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It is that time of year again. All the kids are getting ready to go back to school. Even the homeschool families are getting ready to start new lessons, or pick back up after a short break. Everyone is excited to be getting back into a routine again, or so it seems.
But along with the new school year, comes some fears. Maybe you are a new homeschool mom and this is your first year, or a veteran mom who has been doing this for many years. Today as we start our Annual Not Back to School Blog Hop, I want to share a few bits of advice and encouragement with you!
Don’t Compare
Don’t compare yourself, your kids, your home, or your homeschool to anyone else’s. Every kid, every mom, and every home is different. That means that your homeschool will not look like the next person. Even if you follow the same lesson plans as the next person, the learning will not be the same. You will find what works for you and your kids. That is all that matters in the end!
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Don’t Overschedule
You may find a whole bunch of deals, back to school sales. You will have new found ambition at the beginning of the year, but don’t over do it! You will find yourself and your kids burning out if you try to do it all. No one can. Slow down. Take the time to fully enjoy what you are doing. Allow your kids to dig deeper into what they are learning. Give them the time to go off on squirrel trails when they find something they want to learn more about without a to-do list that never allows time.
Enjoy the Moment
Step back, take a look at your kids. See how they are having fun? See how they are learning, even if they are playing? You can do it. You don’t have to be perfect, your kids are not looking for you to be perfect. They just want you to be you. They want to be loved by you. You can do a lot of learning from reading a picture book, playing outside, and just sitting down and talking with your kids. Take this time and enjoy what you are doing!
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Pray
While all these are great reminders, the most important one of all is to pray. Pray for God to guide your homeschool. Pray for the guidance of raising your children. Pray being watchful and thankful throughout this journey you are on.
—oOo—
Amanda Hopkins is a member of the Homeschool Review Crew Leadership and is married to Chad and mom to four. When she isn’t buried under the snow of Minnesota, she loves to be outside watching the kids learn while they play. You can find her at Hopkins Homeschool.
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Welcome to day one of the Not Back to School Blog Hop for 2019. This year we have 30 home educating Mom’s writing daily encouragement to equip you for the year ahead. Each day we will introduce you to a few of our team and the topics they will be writing about and at the bottom of each post is a linky where all of our bloggers will be sharing their posts with you
Abby @ Making Room 4 One More – Time Management for Homeschool Moms
Amanda @ Hopkins Homeschool – 5 Days of Homeschool Questions
Amy @ the WRITE Balance – Year-Round Schooling
Annette @ A Net in Time – Homeschooling.
Betty @ Lets Get Real – Homeschooling High School
Cassandra @ My Blessed Mess – A Week of Eclectic Homeschooling
We invite you to grab a cuppa and share in the encouragement as you visit our bloggers who are shareing their hearts with you today in the Linky below.
I love this blog hop! I am mommy to a kindergartener and a preschooler this year. Though I see homeschooling in our future, I couldn’t bring myself to keep them out of school this year. My son absolutely loved preschool last year and is so looking forward to kindergarten. It’s mommy who’s terrified. Thanks for sharing!
You are welcome. We hope you have found encouragement and practical tools to help with your journey ahead.