really love to see you write a few posts on what is was like for you with little ones. I know none of us moms are perfect, but I really respect what you have in your home. Getting to have your thoughts on file would be very helpful for us beginners.
When I homeschooled, I had to get the "hard" stuff out of the way first. If we had done the fun things (like art or history) first we would have never left them! I think the most important thing is having a routine in the morning, so you can kind of be on auto-pilot for an hour or so. Whatever the routine is, doesn't matter, as long as it works for your family.
Really enjoyed this post! We also have a morning routine and I have found we are most productive when we follow it as closely as possible. It also makes those occasional non-routine days almost like a special treat!
Getting up early and getting them up early is key. Allie is a bear in the morning, but I have to just deal with it because getting her up and going early makes all the difference. otherwise, it's lunchtime and we have not even finished anything I set out to do!
I have to try that CNN Student News.
Like another reader, I am not a morning person either. Here at home we function according to what is happening in our life. If we have to be somewhere early, we get up early and get going. If we don't, then we get up when we get up. I usually wake up at around 7 ish when my DH leaves for work, then DD3 joins me in bed to nurse, then DD5 comes in and snuggle. Then DS7 comes in and tells me what he has been up to since 7:30am or so... Then DD10 comes in at around 9-9:30 am and we snuggle some more. If the kids are hungry, they know they can grab fruit to eat in the fruit bowl. At just before 10 am, I get up and then we all do our morning routines (making beds, unloading the dishwasher, sweeping the kitchen floor, changing clothes...etc... each child has their own chore) and then we meet at the kitchen and have breakfast together. Nothing packaged, everything made from scratch. So at around 11 ish we are sitting down for devotions and read alouds. After that I work with the oldest in Math and LA. 3x a week, I work with the oldest, 2x a week I work with the oldest. Sometimes, we ditch all that and clean house, or go to the park, or watch movies/ documentaries... Usually at around 2pm, we are having lunch and then we the afternoon the kids have karate and dance classes. Once at home, we have dinner and then read alouds and sometimes a documentary and then bedtime.
We unschool, so I like to say that the only routines we have is meal times.. We have 3 meal times every day. Everything else changes according to what is happening. History, Science, Typing and Art happens randomly or independently. We really don't have a schedule or a strict routine. I have tried to establish some but it is hard... so I stopped stressing and I just go with the flow.
What makes my mornings work so well is to let go and let God. I used to be a control freak, slowly I am learning to trust the journey.