I know when the temperature starts climbing that I need to get into “Ducks-in-a-row” mode. The things I put off during the holidays have spilled over into winter and now I need to set them all aside again to end my school year.
Assigning grades, administering tests, and that oh-so large mountain of curriculum I need to evaluate for next year loom like a triad of monsters growling and hissing.
And inspiring procrastination.
I’ve got some tips and tricks for these little lovelies over my next few articles, but today, let me encourage you to make an early springtime memory. Tweet This!
The best blessing I’ve found with homeschooling is that I get to know my kids. Tweet This! I mean REALLY get to know them. And I can tell as we’re pulling out of the cold, home-bound months when they are flat-out weary from school.
Though we don’t take a whole week off for spring break, I do assign make-a-memory days sprinkled liberally throughout the first few months of the year. Tweet This!
- Several years ago, we took off the Wednesday of St. Patty’s day, playing green games and eating green food. Had it not been raining, we would have enjoyed a picnic. That first event has developed into a yearly tradition of green activities.
- Valentines morning, especially as the kids were going through elementary and middle school, we buddied with other homeschoolers and had a crafting day. Simple, cheap, fun. We ended with sharing Valentines and having lunch together.
- This year, we took off a Wednesday in January to go shopping just because we could and the weather was nice. We did another shopping day when my redhead got braces. Laughing and trying on clothes kept her mind off of the discomfort. And milkshakes helped!
- Last year we took a road trip in late March to a beautiful area full of Bluebonnets. Photo opp! Lots of singing and laughter along the way. I think we’ll do the same this year.
- Back when my Dear Boy took Physics, we took a field trip to Six Flags over Texas and let him study with a special Physics workbook. This year Precious Redhead will do the same thing and maybe even take a few of her Physics classmates (from our homeschool coop) along.
Added to that a lunch out during public school spring break with the kids from the youth group and an impromptu park day, my kids lose those pressurized looks.
The breaks are good for me, too. The ones that I accompany give more bonding opportunities (and great scrap booking fodder). The ones where I’m not needed offer a totally quiet house in which to write! Yes!
