7 Small Habits to Simplify and Rejuvenate Your Homeschool

Life is a series of habits strung together and played out over the course of your day. Healthy habits are vital to your life. They can create order and purpose in your homeschool too.

I’m still learning how to integrate healthy habits into my life and family. I had a big health setback a year and a half ago, and I had to learn the hard way about habits. A severe back problem took over my every day, and after that moment, I had to heal very slowly. Developing healthy habits was the change that I needed.

What is a healthy habit?

• A healthy habit is an action you intend to repeat on a daily or weekly basis. For example, taking the trash bin to the end of the driveway every Tuesday night. This is a healthy habit to keep the trash bin emptied each week. A daily example would be brushing your teeth before bed every night. A healthy habit sets the stage for optimum health in your life; Whether that is emotional health, mental health, or physical health.
• A common misconception about habits is that mere will power can help a habit to stick. Habits stick when they are boiled down to the simplest form and set up for the easiest ‘win.’ We are human beings, so we naturally crave comfort and ease. We also have bad days or moments. If you can make your healthy habit very accessible and easy to do, you will more likely stick to it when you’re having an off day (which can happen at any moment). Again, we are human and we trip up. And that is OK! It is human nature to mess up, and when we embrace that it’s just a “bad moment” or a “bad day,” we can more easily get up again and move forward (mental health tip for the day!).

Why are healthy habits so important?

• We only have one life. We have a limited amount of years to spend on the things we value. As homeschoolers you understand this idea very well, for you have your kids at home with you during the small window of time that they have before becoming adults. Eighteen years seems like forever in the day to day, but as they say, it will go fast. Cherish the time you have with your children. You get this. You know this is true. You have them home with you. Why not spend that time efficiently and well? How can you enjoy those moments? Your optimum health will play into those two questions.
• The importance of habits has been a learning curve over my entire mom-life. It became a vital lesson for me a year or so ago. Personally, I was not taking care of my physical body in a way that created consistent health. I didn’t think exercise was ‘that’ important in my everyday. I still struggle to see the importance of strength training, but as I come upon 41 this year, I’m realizing more and more that daily exercise is a key ingredient to my overall well-being. Exercise is one example of a healthy habit that can change your life!

7 Simple Habits to Create Joy in Your Homeschool

Tip 1: Create your personal morning routine

• This is personal to YOU. What do you need to do in the morning? No pressure here. Consider this question at its most basic level. What do you really need to have done in the morning time before your day?
• Start with one or two things you will do every morning when you wake up. You can always grow and expand this list to better suit your day, but start small.
• Example: Make my bed, Change my clothes, and Drink one glass of water.

Tip 2: Start your homeschool with the same thing every day.

• This tip gives your school day consistency. The homeschool does not need to start at the same time every day. It can flex with life. But, starting with the same thing can create a healthy pattern.
• What subjects do your kids enjoy the most? We start with Spanish. It’s a very simple lesson each morning, and the kids are excited to learn something we haven’t studied before; a foreign language! Maybe your kids love when you read aloud. Then, read the next chapter every day as the beginning of your school time. Maybe science is a favorite. Start with a devotional from Louie Giglio’s, How Great Is Our God? Is Math the top dog in your home? (Me and my boys LOVE math! I know, it’s not typical. But it’s pretty awesome, right?!) Read a page from the Bedtime Math Series. The kids will love it!

Tip 3: Clear the table

• When you are done with a portion of school items, take a minute to put the books away. This tip may need some prep work over the summer (or this weekend!). Make a space for each child or each subject, and keep the books in that space. If you take 2 minutes to move all of the books to their spaces, your table or desk will look clear and clean. It seems every time I clean up, my kids flock to the space I just cleared and create things with art or toys! They begin to fill it with their thoughts and their imaginations. Clearing a space will create more learning. This is so healthy for your homeschool.

Tip 4: Smile at your child

• This may seem silly for me to ask, but do you smile at your children throughout the day? We moms juggle many things, and this can wear us down. Take a breath. Make a cup of coffee and take a break from the hustle. Then, go over to your child, smile at them, and say, “I’m so glad to be with you today, sweetie.” This habit is especially important if you have a child that is frustrating to you. That kid needs that smile so very much! Go smile at him. Go tell her you love her. Do it today. Then do it again tomorrow.

Tip 5: Pray when you can’t find ‘it’

• Do you have those moments when you’re rushing out the door and you can’t find your keys? Or you misplaced your cell phone for the 4th time? Those moments can drive me crazy. It is in those moments that I need to stop and ask for help. I ask the kids to help me. But, it’s important to ask the Lord to help me in this moment. He knows where it is. He really does. When I remember to stop and pray for help, I find the missing item. It’s not always that very second, but it’s pretty miraculous to me how quickly I find it after I’ve prayed. This tip can apply to other things, bigger things, more important things… but we’re finding the small habits in this tip list. This one is very small but very mighty.

Tip 6: Eat

• I get grumpy when I’m hungry. Sometimes a school day can be so busy that I forget to eat! Make sure you eat throughout your day. I could go into so much more about how often to eat, why breakfast is vital, what to eat, but that discussion is for another time. Eat.

Tip 7: Read a daily statement

• This past summer, I was part of a MOPS book study. We read the book, Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table; It’s Time to Win the Battle of Your Mind. The author Louie Giglio unpacks Psalm 23. There is so much I could mention about this study, but I will just say that it was challenging, inspiring, and most enjoyable. (The ladies IN the study were awesome! I love my MOPS group!) In session 4, the author explains, “It often helps if we have a daily rhythm – a method to retrain our minds that we are not in a story of defeat.” He gives 7 verses to remember throughout the week; one for each day.

• Take some 3×5 cards and jot down these verses; one per day of the week. Or better yet, download my beautiful (and Free!) verse cards. Every morning, take a look at the day’s verse and remind yourself of the truth! In Christ, our story is a story of victory. Live in that victory by dwelling on these truths in your mind throughout your day.

Conclusion

There are 3 KEYS to this list of tips.

1. Choose only ONE tip above, and start doing that one habit every day! You will not build an entire house in a day or accomplish the whole school year in one week. You can do one thing today! Make this happen, friend!
2. Boil that ONE habit down to the smallest step you can take. These habits need to be too easy! Crazy easy. So easy that you can’t not choose it. You know yourself, your interests, your weaknesses, and your true desires. Take a minute to boil it down.
3. Write it down. Go analogue, pick up the pencil, and write it down. If you’re in a groove, write it on a notecard and either draw lines, make circles, or just keep the bottom blank to mark the habit completed at the end of your day. If you want to mark it the moment you do it, go for it. Or better yet, print out my beautiful Fill-In-the-Blank Habit Tracker!

What step are you going to take? Leave a comment below and let me know which tip resonated with your homeschooling journey.

Thank you for reading my list of tips today!

Keep walking friend,

Christina