motherhood

How to Homeschool When You’re Overwhelmed

How to homeschool in lockdown

Homeschooling is not easy. Pretending like it is only leads to further pressure and more stress! But how do you homeschool your kids when stress levels are rising and things feel like they’re falling apart?

Read on to find out how to homeschool when you’re feeling overwhelmed. 

How to Homeschool : 12 ways to homeschool when you're overwhelmed!

How to Homeschool AND Take Care of You

First of all, you need to make sure you are taken care of. You cannot possibly hope to be in the best form for your children if you are feeling depleted and stressed.

Follow your own pursuits 

When we become mothers, we find ourselves dedicating every moment we have to our kids. We forget that we are also women with our own goals, own desires, and our own dreams. Don’t neglect these! Find time in your week to follow your own pursuits whether its painting, pursuing your own learning, or playing an active sport. Try to do anything to help you wind down and feel happy and content!

.

How to have a homeschool breaks 

Breaks are essential when it comes to homeschooling, but how many of us regularly take advantage of a break? We make sure to give our children breaks from their schoolwork and time for snacks or some fresh air. But make sure you also take a break and not use it as a chance to do other chores or tasks! Breaks are just as important for mum as for the kids. Use this time to have a cup of tea, meditate, or just sit outside for a little bit. These regular breaks throughout the day are extremely effective in refreshing you to continue the day ahead. 

How to homeschool when you feel overwhelmed and stressed. Charlotte Mason quote

RELATED: To find out how a homeschool day looks for us, check out Our Muslim Homeschool’s Day In The Life!

Physical needs 

As mums, we also regularly neglect our own physical needs. Make sure you’re eating properly, staying hydrated and getting plenty of rest at night. If you are feeling tired, weak, or hungry you cannot be in the best state to teach your children. By attending to your own physical needs and taking care of yourself, you will reduce the chances of burning out quickly and feeling that all-too-familiar exhaustion!

Reward yourself 

Just like your kids get rewards to motivate them and keep them on task, mums should have rewards too! As you work your way through each day, week and month of homeschooling, reward yourself. You deserve it! Homeschooling is just as challenging for you as it is for your children and you should celebrate your achievements. Whether that’s buying yourself something, taking time out to be with friends or even having a quiet night in with a bubble bath!

How to homeschool when you feel overwhelmed and stressed from our muslim homeschool
.

How to have a homeschool mentality

The beauty of homeschooling is you can be as different from school as you want to be and keep the features you love. This is YOUR homeschool. So, make it yours. 

Don’t compare 

Everyone has a unique way of homeschooling because no two families are the same. Sure, we may borrow certain ideas from each other, but even our execution of those ideas varies depending on the unique differences of our children. We each face different struggles, so never compare your progress to those of other homeschools. You may be achieving things another mother struggles with. Remember, people rarely share the extent of their difficulties on social media, so avoid comparing yourself to the people you see in your Instagram and Facebook feeds. 

How to homeschool when you're overwhelmed and stress. Don't compare! From our Muslim Homeschool

Keep it simple

This is your homeschool with a limited number of children. You don’t have to accommodate for a class of 25-30 children. So, do yourself a favour and keep your life simple! Start with the basics of reading, writing and mathematics. Then you can slowly work your way into other subjects, some of which may only require you to read a book aloud to your children and encourage some discussion.  

.

Scrap it! 

If something isn’t working for you or your children, SCRAP IT. You don’t have to prove anything. Some things click with some families but cause complete chaos in another. You’re in charge, so you choose what you do as a family. When you spend time and money on a new curriculum or resource it can be tempting to keep going with it no matter what, but if it is creating negative learning experiences for your child, don’t be afraid to stop. With any new curriculum, especially the pricier ones, it’s always best to try some form of trial or sample before you commit money to it. Make sure it’s something you and your children will benefit from. 

How to homeschool when you feel overwhelmed and stressed

Be gentle

Always be gentle with yourself, particularly at the beginning of your homeschool journey. This is a hard road for even the most experienced veteran homeschoolers. It doesn’t necessarily get easier, you just get better at troubleshooting and knowing what works for you. Every new year can be like starting again and learning new things as your child grows and enters a new year/grade. Take one day at a time and celebrate the small wins. 

