The perfect homeschool schedule doesn't exist. Try this instead.

It was like clockwork. At the beginning of every month, I worked on crafting the perfect homeschool schedule. I took all the things I wanted to fit into our days and tried to jam them into the calendar like a game of Tetris. But, nevertheless, I felt perpetually behind. I could never quite check off everything from my perfectly planned list.

I couldn't help but feel like every day was chaos, and in my attempts to make the perfect schedule, our days weren't turning out so perfect at all. As a matter of fact, I often felt like I was failing.

Then one Monday, right there in the middle of one of those "perfectly-planned" months, I had this overwhelming feeling of calm (much like a cozy blanket): "Be still."

What was that, God? Still?

Note: To be still is not in my nature. I am a professional box checker! All I knew, was that what I was doing wasn't working and I decided right then to make a change.

How could I possibly turn my beautiful calendar (color-coded with my favorite felt pens) into stillness? What did I do?

First, I placed my planner out-of-sight and got out a plain old fashioned, one-subject notebook. A blank slate with no boxes to check off. For that entire week, at the end of each school day, I wrote down everything we accomplished. Something happened. I started feeling proud. My mindset went from "Look at all the things we didn't finish" to "Look at how much we've accomplished!"

And after one week? I threw my old planner away. (Admittedly, this action hurt a little.)

But guess what– When you turn the page to each piece of curriculum and to every new book, you're still moving forward! The lessons still go in order and the stories still have a beginning, a middle, and an end. Instead of checking off "Read pages 13-17 in History" on a checklist at the end of the day I would write, "History: we were introduced to Mesopotamia."

Now for the good part! Below are a few applicable ways to take some pressure off of yourself:

1. Reverse Planning. As you now know, this is writing down your accomplishments at the end of each day instead of everything you think you need to get done beforehand! (Hey, it doesn't really have a name so please email me if you have any great ideas for a term we could coin. Seriously.) Here are ways this takes stress off of you: Some days, you have a lot of energy and you can get a lot accomplished. You feel great, your bed is made, and your hair isn't in a mom bun– if you know what I mean. There are days when you are quite excited about what's going to happen next in the story. You don't want to stop reading at chapter 5 just because chapter 6 is on the schedule for tomorrow. Perhaps you want to go on a spontaneous field trip to the beach. Perhaps you want to visit a friend, but you didn't plan it a month in advance. And then there are other days that aren't so great. You're off your flow. Maybe you're sick. Some days, your kids need a little extra time grasping a new concept, which can knock something else off your list. Don't fret! Enter reverse planning! Now you can go at your own day-by-day pace. The only goal you truly need is that you're moving forward over a period of time.
   

2. You don't have to do everything every day. As a matter of fact, you can't. You’ve got to get comfortable with the fact that some of what’s on your plate might not be meant for you to do.

   Every family is different. For those of you who like a hard-stop on school time, I recommend ranking the tasks in your brain and starting with what you feel is most important to complete. If something doesn't make it that day before your stop time, put it on the top of your pile for the next day.

   At my house, we like to break up our days. I generally do most school in the morning with breaks for my wiggle-child. Then in the evening, we have lots of reading time to settle down before bed.

   Besides the time you set aside for schooling itself, think about how your subjects can be split over the course of the year. Mix it up! Maybe you focus on history for a few weeks, then switch gears to science.

   
   

   

   
   

3. Set check points. Here's something you can actually put on your calendar. Each month, go over your little book of accomplishments, and decide if it's a good pace for your family. Maybe you can think about spending a little more time here and a little less time there. Just don't forget to look at everything as an accomplishment so you can review it with a smile. Homeschooling is part of regular life, and life has seasons. Some seasons are just naturally more productive than others! For instance. I get a lot more schoolwork completed in October and have quite a light December. Bonus points if you complete these checkpoints with your kids so they can feel excited about all they've learned!
   

4. Don't stress when you don't finish something by the end of the year. Your child's own pace is the best pace for you. Trust me when I say, you're going to accomplish so much more than you think. If I'm not signing my kids up for age-oriented activities, I like to throw grade levels out the window.

   Here's what I mean: I have an incredible "first grader" named Laurel. Laurel is half way through her "second grade" arithmetic curriculum, but she's also just finishing up her "Kindergarten" spelling lists. It's November, and she's made leaps and bounds in reading fluency this year. If I forced her forward before she was ready, (or compared her to other children) she'd be frustrated and I don't believe I would have seen the same improvement. This is even if she was farther along in her "grade level". Likewise, if I held her back in math just because something had that "second grade" label on the front, she'd be bored! This is another fantastic perk of individualized learning. It's also absolutely okay if you don't learn everything surrounding one topic in a year. In fact, looping a topic across multiple years is a great way to grow in knowledge and understanding. (PS- I school year-round so we get plenty of shorter breaks during the year. It's a great way to not feel so rushed. I promise to write about how that works in a future post.)

   
   

And there you have it! Just turn the page and keep moving forward. Welcome to your new routine that brings you peace and makes you proud. When you go through your notebooks at a later date, reading "History: we were introduced to Mesopotamia" is going to sound so much more fun than "Read pages 13-17 in History" anyway.

Now, go give yourself some grace.

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