Homeschool Holiday Break
During the winter season, a homeschool holiday break can be the best way to get your homeschool back on track. Learn how to keep your kids learning while having fun.
Ah, winter. The fluffy white snow. Cold crisp mornings. Fire blazing. A hot cup of coffee and a good book. Just like a greeting card, right?
Sometimes…
Other times, it looks a bit more like a scene out of a Black Friday commercial. Rushing around, shoveling knee-deep snow, dealing with power outages, over-scheduled weeks, workdays, meals on the run, colds…you name it, it’s on your to-do list.
It’s exhausting.
Why You Need A Homeschool Holiday Break
You know those lists we make when choosing our priorities, usually between what we want to do and need to do?
Taking a break actually checks both boxes!
We need to take a break to allow ourselves and our family to rest, de-stress and unwind. Taking a homeschool holiday break helps us avoid burnout as a working homeschool mom.
When you take a homeschool holiday break, you will feel:
- You will feel re-energized
- More creative
- Inspired
- Excited to return
During the holiday season, it is easy to get sucked into trying to do all of our work tasks, homeschool our kids, and become overwhelmed.
That’s why taking a break is important for you.
5 Benefits Homeschool Holiday Breaks
Does taking a break from homeschooling help us in any way?
Over the past 14 years, I’ve found that taking some time away from our regular homeschool schedule has allowed:
- new creative ideas to come
- me to plan and reflect on the past few months
- me to explore my kid’s personal interests
- room to make any needed adjustments to our schedule or routines
- time to connect as a family and learn together
Give yourself and your family some time off from the “regular” schedule. You will be glad you did.
Homeschooling Through The Holiday Season
Can we talk about the stress during the holiday season? As a mom who works full time and homeschools full time, the holiday season is crazy busy.
Reducing stress with time management is half the battle. Homeschooling is the other side.
If you want less stress and more joy, you need to remember that your holiday (or vacation or any day off!) is YOURS to plan. As far as I know, there is no “holiday police.”
Your job as a homeschooling mom is to take full advantage of the flexibility of homeschooling.
Does your child need extra reading practice? Snuggle up with a book, hot cocoa, and read together.
Do you have a full workday? Let your kids dig into their subscription boxes to learn about electricity and call it a day.
One question I like to ask when planning a day off is, “What do I want this day to look like?”
With the answer, I plan my day. Sometimes we sleep in, do a quick 30-minute clean and then bake cookies. Sometimes I head off to work, and the kids play.
Don’t be afraid to step away from what’s expected and do what is best for your family.
What Type of Homeschool Holiday Break Should You Take?
What your homeschool holiday break ends up looking like will be up to you and your kids.
There are usually 3 basic types of “breaks” working moms take when life gets crazy.
They are:
- Some break from all “schooly” type things.
- Others reduce the workload to half.
- Some pursue a slow December.
Do what you need for your family and what will work best.
For us, I chose a winter homeschool learning break.
What Is A Homeschool Learning Break?
A “homeschool learning” break is when you step away from more scheduled learning.
Ditch the textbooks and workbooks and dig out some projects that you haven’t found time to do. Drag out some family games, yummy snacks, and just chill.
Disclosure: I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
I have children that are very concerned and stressed when they get the feeling they are “behind.”
No matter what I do to assure them that this is not the case, if we just take a clean break, they stress out.
For us, Around the World Stories has also been a lifesaver for many working moms. It is a great way to learn more about other countries and cultures without all the work.
Priorities And Planning Your Homeschool Holiday Break
I like to use a question that will help you cut through all the noise of what your homeschool “should” look like and focus on what is important to you.
That question is, “What do I want this winter break to look like for our family?”
Are there homeschool tasks that you really still want to accomplish during the winter break? Then prioritize it. Pencil it into your planner just like any other obligation.
Making sure you fulfilled your high-priority tasks will give you a feeling of accomplishment in the midst of a busy season.
If you are a checklist mama like me, you’ll love knowing that you stayed on track with your goals, even when some other things had to be let go.
