The school year will be wrapping up soon and the days are getting warmer. It’s becoming more and more tempting to skip studying and go outside, for both kids and parents. But, if you still have homeschool goals to reach, you need to be focused on your lesson plans.
5 Tips to Stay Focused at the End of the Homeschool Year
These tips will help you maintain your focus so you can make it through the end of the school year.
1. Set clear daily goals and stick to a routine.
Your daily routine should be habit by now. Even though it may be tempting to make a shift, force yourself to stick with it. Set your goals for each day in the morning and tell your kids what needs to be accomplished, then get to work. Motivate your kids to stay focused by telling them that if they get everything done early, they can knock off and go outside. This will help to keep them to stay focused throughout the day.
2. Use short lessons and break the work up.
Short lessons help your kids stay focused and allow them to be more productive. Keep their lessons to no more than 30 minutes each and then switch to something else. If you need more time on a lesson, come back to it later. The mental change of pace will help you both reach your daily goals easier and faster.
Between lessons, allow your child a sensory break. This can include jumping, running, climbing, playing outside, or some interactive play with someone else. Movement helps to keep your brain from tiring and becoming unproductive.
3. Provide a “quiet” place.
Remove visual distraction to help your child stay focused. A distracted child will easily find anything but work to look at. Removing distractions will help them to stay focused on the work in front of them.
A noisy area can be distracting too. Unless you’re playing classical music (which has been shown to improve your concentration) or white noise, eliminate all other noise from the study area.
4. Fidgeting is okay.
Kids will be kids; they have a lot of energy and need to move so they can release it. If they’re having trouble sitting still, find a way for them to release some energy so they can focus. Let them take their work to a new space like sitting on the back porch, laying on the floor, the sofa, or another quiet area they like.
5. Reward their focus.
At the end of the day, if your child has done all their lessons, give them a reward. Let them know what that reward will be in the morning so they have something to work towards throughout the day. Maybe it’s going over to a friend’s house, playing video games, or going to the park. Something that will inspire them to stay focused for the day.
Staying focused when spring rolls around is a problem that all of us deal with; we just want to get out and play in the sun! But if you can manage to maintain your productivity early in the day, you can finish up earlier and enjoy some time outside.
