It's Never All or Nothing with Homeschooling

I would like to see you living in better conditions . That's a quote from the Persian poet Hafiz and a great starting point for this episode . So welcome to the Art of Homeschooling podcast .

If you're in need of some strategies for how to face your homeschooling fears , stay tuned , because Because today I'm talking about the top antidote to homeschooling fears , and that's the mantra it's never all or nothing . I'm recording this episode as we're going into the holiday season , which , for a lot of us , seems to run from Halloween through New Year's .

It's a lot to juggle along with homeschooling lessons and then after the holidays , it's sometimes hard to get our momentum back . I'm sharing this episode with you to help you prepare yourself , wherever you are in the homeschooling year , so that you can feel ready , prepared and enthused for lessons , no matter what

else is going on . I get a lot of emails from homeschooling parents before and after the holidays saying things like they aren't sure what to do or they're overwhelmed with everything that's going on . How are they going to celebrate and do lessons at the same time ?

When the fears rear their ugly heads , we start to feel unsure , a lack of enthusiasm , discouraged and even sometimes a sense of panic . Perhaps you can relate . One year I remember spending the entire month of January berating myself for all that I was not doing with my kiddos .

I wasn't doing the block I had planned to do back in the summer because I didn't feel prepared , so I just wasn't doing much of anything at all . By February I felt like a total failure as a homeschooler and was sure that my two boys would be ruined for life and it was all my fault . They'd be better off in school .

So I scheduled an appointment to go visit our neighborhood elementary school . When I arrived I sat in a combined classroom I think it was a first and

second grade and they were all watching an educational film about the harvest and food production in other countries .

I don't remember much about the film and I doubt that the kids did either , because one of the teachers kept yelling at one of the boys for being disruptive , making the disruption even more prominent , being disruptive , making the disruption even more prominent .

Then I took a tour of the building and peeked in on an art class using air quotes there , in which the children were given coloring sheets and crayons to color within the lines . I learned that they had this art class once a week for 30 minutes . As I was leaving , the children were heading out for a short recess of 10 minutes .

Yes , they got 10 minutes of recess in the morning and 20 minutes after lunch . As I walked home , I remember thinking okay , so if we watch one film without interruption , color more than one coloring sheet a week and go outside for 30 minutes or more a day , I'll be doing better than the public school . I can do that . I thought . Homeschooling fears .

I know we all want more than just to do a little bit better than the public schools . We want this beautiful , idyllic , artistic , waldorf-inspired method to come alive in our homes . We also want to be the ideal teacher and parent , while having everything unfold with ease and calm . And when it doesn't , we feel scared .

We feel burdened by this heavy sense of letting everyone down , including ourselves . And then the fear sets in . What , if I'm not cut out for this ? Was choosing to homeschool a big mistake . Maybe I'll never be able to get my children to make a main lesson book or do circle time or participate willingly in anything I plan .

Just stop , I say Stop going down that fear tunnel and entertain this thought instead . It doesn't have to be all or nothing . If you don't feel quite ready with your own block lesson plans , your energy is low or you haven't prepared to teach from a curriculum you're working with , then find a less intimidating way to move forward .

Find a way any small way to move a few steps forward rather than staying frozen in your fear . You might try planning a mini block . Mini blocks can be just one week or maybe two . Start by choosing a topic that feels doable to you and that you think will spark interest in your kiddos .

Maybe cat stories , trains , knights and castles , famous inventions , an imaginary trip to the seashore or the arctic , spiders or hibernation . Collect a handful of books from your local public library

. Here's a little hint Use your library's online catalog to search for books from home , place a request for the books and when your pile of books is ready , you head to the library . They'll let you know and you can just pop in and pick them up . It's like an early birthday present .

Then you can plan to read aloud one story or chapter of a longer book each day . Follow your reading time with a page of math practice , handwriting practice , drawing a picture from the stories , modeling with clay or playing a game . Observe your children , what they're

inspired by and where their confidence lies , and also look for what's challenging them and what their learning needs might be . Right now , the goal is just to provide a little bit of structure and time to connect with your kiddos so you can gain some momentum and confidence to build your lessons .

