Everyone needs a break from their lessons once in a while. Even if you homeschool year-round, you likely take a couple of weeks off here and there. As we all know, the institutional school model includes a long break in the summer months, but have you ever thought about bucking this tradition and either not taking an extended break at all or maybe taking an extended break in the winter? More and more homeschool families are opting for a winter break instead of a longer summer break. Taking time off in the wintertime has several advantages that you may not have thought of and whether this choice is right for your family is family-specific and will be based on a variety of factors. Below are some factors to consider.
Taking a long winter break can help you to de-stress your holidays. With no lessons to worry about, you will be free to relax and enjoy all of the holiday excitement. Having relatives come to stay with you or traveling to stay with family for the holidays is more enjoyable when you don’t have to worry about school. Chances are your children won’t be very focused on their lessons anyway with all of the holiday excitement. I know mine aren’t. Sometimes you just have to choose your battles and homeschooling through the holiday season doesn’t have to be one of them.
Some people really like hot weather and others not so much. If your family prefers cooler temperatures, then a winter break just makes sense. Why have your free time in the summer when it’s too hot outside to enjoy it? Another plus is that you won’t have to struggle to keep your children on task while they’re watching snowflakes fall and daydreaming about the snowmen and snow forts they would like to be building. I’m sure you remember sitting at your desk trying to concentrate on math while the first winter snow was falling outside.
You will also be free to enjoy those rare sunny and warm days in the wintertime. We’ve all sat longingly looking out the window on those beautiful days, wishing that we could just push the books aside and head out to enjoy the lovely break in the weather, knowing that the warm weather is fleeting and the next snow will be around the corner. When you’re already on break, you can just head outside without that guilty feeling that you should really be studying history instead.
Taking vacations in the summer is nice, but escaping to somewhere warm and sunny when it’s cold and snowy at home is so much more satisfying. This is one reason that taking a winter break is so appealing to so many people. Taking a long break in winter means you can extend your vacation plans and not feel so rushed instead of having only a week or two to plan something fun. It also expands your vacation opportunities with things that you can’t do in the summer. For example, instead of heading to the beach you could go on a ski trip, go snowmobiling or even go ice fishing.
Winter break may not be the best choice for all families, but we can certainly see why it appeals to so many. Of course, summer break has its benefits as well. If you’re torn between the two you can always split it up by making your summer break half as long and taking the rest of the time off in the winter. That way you’ll have the best of both worlds.
Do you sometimes need someone to talk to as you go along this homeschool mom life? Sometimes even we as adults need to learn from others to be able to effectively teach our kids. This is where our Homeschool Coaches come in. Each of our Homeschool Coaches has a wealth of knowledge and is eager to help you navigate the challenges homeschooling brings in order to make your experience less stressful, and less confusing, and to reduce your learning curve. Reach out to a Homeschool Coach today. We exist to serve you!