S H O R T S H O R T S •
FORMULATE A PLAN
Great home-school parents recognize that while home school
can be characterized by lots of flexibility, it still requires a plan for
success. Flexibility should never be confused with an absence of
schedule, organization and consistency. Your child will still need this,
and you will too.
Create a plan that considers the unique
advantages and needs of your family
and then monitor how your plan is going.
Spoiler alert: Things won’t always go as
planned. For this reason, great home-school
parents also understand that plans should be
flexible and written in pencil. Embrace a habit of
having grace with your plan, your child and yourself.
D
ITCH SELF-DOUBT
If this is your first year, you will likely more than once doubt your
ability to deliver the best for your child. By confronting the reality
that challenging moments will come, you’ll be more ready to deal
with those days. Stand firm in the fact that you can do this and
surround yourself with people who declare those words over you
and your school.
ENGINEER YOUR LEARNING SPACE
Great home-school parents design a learn-ing
environment that works well for their
child. Indoors, outdoors, sitting at a desk
or sitting on the floor — there is no wrong
answer when it comes to creating your
school space. If you have multiple children,
this may require a combination of spaces.
Feedback from your child can be
helpful. Fidget toys, comfortable seating,
snacks, soft music, essential oils and so
many more customizable options can all
be a part of the benefit and freedom of
this education model. Build a perfect
space that is unique to your family.
PRACTICE LOTS OF PRAISE
Like any other area of parenting, home schooling can really test
your patience at times. Great home-school parents realize it can be
easy to get caught up in what is not going well. As a result, they
make it a habit to be generous with praise.
Another person that needs generous and regular praise is you.
Go ahead and be proud of yourself every day — even if things
didn’t go as you expected. You have undertaken an amazing
assignment. Celebrate that and don’t forget regular self-care. Your
productiveness and level of satisfaction relies on a habit of praise.
EMBRACE
RESOURCEFULNESS
Contrary to what some
believe, you do not have to
spend hundreds of dol-lars
on home educa-tion.
We are living
in the age of information.
Great home-school parents know
there is no shortage of material and so
much of it is free.
The library is a wonderful place to supplement, or
even build, a curriculum for history, geography and science.
Holders of a home-school certificate might qualify for an educator
card that allows them to keep books signed out longer.
The internet and YouTube are also rich with content and videos.
Of course, be careful to plan and prescreen all content first as not
all of it is child-friendly or designed for optimal learning.
FIND COMMUNITY WITH OTHER
HOME-SCHOOLERS
Great home-school parents recognize that home education
requires outside influence and social opportunities — for the stu-dent
and the parent. Your school will be more successful when you
surround yourself and your children with other parents who care
about your family.
Make every effort possible to find connection. Research orga-nized
cooperative groups and decide if one works for you. If not,
simply make it a habit to gather with other home-school families
that share your style. The importance of togetherness should not
be underestimated.
Home education can be a beautiful opportunity that will forever
change you and your child. You may find yourself on a journey you
never expected. You may home-school your child for one year, or
this may be the beginning of some-thing
much longer. Either way,
focus on developing habits
that will help your
home school
be its very
best.
15 www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com
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