A holiday break is crucial to homeschool success. This may surprise you, but it is true! I encourage you to take a holiday break from homeschooling, for your sanity, and the kids!
How is your school year going? Are you on task? A little behind? Or ahead of schedule? If you are behind, or not sure where you are then you may be contemplating taking a short Holiday break, or not taking one at all.
In reality though, a holiday break is crucial to homeschool success. This may surprise you, but it is true! I encourage you to take a holiday break from homeschooling, for your sanity, and the kids!
Why Take a Holiday Break?
Holiday breaks give you much needed time to break away from school and just be a family. Not a student, teacher, or principal.
Holiday breaks give your kids time to refresh, regroup, and play!
Holiday breaks give you time to catch up on things that may otherwise go untended to…. (like housework!).
Holiday breaks give you time to focus on the meaning of the holiday you are celebrating.
Holiday breaks give you time to visit with family and loved ones.
Holiday breaks allow you time to catch up on the kid’s portfolios that you may have been neglecting…
Holiday breaks allow you to assess what is working, and what is not in your homeschool.
Holiday breaks are a natural way to separate the year into semesters.
What are Holiday Breaks Not?
Holiday breaks are NOT the time to drill your kids on what they have learned this year.
Holiday breaks are not the time to assign book reports on what they learned over Christmas break…
Holiday breaks are not the time to assign documentaries.
Holiday breaks are not the time to drill how students in other cultures celebrate Christmas!
Holiday breaks are a time to sit, refresh, and enjoy your time together as a family. There is no greater time to relax than over the holidays. And, realistically, the holiday season is busy enough without trying to fit in school.
So, take a holiday break and go shopping during school hours. Many families take off from Thanksgiving until the first of the year and just focus on Language Arts and Math. Some, do a simple study on cultures and Christmas. Whatever you decide to do, I hope it includes taking some sort of holiday break. Whether it is one week or four we all deserve one! And so do our kids :)
Misty Bailey is the voice behind the Southeast Homeschool Expo’s Facebook page, as well as one of the convention planners here at the Southeast Homeschool Expo. She has worked in the homeschool market for nearly a decade with a multitude of curriculum companies, and as a former blogger and podcaster. She brings to the table 17 years of homeschooling experience working with her own three children, as well as founding her local homeschool group. Her goal is to encourage and inspire you on your homeschool journey by providing practical tips for real life (not cookie cutter perfection) homeschooling.
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