Rhythm versus Routine in Homeschool

When I started homeschooling, I was coming from a traditional school mindset. You know, do this at this time. Turn in that at that time. Follow the teacher's lead. I found in homeschooling, I needed to let that go. I wasn't leading a traditional school. I was homeschooling because that was what was best for my children. If the traditional format wasn't ideal for them at traditional school, then why would I repeat the format of school at home?

So, in time, I transitioned to this new mindset. What is important for my particular family?

Sleep? Important! Fun? Important! Following the child's interests? Important! Predictability amid flexibility? Important!

Getting English done at exactly 10am? Not important. Making each lesson last a certain amount of time? Not important and perhaps boring. Doing the same subjects every day? Not important and perhaps limiting. Having the same exact school times as kids in traditional school? Not at all what we needed.

So, I started letting my children sleep more if they needed it (within boundaries). I ended a lesson if I detected overwhelm and shepherded the child to another thing. I started going more in-depth in a topic if that followed an interest, even if that messed with our routine. I made sure that we were covering the content, but throughout the year and not on a certain day or time. If we needed to add more work to a day, we did. If we needed to delete a lesson that day, we did. And you know what happened as I threw out my old ideas? We began to thrive. The children learned better. We were more relaxed. The kids found homeschool fun, and so did I.