The Johnson Crew!

Hi there my name is Sarah and I'm a homeschooling mom to four kiddos from the ages of nine to two and I am so excited to share with you today my top five tips for new homeschooling families if you are just thinking about homeschooling this is a great video for you but especially if you have just jumped in and you're like what in the world have I gotten myself into and you need some encouragement this is the place for you so I'm so glad you're here

So excited that you're on this homeschooling journey and I'm excited to share my experiences and anything that we have found to be helpful with you so let's dive on in number one it is not as complicated as it looks from the outside think about it anything you've done in your life anything that's brand new to you it's intimidating at first right it's scary when you don't know what you're doing once you get into something and you you learn it and you figure it out you have that that hindsight

And you go wow this was not as hard as I thought it was going to be right we've all had experiences like that and that's exactly how homeschooling is too so try to see your apprehension objectively and know that once you get into it get your hands dirty you will feel right at home see what it is you do not have to be a certified teacher you don't even have to be a college grad because curriculums really do all the heavy lifting for you especially if you get a video based curriculum one thing that made me super nervous is getting into the more complex subjects the higher grades

But honestly there are tutors out there and then if you feel like well that's an expensive option there are youtube videos that explain virtually anything I feel like you can find anything you need to on the web nowadays so just know that it's not going to be solely up to you and your knowledge to teach your child there are tons of other resources that you can pull from trust me I never wanted to be a teacher and it was very intimidating to start this process

But as I've gotten into it I've been really relieved by how much the curriculum teaches them for me I'm really just reading it to them or this year especially we've picked curriculums that are video based so they have someone teaching them so there are plenty of options out there that make it way easier on the parent than you might think number two remember that things come in seasons so if you feel like things are really tough right now just know it will not always be this way your kids are constantly learning

So if they hit a wall with some type of concept in school and it's so frustrating it's not always going to be that way they're going to eventually get it and master it and one day you're going to go oh wow like we're we're way past that and he's doing great she's doing awesome and you'll be the most proud you've ever been and your kids are constantly growing and maturing so if there are behavioral issues that you're worried about or that are causing problems right

Now remember that they will eventually grow past those and they won't be those same issues anymore just keep being diligent in your discipline and in your encouragement for them to do the right thing and you will eventually see the fruits of your effort as time goes on it's kind of a long game this this parenting thing right but we can do it and if things aren't tough yet that is amazing but probably best to go ahead and prepare yourself for the possibility of things getting tough as you hit new phases with your kids because you just don't want things to overwhelm you eventually

So getting prepped and thinking about how you're going to be a creative problem solver when things do come along is a good idea number three you are not alone even if you're the only person in real life locally that you know homeschooling right now trust me you're not the only person locally homeschooling I'm sure there are people around you homeschooling that you just haven't met yet so put that to prayer that you'll meet new homeschooling families and one way to go about that is to look up groups on facebook we have several groups in our area that are homeschooling groups they're either co-ops where you can go

And take a class or they're just fun groups where you can go and have a field trip with a group of people or you can meet up at the playground with a group and that's a great way to meet families that have kids of similar ages so your kids can make friends right you could even put a post in one of those groups inviting people to a playground near you one day so y'all can meet it's so wonderful to have other homeschooling moms to bounce ideas off of

And get that encouragement and support from so community is super important to helping you along this journey but in the meantime take advantage of the community that's here on youtube there are tons of homeschooling mamas right here on youtube you can go watch their videos plug in by commenting ask whatever questions you have go check out my video list after this and I'm sure there's something else there that is going to be helpful to you and if you have other questions that I haven't covered please ask me those for sure number four be content with the space that you have for school right

Now so if you don't have a particular room to do homeschooling in if you're just doing it at the kitchen table don't let that discourage you I have a video that I'll put in the description box below that has some tips on how to manage doing school that way so that your house doesn't feel like it's taken over by school stuff but if you would like to have a special school space start making goals for how you can achieve that future space for instance one of my friends moved two of her kids into the same room

And used the other room for their school room that's a great way to do it we started out at our kitchen table then we moved to our playroom and did it at that table and then we changed our whole playroom up and made it into a school room and so now we do have that school space which I've yet to decorate that is next on my goal list to do but as nice as it is to have that special space where everything can go and you can close the door at the end of the day don't let it discourage you if you don't have that right

Now because there are plenty of great ways to organize your space to make it still feel very functional and organized so there are a lot of other videos on youtube of moms who have tiny spaces that they're working with and they have amazing home school room tours or kitchen table home school room tours so check those out look those up here on youtube and I'm sure you'll be motivated and inspired number five last but not least set up a behavior system a rewards and consequences system that's specific to your home school time we do need order in order to get things done

And not be pulling our hair out right but being teacher mom presents some unique challenges so we do have to think outside the box a little bit in order to make this school time run smoothly if you're worried that your child isn't going to get their work done in a timely manner or pay attention or you're just worried that you'd be battling it out every day or if that's what's happening right now then you need to put a behavior system in place I have a whole other video that explains our system I'll link that above

And in the description box below I would highly recommend checking that out next but it explains how we have this star store that we do every friday and they they've earned stars up through the week and whatever stars they have left they didn't lose for bad behavior then they get to buy something from the star store with those stars that has been a big game changer now if they lose all of their stars for the day they do get a punishment at the end of the school time

So they've got the reward and consequence side of this system that has actually really really motivated them to do better and it's been a lot easier on me as the parent and teacher so definitely go check that out next I could keep going but I will stop at those five for now as to not overwhelm you or bore you but thanks so much for sticking it out to this point I'm so thrilled for you in this journey of homeschooling it is a hard journey but it is

So so worth it and it may be hard at times to see those long-term positive effects that you're having on your kids but know that they're there and it may be hard to sacrifice the time it takes to do this but you're gonna see the fruits of this good good work down the road and you're gonna be so proud and so thankful that you stuck it out if you're feeling more confident now after watching this video please give it a thumbs up if you're new here I love to talk about all things homeschooling

And life as a family of six and traveling together so if that interests you I would love to have you join us here you can go ahead and click that subscribe button below and join us here every week I am praying for your school year that it may be filled with graceful inspiring learning for your kids and that god may do his refining work in your character as you're teaching them and that you will be blessed through it all in so many ways until next time happy schooling