As I said a few weeks ago, sometimes we do school in the summer, and sometimes we don’t. But in both cases, we have a much more relaxed schedule. It certainly helps that the church cuts back on activities for the summer, as does our homeschool group.
A looser schedule lets moms spend more one-on-one time with each child. Having four children, I found that I often looked at them as a group; the laid-back feeling of summer seemed to give me permission to take time alone with each of them, and we sure enjoyed that.
How to spend that time? That was never a problem with the girls. My eldest loved to go shopping with me, while my younger daughter preferred time spent doing something together, like baking or sewing.
As for the boys, my older son wasn’t as interested in spending time alone with good old Mom as he was having her take him somewhere he wanted to go or to get something he wanted without the whole gang trooping along. And that was fine; I learned that even time spent sitting in traffic and talking uninterrupted was good for both of us.
My younger son was used to having alone time with me every week because I drove him to a speech therapist an hour away. We’d sing in the car and stop for McDonald’s somewhere en route, and that was enough for him. However, he was also very happy to have my full attention on those rare occasions when my husband took the older three to an amusement park for the day, or the movies for an afternoon.
Spending time alone with your children, one on one, helps your relationship with each of them grow in a different way than when the whole group is together. Summertime is the perfect time to start a routine of occasional one-on one-time. Why not give it a try?
As a father of three boys (and a teacher), I was always interested in cramming as many dad-son adventures as possible during the summer. I also established a tradition called Summer Daily Brainwork, which allowed me to teach everything that the public schools didn’t get around to teaching. Check out my article http://penningtonpublishing.com/blog/study_skills/summer-daily-brainwork/ when you have time.
I LOVE one on one time with my kiddos. You get to see them in a whole new light.
With the economy the way it is and jobs hard to fine, what would you recommend doing with a 19 y/o (just graduated from homeschool), who isn’t sure what he wants to do next and can’t find a job??? He’s considering tech school (with MUCH encouragement) but he’s on a waiting list and can’t start until Jan. 2010. We also have 2 other sons, 14y/o and 16 y/o who are homeschooling. They are still working on a lighter school schedule this summer.
~Denise~
We do the same here. We are going to work on math and lit over the summer but it is free time for them. They each have their own interests. I find that when they spend this time off peak I still can see the learning going on.
I think this is a great idea and can be creatively done in so many ways. Great advice, Barb! 🙂
We have what my kids call “our night” once a week. After everybody else goes to bed we play a game, draw, look at the stars, or whatever and have a snack together. I do it with two kids at a time most of the time, because I have six and whew! They love it.
Denise, have you considered an unpaid apprenticeship in a field your son is interested in? Yeah, it’s unpaid, but he’d be more sure about what he really wants and he’d have practical experience which would lead to well paid positions later, while his peers are still flippin’ burgers to get through school. Have him write a proposal to someone in the field, explaining his goals and perhaps add a recomendation from someone. I’d take free help and a willing learner if it was me.
Thanks everyone, for stopping by, and do read Michelle’s comment for a great way to have one-on-one time when you have a large family 🙂