Monday, September 04, 2017
Time Management and Adjusting to a New School Year
As we are getting into the routine of being back at school, my beauty tank is feeling very empty. This has been a hard back to school transition for us! I think we are all sort of mourning the loss of a slower pace and keeping up on daily tasks is proving difficult. Add into this that Emily is a 7th grader now and her work load has significantly increased.
So this has left me feeling empty and stretched at all ends. While we are learning a new routine and figuring out how to teach time management skills to younger souls, many challenges come along with!
First, any tips on imparting time management skills to one that this skill does not come easily to? I am really good at planning my time and efficient with my use of it, I love lists and can gauge about how long something will take me to complete. But I realize both that it does not come as naturally to all and that this is also a learned skill. We have tried lists and timers and a schedule that plans out the time but we have not landed on a system that is successful yet.
I am adjusting my thinking as well as I've been used to being able to add beauty into my days fairly naturally and with the extra demands on my time - that is the first thing to go. One Saturday morning recently though, I woke up and opened up a box of mini cinnamon rolls from the bakery mark down shelf at Wal-Mart. I knew I could take two minutes to make it pretty and I also knew that this small investment of time would be a blessing to my beauty tank being refilled.
Perhaps weekends will be my beauty filling time now?! I'm on the hunt for little ways to add beauty to our days and still keep my students on track! :)
Again and again I am coming back to our theme verse for this school year and how I must allow it to be implemented in my own heart!
Colossians 3:15-17, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."
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4 comments:
I was reading your post and had two thoughts :-)
1.I have a 7th grader in Christian School right now and he is BOMBARDED with homework... the only motivation is accountability...so, we check his planner and if its not filled out with what needs to be done, then there is a consequence... we also talked with him about "this is your job-- to learn"...all other things can and will wait if your main job is not getting done...and he gets rewarded-- a few things he gets paid for... a few things he gets privileges for... and then we remind ourselves he is 12... he is not a "natural" at it...we praise when he gets it right and move on when he gets it WRONG... :-) My 4th grader has a planner this year too... they lose "fun points" at school for not getting assignments written down correctly and signed by a parent...the teacher writes the assignments...they copy them... I think the biggest way they learn organization is repetition and accountability...
2. I often find the more I think I need something the more God shows me I don't because He provides everything I need... maybe if you just sat with your journal every day and write 5 (or whatever # you want) beautiful things God provided for you instead of you having to provide them (does that make sense)... then when you get those snippets to create beauty its all the more meaningful...
School adjustment is HARD no matter how you educate your kiddos!! hang in there, Mama!! you are doing an amazing job!!
If you come up with a solution for time management, please share. My Megan tends to hem and haw about things and I am a get it done kind of her girl. It's our biggest conflict. This year, our first to homeschool, has been a big adjustment for me. I don't have that big block of time that I'm use to for what I call fluffing. I seem to get the basics of tidy, laundry and dinner done. That's about it. I'm missing my quiet and time for projects, deep cleaning and fluffing.
I love your vase of zinnias! We are so enjoying the zinnias from our garden just now too.
Love you and thinking of you (all!) as you continue to adjust to these transitions!
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