Teaching Tip:
Are you still recovering from the busy holiday season?
As the new year is underway, are you still recovering from the busy holiday season? If so, it can feel daunting to launch back into school again. Yet, often the routine of school is just what is needed to get your days back to normal.
You could consider starting school half-speed.
To help you get back into the routine of school, you could consider starting half-speed. Easing into school this way is easier than starting full-speed, yet it starts the process of getting back into the school mindset.
There are several easy ways to go half-speed.
Through the years, we have gone half-speed with our guides in many different ways. Going half-speed can be as easy as doing the left page of plans one day and the right page the next day. Another way to go half-speed is to count the number of boxes on your two-page spread and divide by two. Then, choose half of the boxes to do one day and half of the boxes to do the next day. Other options for going half-speed will work too. Just be sure to finish an entire day of plans before moving on to the next day. Simply check off the boxes as you complete them, so there is no confusion as to which boxes remain.
How long can you go half-speed?
Typically, going half-speed with a guide is not a permanent solution. At our house, we have downshifted to half-speed in times of illness, stress, holiday breaks, busy work schedules, days with therapy or doctor’s appointments, or when we are first beginning a new guide. Usually, after a time half-speed no longer feels like enough.
How can you move up to full-speed gradually?
If we did stay at half-speed for an extended time, we tried to add one box each week until we were at full-speed. This meant we were sometimes finishing up one day of plans and starting on a new day of plans in the same day. While not ideal, it did work. Getting up to full-speed is always our end-goal.
How can schooling continue when you or your child is very sick?
With our son Greyson’s multiple hospitalizations last year, we had to downshift to what he was able to do. This means we did only one or two boxes in the plans for many days. Other days he was too sick to do any school. When he got some better, we tried slowly adding one more box of plans as he seemed able. At the time, it seemed like we were barely progressing. Yet, in looking back we only lost half a year of school instead of the whole year. During the summer, he did his guide half-speed four days a week. He didn’t mind, since he was finally starting to feel better. Doing even a little when you can is still progress!
When life is busy, half-speed works.
Maybe you are at a place in your life right now where full-speed is working great. If so, keep going! Just remember that when life is busy, half-speed works.
Blessings,
Carrie