We don’t normally take a month long Christmas break, but traveling, company, and our family vacation all made for an extended break. Starting back after a month off is really hard! The kids have been use to staying up later, sleeping in longer, and of course, not having any assignments. After surviving the first day with minimal issues I figured I would share with you some things I have learned over the years that helped us have a successful first day back.
Gradual Schedule Change
We just returned from vacation two days ago, so I didn’t want to wake the kids at 6am with a bullhorn. They have been use to sleeping in, so today I woke them earlier than usual, but not as early as they should be getting up. Their bodies are still on a stay up late schedule, and I wasn’t going to shock them back into real life. By the end of the week, they should be getting up at their previous wake up time.
State Your Expectations
Yesterday I printed out a schedule for each of the children and explained to them what subjects we would be tackling this week. I let them know before the week started what they needed to expect so we wouldn’t have any… “but I don’t do science” moments during our first day.
Lower Your Expectations
Kids are going to forget stuff and that’s okay. They might have a harder time sitting still or remembering their math facts, but after a few days they will be right back where they left off. Give some extra grace for the first few days back.
Have a Plan for the Baby!
The hardest part about going back to school for our family… Cora! She spent the last month getting attention from all the kids, all the time. Not to mention attention from Grandma’s, Grandpa’s, Aunts, Uncles, and friends. Today she had a hard time adjusting to not being the center of everyone’s world.
Plan Easy Meals
Starting a full school day after vacation is tiring! This is probably not the best time to plan a bulk cooking session or homemade pasta! This is a great opportunity to pull out a freezer meal or even cook up a frozen pizza to help take a little off your plate the first couple of days back.
Great advice! We’re often forced into an extended break in December because my dad is typically here for the whole month (this year he arrived in early Oct & left the eve of Dec 25th). We can usually manage our routine at first, but when my dad runs out of things to do it becomes difficult for us to stay on task. This is one of the reasons I switched to year-round homeschooling. It’s worked out so well that my boys are already a grade level ahead & life is just easier.
Still, we have to get back into the routines…and that’s always a challenge. I’m very much a fan of starting wading into the deep water from the shallow water…at least when it comes to returning to homeschooling after a long break.
Thanks for posting this. We’re back at it after 8 weeks off (end of pregnancy and new baby time and then some post partum health issues). This is my first year homeschooling and I was shocked at how much the kids had forgotten! I’m glad to hear that it’s normal and it will pass! We’re finishing our first real week tomorrow and I think they did very well at staying on task. I’m the one who was harder to motivate, but sleep deprivation will do that I suppose.
This break did get me thinking about year round schooling…hhmmm…must investigate.
Great post! I know that after we’ve had an extended break I get really panicked because it feels like we are so far behind. It’s a great reminder that easing them back in to a good routine is bettor than piling on the work. It definitely saves a little sanity on my part
Thanks for posting this. This is my first year homeschooling (preschool) and we took an extended break. I was thinking about getting back to routines next week while eating lunch today. I let my oldest (4 yrs old) know that we had to go back to lessons next week. I needed an idea on how to do that.
Happy New Year!