Battling the Burnout: What to do when homeschooling gets hard.

Homeschool burnout can put a heavy weight on the shoulders of not only us parents, but our students too. Our planning can fall behind, our children can become less motivated, and our overall will to move forward is stretching pretty thin. Firstly we need to understand that burnout is... NORMAL. It is normal to grow tired of things, bored of things, and irritated with things. These feelings are normal, for both parents and students, especially in the spring time when energy tends to dip. However, just like spring brings new life, so can this season breathe fresh air into your homeschool.

Signs of Homeschool Burnout

"Like wilting flowers, we all show signs when we're not getting what we need." Here are some things to look out for in yourself when looking for the signs of burnout:

• irritability

• lack of motivation

• guilt

• lack of planning

• distancing from others/the community

As stated previously, it's OKAY to have these feelings, but understanding why they are present and how to navigate them is going to help tremendously. Here are some things to look out for in your littles when looking for signs of burnout:

• resistance

• boredom

• defiance

• lack of motivation

• emotional outbursts

In children it can be a little harder to spot these signs as most children tend to go through this emotions throughout childhood regardless of homeschooling or burnout. Understanding how your children function, what they need out of their education, and how to move forward is going to ensure a successful homeschool journey.

Root Causes of Burnout

"Before we plant something new, we need to understand what drained the soil." Burnout doesn't just happen at random, there are often things that have led up to this feeling. Identifying and understanding what these causes are can not only help combat them currently, but also help to deter or eliminate them in the future also. Below are a few of the most common causes of homeschool burnout.

1. Overloaded Schedule: when we overload our schedule with too many activities, subjects, outings, and projects, we can quickly feel the weight of our to-do list and begin to feel burnt out. Keeping a lighter, more manageable schedule will enable us to feel accomplished and refreshed.

2. Lack of Support or Community: while the purpose of homeschooling is to educate in the safety of our own homes, there are countless benefits of emerging out our front doors and immersing ourselves within the homeschooling community. There are tons of social opportunities, such as; co-ops, libraries, online communities, field trips, church groups, play groups, sports teams, etc., that can unite us and remind us that we are not alone in this journey.

3. Unrealistic Expectations: I tend to struggle with this one myself as I feel I should be able to "do it all". This is NOT reality and tends to dampen my mood and self image if I fail to cross off every item of my to-do list. Keep the demands of yourself and your students at a minimum. Ensure your daily/weekly/monthly expectations are realistic, timely, affordable, and most of all, interesting to you.

4. Curriculum Fatigue or Lack of Flexibility: when beginning your homeschooling journey it is very easy to get sucked into the "newest and best" curriculum fads only to realize that maybe that curriculum wasn't the best fit for your family and now you feel "stuck" with what you have. Firstly, it is ALWAYS okay to start over or alter what you're doing to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and overall happiness of your homeschool. Ensure that you are remaining flexible and understand that you are learning just as much throughout this journey as your children are.

Simplify and Prioritize

"Focus on what's blooming and what's bare." There are a few simple things you can do to help ease some stress and take a load off of your shoulders.

• In order to begin navigating your current burnout, identify the top 1-2 subjects to focus on when things are getting tough. Choose 1-2 subjects that are the most important, need the most focus, and will hold the most interest of your students. Base your daily schedule around these subjects for a week or two until the funk slowly begins to lift. Then SLOWLY incorporate the rest of your material or subjects to get through the rest.

• Ditch the guilt! I understand how easy it is to say "I failed." or "I'm not doing enough." Please remember that you chose to homeschool for a reason. Whatever that reason was should be the root cause of you taking a deep breath, gathering your bearings and moving forward. It is okay to feel the way you are feeling. Less can be more during this tough time.

• Lastly, use games, audiobooks, or documentaries to supplement without burnout. Try incorporating different methods, styles, mediums, and topics to keep things light, fun, and interesting.

Reignite the Joy

"Notice the beauty of tiny blooms-joy is often in the little things." Taking a giant step back and coming together as a family can really help to bring the spark back into your homeschooling journey. Here are some things you can do to reignite that joy.

• Encourage your children to help plan a fun project, theme-week, or unit study. Take a break from your regularly scheduled programming and bring something fresh and new to the table. Encourage your students to discuss their current interests, upcoming skills, and struggles. Allow these things to guide you into your next lesson.

• Do a surprise "Spring Celebration Day" with a picnic lunch, sidewalk chalk, and no formal lessons. Treat this day as a special holiday that only your homeschool celebrates. Complete some flower crafts, plant a seed, water the garden, or make special spring-colored desserts. Encourage a care-free, spontaneous, and fun-filled day.

• Lastly, focus on connection over correction. Spend some quality time together by doing things like baking, reading poetry or books together, watching nature shows, or making flower headbands together. Just BE together.

A Season of Renewal

Allow spring to arrive fully within your homeschool and bloom with the season. I promise that you are not alone in feeling burnout, fatigued, unmotivated, and irritable. Just like spring, this season of burnout will pass. We, as homeschoolers, need to be reminded that we do not have to be perfect to be powerful. We were meant for so much more than strict schedules, limited resources, and four walls. I encourage you all to really lean into the new life spring offers with grace, gentleness, and small changes.