How to make homeschool easy

Having the right mentality is one thing, but this is much easier if you have made practical steps to making your homeschool tasks easier. Whilst the ideal scenario is sitting and working with your kids as they complete magnificent, sophisticated pieces of work, this isn’t usually the reality. Some days you’ll be lucky if you read a single book together. And that’s ok. But there are things you can incorporate into your homeschool day to make lessons a little easier. 

How to homeschool when you're overwhelmed and stressed. Charlotte Mason quote

The joy of reading aloud 

Reading aloud is probably the most popular homeschool activity. And for good reason – it is highly effective! Give your children something to work with such as Lego blocks, jigsaw puzzles or colouring. Then select a book to read to them. This can be a fictional book which is above their reading level or even a non-fiction book for subjects like History or Science. Read aloud to your kids and then discuss the contents together. You’ll be surprised by how much they absorb!

RELATED: Click here to find out what books we’ve read in our homeschool.

Gameschooling 

Learning through play has always been the primary way children learn at a young age. Thankfully, there are plenty of games out there with education and key skills built right in. Head to Word United to see some amazing examples of games with purpose. When either you or your children feel the frustration rising and the workbooks are being discarded in a huff and a puff, grab some games! Your kids won’t even realise they are still learning as they enjoy the delightful change of pace!

How to homeschool when you're overwhelmed with gameschooling

Get them online

The internet can provide more than resources for us to print and laminate. There are multiple websites which are designed to help children independently take charge of their learning. Khan Academy and Khan Academy Kids are perfect examples of programmes which facilitate your child’s learning in a range of subjects. And it’s completely free! The fact that your children can navigate these websites pretty much independently means it can grant you some extra time for a break or to get some other things done.  

.

Get outside

In the end, there is no greater remedy for feeling overwhelmed than going outside. Just breathing fresh air and having gentle exercise each day will help both you and your children feel refreshed. If you want, your children can take their nature journaling supplies, but it’s not necessary. You’ll be amazed at how much learning and development happens when children are just relaxed and having fun in nature! 

How to homeschool when you're overwhelmed from our Muslim Homeschool

How do you homeschool? 

There is no doubt homeschooling WILL feel overwhelming at times, but make sure you look after yourself and take advantage of the flexibility homeschooling provides. 

How do you make life easier when homeschooling gets overwhelming? What tips do you have for making homeschool life smoother when it feels like it’s spiralling out of control?

Drop all your tips and advice in the comments below!

.

No more Kisses for Auntie! | Why Children’s Consent Matters

Teaching children about consent has become more important than ever. Consent is about allowing children to voice their emotions and say “no,” when something feels wrong or uncomfortable. It is a crucial part of their safety, and of our responsibility as parents, and yet within our communities we don’t talk about it enough.

The explosion of the #metoo movement is enough evidence that we need to actively start teaching consent to our children; not when they hit puberty, but as early as two years of age.

Teaching children consent at home. child safety, me too

This blogpost contains affiliate links. Please see Disclaimer for more information.

It may sound like a complex concept, but some practices if made a part of daily life, can easily instill this value in your child.

Before they even learn to speak, children are learning by observing and copying all that is happening in their environment. It is essential that we ‘model’ consent by practicing it with our spouses, friends, and other children around them, so they begin to understand what ‘consent’ looks like. 

When they are two, start with giving them a choice in expressing consent and then honour it. Please remember, they only get a choice in situations that don’t involve any health or safety hazards. Sitting in a car seat, going for a vaccination, adhering to their bedtime, or wearing a jacket when it’s two degrees outside would be some of the examples. 

Image: http://www.elisegravel.com

Some choices they can make

“Do you want to wear starry PJs tonight or these dino ones?”

“Which book are we reading; Elmer the elephant or The Very Hungry Caterpillar?”

“Can I kiss you goodnight?” Respect their answer.

Model consent by asking permission before you change their clothes or wash their body in the shower. Wait for them to say yes before you proceed. 

“Can I help you wash your back now?”

Allowing Children to say NO!

Children must understand that ‘No’ and ‘Stop’ are important words, to be honoured at all times. 

If you are tickling them and they scream “Stop, stop” even as they’re laughing and having fun, stop tickling them immediately. 

