Today we answer a listener’s letter. An excerpt::
My kids craft. All. The. Time. They wake and craft. Hot glue and paper scraps everywhere. Markers and lost lids everywhere. Cardboard everywhere. Currently they’re making some kind of escape room with string strung everywhere like a spider's web.
I let them be and I read aloud for an hour or so, so that our morning starts fun. But then I can’t stop them. And the energy it takes me to try and get them to clean up and then refocus on some math or whatever drains me before I can even begin. I do short (no busywork) lessons but even that they balk at because they just wanna do their own thing that they are on a roll with. And they are ALWAYS on a roll!!
The mess stresses me out…I wonder if you have any caring ideas for the frazzled mom. I wish I loved artsy chaos. I am not my best self in it. I’m exhausted with the struggle of trying to keep some order and also do the lessons we need to do.
We’ve all been there: Trying to wrangle wild, messy children away from what they’re engrossed in and towards a small lesson or two that needs to be done. It can become a daily grind that frazzles and exhausts you, maybe even making you doubt yourself. Today we open the listener mailbag and respond to “Molly,” a mom who is experiencing this and looking for ideas to unfrazzle her life.
First, we talk big picture: Your needs as a mother matter. While you’re finding the balance between letting the children engage in curiosity-based learning and making sure they’re doing what they need to do in order to keep future doors open, don’t forget your own needs for a functional home and life. You matter.
Then we get into specifics. We go over tactics to manage physical space and materials. We cover how to plan and execute activity transitions. We discuss how to communicate, verbally and nonverbally, in order to help your children adjust to changes.
While it’s natural to feel frazzled sometimes, you shouldn’t have to live in a constant state of frazzlement. We hope our conversation today helps “Molly” and all the other homeschooling families out there.
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Produced by NOVA Media
62. (S4E20) Partnership Home Education: Finding Friends for You
61. (S4E19) Family Dynamics in Homeschool: The Roles Your Kids Play
60. (S4E18) No Silver Bullet: Searching for the Perfect Homeschool Curriculum
59. (S4E17) Brain-Based Learning - Part 2
58. (S4E16) Brain-Based Learning - Part 1
57. (S4E15) Permission to Party School
56. (S4E14) The Ages & Stages of Awesome Adulthood
55. (S4E13) Being an Awesome Adult & Living Your Most Fulfilling Life
54. (S4E12) Developing Cultural Literacy & Empathy Through Books | with Sarita Holzmann
53. (S4E11) The Split Between Structured & Unstructured Learning
52. (S4E10) How to Include Poetry Teatime in Your Family
51. (S4E9) Integrating Cultural & Language Learning in Your Homeschool | with Anne Guarnera
50. (S4E8) Back to Homeschool: Maximizing the Perks of Home!
49. (S4E7) Adding Adventure, Community, & Collaboration to Your Homeschool | with Dachelle McVey
48. (S4E6) The Scourge of Perfectionism
47. (S4E5) The Natural Stages of Growth for a Home Educator
46. (S4E4) Diversity, Inclusion, & Literature | with Charnaie Gordon
45. (S4E3) 61 Things I Did RIGHT in My Homeschool
44. (S4E2) 55 Things I Did NOT Do as a Homeschooler
43. (S4E1) Morning Routines That Support Your Homeschool & Family
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