Are You Overschooling?
So you are ready to stop overschooling?
That is great because really it is doing no one in your family any favors to continue on the way you are going. You are going to end up nagging, fighting, and quitting. None of those are ideal situations.
So, let’s get to this…
How to STOP Overschooling:
1. Take a break!
Seriously! Stop what you are doing right now, all of it, and take a break. I may dare say that you should even take a full week off. Just trust me. When you stop and take a few steps away you can begin to put things into perspective and really develop a good plan that doesn’t involve so much of everything.
2. Consult your children
Chances are your children hold the key to this entire problem right in their tiny little hands! Take a few minutes to consult with them to find out what parts of the school day they love (the end of it is not a suitable answer). Ask them what their favorite part of the school day is. You may be shocked to find out that they love notebooking or history! When you find out what they do and do not enjoy about schooling you will be ready for the next tip…
3. Cut-It-Out!
Yep, you heard me! Cut things out of your day. I know, I know, public school spends 8 hours a day doing school work. They work on the three R’s plus science, history, and electives daily. Guess what!!! You aren’t public schooling, and that my friend should set you free!!! You are homeschooling. And can I let you in on a little secret, if you were to witness a public school day I am betting that they didn’t get done half of what you would in a regular, more laid back day.
4. Breathe
Take some time to just breathe during the day. Meditate on some Bible verses, write in a journal, or go for a walk. Just take a bit of time each day to get back to center.
The truth is, while you should be doing English, math, writing, and reading daily, the other stuff can be taught as you go and on a much lighter schedule. When you teach at your child’s pace in a more relaxed environement your children will be far more receptive to what they are learning. That means they will absorb more, which means they will learn more! WIN!
So, stop it. Stop overschooling, stop comparing, stop trying to cram it all in! You will get there.
What cues signal you that you are overschooling?
When you buy through links on my site, I may earn an affiliate commission. My goal is to keep this site 100% reader-supported and free of ads or sponsorships. Your purchases help me make this possible. Thank you! Read more here.
HAHAH elective. here in NY its all you listed and music gym art. geo. they have to be done at 6 yrs and older. got to get out of this state!!!!! for a lot of reasons
My child has ADHD and it feels like we’re racing to finish school everyday because what should take ten minutes takes her hours of staring into space. I don’t know that we’re over-schooling, but we’re definitely taking some steps to adjust HOW we’re schooling. Working on behavior modification strategies is right now our biggest focus each day, with the rest of school being part of teaching character and coping skills.
What a great thing it is to homeschool our children and adapt our approach to their needs. Praying that you find a good groove for you and your child!
Be blessed,
Steph
I am homeshooling two of my kiddos. One is in fourth grade and our other is in kindergarten. We are so overwhelmed. My 9 year old does abeka video homeschool. My kindergartener does regular abeka, which his is fine. It’s the fourth grader that I’m having a hard time with. He spends ALL day working and i hate it, but i don’t know how else to do it. We do math, language, spelling, writing, history, science, reading, and occasionally art. How can i cut down and not have to do summer school?