Encourage your children to ask for permission before touching, hugging or showing any kind of physical affection. 

Teaching children consent

For example, if Maha wants to hug her friend goobye, you can say:

“Maha, let’s ask Ali if he wants a hug right now!”

If Ali clearly says ‘No’, or does not say ‘Yes’, you can cheerfully ask your child to wave goodbye instead. 

“That’s okay, let’s wave bye bye to Ali!”

Similarly, do not force them to receive affection either, even from their aunts or uncles. 

“Would you like to kiss Aunty Asiya goodbye?”

If they say no, respect their choice. 

“Its ok, you can wave her goodbye, or blow her a kiss?”

Why Children’s Consent Matters

As we aim for a more inclusive world, we have to remember that there are individuals amongst us with additional needs, who may not be comfortable with any kind of physical contact at all. This is another reason why asking for permission before touching or hugging someone is so important. 

We must teach our children that when somebody says No, or Stop, they must discontinue their behavior. 

“Ali said no, and when we hear No, we must stop what we are doing immediately. No matter what.”

Also tell them that their No and Stop has to be respected and followed through by their friends. 

“If you don’t like something and say No, your friend should stop. If they do not stop, it is okay to not play with them anymore.”

Intervene on their behalf if you have to and politely let the other child know the importance of honouring someone’s No and Stop.

Resources about Children Consent

Reading a book about Consent also helps in making this concept easier and simpler for children to understand. It also gives you a range of characters and situations to talk about as examples. No Means No! by Janeen Sanders is a great book about Consent that can be read with as little as 3 year olds!

Image result for no means no book

Teaching Consent has to be an ongoing dialogue with your child, not just a one time discussion.

I hope this article helps parents and caregivers ease in to this discussion with their little ones. I will highly recommend printing the above poster from http://www.elisegravel.com and pasting it on your child’s bedroom wall or door, so it’s always visible to revise and reinforce.

If you hit any roadblocks, or need answers to any questions or confusions, please feel free to write to me or leave them in the comments below.

Author Bio:

Rafia Amber is an Early Intervention Specialist with seven years of experience working with children with additional challenges. Throughout her career she has supported children in developing their academic, sensory, social and communication skills, and overcoming challenging behaviours.  Her experience ranges from one-on-one sessions in the home environment to classroom settings in inclusive schools and early intervention centers. 

Rafia has recently started blogging onInstagram to share her expertise with parents and caregivers. She aims to raise awareness about unconventional concepts such as Body Privacy, Consent, Safe/Unsafe touch, Abuse Prevention Strategies etc, that are indispensable for a child’s development. You can follow her HERE!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?tap_a=42307-3a677f&tap_s=411756-91095a&v=65k41TkdTAI

I’m Just a Mum…Is that Enough?

This week I was LIVE on the Our Muslim Homeschool Instagram and Facebook accounts talking about a topic very common in mothers, low self-esteem. Do you ever refer to yourself as “Just a Mum?” Then this broadcast is for you!

We talked about:

  • Blame
  • My personal experience with self-doubt
  • 5 Steps to Increasing Your Feelings of Self-worth
  • Mothers with low self-esteem raise children with low self-esteem
  • Q&As

In this episode I spoke from the heart about my experience and gave my sincere advice to any mother who suffers with self-esteem issues.

These 5 steps will increase your self-esteem, so that you don’t say anymore, “I’m a just a mum.”

Instead you’ll say, “I’m a stay at home mum and it’s the best thing that could ever have happened to me!”

Here it is! Enjoy!

WATCH THIS VIDEO!

Products Mentioned:

Positive Affirmations for Mums

Next Week’s Episode:

You can join me LIVE next Sunday, 6th January 2019, at 10am GMT where we’ll be talking about:

“Built to Last – Securing Your Homeschool for the Future”

Make sure to follow me on Instagram or Facebook so you watch LIVE!

Did you miss a previous episode? Don’t worry, you can watch ALL previous here on my blog. Just CLICK HERE for the round-up. Alternatively you can watch them our the YouTube Playlist .

If you have any questions, please leave them for me in the comments below. See you next Sunday insha’Allah.

Peace and Love,

Living history curriculum islamic