Softening the Summer Schedule

Posted by Debra | 0 comments

I am always excited for summer to start. Because I’m not a year-round homeschooler, I not only look forward to a change in our schedule but I love all the opportunities my sons have to engage in new experiences.

In a typical summer I sign them up for everything I can afford: day camps, swim lessons, VBS, martial arts and sports. I start planning in March and intermingle our family trips with my boys’ activities. Peppered throughout are co-op days with our local homeschool group, park days, summer reading programs, and sleepovers.

And at the end of last summer I was exhausted. I had no energy left to begin school with and found myself looking forward to staying put and cracking the books again. Beginning the school year in this way isn’t ideal. Though my boys enjoyed all that we did I knew that this year required some tweaking.

I needed to soften our summer schedule. Maybe you do too, so here are my tips.

1. Set boundaries and stick to them. I told my boys they can each attend their martial arts twice a week as well as enroll in a session of swim lessons. Then they were allowed to pick one more camp or sport activity. With three boys we’ll still be going places, but it won’t feel frantic like it did last year. They can all swim at the same place and time and my oldest can ride his bike to Taekwon Do now, so that’s less hustle for the rest of us.

2. Plan big chunks of time to be home. We scheduled our family vacation at the very beginning of summer so that we can be around home for two solid months. Planning a road trip takes as much energy for me as lesson planning does, so if I can get it all out of the way at the beginning of the summer I’ll actually be able to turn my brain off when we get home.

3. Let there be days just for playing. I chose not to sign up for any co-ops with our homeschool group this summer. Instead, we are going to participate in casual park days with them where the kids can just be together outside and I can get my fix socializing with other moms. Or not. We’ll play it by ear.

4. Get your spouse on board with the schedule. I have put our family calendar on a private online calendar so my husband can check it anytime he wants. He can even integrate his calendar with mine. As much as I want to spend fun times with my kids, I also want to include him and leave time just for us. Technology is going to help me do that.

5. Fix up your house or yard so that you want to be home. Even a little clean up will go a long way to making your space comforting to you and inviting to guests. We are almost done landscaping our backyard. When it’s finished I am thoroughly looking forward to putting a spacious hammock under our tree. Once we’re back from vacation, you’ll know where to find me.

Debra Anderson has three sons ages 11 and younger. Her passions are education, mentoring, her husband, writing, church ministry and missional living — not in that order. She has her seminary Masters degree in Christian Education, is married to her pastor-husband of 16 years, and resides in their newish home in Denver, CO. In spite of moves between four different states, she has always home educated her boys — even on the hard days. She maintains a blog at www.emergent-homeschool.blogspot.com.