It will also help you to feel less stress and more joy because you won’t have that nagging unfinished feeling at the end of the day.
Our Winter Homeschool Learning Break Plans
This winter, we are taking a learning break, and for my two, where homeschool tends to look a bit more like school than not, this is HUGE!
We sat down and planned out our month.
We decided on one week of “regular” school so they could stop at the end of a lesson or chapter in a few subjects. Followed by a one-week learning break.
We chose a few activities we wanted to try out that we did not get to earlier in the year.
For the activities, we started out with these:
- Paper Mache Masks
- The Beginner’s Guide To Atoms And The Periodic Table
- Unit Study of Thomas Edison
- Science Expeditions
- Egg Shell Geode Crystals
The next week would be a no-school week. They are planning on going to the movies, going skating, having a few sleepovers, and basically chilling out.
Planning For A Break As A Working Mom
As a working mom, planning is essential to my mental health.
After the children chose what they wanted to do, I sat down and made a list of what I could do ahead of time to make sure things ran as smoothly as possible.
I printed off all paperwork and instructions for any activities we would do. Using metal binder clips, I sorted the paperwork into piles for each child and put them into binders.
Ykimok 48 Pcs Medium Binder Clips, 1.25 inch, Colored Binder Clips, Paper Clamps Medium Size for Office Supplies, 4 Vibrant Colors
Neenah Astrobrights(R) Bright Color Paper, 8 1/2in. x 11in., 24 Lb, Assorted Colors, Ream Of 500 Sheets, 21289Cardinal 3 Ring Binders, 1.5 Inch, Round Rings, Holds 350 Sheets, ClearVue Presentation View, Non-Stick, Assorted Bright Colors, 4 Pack (79553)
I ensured we had all the supplies we would need, including the jujubes for the Atoms. I may or may not have had to buy two bags, as someone ate the first one. *cough*
This minor prep work really took a lot of the stress away. Now I just needed to find the time!
How To Find The Time
One question that always comes up when it comes to taking a break is how do you find the time?
My steps for making time are knowing my priorities and what needs to be done. (Also known as balance!)
Unfortunately, during our homeschool holiday break, more “needs” kept popping up.
However, knowing that everything was ready to go made grabbing a few minutes here and there so much easier.
The key to taking a learning break is remembering your goal. My goal was to have fun, connect with my kids, and reduce stress.
Therefore, making our break work for us meant using those little pockets of time to our make our fun happen.
We made use of:
- A few minutes on an afternoon to focus on the smaller tasks.
- A longer chunk of time to focus on the larger tasks, such as a long educational board game.
- We had fun before work, after work, and on the weekend.
By focusing on the goal, we read out loud, laughed, and we learned. We created, and my son taught me for a change. And lastly….we had fun!
How To Take A Homeschool Holiday Break
You can take a homeschool holiday break any time of the year.
To make it easier for you, make sure you:
- Plan a start time and end time
- Discuss with your family when is best
- Choose a few activities
- Plan ahead and pick up everything you need in advance
- Be flexible
- Have fun
- Don’t sweat the small stuff
The Best Way To Plan Homeschool Break
Do you feel your family would benefit from a homeschool holiday break?
One of my best tips is to get the kids involved. As a working mom, our kids sometimes miss a lot of the “fun things” the other kids around them experience. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
When you are making your plans, be sure to check in with your kids and find out what they REALLY want to do.
Get them to create a list of 3-5 things they would like to see, make, or do. You might be surprised at what they come up with. If you need a starting point, check out my winter bucket list ideas.
From the list your kids created, write your own list of items you’ll need to have on hand. For example, if they want to create thank you cards, be sure you have the needed supplies. That will save you time later.
At the beginning of the week, have your kids take turns picking the activities they want to do that week.
This is one of the best parts of homeschooling through the holidays!
Now you can sit back and enjoy connecting with your kids, knowing they are learning while having fun this winter!
Did you take a learning break this winter? I’d love to hear about it.
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Hi, I’m Jen. I help working moms juggle their career and homeschool their kids by providing support, systems and tools. You are warmly invited to Join the Online Community Here!
