Your Christmas Schedule – Flustered or Flexible?
There are plenty of good reasons to educate your children at home, and I’ve put together a top ten list that’s intended for fun but is true nonetheless.
Counting down from number ten:
10. Your kids will never miss the bus.
9. Praying and reading the Bible are allowed.
8. You don’t have to make up for snow days.
7. You can wear pajamas all day long.
6. Playing with LEGOs counts as learning.
5. All your kids get a role in the school Christmas pageant.
4. Cooking and baking count as learning.
3. Vacations are whole-family educational outings.
2. You will see God’s hand moving to fill gaps big enough to drive a school bus through.
And the number one reason to homeschool (at least for this presentation):
1. You can take a long break during the holidays to simply be a family and enjoy Thanksgiving and Christmas and welcome the New Year together.
I’m very serious about this last item. Some of my fondest family memories and our most productive educational times have occurred when we relaxed our school schedule during the holidays to enjoy cooking, decorating, making gifts, reading, talking, listening to Christmas music, watching movies, traveling, playing games, and celebrating the season.
For many, December can be a hectic, stress-inducing month. It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of shopping while being inundated with commercial messages. So it will require an intentional effort on your part to trim some items from your pre-November daily routine. You simply can’t do it all, and you shouldn’t try. Give yourself permission to stop the madness before it begins by temporarily removing some low-priority activities from your regular schedule.
As my top ten list suggests, there are plenty of seasonal activities you can engage in that often don’t look like “school” but can be fun and educational.
Take cooking for instance. We all know there’s math involved in converting teaspoons to tablespoons, doubling a recipe, or deciding how to measure four and a half eggs. Then there is the chemistry that takes place when mixing the ingredients and baking them into a whole new substance. My personal favorite—and often the most difficult—is teaching children the responsibility of cleaning up the mess from a hard day’s work in the kitchen.
Now consider the art of gift making. Not just gift selection, which involves important principles such as thinking of others first and “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” During gift making, children are also exercising motor skills and creativity in constructing their projects (sometimes a humble work of art), writing notes of love and encouragement and wrapping their gifts for a thoughtful presentation.
Then there is the timeless activity of reading. During the holidays, you can pick seasonal favorites that recount the story of the incarnation of the Messiah. Maybe you have some books full of silly poems or colorful illustrations that bring to light the warm and delightful spirit of Christmas. Also, listening to classic Christmas music, attending a Christmas pageant, participating in a live Nativity scene, watching wholesome movies, and playing games can add joy to this time of year without putting stress on your schedule reminds us that knowledge of the Holy One gives us everything we need for life and godliness. This season, immerse your family in the living water that only Christ can provide. Focus on Jesus in such a way that everyone in your family is crystal clear that the true meaning of Christmas is the birth of Christ—Jesus leaving the glory of heaven, humbling himself, and taking on the very likeness of man to live among us so that we could behold God’s glory in the flesh, full of grace and truth.
If you enjoyed this article, check out Free Printable & Activity: Sparkly DNA Christmas Ornament.
Walking by faith and enjoying the homeschooling adventure of a lifetime!
© 2016 Davis Carman
Davis is the president of Apologia Educational Ministries, the #1 publisher of Creation-based science and Bible curriculum. He is also the author of four illustrated children’s books designed to help kids learn a biblical worldview. He believes that if there was ever a time to homeschool, it is now!
You can purchase Davis’ s books here: Psalms to Know Early, A Light for My Path, In the Beginning, and Good Morning, God.