School planning is in full force here. It is actually far less planning and more refocusing. We know what our vision is. We know what we love and what we don’t. We know what works. This season is less one of decision and more one of prayerful consideration of what challenges the new year will bring, individually and collectively, and how best to meet them. In upcoming posts I hope to share some particularly thoughtful passages from my reading this summer. They have so helped me see anew that the curriculum is really the least important factor in this equation.

I have revisited a few sites that always help me breathe deeply and embark on the new year with confidence and calm. These in particular are well worth considering:

Drew Campbell’s Advice to Harried Homeschoolers

The Robinson Family’s path to self-education read specifically the section about what the curriculum does not contain and why

Ten Ways to Simplify Homeschool
is a keeper. Print it. Post it prominently. Embroider it. Be mindful of the admonishment to tend to the youngest in your care first. Very often the tendency is to focus on older children who can and should be becoming more and more independent and self-teaching while those who are neither of those things are sent off to do who knows what. Bad policy.

What is the recurrent theme here? Teach the tools of learning. Teach them well. Those are language subjects – math, language, and faith. With a firm foundation in those areas there is nothing a person cannot learn in any other area. Our family adds music to those three, considering that another language we wish them to speak fluently. If you work on those areas diligently you cannot fail.

Another bit of advice we have found invaluable over the years is to not waste time and energy on curricula that is not written directly to the student – assuming you have an independent reader, of course. At that point the addition of a middle man (you) just adds more steps to your day and their work and clutters up the learning. To that end, we are considering Teaching Textbooks for math and adding the DVDs to the Memoria Press latin series. We dropped cumbersome history and science programs in favor of high quality topic books and activity programs like TOPS which the student can complete independently.

We plan to read and write extensively across the curriculum, however we do not invest significantly in guides intended to flesh out reading. Charlotte Mason and Waldorf schools shunned these in favor of letting meaning unfold naturally. Our job is simply to connect the children with the classics and trust that they will work the magic that they have for generations.

Part of each day is devoted to the arts. The children practice piano. We take time to paint and draw and craft.

Part of each day is spent outdoors. When I lived in Europe a mother there told me they believed people ought to be outside for 2 hrs daily. If you watch the clock you would be surprised how challenging that can be in our day! It is well worth making the effort however.

The teacher’s role will figure in most significantly in the morning. We were greatly impressed by the Dominion Family blog before it shut down. Their family spent a bit of time after breakfast each day reading poetry, memorizing scripture, listening to classical music, learning songs, and studying great art. Anything that needed drilling mom drilled as a group right then. (think: states/capitals, latin vocabulary, math facts etc) Afterwards they would each move on to their respective studies. Using this simple system they managed to accomplish a great deal in each area. No special ‘programs’ just consistent, repeated exposure.

So what does mom do with aaaaaall that free time. (insert peals of laughter) I plan to work most extensively with the non-readers on down. Children’s needs are front loaded in nature. Initially they need constant care and attention. They need help learning to meet their basic needs, learning to settle into healthy rhythms, learning to be kind and orderly. That takes a lot of time. Effort in these areas pays dividends later however. You set the stage for competency and excellence. Lapses now cost dearly later. We know this too.

There are those home management binder lists to follow through on daily and weekly. More time.

There is a husband in the picture as well, a marriage to tend. That too often gets lost in the shuffle of teaching, taxiing, feeding, and fellowshipping. Without this part of the picture however, there is no rest of the picture. A priority must be putting marriage first. Again, the focus is on the foundation.

Don’t turn your pyramid upside down. Summer is time to take stock. What are your areas of concern? How does the house look? What is the tone? (relaxed? rushed? cluttered?) What steps can be taken now to lighten the load and help the year progress more smoothly? Who needs extra help and in what areas? How much time is allocated for your husband? Is that time from the best of your day or the last of it? I realize none of those questions appear to relate directly to academics but they each one do. In fact, in the end these are the things that impact our ability to thrive.

Next post – logistics