You want to homeschool and keep it simple. You need to know HOW to homeschool.
We are on the last day of the 5 Days series: Homeschooling for the Busy Family!
and Keeping it Simple is possible!
You all have been in the teacher store or to a homeschool convention and you know how much is available to you.
A simple google search about homeschooling is terrifyingly complicated.
There is just SO MUCH information out there.
So many things to sort through when you want to know how to homeschool in simple ways.
How can it be simple?
Keeping our homeschool simple was some of the BEST advice I received from my homeschooling mentors.
Do not go crazy buying curriculum, materials, supplies, books, furniture, posters, letters, manipulatives or any other homeschooling thing.
Why?
It is overwhelming!
When all of that incredibly fun stuff is sitting around your school space, you feel like you should be doing all of it every day. or at least every school year.
I’m sorry… but it just isn’t possible. especially for the busy family.
I’ve learned to tell myself no when I see that new book or art supply of office tool or school decoration.
I’ve learned to school well within the simple space we have and not worry about all the things we don’t have or own.
Library books work just as well as owning them and having them sit on a shelf in your school room.
Your kids will learn their vowels without a huge poster staring at you in your school room.
That awesome looking manipulatives set might not fit into your busy schedule… and Fruit Loops work really well for counting. and a snack.
Don’t go overboard and say, “Oh, we could use this!” or “That might fit with that lesson!” or “Wouldn’t this work well with such and such a holiday?”
Nope. It will just be something extra sitting around.
Keeping it simple is ok. Using things that you already own for learning is ok. Not having every homeschooling gismo is ok.
When you are busy, having exactly what you need at your fingertips is vital.
I don’t want to search through all the things I COULD be using. I just want to see what I NEED to be using.
Simply stick to what your specific curriculum tells you that you will need for that specific year.
A SIMPLE List of Things You Need for Homeschooling:
1. Books/Curriculum
2. Basic Schedule
3. Basic Art Supplies: Crayons, Glue, Colored Pencils, Construction Paper, Stickers…
4. Basic School Supplies: Map, Notebooks, Pencils, Ruler, Page Protectors, Binders…
5. Basic Office Supplies: Stapler, Whole Punch, Scissors, Tape…
6. Library Card
7. Basic Learning Games: Alphabet Bingo…
8. Any other items that your curriculum specifically calls for that year
Check out our homeschooling MUST-HAVES list.
Keeping things simple will help you stay organized, stay on top of where you are in your schooling, keep your school space clean and keep you from feeling guilty by seeing all of those things you could be using but aren’t. It will also help you and your kids stay on task by cutting out distractions.
I hope this series has helped you see how to homeschool. You can see that it is possible to homeschool while being a busy family.
These are tips and tricks and methods that I use to keep our home peaceful and my girls learning daily.
You can see the other days here:
Day 1: Starting early in the year
Day 2: Making the most of every day
Day 3: Making the most of every outing
Day 4: Homeschooling on the go…
When you are busy, it is easy to feel overwhelmed.
I hope these posts have given you practical tools to keep yourself calm and productive during your homeschooling journey!
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Loved this article! I like to keep my homeschool simple as well. I am glad there are others because homeschool mom guilt sets in sometimes and I start to think I need all that stuff to be a good homeschooler. Thanks for the encouragment!
YES! no guilt!! 🙂
Amen sister! I totally agree, unfortunately I learned this after trying to go all out. I was so excited when I first started homeschooling that I overdid it!
It is amazing what we can see looking back, yes? 🙂 I’m so glad homeschooling can be done simply and done well at the same time!
Thank you so very much for this series. I just found them, through Pinterest, and read ALL 5. I especially loved this one, because I have been feeling guilty all day all because when I straightened our homeschool cabinet I saw all the many “things” we don’t have time to use. Thanks for reminding me that keeping it simple is ok!