Embracing Back-to-School Changes

The new school year is beginning for our family, and I’m feeling a sense of appreciation for how God has been working on my heart over the summer.  Curriculum changes are, once again, in the air. With school changes ahead, a family move, and a job change, most of what is happening in our family right now constitutes change.  And this got me thinking: change in life is inevitable, and we have to be open to embrace the changes God has for us.  Don’t be afraid to allow your homeschool the changes it needs this upcoming school year.  Here are a few tips to help you out with transitioning.

Don’t be afraid to say goodbye to the old.

Old curriculum, old cover schools, old processes, old philosophies, old materials….whatever it is that seems like old news to you, if it isn’t working for you, don’t be afraid to toss and start over anew.  I know this might sound scary, but sometimes you just have to empty your space of the old so that you can make room for the new.

One thing I’m doing as we prepare to move out of our old house into our new home is decluttering–and this means getting rid of a lot of materials that once fit our family’s needs but no longer serve any purpose for my children.  It’s like sweet sorrow parting with some of these books that have stayed with us for over six years, but they no longer work for us.  So it’s time to say goodbye to the old stuff and hello to Ebay.

Don’t be afraid to accept where you are today.

Yesterday you may have enjoyed a particular homeschooling method. Maybe this year it doesn’t appeal to you.  Maybe over the summer, you discovered that what you would really like to do with your kids is discover this journey along a different path.  You need something different in your life, and the kids (as well as you, mom) need to rekindle an excitement for school.  Perhaps the only way to achieve this is to accept where you are today.  Accept that today–with your eight-year-old and ten-year-old–life and homeschooling looks entirely different than three years ago when you had a five-year-old and seven-year-old.  With that said, your homeschool should look different this year, and that’s okay.

When we learn to accept that things are no longer the same, we can begin to embrace change.  Today I am in awe of how my six-year-old and twelve-year-old have drastically changed from the three-year-old and eight-year-old I brought here when we first moved to California three years ago.  And with that, our homeschooling has grown to expand and fit the maturity level of my children.  Their needs have changed, so my curriculum-planning has changed, my processes have changed, and my philosophy, surprisingly, has even changed.

As I’ve grown as a homeschooling mom, the Lord has given me the grace to grow into my new seasons in life and accept that what once worked for us doesn’t have to continue to remain for the duration of our homeschooling season.  I can and should be open to what God has in store for us.

Don’t be afraid to embrace new opportunities.

This upcoming school year, not only will we have recently located to a new city, but we are also enrolling in a new school which will make homeschooling run a little differently than it has these past eight years.  There are times I feel nervous about the changes ahead, but I know it’s for the best and my children should, if anything, gain a valuable experience out of this.  As my middle schooler matures, I find it rather exciting to see life through her very different lenses as she explores life in her world, her way–and with the excitement that only an only-once twelve-year-old can muster.

I want to be there for her as she embraces the new in her world of cyberschooling, and as I learn to be her coach and to help to guide her through her studies.  If this method doesn’t work for us, we’ll know shortly and will make necessary amendments.  But the whole idea is this: I want to embrace the new. I want to be open to the changes God has in store for us.

This post is simply an encouragement to you that as you go back to school teaching your kids this year, that you’ll stay open to the changes God has in store for you.  Your kids will be so grateful to you for the flexibility you allow yourself, and you’ll thank yourself again for it later!

What are some ways you are preparing to embrace change?

Back-to-school Encouragement For Moms

This post is a part of the Back-to-school Encouragement For Moms series. Be sure to check out the others posts to be encouraged!