Motivation for the New Year

It’s a new calendar year. But it’s only the middle of the academic one. This is the time of year when I get a renewed energy for homeschooling. That most likely is because I start to feel that we are behind. My friends remind me that “behind” is relative.


Personally, I feel that I am behind in the goals I set for the year. I am behind in the number of required hours for the year, at least I feel behind. Since I don’t actually have to submit hours I’m not required to count them. I just keep a basic number of hours each week, and that feels, behind. So every January I get a spurt of anxious excitement for getting back to the daily routine of school. I find myself limiting what I commit to outside the home, and I tend to require more focused work from Little Man.

Those reminders from friends; that “behind” is relative, comes from the fact that Little Man is so much further along in education than his peers are. Does that mean, I should just take the year off? No! I am still required by the state to provide education to my child. I still am required to give him the tools and lessons he needs to continue growing and learning. Just because he is “ahead” of his peers, that doesn’t mean he can just stop learning all together.

For me it isn’t a matter of whether we are ahead or behind. It is a matter of wanting what is best for my child and realizing that sometimes that means sitting down, putting aside distractions and hitting the books. That is where I currently am. Seems the New Year brings that to my mind with renewed vigor. I just wish Little Man had as much motivation about it as I do. 

What about you? What time of the year do you feel most motivated to focus on school?