Middle of the school year burnout? It’s Time to Recharge!

The middle of the school year is here. It is a good time of year to get recharged as a homeschooling mom, for we can get worn out and start to lose our inspiration. I know that happened to me this month. I no sooner started school back up again then I just felt like I hit a brick wall. I took last week to try and recharge myself and make sure that the school plan I had was the best for our family.

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Here is what I did to recharge.

1. I went to my favorite homeschooling websites that inspire me. Some of my personal favorites are Heart of Dakota, Simply Charlotte Mason, and then reading through the Well Trained Mind Forum. I love curriculum, so just reading about it can even get me excited again. 🙂

2. I looked through the curriculum we were using and pinpointed exactly what was causing burnout. My oldest son was experiencing frustration with the exact same textbook that was frustrating me. It is very hard for me to stop a curriculum in the middle of using it, but after praying, talking with some other homeschooling moms and doing some research I decided to stop the textbook.

3. My husband and I visited our local Christian bookstore that sells homeschooling curriculum. Holding curriculum in your hand and being able to flip through the pages greatly helps decide if you are going to stick with it or move on to something new.

4. Read through some favorite homeschooling books –

A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola

Educating the Wholehearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson

Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit by Teri Maxwell

Fit to Burst: Abundance, Mayhem, and the Joys of Motherhood by Rachel Jankovic (I’m currently reading this one for the first time)

5. Listen to audio recordings of homeschooling speakers. This has uplifted me more times then I can recall. Several months ago I was greatly discouraged about the struggle of balancing business and homeschooling, and I listened to Crystal Paine and Jamerrill Stewart share how they balance both of those things and it helped me more then I can say.

After taking the weekend to do all of these things, I decided to keep going with my orginal plan of Heart of Dakota curriculum, except I’m adding more reading material for my oldest son to do on his own. It’s a long and confusing story…we have been Heart of Dakota this year but I’ve also had my boys doing Christian Light Publications textbooks for social studies and science. There are some days I just can’t get to everything and it was nice to have the textbooks for them to use on their own. I’ve not pulled completely away from them, but I did pull my 4th grader out of his social studies book. I find that my boys enjoy the books being read aloud from Heart of Dakota so much more then Christian Light, and I personally enjoy it much more also.

I’m slowly working on putting things in place to have more time for a full homeschool day without distractions. I’m getting some online help, for a few projects that I just can’t seem to have time for. I shared last year that my New Year’s Resolution was to spend less time online, and specifically on Facebook. At the start of the year I deleted my Facebook App off my phone. Recently I took it a step further and started using an online timer that will log me off after a certain amount of time, and totally blocks me from getting back on the rest of the day. I find that knowing that timer is ticking helps me work much more efficiently while I’m on Facebook, and I interact with the people I need to and then I’m off. I know other homeschooling mother’s struggle with screen time stealing precious time away, so I thought I’d mention what I’m doing in case you need a fresh idea. 🙂

If you are experiencing homeschool burnout, you might be excited to learn of a Homeschool Conference that will be taking place right in your very own home in just a few weeks! 

iHomeschool Studio will be having an awesome 4 day online webinar from February 11 through the 14th! You can listen to it live, or listen to the included MP3’s later!

Here is what the iHomeschool Studio has to say about the webinar:

“Sessions range from organizing and frugal homeschooling to personality and learning styles. We will offer help with intense kids, high school students, and lazy kids. Although we cover academics like science, music, and geography, we also delve into matters of the heart as we help you instill a love of Christian missions in your children and build positive character traits all while maintaining the spark in your marriage. There is something for everyone!

All of the workshops are delivered via GoToWebinar over the Internet, so all you need to participate is a computer with Internet access and speakers (or headphones).”

Tickets

Your ticket price of $25 gives you access to

• the 24 live sessions
• the MP3 audio recordings of all 24 sessions
• special discounts, door prizes, and giveaways from our speakers and sponsors

Listen to homeschooling experts like Jeannie Fulbright, Debra Bell, Heidi St. John, Jamerrill Stewart, Kendra Fletcher, Tyler Hogan, and many other ladies as they share advice and encouragement! Here is just a sampling of the classes that will be offered.

The Lazy Student: What’s a Mom to Do?

No matter how much time you allow, why is it that your student waits till the very last minute to tackle projects, reports, or other assignments? Is it procrastination . . . or just plain laziness? Either way, you can’t seem to figure out how to motivate this child! In this session, Kim helps you discover the similarities and differences between procrastination and laziness, and offers practical advice on helping dawdlers of all ages set—and meet—goals and deadlines. – Kim Kautzer

Organization for a Peaceful Home

Homeschooling, homemaking, and juggling all of life’s other events can be quite an overwhelming task. Come learn some practical ways to maintain a peaceful atmosphere in your home while accomplishing all that God has called you to. Paperless organization and apps will be widely discussed. – Kendra Fletcher

Loving Living Math

So many children (and parents) struggle with math during the school day. Whether you’re hoping to learn how to ease the whining, add some new lessons to the regular textbook schedule or overhaul your math curriculum, this workshop will inspire you. Learn how to add “real” math lessons that make sense to your child. What is living math? How will it help my child enjoy math again? How can I add it to my textbook curriculum without overwhelming my child? Why would I want to add living math to our schedule? What are some super ideas and resources for living math?  These questions and yours will be answered very practically. – Cindy Dyer

Loving Geography—Even If You Can’t Fold a Map!

Geography is one of the most under taught subjects, but in a world that is increasingly global-minded, where long distance is a thing of the past, it is perhaps one of the most crucial topics for us to understand. The good news is that the study of the earth—its structure and inhabitants—is not only fascinating, but also easy to integrate into your homeschool. In this workshop, you will find a vision for teaching geography, as well as creative, enjoyable ways to enhance your teaching in every subject. – Tyler Hogan (I’m probably looking forward to this one the most!).

You can purchase your ticket here, and get your cup of tea and plate of cookies ready! 🙂