Teaching From Rest: A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace

Today we are sharing a little gem of a book called Teaching from a Place of Rest: A Homeschooler Guide to Unshakable Peace by Sarah Mackenzie, because I believe it will definitely bless you and help bring peace to your new school year.

Let's face it, homeschooling moms have a lot on their plates.

And it is so easy for them to get on the guilt path.

They feel they are not doing enough for their child.

That they are not teaching them enough.

Not offering enough opportunities.

Not socializing enough.

And a funny thing is they can always feel like they are behind.

With this mindset, is it any wonder that so many burnout before they have even truly begun?

It is a shame that so many end up on this road. With a little guidance, focus, and help this could be eliminated. So I'd like to share few highlights that we enjoyed from the book for you.

Here they are:


1. Stop feeling guilty about catching up all the time -  To truly homeschool from a place of rest we need to sit back and know that God has got this. If you believe the Lord has put you on this path then follow Him and His ways. Remember that your student is a living and breathing soul and not something to check off a checklist.

 Your child was created in God's image and his purpose on earth is much greater than you can teach in a homeschool book. We need to stop rushing through life and acting like everything is an emergency and take the time to love, cherish and relish the time with our children. Not freak out because they didn't accomplish three pages of workbook assignments.

2. Shave down your day - Did you know, dear moms, that just because you have a planner it does not mean you have to fill it up to the brim? I know a mom who keeps her to-do-list whittled just to five things a day because she knows she can't do more than that in her season of life with little ones without getting overly stressed. Take out all the unnecessary or unrealistic things and keep only what truly matters.

3. Know who you are-- Do not become the Pinterest mom with 100 science crafts if that is not your personality. God has gifted you uniquely and knows what your children need. You don't have to live up to what other homeschool moms are doing.You don't have to impress anyone. Rest in knowing what your strengths are (don't feel guilty about them), flow in them, and use them to bless your homeschool.

4. Stop being controlled by your curriculum - Do you know a  homeschool mom stumbles on the curriculum and tries to add everything she sees in her day because "the experts" know better than she does? This can quickly lead to burn out, just like trying to do every single problem on every single workbook page. It just isn't necessary--when you homeschool you have freedom and once your child understands something they can move on!

5. Control your time and schedule -  Another thought from the book is choosing less subjects in your day. Do you need to have all those extra classes in when you can't even teach the three R's?  Do you need to run around to all those activities just because all the other moms do and perhaps pay a price for it long term?

Another notable tip was to have less subjects (which I highly agree with since we try to do this too for sanity's sake) and if you have already done that-- then take a good look inside the subjects. Have you planned too much inside a day with the basics? Then shave that down too! We will be talking more about this on  the blog later.

6. Train and discipline your child - I am adding this in myself because I notice that a lot of  reasons for giving up homeschooling is because their kid is out of control, won't listen to them, and is being difficult. It is important not to let this behavior go and to train and discipline your child:

"Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart."

Proverbs 29:17

The scriptures don't lie and this is our duty as parents. It is our responsibility to raise our child according to His word and not to what the world might think is best for him. So be sure to always be working with your child to bring him to a place where he respects and obeys you. Homeschooling provides the perfect opportunity to do just that!

Well, I hope these helpful tips were a blessing for you and will help you to homeschool better. You can find Sarah's refreshing and inspiring book over at Amazon.

You can find it HERE.

We hope it is a blessing to you!

Do you have any tips to add?

Share them in the comments below!

Enjoy!

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