Besides mini blocks , you might also like to try structuring a week or so of lessons around one book . Perhaps choose the Tiptoes Lightly storybooks , for example . These sweet little books follow the seasons and are perfect for young children .

For older children , our book hearth guides might give you just the boost you need to let go of fear and show up every day for your kiddos . Bookhearth guides offer you a flexible plan with lots of learning experience ideas and save you time as you explore beautiful stories . You can check out our shop at shopartofhomeschoolingcom to learn more .

Each BookHearth guide gives you creative teaching ideas for a two to five week block based on one wonderful book . As of this recording , we have guides for six different books , like the Heartwood Hotel , echo Mountain and the Witch of Blackbird Pond , so go have a look if that interests you .

And here are just a few more ideas to show you that there are so many possibilities . The trick is to pick one that sounds fun and doable to you . Here's some ideas for you Plan a festival or celebration , like a lantern festival or winter solstice , and build in time each week to prepare for the festival . Build a week of lessons around a trip to a museum .

Create a puppet show from a story you're reading . Set up a tent in your backyard or even your living room and read nature stories in the tent every day . Use themes from your stories to paint a series of paintings this week . You get the idea .

The most important thing is to show up and get your energy and creativity flowing again , because as long as we can figure out how to face our homeschooling fears , we'll keep the learning alive . Believe me , you're not the only one dragging this fall as I'm recording this episode . There is so much going on in the world , from natural disasters

to contentious elections , so just know that you're not alone and your feelings are perfectly normal . Here's an important truth If you make peace with your fear , you take away its power . One of my favorite mantras is feel the fear and do it anyway . Or in the words of the late Carrie Fisher stay afraid , but do it anyway .

Want to know the psychology behind negative feelings that build up ? I'll add a link in the show notes to an interesting article in Psychology Today magazine why we Can't Just Get Rid of Anxiety and Distress . This article describes how our brains are wired for survival , not happiness , and the solution is to make peace with our fears .

I'll leave you with one of my favorite poems . You might want to print out a copy and put it in your planner so that you can read it often . I had this in my planner for years and I read it like every single day . This can help you face your homeschooling fears and anxiety and remind you that it's never all or nothing .

This poem is where the quote at the beginning of the episode comes from . Fear is the cheapest room in the house . I would like to see you living in better conditions , for your mother and my mother were friends . I

know the innkeeper in this part of the universe . Get some rest tonight , come to my verse again . Tomorrow We'll go speak to the friend together . I should not make any promises right now , but I know if you pray somewhere in this world , something good will happen . Hafiz , here's what I want you to know right now .

Take a deep breath and ask yourself this question How's it going at your house ? If you want encouragement and guidance on your homeschooling journey to help you get back to lively lessons and face your homeschooling fears , here are a few ways I can help you .

The first is to come join the Inspired at Home community , where we have group coaching calls every month with heart-centered homeschoolers just like you 90 minutes for reflection , questions , conversation , planning and connection .

We have over 35 masterclasses on homeschooling , the grades , core subjects , setting up your space and taking care of yourself , learning that's bite-sized , and a warm and welcoming community where you can ask questions . And a warm and welcoming community where you can ask questions , share ideas and get the support and encouragement you need .

The second way is to schedule a one-on-one mentor session with me . I can help you break free from those fears and make a plan to design a simple , inspiring and doable homeschool for your family . Check out the show notes to links to those resources at artofhomeschoolingcom . Slash episode 206 . And please remember this

fear is the cheapest room in the house and I would like to see you living in better conditions . Thanks for joining me today and I'll see you next time . That's all for today , my friend , but here's what I want you to remember Rather than perfection , let's focus on connection .

Thanks so much for listening and I'll see you on the next episode of the Art of Homeschooling podcast .