Find Balance in Your Homeschool Routine

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Finding balance in your homeschool routine can be one of the most challenging tasks for a homeschool family. There are so many things to do and see during this amazing journey that we get to take with our kids. There is simply no way that we can do it all. How can we decide what to focus on during each season of our homeschool? How should our focus change from year to year? Identifying our priorities in different areas will help bring our purpose into focus so that we can find balance in our homeschool.

Create a Homeschool Vision Statement

Have you created a vision statement for your homeschool? No? Well, it may be time to tackle that task. This is the first step for finding balance in your homeschool routine. This will help you identify and focus on what is important in your homeschool journey. It will give yourself permission to say no to what’s not important.

Even though I’ve known about vision statements long before homeschooling, it never occurred to me to write one for our homeschool until I went through Pam Barnhill’s Plan Your Year Book. She lays out several ways to approach writing homeschool vision statements. I especially liked her idea about thinking about what I would like my kids to say about their homeschool experience when they’re adults. That’s what helped me define our “why of homeschool” and put it into our vision statement.

List Your Academic Priorities

Now that you have your vision statement, create a list of academic priorities based on that. There are subjects that you don’t have to do every single school day and others that work best when done frequently. Sometimes it depends on your child. If you have a child struggling in a subject, is that subject a priority or are you going to take some time off from it for now?

We do math and reading every day because the frequency helps my kids retain the information. We also do history and science each day because my kids insist. Many families don’t do those subjects each school day, but these are favorites in our homeschool.

We rotate through various language arts components. We alternate days when we do spelling and grammar instead of doing both each day. We usually don’t do copywork, freewriting and writing projects on the same day. Alternating those subjects, instead of doing each one every day, frees up time that we can use for art, music, games, free play time, and child-directed projects.

Identify which subjects you will have your child do every day and which ones can be alternated throughout the week. This may be different for each child. Setting these priorities will help create space within your daily schedule.

Prioritize the Extras

Aside from the core academic subjects, are there any other subjects that you want to prioritize? Foreign language? Art and music? Cooking? Woodworking? Make a list of subjects that are a priority for this quarter and ones that are a priority all year.

Finally, make a list of which subjects are NOT a priority right now. It doesn’t mean that they’ll never be important. They just aren’t important right now. Give yourself permission to not do anything about those right now.

Prioritize Extra Activities

Think about the activities, clubs, and sports that your kids are involved in or want to try. You won’t be able to do everything. There’s simply not enough time. However, with some planning, you can do some things some of the time.

These extra clubs can also include homeschool group classes. Define what you are willing and able to do and set your limit. It’s okay to waiver if something really exciting comes along, but this planning will help you decide when to say yes to something and when to say no. Give yourself permission to say no.

Prioritize Your Homeschool Group Commitments

Go back to your homeschool vision statement and use it to list what you’re looking for in a homeschool group. Be very clear about what you’re seeking to gain from a group and what you’re able to give. This will help you find a group that fits your priorities and help you decide which events to attend and which to host.

If the need arises, don’t be afraid to be clear with the group’s leaders about your role in the group. It’s okay to say, “I’m sorry, but I can’t host an event that week.” or “Next month is really busy for us so we won’t be around much.”

However if the group has participation rules, please try to meet those requirements. The best groups are those that have active members working to put together amazing events for the kids. Consulting your homeschool vision statement will help you find a group that fits your needs and prioritize which events you’ll participate in.

Homeschool Like it’s a Job

Homeschooling IS a job! If you have trouble fitting in all the homeschool stuff, take a look at all of the non-homeschool stuff you take care of during school hours. How many times do you run to Target or the grocery store? How many times do you say yes to a favor that takes away from school time or requires you to rearrange your homeschool routine? Be mindful of these distractions.

A quick run to the store can throw us off for much longer than the errand actually takes because it takes additional time once we’re home to get everyone back on task. Look ahead to your week, and take care of these tasks outside of school time. Ask your partner for help during their non-working hours. Homeschooling IS a real job just as much as your partner’s job is a real job. Treating it as such will allow you to say no to these distractions.