Here’s the reality.

Unless you’ve been homeschooling for a while, your children probably don’t see you as a classroom teacher. You occupy and operate in a lot of different roles in your life and leadership, but it may be the case that when your kids think of their teacher, they don’t think of you.

They may be used to a completely different person with a different personality, a different set of physical characteristics, a different tone and volume of voice…from the standpoint of learning at home, everything about you is different.

The first week we started homeschool in the Weidemann household, Rooney got up during her first English Language Arts lesson and yelled, “You’re not doing the letters like Ms. Jazzy does it!” and scampered off to her bedroom. Granted, she hadn’t seen her preschool teacher in months, but she was still set off by the fact that what she knew and what felt normal with her former teacher was not happening at our kitchen table. 🙂

Your kids might be used to a different human being managing their classroom and academic day and all of its ins and outs. Yes. So, the question becomes, “How can you adapt your kids to learning from you and take on the role of educator in your home? What does that actually look like?”

No matter if your child is back at their normal school space this fall or you’ve scrapped that and decided to do school at home this year, your kids will be learning in a whole new way. And if they’re going to be successful, they need your help to adapt. Here are my four tips for helping your kids do just that. When you use all four of these strategies together, that’s the secret to leading at home with confidence, success, and sanity.

1. Take it slow. Think tortoise, not hare. In general, life in this current season has shifted more gears and at a much more rapid pace than we’ve all been prepared to handle, and that’s fine. Change is part of life, and it happens often. The key is teaching children to mitigate change by managing themselves. Flexibility, like it or not, is the new normal. If you’re a go-gettery mom (like I am),  that’s a tough one to swallow, so keep reading.

In the spirit of practical thinking, encourage your family to settle into a slower pace. Your family’s pace will dictate its peace, and you get to set the atmosphere inside your home. They will thank you in the long run when you use this time to help everyone set into a new way of doing things.

2. Encourage your child to see every day as a fresh opportunity. Just because it’s different doesn’t mean it’s a disappointment. Sometimes, what actually happens is better than what we expected!

Each day moves you to new possibilities, greater health and healing, and a stronger sense of togetherness as a family. Be thankful together for these wonderful opportunities. Breakfast is our family’s moment for these types of daily check ins. Can we approach today in a fresh way?

3. Set expectations, but be flexible. I can guarantee that leading your kids in this season is not going to look the way you first imagined it. Each day brings with it a totally new set of challenges, for you and for your learners.

Set and agree together on clear expectations and assess often the parameters you’ve set so that you can identify what’s working and change what’s not. Trust me, this is the key to maintaining your peace, sanity, and the willingness of all parties to continue forward.

4. Allow your children to help drive the change. Give them as much ownership as possible. Creating buy-in is the name of the game. Invite your kids to list the things that are most important to them to have as a part of their school experience this year.

If school at home is what you’re doing, maybe they want to be allowed to sleep as late as they need to each day. If they’re back in the traditional classroom, maybe it’s allowing them to study outside instead of at your kitchen table. Your kids will have good ideas about how to customize the learning experience that will suit them best, so invite their feedback and ideas and create it together! Let them help in differentiating this new academic year from their previous experiences.

For those of you who know school is going to look totally different for your family this year and need help leading your children (and yourself) in this season, you’ll want to check this out! I will be hosting a brand new mentorship series, The Heroic Homeschooler, starting August 20. I’m personally going to walk you through how to set up and execute school at home with total confidence and success. I’m covering everything you need to know to totally rock this year with your kids!

If you’ve ever…

•  Wondered how to manage life and family dynamics while keeping your kids on track
• Struggled to figure out how to meet your child’s individual learning needs (or what to focus on!)
• Been stumped, confused, or exhausted as you try to “do it all”
• Wanted to teach your kids without sacrificing your relationship with them

… then this mentorship is perfect for you. 

I would love to spend time with you. Let me put wind in your sails each week as you and your family set out to do this with confidence and success. Are you in and ready to do this with me?

To make sure you don’t miss out on any of the details be sure to register by clicking the link below>>

http://www.truthbecomesher.com/homeschool-1

In your corner,
Erin