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5 Ways I Prepare My Heart for an Intentional Homeschool.

We are currently enjoying a few weeks’ holidays (not me though, I still get to work! 😀). As I look forward to resuming another structured learning term with my babies in January, I also know it is important to prepare beyond curriculum and lesson notes for a beautiful homeschool experience.

The beginning of a new term can be the opportunity we need to take a fresh look at our homeschool, to see what is truly working, and what can be tweaked or removed completely.

Without mincing words, homeschooling like many worthy efforts in life can be hard. This is a journey where you give so much of yourself every day and can quickly become a tiring and monotonous exercise. This is why preparing the heart for some of the challenges that may come is crucial.

Don’t forget that your homeschool is YOURS, it only has to reflect your vision for your family and doesn’t need to look like what you see on social media.

Here are 5 ways I prepared my heart for an intentional homeschool.

Renewal of intention: As a Muslim, the intention is the bedrock of our actions, and the best intention is that which is for the pleasure of Allah (God). Intention can turn gold into stone and stone into gold. We may embark on our homeschool journey with good intentions and then find ourselves getting off track due to the things we see other homeschoolers doing. The more you allow your own narrative to overshadow God’s guidance, the more aimless your struggles will be. Every time I renew my intention, I feel a tremendous sense of relief. I feel free of the unnecessary weight I carried on my shoulders to impress others.

Vision statement: Going through your homeschool vision is another beautiful way to prepare your heart. Homeschooling is hard and it is easy to unconsciously switch gear mid-air just to fall back into old comfortable habits that do not align with our homeschool vision. If you don’t have a homeschool vision, do sign up below for my upcoming course where I will be taking you through crafting your homeschool vision.

“A vision is not just a picture of what could be, it is an appeal to our better selves, a call to become something more.” – Moss Kanter.

Reflection on the past year/term: As homeschoolers, we will face different challenges during each term or year, so reflecting upon what worked and what didn’t help us learn from the experience. As an example, I am contemplating stopping my son’s online madrasa class because he is struggling. Trying to get him to concentrate takes more time than teaching him myself. Also, if I were to take over his Qur’an lesson, I would devise a more comprehensive, yet flexible plan. In addition, I am considering reintroducing lapbooks as a way to make learning certain topics and subjects more hands-on.

“We do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience” – John Dewey.

Plan a sustainable Routine: It is important that your homeschool routine is sustainable to avoid everyone getting overwhelmed and demotivated before the 3rd week. Try to be flexible because life is designed to happen in unexpected ways. Make sure you have a minimum viable plan for your homeschool to prepare for such days. Don’t forget to sign up for my upcoming course below.

Read or watch something uplifting: I take this time to rewatch some of the homeschool courses I had taken in the past to seek encouragement and affirmation. I also love watching Jady A’s Youtube videos, they do help prepare my heart for a beautiful homeschool experience. I also try to read books like Call of Wild + Free and Homeschool Bravely. You can read or listen to both books for free on Scribd.

I hope these five points of mine will help you prepare for your homeschooling too. If you have any additional tips to share, please drop them in the comment below.