Everyone looks forward to summer break – swimming in the pool, vacations, lazy mornings, and lots of time outside. Well, here in Arizona, the summers are brutal. It’s a time of year most people dread. For me, summer isn’t a time to be outside all day. In fact, my kids do school during the summer. You might think I’m a mean, horrible mom, but let me share reasons for year-round schooling, which yes, does include schooling during the summer.
1. Less stress
I am less stressed doing school year-round. My kids are young and often get colds. We have days where we don’t do as much school simply because everyone is crabby and tired. Not having a deadline to finish school helps me to relax.
2. Good use of time
My kids do well having a routine. If I were to stop school during the summer, my kids would want to do something fun to do or want to go somewhere. It’s too hot to play outside, so indoor play areas are an option. Guess what happens when we go to an indoor play place? We get sick. So, we stay hom, do school, and read lots of books. The hot days are for school and the cool days are for parks. This leads me to my next point.
3. Create your my schedule
This is my favorite reason to school year-round. I can create a school week that works for us. We do school four days a week and use Fridays for going to parks or inviting friends over to play. My three-year old naps in the afternoon. If we go out then it has to be in the morning, which means we give up our best time for the boys to do their school. I want my younger kids to have the same experiences that my older children had before we started homeschooling, which is getting out and going to the park, the zoo, and seeing friends. By doing school four days a week, everyone gets what they need. Even though I am not formally homeschooling my three-year old, I take her into consideration. She enjoys her playtime at home, but she also looks forward to going somewhere fun with her brothers on Fridays.
4. More time off:
When kids take their summer break, they regress. Teachers spent the first month reviewing and assessing their students. By doing year-round schooling, we gain more learning time. We can skip the review time and keep moving on. This means we can take smaller breaks here and there and do not suffer any significant academic loss.
This summer I took off four weeks. We took two weeks off in June and two weeks off in August. When we started up in August, I implemented new curriculum, routines, and restructured our day so it worked for everyone. Even though there’s not an official stopping point, there’s a time to refresh and introduce new things. Right now, while most homeschoolers are gearing up for the new year, I am waiting for cooler weather and looking forward to a couple weeks off in October. Our schedule looks nothing like most school calendars, but it works for us. I can change it whenever I want. That’s what I love about homeschooling.
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