Overscheduling

I am probably the world’s worst about over scheduling when it comes to home schooling.  I know I’m not alone.  I hear moms talking about what all they’re doing in a year and I know they are over doing it.  I have even tried to talk customers out of buying curriculum because they are trying to do 2 or 3 math curricula at the same time, or they want to do 2 or 3 different language arts curricula at the same time.   It is so tempting.  There is so much good stuff out there to do.  We don’t want our kids to miss out on anything so we over schedule. 

This year, my 7-year-old is going to do some US geography.  Now, in years gone by, I would’ve been determined that this little guy was going to learn all 50 states and he was going to do it in one school year.  I would’ve planned all kinds of outings, meals, books, movies and crafty things to go with each state.  I would’ve started the year off with lots of enthusiasm and zeal.  By the second week, after many tears and arguments, I would’ve given up on US geography.  Then I would’ve gotten really upset at myself for not getting it all done.

One of the nice things about home schooling for so many years and with so many children is that I get a chance to do it over.  This year will be different.  I plan on studying US geography with my 7-year-old.  Instead of barely touching on all 50 states, we will be looking at 7.  We will have the opportunity to do this at a more relaxed pace and get more in-depth.  Hopefully, we’ll maintain enthusiasm and minimize the tears.

So, how do you choose 7 states out of 50?  Well, the first one is obvious — Texas.  It’s not just because we live here.  Texas is a really cool state to study.  It has some great stories to read about, some great food to eat (like we don’t eat it all the time) and a recognizable shape that should be easy to spot anywhere.  Okay, enough about Texas.  What are the other states?  He has one brother that lives in Florida and one that lives in California.  We’ll do those states as well.  Then, we’ll do the states that border Texas — New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana.  Now those 7 states look much easier to handle than all 50 states.

So, I’ve learned my lesson about over scheduling and will never do it again, right?  You should see what I have scheduled for the other kids.  I’ll write all about it in a future post.  Until then, don’t over schedule!!!