Last year I took preschool-at-home for a test drive. I didn’t do it full-time and all academics we did were gentle and laid back. This much I got right. Where I went wrong was overbooking our schedule.
When I set off to plan our year the first thing I considered was all of the opportunities that were before me: library story time, music class, play dates, and performances at the local theater, etc.
All of these activities were SO FUN and I didn’t want Josiah to miss out on anything.
But in the midst of driving here and there, attending this and that, we were missing something.
And I had NO IDEA until summer came and all the activities ceased.
What was missing?
Time at home. Time to bless our neighbors (and for them to bless us). Time to enjoy nature. Time for Josiah to explore and play without interruption or structure.
The crazy thing is, I had planned for all these things! I even typed out a daily rhythm that included time outdoors and hours of unstructured playtime.
But when the school year started, we hit the ground running and our picture-perfect “daily rhythm” (ha!) was thrown out all but for one day a week.
How did this happen?
I had seen the homeschool mission statements, the visioning templates, and had heard the spill on guiding your homeschool based on your principals.
But I ignored them.
I’m not sure why. Maybe because I thought, “Well, he’s just three. When we homeschool ‘for real’ I’ll do that.” Or maybe I was just too excited to get started to take the time and effort to do them.
The Result?
Our life was guided by fun.
Now there is certainly nothing wrong with fun, but it has no place being the guiding principal behind our lives.
I am tempted to say my decisions were also guided by fear. One of our days away from home was spent in a playgroup with Josiah’s peers because I was afraid he wasn’t getting as much peer interaction as other kids his age.
I was also afraid of missed opportunities.
The Realization
One day this spring the kids and I went for a walk down our road to explore some critters under a log. We were bringing back some worms for our ducks when we encountered an elderly man on the road. We got into some friendly chatter and he invited Josiah to come look for worms in his garden. He went to his shed to retrieve a shovel and the two of them went digging for worms. From that interaction we learned his name and that his wife had a stroke and has to have ’round the clock care. A few days later Josiah was coloring a picture and said, “This is for Larry. Can we go on another walk so I can give it to him?”
This experience opened my eyes to what kind of opportunities we were really were missing out on when we were filling our time with fun, albeit educational outings.
Larry validated Josiah that day. He made him feel valued, and honored. And you know what? Josiah did the same for Larry.
THIS is the kind of opportunities I don’t want Josiah to miss out on.
There’s just something about filling your time with scheduled, structured activities that doesn’t yield the same affirmation and connection that slowing down in life does.
The Conclusion
One recent evening all of this hit me right as I was on the cusp of committing to another year of classes, playgroups, and time commitments. I scrambled to pull out a wide-ruled sheet of paper and began scrawling down my thoughts.
You know what I wrote? My values. My vision. My goals for Josiah.
What I should have written a year earlier.
Planning for a Year of Homeschooling
If you are planning your year of homeschooling, (and guess what mama, you ARE homeschooling “for real” even with a three-year-old, even with an infant for that matter!) write out your values, your vision, your goals. You don’t need a fancy guide or outline, although they are nice.
Don’t make the same mistake I did. Be purposeful about guiding your life based on what you value. And when the year is behind you, may you look back on all the opportunities God laid before you because you protected that precious space that we are so tempted to fill.
Are you interested in what I wrote on that scrap sheet of paper? The one that is changing the way we do school life (Is there even a difference between the two??) Read about our vision for homeschooling here.
What are your thoughts? Do you agree? Have you had a similar experience? I’d love for you to share in the comments.