How To Handle Difficult Days While Homeschooling
So, you want to talk about how to get through difficult days of homeschooling your kids? Well, I wish I had a straightforward answer that could work for everyone. No matter what form of education you choose for your children, there are going to be days that are difficult. It is inevitable and completely normal! While, at the moment it may feel like we are the only ones experiencing these kinds of challenges, and possibly even feel like we are failing our kids, I can promise you, that you are not the only one who has ever experienced this.
I recently had a day where it felt like an uphill battle the whole time. I was exhausted, drained, and dealing with a day when my kids felt unmotivated. As I was trying to brainstorm how to turn the day around I was reminded that I need to keep my own attitude in check. Sometimes as parents, we need these little reminders that our moods and attitudes set the tone for the day, and for my kids as well. In my case, my own attitude was not right from the beginning and it, in return, affected my kid’s attitudes. When we feel ourselves doing this, it is perfectly fine to pause from the day and take 15 minutes alone to reset, pray, and get our hearts right. It also helps our kids to learn to read a situation and understand at times that mom or dad may need to take a moment for themselves.
Another idea for when those tough days come is just to get up and go outside TOGETHER. Even if it is raining or snowing, just go out and let your kids be kids. Pack up and go to a playground or for a walk in the park. The change in scenery and fresh air can almost instantly change a negative mood and remove that dark cloud from your day.
There are times when I feel my patience waning, I stop with our schooling for the day and wait for my husband to arrive home from work to help me. Sometimes just having someone new or different helps the kids refocus and helps me have time to recharge and get myself right. These are also great times for dads to see what exactly the kids are learning and get them involved in their learning and education.
Then, there are times when we just stop altogether for the day. No one knows their own kids better than mom and dad. When we can see our kids having a rough day and feeling stuck, it is perfectly ok to just stop for the day. In homeschooling, you absolutely can do that! Now, I certainly don’t mean if your child is just flat out being disrespectful and not wanting to complete their schooling for that day, to just let them. What you do not want to do is keep pushing you and your kids past your/their mental capacity for that day. Observe the mood, tone, and attitudes, then decide accordingly.
As I said before, hard days are going to come in our homeschooling journeys, and it is normal. There are hard days in life in general. What we can do in those times is use them as teaching moments. We should strive to teach our kids how to appropriately behave when they’re having an off day, and model it for them when we ourselves are having an off day. Take things a day at a time and I promise, the good days outnumber the difficult ones!
James 1:2-3
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness