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Hi Ladies! I hope that you are having a good evening! I need some encouragement/reassurance We are just finishing up our first year of homeschooling (LHFHG with daughter who is 6 for kindergarten). We have really had a great first year! And, we LOVE HOD! Last year, when we started, I had decided to try it for a year and see how it went. Well, it has gone so well, that I now pray that we will always be able to do it We will be doing Beyond next year with my daughter for first grade and LHFH with my son for preschool. At the beginning of the year, I had decided that we would only allow one activity per child each year along with their homeschool group. So, between schoolwork, activities with their homeschool group (which is just for fun events like park days), church activities, and her ballet class this last year, we had a really busy year.

This year her one activity was the ballet class. Honestly, this one class was difficult some days. It's on Monday nights from 5-6pm. She says that she enjoys the class after it is over with that night, but she complains all day prior to time for it to start about having to go. I think that if it was a daytime class, she would like it much better. I think that she is just tired by 5pm. However, we didn't want her to think that she could just quit things easily, so we stuck it out this year.

So, we are looking ahead to this coming year, trying to decide what we want to be involved with next year. There are several activities that we could choose from this year like ballet (maybe doing a day class instead), tennis, piano, and art class (all during the day). Truth be told, my daughter has never asked to do any outside activities yet. So, this is my dilema: what extra activities, if any, should we try to do this year? What kinds of extra activities, if any, do your kiddos do outside of schoolwork? Do your kiddos do activities that they ask to do or do you just put them in things because you think they would be good for them? I just worry because it seems like so many homeschoolers that we know do so much more than we do.

Besides the fact that we aren't at home as much as I would like to be, when we aren't my housework doesn't get done like I would like it to (and I will admit that I am a little OCD about the house being neat ). I think that I am just feeling a little bit guilty about not wanting our family to be so busy . I just want our lives to be a little slower paced than most. I want my kids to look back when they are older and remember having lots of time to just be kids and play. But, at the same time, I want them to be well rounded.

I am hoping to get my schedule ready over the summer. I just wanted to get some of your thoughts on this. I will just be praying that the Lord leads us in the right decisions about this area for our family.

Blessings,
Christy

I think the way you're feeling is perfectly normal. I feel the same way. Each of our kids will only be allowed one extra-curricular activity at a time for this very reason. My son has not really asked to do anything, but occasionally we will ask him if he's interested in something we see that we think he might like. I know too many parents who push their kids into sports that they hate. To me it's just not worth it, especially when they are little. If there is something that they have a special interest in, I'm willing to oblige, but again, one thing at a time. For example, my 4 year old daughter is obsessed with ballerinas, so this Fall she will begin a ballet class. I'm willing to allow her to continue as long as it makes her happy, but if she wants to give something else a try, it will have to be after ballet ends. Part of my reasoning also is the fact that we're about to be a family of 6, and we just simply can't afford to put our kids in every activity under the sun!

That said, there are a few things I feel are important physical skills for my kids to learn, such as swimming and just general physical education. And I really want each of my children to take at least 2 years of piano (or another instrument if they are very hesitant). But I put those things in a different category and treat them like they are just another school subject.

I'm teaching Grant & Allison piano. And all 3 of the kids are learning violin from Grandma (who lives a mile down the road). I think they all really enjoy the music, but we wouldn't be doing that much if I had to find (& pay) someone else to teach them. It does add time to our day...and Allison & Garret have not been practicing because they need ME to get it done and I've already started having extra outside work to get squeezed into the day.

We get together with a group of homeschoolers in our county weekly to play. All of the kids are 10 & under, so this works well for us for now. We especially like it when it's warm (at least 40-50*) and we hit the park! We make that most weeks, but not every week. While we aim to meet at about 2...people just show up when it works for them or when their kids are finished with their work.

In our little town we have soccer for 5 weeks in the fall. This is a favorite sport for my husband (and kids) ! It's only for 1st grade & up, so this year Grant and Allison will be able to play.

Right now for me, the biggest extra that I'm praying about whether to continue is teaching piano lessons to the other 12 students that I have. I do enjoy it...but I know that our weeks would be more relaxed without that committment. I know it will be more difficult when we add the new baby into the mix, too. I'm willing to keep it up if my husband thinks that the $ is necessary, but I would really like to quit for a while. (And, I think my kids will be disappointed that we won't have several hours of friends...in the form of younger siblings of students...coming through to play every week. )

Anyway, I think it's a big decision that the answer may even change for from season to season in our lives. I'm a fan of fairly simple though. We love to be home and have time to explore and PLAY! For us it always helps to really consider what we're saying "no" to every time we say "yes" to something else and then pray and talk about whether that's a wise decision. Praying for clarity for you as you decide what's best for your family this coming year!

Kathleen

Well let me tell you, I have been there done that, and WAY overdone it. We have a large family though so everything is multiplied several times over. I have noticed that sometimes as homeschoolers we tend to think that having them at home is something that needs to be compensated for, and so we get them involved in plenty of outside activties. I have fallen prey to that, and have spent some really horrible long stretches of time where everything suffered, from the schooling to the housework to the family life...because I was consumed with running kids everywhere. Blech. I finally had to step back and ask myself - what am I doing? What do I want for our family? What is most important?

Our philosophy now is that home is the most important place, and our family unit is the most important social entity in their lives, and everything else needs to fit comfortably around that. This means that each child gets one outside activity. For my girls it is ballet, since classical ballet fits with our family's focus, values and interests so this is what we do. I will enroll my littler girls around age 5 or 6 for this. My boys get to choose one sport at a time. We have done piano lessons in the past and I am hoping to find a teacher who will come to our house. Add these to church activities, homeschool group park days, and scouts for the boys and this is one full schedule and all I can handle.

I know your situation might not be as extreme as ours with the number of children, but the basic thing I learned is that kids, especially when they're really young, really don't need or care about outside stuff unless we train them to. They are happy at home and I shouldn't stress about them doing this or that in addition to their home life. If they really like something in particular, then great, but I don't think you should feel it is necessary. As they enter middle years then an activity to help develop talents and interests becomes important to them.

All this is just my thoughts on the subject of course!

With your dd only being 5 or 6yrs, I think church and hs group are plenty if she is not asking for more.

When my ds (my oldest) was 5 we just did church and AWANA, hs park play times, and T-ball (which was 2 days a week for 2 mo).

I think young children only need 2 days a week or so of outside interaction unless they are asking for more.

You are doing fine. You can do more later as she gets older and as she wants to.

I know what you mean about housework not getting done if you're not home.

Katherine
ds 8 bigger
dd 5 LHTH and other workbooks
dd 2 3/4