Happy 2017!!
For many homeschooling families the new year welcomes the SECOND leg or SECOND half of their schooling year.
Sometimes along with that SECOND HALF comes the ‘itis’.
Many of you know what that means. Ha!
I think many of those of my race and culture will know exactly what that word means.
You aren’t familiar with ‘itis?‘
Well ‘itis’ can be described as ‘slowing down’, ‘getting tired’, experiencing the lack of energy, lack of pep, minimal gusto.
Does that describe you?
You are halfwalf through the year but wishing the year was ending and ready to be done. For summer break.
I think taking that little break during the holiday season steals just a little of our ‘mojo’ to keep moving forward.
Hey…..BUT YOU CAN’T STOP!
YOU CAN’T SLOW DOWN.
YOU MUST KEEP YOUR VISION CLEAR!!
Besides the ‘itis’ setting in, there are the distractions of life.
Friends, family, outside responsibilities, earning a 2nd income for the home, etc. can play a BIG part in the stealing of our focus to finish and get done what needs to be done for our homeschooling children.
For me personally I oversee quite a few projects.
President of a Women’s Empowerment Toastmasters Club, Owner/Director of an Option 3 Accountability Association in SC, Board member on our state Homeschool Association – SCHEA, Direct Marketer with Young Living Essential Oils company, partner with my husband in his mobile coffee cafe – Java Up, Director/Teacher at my homeschool Academy, blog writer for several blogs, worship leader at my church.
This holiday break allowed me to feed my focus to a lot of those things with deep blissful energy.
Late nights.
Sleep-in mornings.
Meeting people.
Planning.
Holiday parties and gatherings.
Having fun with the kids going here and there.
But now I have to figure out how to get things back in balance regarding homeschooling.
Starve those distractions of my life and feed the focus necessary to homeschool my children.
After all, that’s foremost important on the list I gave you above.
But…… the list I gave you above is so fun! I ADORE planning, dreaming and strategizing.
So what to do?
Schedule!!!!
Get a schedule!
Organize your time so the list of things you are involved in or have been starving focus on during this break will have its place and have its specific time in your day.
Have a clear schedule of when you will focus on homeschoolingschool. (It should NOT take your entire day.)
When you are homeschooling do not TRY to multitask with these other things on your list.
That will not go well.
Here’s the application…….
Before the full switch over to homeschooling again…..give yourself a day break.
Yes….a day of nothingness. A BREAK!
This means not doing any of those things on the list that you’ve given your full attention to during this holiday break.
This ‘break’ day (one or two is suggested) will allow you to shift gears in your mind, your energies and in your focus.
Make sure your schedule is planned and in place before you have the day of nothingness.
I’m in the thick of this planning too.
My crew begins back homeschooling on Monday, Jan. 9, 2017. My schedule planning will happen Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. I’ll actually do one scheduled project on Saturday evening. Majority of Saturday and all of Sunday is my day of total nothingness.
Saturday I’ll read some homeschooling encouragement to get my mindshift happening. Looking over my ‘WHY’ I decided to homeschool my kiddoes.
I’ll be doing those things that will uplift my energy, mind and spirit to focus fully to homeschooling.
These things for me will ‘reset’ my thinking.
Then…..
Monday we will jump into the schedule that I put in place.
Remember from my prior blog post on Balance – Myth: Homeschooling and Balanced Life. ?
It is impossible to keep all things in balance. It’s not going to happen.
A few things will have to be out of balance, giving you large amounts of time to feed your focus and attention of the important thing on hand.
Yet starve the distractions temporarily in order to be successful and focused on those things at hand.
Realize this. Embrace this. Operate in this. Thrive in this.
So….if you’ve not started your homeschooling semester just yet. Then follow these suggestions before you get started.
If you have already started back homeschooling ….. then stop, drop and roll over. Hahaha!!! Just kidding
Start afresh and make sure you have your life’s schedule in place, taken the mental break needed, renewed your commitment of ‘Why?” you are homeschooling and have made the mental shift.
Then you are ready to dive in to complete the final leg of your homeschooling year.
You’ll be glad you did. 🙂
(Share this blog post with a fellow homeschooler. It may just be the message they need to hear.)
Serving You and Yours,
Angela Jordan Perry,
UCHU owner/director/administrator
Angela Jordan Perry, is a wife of 24 years, homeschooling Mom of eight children, entrepreneur, mad’am farmer, Toastmaster and follower of Christ. Angela and her family makes their home in Campobello, SC.