When we home educate, no, when we parent, we are raising a WHOLE child, and teaching a whole child, not just a brain. When planning our homeschool, we need to give attention to all 3 pillars of educating our children: the mind, the body, and the soul.
Home education can be overwhelming as we think about all of the things we want to teach our children and lessons we want them to learn. It didn’t dawn on me until several years into our journey, that focusing on just academics in our homeschool won’t cut it.
You are not just a brain, and neither are your children. We are made up of a body and soul as well, that need tending to and exercise just as much as the mind. Many will roll Bible into homeschool as a subject and see sports as just an extra-curricular activity.
As such, we should structure our homeschool accordingly and no longer neglect these other key pillars.
Building Well-Rounded Homeschool with the 3 Pillars
To achieve balance in our education and homeschool, we must make sure that we don’t just exercise our minds, but our bodies and souls as well!
When we think of homeschooling we tend to hyper focus on the academics. Really there are 3 key areas, or pillars in our education. We are not just made up of a mind, we also have a body and a soul that need exercise as well. Here are some ideas on how to break down the 3 pillars of homeschool and build the ‘muscles’ of each.
Pillar 1: the Mind
The academic portion sometime seems straight forward but then we get into the planning portion and can get overwhelmed or distracted. Here are some suggestions to help with keeping your academic education planning on track:
- Teach them HOW to learn instead of WHAT to learn.
- Kids are naturally curious, tap into their interests and expand from there.
- Make it fun! Goof around, make jokes, be silly, stop being so serious! Not only does fun make learning enjoyable, but it makes learning memorable.
- learning styles don’t exist earning styles is a myth. I know some of you may be shocked by this but check out this video and do some more research. Point is, mix it up and use as many learning styles as you are able to, in order to best solidify concepts.
- Don’t skip memory work. In a digital age of instant gratification, we need more than ever to exercise our ability to MEMORIZE.
- Make memorization purposeful. We are not teaching for a test but to give anchors of information that our kids can “hang” related information to and organize for their brains what they are learning. Like a filing system.
- Separate skill subjects from content subjects. The 3 R’s are the skill subjects, science, history, geography etc. are content subjects.
- Create more than you consume. Education and child development goes way beyond consuming facts and information. Play, build, draw, design, invent, bake, grow, sing, converse, craft, write, and imagine.
Pillar 2: the Body
This too seems straight forward at first, but when you start to think about all of the life skills, social skills, and physical needs that our children need to learn to navigate while in our homes, it can quickly become overwhelming!
Here are some key bullet points to cover for exercising the body in the homeschool:
- Life skills–find a list by age and stage to help keep you on track.
- Social skills– errands, playdates, classes and co-ops etc.
- Exercise (strength and endurance) sports are great for this.
- Current Events–knowing the world around them on a grander scale is important. We enjoy World Watch News each weekday.
- Food–how we fuel our bodies matters. Trying new foods, eating a balance of food groups, reading labels, etc. is an on-going education. Pair with helping in the kitchen, learning to cook, or starting a garden.
- Personal Hygiene– daily habits and routines, educating them about how to take care of themselves and changes as they get older.
Pillar 3: the Soul
If spiritual education is a priority in the home, it should get it’s own category! Many homeschoolers integrate Bible into their curriculum or make Bible a “subject” they cover, but it is a significant part of a person that needs tending to and regular “exercise.”
- Read the Bible together
- Learn the basics about the Bible (check out What’s in the Bible, The Bible Project,) we have been doing Picture Smart Bible on and off over the years and it is great for a wide range of ages, adults included.
- Attending Church and or Sunday School
- Daily devotionals (we love the Indescribable Series)
- Memorize Scripture (also exercises those mind muscles!)
- Pray together (start with the Lord’s Prayer), pray for each other and others regularly.
Building a Homeschool Plan Using the 5 P’s
Here are 5 key parts, also known as the 5 P’s to homeschool Planning.
1. Purpose
Knowing your Purpose for Homeschool is important. Knowing your “why” and having a Mission Statement for your homeschool will help keep your focus on track and direct your priorities and goals.
2. Prioritize
Prioritization helps narrow down and order what needs to be done and how often. Unfortunately, we can’t fit in everything we want. Decide what is most important to meet your goals and vision for home education. This is where goal setting takes place. Keep your eyes fixed on the purpose or mission statement. Are we working toward college? Entrepreneurship? Living independently? What’s most important at each age and stage? What can we let go?
3. Personalize
Personalize the plan fit your personality, your child’s interests, and your family’s values and culture. Don’t fear doing things differently than what you grew up with or what your neighbor is doing. Every homeschool should reflect the personalities and interests of those involved parents and children alike.
4. Plan
Make an actionable plan. This is what most homeschoolers think about when it comes to homeschool planning. The actual Plan! If we jump in headfirst with no direction or guidance, we will quickly drown in all of our ideas and assumptions of what homeschool should look like.
5. Progress
Reaching toward our goals, we need to step back regularly to assess our progress. Are we staying on track? Does a curriculum need tweaking? Does our routine fit our schedule and needs? Has anything fallen off the plan that needs to be picked up again? Does something need to be dropped for more breathing room? Assess regularly, Qtly is great, Semi-Annually is good, Annually is bare minimum.
Let’s Talk About it!
Drop a comment below>>>
What part of the planning process has been the most challenging for you?
Have you skipped anything and had to go back?
We can always improve and learn from others, lets share what’s working and help each other out!