Homeschooling for the Summer

Since we are home educators, life and "school" often collide. Maybe a better word would be they coexist. Even more to the point, sometimes they are seamless so that we can't see where one begins and the other ends. Therefore, even though academics are greatly reduced through the summer months, we still have a lot of learning that can only be done when days are long, the weather is hot and school books are packed away.

I won't bore you with the details of our summer schedule, but here are my plans to keep up the learning even while enjoying "summer break":

• Have my soon-to-be first-grader read to me every day
• Practice multiplication facts and piano with my soon-to-be fourth-grader every day
• Train all three older children for more excellence in their chores
• Teach my five-year-old to tie his shoes and ride his bike (Busy Mom Confession: I just never got around to buying him shoes that tie or taking the training wheels off his bike yet!)
• Work more with my two-year-old on shapes, colors and alphabet letters
• Make sure they have plenty of time to play and be outdoors
• Field Trips, Nature Walks, Projects---these don't have to stop in the summer!

What are your "schooling" plans for the summer?