I was going to call this post “In a Rut?” But that sounded negative. “The Same Old Path” sounds negative as well, but it isn’t necessarily.
Let me explain:
As homeschoolers, we have a lot of freedom and choice concerning our schedule or daily routine and what curriculum or books we use.
And if we have multiple children, we can pass down the books from child to child.
However, it seems that there is a steady stream of new curriculum that is produced, or at least new to me, as I hear about some marvelous books that someone else is using that they just love! Going to curriculum sales at homeschool conventions can be overwhelming. So much looks so good! It seems more exciting than what I have!
Whenever I have been tempted to buy something new, my husband has asked me, “Does what you have been using work?” And my answer would usually be “yes,” although sometimes I would give him reasons why the new item I wanted to purchase would work better.
It is a good thing to homeschool in the same way, with the same routine, and the same books if it is working well. There is nothing wrong with the same old path, if it is a good one.
But sometimes a change is needed, because all children are not the same. For example, I have used the same high school English writing course for most of my children. Last spring, I realized that it would be beneficial for one of my daughters to do a correspondence course in English instead of the same books I had used with the others. I had several reasons for making this decision and my husband supported me.
My daughter began this course. It was a whole new world tackling this, and involved more of my time to get her started and for us to figure out how to manage it. The English path I had trodden with so many of my children was a good path, comfortable, and involving minimum work from me.
It was acceptable and even good to follow the same path for most of my other children, but happily I was aware enough to realize that this daughter needed something different.
This is true regarding our daily schedule or routine. If it’s working, stay on it. If it’s not, change it. You have that freedom!