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Keeping the Home Fires Alive!

by Teri Spray

I want to keep from burning out in my home school endeavors. What do I need to do to stay on fire?

You Might Be Experiencing Homeschool Burnout if...

• At lunch time, you sit in your parked car with sunglassses on and point a hair dryer at passing cars to see if they slow down;
• You stand out in public places and look up just to count how many people will look up with you;
• Every time someone asks you to do something, you ask if they want fries with that;
• You put decaf in the coffee maker for 3 weeks, then just as you spouse has gotten over his/her caffeine addiction, you switch them to espresso, just to see what happens;
• You finish all of your sentences with: "In accordance with the Prophecy."
• You specify that your drive-through order is "to go"
• You put mosquito netting around your homeschool area and play tropical sounds all day;
• Five weeks in advance, you tell you friends you can't come to their party because you're not in the mood;
• When the money comes out of the ATM, you scream, "I won! I won!"
• When leaving the zoo, you start running towards the parking lot yelling, "Run for your lives! They're loose!"
• You find yourself thinking, "Due to the economy, we're going to have to let one of you go."

Okay, we hope we won't have burnout as bad as all that, but what can we do when the dark ages get dreary? How can we keep the home fires burning and not get burnt out?

First open yourself to more of God?s Holy Spirit. God is creative and enthusiastic about life. Jesus said, in John 10:10 "I have come that they may have life and life abundantly." Note the Life Jesus is referring to is "ZOE- life" which is active and moving.

1) Turn on Praise and Worship music. If you do not own praise and worship music, add it to your Christmas list! You will need it during the winter months. (Call us for suggestions, we can get them for you through our bookstore.)

2) You are in your own home and no one is looking so, DANCE! Enjoy yourself and dance to music of the Lord. Get out the old jogging tramp and jump!

3) Put on funny hats, lively music, and clean the house. Now everyone will have something to smile about when your done.

4) Let God guide you into some creative applications of His love. Read a Bible story and dramatize it... who cares if it takes all morning? You will make a memory!

5) Thinking Time-outs: If children and parents are cranky and bored, then have a Thinking time-out. No one is allowed to move from their chair until they have a list of at least 5-10 things they would rather do than sit in this chair. If attitudes have been poor, they must come up with a positive plan on how to change the problem, reconcile and be more pleasant.

6) Leave the texts behind and have an educational art day instead.
Geography: Watercolor geography scenes: Bring out the paints and have fun. Paint the entire page first as a background with pastel water colors. Next lightly draw your scenery over the top. Now go over your scenery with darker and darker colors for the effect you want. (Use multiple shades for natural looking trees and hills.)
Spelling: Try finger painting your words for spelling
Literature/ History: Make clay out of salt and flour.  Mix 2 cups four, I cup of salt and two tablespoons of white glue. Add teaspoons of water and knead the clay into a ball. Read a story to your children as they spend hours making little clay figures.
Creative writing: Make a greeting card for someone who needs to hear from you.
Preschool water play: Little children enjoy "painting" with water only on windows and appliances for a harmless non-messy activity.

7) Have a geography adventure: Select an ethnic restaurant you have not been to before. In the morning, go to the library and find colorful books or videos about the region. Go and enjoy a lunch at the restaurant. Interview your server and take a sample menu home. You may also want to take a camera and take pictures as well. When you return home, make a report on your adventure. (Add a math assignment and you have an entire school day!)

8) Have a games day. Play a board game for half of the day. Play indoor sports for the other half of the day. (Rolled socks make great balls for the house)

9) Call a Snow Day! Shovel and/or play in the snow. Cut out snowflakes and hang them from the ceiling. Make your own snow cones! Scoop clean snow and add juice concentrate to make a snow slushy or snow cone. Snuggle under blankets in the afternoon as you listen to a good book or watch a classic movie.

10) Give yourself a lift: Rearrange the furniture. Paint a room!

11) Get physical: Try snowshoeing! (You can rent equipment for less that $15 per day.) Take a bike ride. Try rollerblading. Go roller-skating. Try ice skating.

12) Cheer up someone else: Place kind notes on neighbors doors. Distribute samples of your best handwriting with illustrated scriptures at nursing homes. (See Reason For Writing Curriculum for excellent verses and border pages.)

Blessings, Teri Spray