Three Homeschool Habits to Cultivate
Charlotte Mason believed “the formation of habits is education, and education is the formation of habits”. In most homeschool families, the mother impacts the habits her children form more than any other person in the world!
Charlotte Mason said, “The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days; while she who lets their habits take care of themselves has a weary life of endless friction with the children. (Vol. 1, p. 136)
Notice the word “pains” paired with “good habits”. Good habits don’t just happen; they don’t “take care of themselves”. One must take “pains” to create good habits. However, these “pains” are short-term for the consistent, well-planned mother, and they are much preferable to a “weary life of endless friction”. I don’t know about you, but I much prefer “smooth, easy days”!
Habits must be mastered one at a time, and the old adage says habits take 30 days to form. I have found three homeschool habits that are worth cultivating! I’ve tried to work on one at a time, and once a good habit is formed, I move on to the next one. I am NOT perfect at ALL of these habits ALL of the time! However, the majority of my homeschool days I keep these habits intact, and when I do, the days are ‘smooth and easy’! These habits are worth the effort, so let’s take a look at them!
#1 Habit: Start the Same Time
Starting your homeschool day at the same time sends the message homeschooling is important. It is a priority to you, and you have planned your day around it. Be sure to choose the right start time. If you are not an early morning riser and will consistently struggle with starting early, set your start time later, so you can stick to it.
Start times for different children may vary based on preferences and the amount of school work to be done. High school students, for example, will need more time to complete their schoolwork than elementary-aged children. For this reason, many high school students who are not naturally early morning risers may choose the habit of rising early anyway. Many adults do the same for their full-time jobs; many mothers do the same for their babies and toddlers.
I remember starting my homeschooling with my oldest son early in the morning, while my little ones slept in. That early start time worked great, until my youngest began a long season of waking up multiple times at night with severe reflux. We were both exhausted in the morning. My oldest son was still well-rested and ready to start school early. I kept trying to get up and start school with him, only to find I was arriving later and later. One day, my oldest son said, “Mom, why don’t you just sleep in until Emmett wakes up? You two are so tired! I can start on my independent work first instead.”
Game changer. Keeping my oldest son’s start time early in the morning, and moving my start time later in the morning worked perfectly for that season of life!
Habit Builder Tip:
Try tracking the time you really start homeschooling each day. Track the time you begin, and track the time each of your children begin. If your start time is consistently off, either choose a different start time or take the ‘pains’ you need to for the start time you desire to consistently happen.
#2 Habit: Do a Day of School in a Day
Completing a day’s worth of work in a school day sends the message all subjects are important. A balanced education is a priority to you, and you have worked to provide it for your children. The child that struggles in reading needs reading every day, but he/she also deserves history, Bible, music, math, etc.
Children need to know each day includes a balance of learning, so no one subject overtakes their school day. The more children can see the balance of their school day, the more they can get into the habit of completing each day’s work. Heart of Dakota’s guides visually show the work that must be done each day in convenient boxes on a a two-page spread. Checking the boxes off as they are completed shows progress toward the end goal of completing one day’s work within one day.
I remember feeling short on time and taking out a piece of paper to write down what I did each day. It was very revealing! My “homeschooling time” was not truly set aside for teaching like I thought it was. I talked to my mom or sisters on the phone, folded laundry, checked my email, filled out doctor’s forms, made appointments, and so on. No surprise – I was able to find the time I needed to teach by truly focusing on homeschooling during the time I set aside to do so. I let my hubby, family, and friends know I was homeschooling until 1 PM, so I wouldn’t be answering the phone before then. They respected my teaching time and began calling in the afternoon instead.
Habit Builder Tip:
Try tracking the time you are homeschooling each day. Jot down the time you are with each child and what you are doing. Have your middle school and high school students track their own time. Chatting on the phone, checking social media, folding laundry, and making meals, etc., – these activities don’t count as homeschooling time. Likewise, students’ taking breaks, eating snacks, texting friends, etc., – these activities don’t count as homeschooling time either. If you’re consistently not finishing a day’s plans within a day, either make a different schedule/routine or take the ‘pains’ you need to for the day you desire to consistently happen.
#3 Habit: Don’t School All Day
Schooling all day steals the joy of homeschooling. High school students taking 7 1/2 credits can expect to homeschool 7 1/2 hours a day, four days a week or 6 hours a day, five days a week. An “all day” homeschool day might be from 6 AM to 6 PM. That’s 12 hours! The high school student homeschooling 7 1/2 hours a day, four days a week should still have 4 1/2 hours off daily, nights off, a day off each week, and the weekends off.
Children need to know the time set aside for homeschooling; they also need to know the time set aside for other things. Chores, jobs, personal interests, play dates, free time – children need time for these, and moms do as well. Knowing the time set aside for things other than homeschooling helps us plan ahead. It also helps us work diligently on our homeschooling during the time set aside for homeschooling.
I remember slowly homeschooling a little here, a little there throughout the day with my oldest son. Likewise, I remember excitedly adding in more reading, extending our science, broadening our discussions, researching more… I thought this was exciting at first! However, my son became less and less eager to learn. I also began to feel like we were ‘homeschooling all day’. One day my son had a markedly slower pace and a downcast look about him. When I asked him why, he told me, “When I finish something, you just keep adding more anyway, so I might as well just take my time. I’m going to homeschool all day anyway.”
Ouch! That day I stopped adding. I enjoyed teaching just what was in the guide, and both of us happily skipped off to enjoy other things when we were done.
Habit Builder Tip:
Try setting aside just the amount of time you need to homeschool, and don’t over-extend and over-supplement. Make a plan with 15, 20, 30, 45, and/or 60 minute increments (per the time needed for each thing). Then, be sure to set aside time in your plan for non-related homeschooling things. “Free Time” should be on your schedule somewhere, for you and for your children. Breaks, snack times, outdoor time, play times, chores – they too should be a part of your homeschool plan.
Starting at the same time, doing a day of school in a day, and making sure not to homeschool all day are three habits that have made my homeschool journey smooth and easy. They’ve reduced friction with my children, and they’ve given our family good habits we can apply to the rest of our lives. As Charlotte Mason said, “…habits don’t take care of themselves”. I’ve taken ‘pains’ to stick to these three habits, and our homeschool days have been happy because of them. I pray the same may be true for you!
In Christ,
Julie
