Creating new rhythms to our days can feel like swimming against the stream. Often because we are so excited to "fit" it all in we completely overhaul our days and it feels like we are stepping into someone else's life.
Starting slow isn't just beneficial to our kids in helping them adjust, it's beneficial to us, as the ones implementing the new habits.
Here are some great approaches:
ROUTINE: Sometimes you just need a place to start. and Freely Homeschool Planner makes it easy to prioritize 2-3 things each day as a focus. The routine tracker built into "My Week" helps with the gentle reminder to add something. This is perfect if you're the type of home educator that finds it hard to focus and keep track of goals, interests, and commitments for each child.
FOOD: Need I say more? I've lost count of the number of times hunger has messed with our homeschool days. If your family is like mine, you are well aware of second breakfasts! Do yourself a favour and prepare food in advance! Want to make it even easier? Prepare a platter that everyone can share.
TIMING: Timing is everything in our house. I have one late sleeper and one super early riser. I make the most of the early hours and start my one-on-one time with coffee in hand and soak up that quality time with my early riser. When my late sleeper wakes, I get to spend one-on-one time with them while the other child's cup is already full and happily plays alone (most of the time!) Take a step back and look at the span of your day. Move things around and take a different approach!
ORGANISE: Implementing a new routine can be exciting, change is refreshing! But if you aren't organized and not familiar with the new curriculum, and didn't pre-purchase the science experiment supplies, it's going to feel like a false start. When I prepare a new curriculum I enter and upload it straight into Freely and I go ahead and add anything that I need for lessons to my "to purchase" list so I know when I'm at the shops next I can go ahead and pull it up on my phone and know exactly what I need to buy!
BONUS TIP: Plan Fun! Involve the family in planning adventures, sit down with them look at some local websites for ideas and/or use our new FREE Seasonal Bucketlist printable available in our January Homeschool Support Bundle.
If you found this information helpful, you might like to check out our January Homeschool Support Bundle "Start Slow." It's packed full of helpful homeschooling resources, free printables, book reviews, and curriculum discount codes! Grab your copy here.