Our Seventh Year Homeschooling: What’s Different, and What’s the Same

This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24 ESV

September 3, 2024, Monday.

I hear my alarm chiming quietly, and that’s how I knew it was time to start the day. Even though two of my boys were already outside playing (they made a plan the night before and even set out their clothes), the house was very quiet. I had a baby sleeping to my left; my husband next to him. And that wasn’t all of those still asleep: my two girls were adding a few more minutes to their “sleep counter.” All these things I was glad to have happened as I rose for the day.

In a podcast episode, Elisabeth Elliot, a woman I admire greatly, recalls her father saying he begins the day by preparing the night before. This nugget of wisdom has stuck with me ever since. And it’s so true for me! There’s a lot to juggle in my household of seven people, and I always do better when I prepare the night before.

WHAT’S THE SAME

Now that we are back to school, this has never been so important (or true). Gathered from wisdom, I have a list of 12 meals written in pencil on the fridge. This list will get us through four days ;) Last night I gathered our read-alouds into a basket and placed it in the living room. The coffee maker was prepped to brew at 7am. For breakfast, I planned to serve yogurt and granola with fresh strawberries.

This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

This is the start of my seventh year homeschooling. (How can that be right??) Max is in sixth grade, Natalie is in fifth, Marigold is in third, Landon is in first, and Josiah boy is along for the ride. I find it so incredible the LORD knows how to prepare our hearts. We have had many seasons and years where all I did was model and repeat the behavior I want to see. I know this school year will be no different, but it was really encouraging to have it be such a beautiful first day of school.

We started at 8:45am in the living room with 90 minutes of read-alouds. This has always been our go-to school rhythm. The older kids took turns reading when I needed both of my hands for my youngest, Josiah. It was a very happy, cozy morning. Blankets were gathered, and while I read colored blocks were placed on outlined sheets to create an animal. Magnetic dolls were displayed, and the whiteboard was drawn on while I read. Legs were strewn about the couch. You can imagine the scene, right? :)

WHAT’S DIFFERENT

Once their table work was finished and they had lunch, my older kids asked to help me prepare dinner. While I read in the morning, two loaves of sourdough bread baked in the oven. (Learning how to make sourdough bread is my happy new hobby.) Now it was time to dice vegetables in preparation for tonight’s dinner: creamy vegetable soup with sausage and beef. As I write this, the soup is simmering and the baby is napping. Adding a fifth baby to our family is something else different about this school year :) While he was born last June (’23), I changed our school routine in a big way as I quickly realized I couldn’t make a traditional (to us) school year happen.

The dishwasher is now humming and I have a stack of thoughts from this morning’s school lesson – things to change for tomorrow, ways to help our learning be a little more fluid. One new addition I already appreciate is having a schedule written in 15-minute increments. I don’t like to follow a strict schedule, but I do like to make sure the essentials are covered each day/week. With this much responsibility, I don’t want to wonder; I want to know I’m doing my best.

The last change is we’ve switched to AmblesideOnline for our school curriculum.

During one of our lessons, we discussed the meaning of sage. I feel like I have the word sage written in smeared ink on my hand. I haven’t come to full maturity or wisdom, but I do feel I have learned a lot over the last six years of homeschooling my children. And that’s exactly it: it’s not perfection we’re after, it’s a heart turned toward the LORD with a spirit of gladness marbled throughout.

* * *

As we increase in years, I can see the wisdom coming together more clearly.

As I relax my shoulders, I can see my children coming to me even more eagerly.

And, as I set out with a plan of peace, I can see that the preparation begins the night before.

This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY READING:

• In the Evening
• A Time-Lapse of Our Homeschool Lesson
• Studying the Bible
• Sunday Sabbath and Minimizing Our Toys