“Library Day!!”
When I make the above statement my kids scurry around the house to find their library cards, backpacks and rolling suitcases; then place them by the front door.
They will grab a snack…usually apples and bottles of water, quickly dress and remind me to make sure I have change for the parking meter!
They are on it…no dilly dally!
They LOVE going to the library!
We have been so busy lately that I put our trips to the library on the back burner. We went from going every 2 or 3 weeks to going every 2 or 3 months!
We lost our Homeschool Groove!
Library Day Keeps Us in Our Home School Groove!
I didn’t even realize I had fallen out of our routine!
Which means I was far too distracted by our busyness than by what our true schedule should be…Ooops!
Have you ever been so distracted and caught up in life that you put off important things?
How To Stay in Your Groove:
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Make a list of special things each of your kids like to do. (lego, art, games, outdoor play, etc.)
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Make a list of special things you like to do.
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Find some common ground between all of your lists.
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Where do you like to go? Sometimes you just need to get out of the house. (We love our Library time as well as going on Nature Hikes)
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Try to stay on track with the little things. i.e. chores,
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Music can help motivate us, find some tunes and let the music move you.
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Plan a family adventure.
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Keep creativity at the forefront of what you do each day. (Don’t forget we can be creative in many different ways; it isn’t just art or music.)
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Check in with your kids and your spouse as much as you can. Maybe a weekly meeting is a good idea. Even young children can contribute…they know what made them smile and what fun things they learned. Older kids can also start to take responsibility for how their days go and contribute their thoughts.
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Always keep your WHY a part of your daily check and balance, and don’t be worried if your Why changes.
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Have a schedule of some sort. I find as my kids get older the more detailed my schedule needs to be. This also offers them a bit of security and independence, since they know what is expected, they can learn to carry on to the next task as you do your chores or help your other kids.
I knew we were losing our groove when none of us were all that excited to do anything. Asking the kids to do Math was echoed with moans and groans. My kids like Math…they are really good at Math!
Time for ACTION
When you start to hear the moans and groans, when our kids (or even ourselves) start to “self-block” with negative talk it isn’t time to drill the Math harder; it’s time to close the books and take action!
Pull out your list of what you all enjoy doing and get after it!
We got back to the Library this week! I set aside the whole day just for that and 1 chore each. When we got home the only thing they had to do was just enjoy looking through their books.
Today I had a small schedule of Math, French, and Spelling; 1 chore each and time with me, where I promised them I would look through library books with them.
You know what?
They did it! All of it!
No fighting
No tears
No negative self-talk.
We all lose our groove every once in a while, I don’t think it is something we can avoid…but we can decide on the action we will take to get back into our groove again.
