When I saw this picture post, I just couldn't help but laugh!
30 days? Ha! We've been playing this "minimalist game" for a good...ummmm...84 days now!
We've been wearing the same clothes that we brought over in our 5 suitcases on October 21st when we moved to New Zealand. As I started writing this post, it's January 11.
 |
| Here's my Mase-man guarding our luggage before we head to the airport! |
But when I packed those 5 suitcases for our EPIC adventure, I was packing for my family NOT for my homeschool.
I was packing knowing that it would be 10 weeks until we saw our shipping container. We would find a rental home and homeschool and live happily ever after!
Well...that hasn't exactly happened! While we wait for our rental home to get "cleaned up" (long story), we are living in the basement of my husband's boss.
Not only are we playing the minimalist game of life, but we've become "Homeschooling Minimalists". And it's been really refreshing, in all honesty!
So, if you feel like your homeschool is getting too fancy and full! Minimalize! Play this game! And you don't have to move across the world, like we did, to do so...I promise.
Chances are that you are fresh off the Christmas break boat and everything is fun and fancy-free!
But in "Funky February" or March Madness...
Shelve what is stressing you and your kids out and try these 3 homeschooling minamalist tips:
Use the Library
No books? No problem! You can really free up your HS momma load by letting go of choosing what you kids should be reading and LET THEM CHOOSE!
That's the joy of the library.
Getting a library card in Taupo, New Zealand was one of our firsts! And I can proudly say that we've used it just about every week. Not only for books but for movie rentals, computer gaming and research! We've even accessed our online math curriculum on the library computers.
Wanna Homeschool like a Minimalist? Getting rid of books (some moms are cringing now) that they don't read is a great way to start! You can always check out those titles at the library and then send them back.
It's so freeing!!! Trust me:0)
It's so freeing!!! Trust me:0)
Journaling
You can journal here...you can journal there! You can journal ANYWHERE!
You don't need much for this minimalist opportunity. A cool journal and some fun pencils.
That-is-it! And it's so easy to take anywhere!
My kiddos toss them into my purse (well it's actually a backpack) and off we go. If we are at a restaurant, they can journal. If we visit a cool museum, they can journal. If we go on a hike and they see a New Zealand Tui bird, they can journal!
My kiddos toss them into my purse (well it's actually a backpack) and off we go. If we are at a restaurant, they can journal. If we visit a cool museum, they can journal. If we go on a hike and they see a New Zealand Tui bird, they can journal!
Journaling is so versatile and kids of all ages can "just do it!" Because we all know that if the 9-year-old is journaling, then the 4-year-old HAS to do the same!
Explore your City
Tired of your Math Curriculum? Head to the grocery store or go out for some mini golf!
Need a history lesson about the local natives? Why not walk to the local museum or even an old cemetery!
(Creepy? Cool?)
Maybe your learners have an interest in airplanes? Take your library books and journals down to the runway or, in our case, the seaplane docks!
As homeschoolers, we have the privilege and convenience to make "every day a field trip day" for our children. Thinking small and simplfiying can create some of the best memories and learning moments!
And if you want to be a homeschooling minimalist, explore your city and just learn along the way.
Don't forget to slow down and observe what and how your children are learning! It's a pretty cool thing to notice.
Don't forget to slow down and observe what and how your children are learning! It's a pretty cool thing to notice.
So until our house is ready for us to safely live in, we will continue to live and homeschool like a minimalist.
Honestly, I have a bit of anxiety about when that day comes. All the "stuff" that's been in that shipping container for the last 84+ days...is it going to clog up our lives? Will it overwhelm our choices as we are deciding what to wear or play with? Will I step back into a more "structured schooler" or remain a "minimalist schooler"?
Honestly, I have a bit of anxiety about when that day comes. All the "stuff" that's been in that shipping container for the last 84+ days...is it going to clog up our lives? Will it overwhelm our choices as we are deciding what to wear or play with? Will I step back into a more "structured schooler" or remain a "minimalist schooler"?
Stay tuned...I'm sure that I will let you know!
Happy Learning:0)
