Homeschooling During the Holidays- Part II

In our previous post, Homeschooling During the Holidays, we presented some suggestions to help you get your heart and mind ready for the challenges — and blessings — of the holidays. Now, it’s time to build on that foundation with some practical suggestions! We’d love to guide you through holiday homeschooling with specific ideas on how to make the most of this special season.

If you want to continue on with classes, schedule a block of time every day — suitable for your child’s comfort level — during which you concentrate on lessons. The rest of the day can be spent in preparation and celebration of the season.

Some Helpful Tips and lesson ideas for the holiday season:

• Research holiday traditions from around the world or from your family’s history. Have your child interview family members or acquaintances from different cultures and generations, then write about them in a journal or create a family tree!
• Develop character by teaching them how to help others during the holidays through service. Consider serving in a rescue mission or helping the neighbors shovel snow or rake leaves.

• Draw out your child’s creative energies by having them write a holiday poem or song, or write a seasonal skit. Be sure to take pictures and make a scrapbook or photo album.
• “Aww, do we have to do math during the holidays?” Certainly! Build a gingerbread house and learn about angles, circles, archways, and measurements. Take a look at architecture and housing around the world.
• Engage in some winter sports to keep fit, learn about the body, and work off some of those holiday meals!
• Because winter brings the plants indoors, take time to study the stories and growth patterns of winter plants like poinsettias, mistletoe, and evergreen trees.

Of course, if you fear the children will lose the “Use it or lose it” game, you will want to continue their studies in some form as covered above. Here is a site that offers A Holiday Curriculum: With Online Resources and Activities, by Diane Flynn Keith. You will find a holiday basket-full of ideas for relating holiday activities to curricular subjects! For some fun activities with a little learning thrown in, look at the Top Ten Advent Activities Round-up! – from Autistic Mama.

In a season of thanksgiving and gift-giving, keep in mind that the most memorable, rustproof, no-assembly-required, fully-rechargeable, timeless and ageless gift, is wrapped up in your heart: the gift of love and time together!

Loving and learning go together while homeschooling during the holidays!

Please share your personal suggestions and thoughts with us below — and happy homeschool holidays!