Homeschool Break Week Snapshot

As many homeschooling families I know are gearing up for their first day of school and our public school friends are settling into their new school routines, my family, well, we are thrilled to be taking a little rest and enjoying a slower pace of life during our much-loved break week!!!!

In our homeschool, a break week means we have already logged another 30+ days toward our required 180. And it usually marks the halfway mark or end of one of our 3 terms. It is a time to reset and regroup and it gives each member of the family the extra time that we crave to go deeper into our interests.

Break week is also a time for me to schedule field trips and doctor's appointments and time outside with friends so that it won't feel like one extra thing heaped on our already full schedules (i.e. if the baby misses his nap, I won't lose my mind). Here is a brief snapshot of how we are using this break week to the fullest.

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Poetry Tea

Every break week includes our family poetry tea where we all recite the poetry or passages we have prepared. This week we munched on candied almonds, Caprese salad, fresh bread with butter, watermelon, and leftover birthday cake while listening to recitations of

Syliva:
Little Boy Blue
Caterpillar by Christina Rossetti

John:
The Rainy Day by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
O mighty Caesar, dost though lie so low from Julius Caesar
End-of-Summer Poem by Rowena Bastin Bennett

Peter:
Shakespeare by Henry Wadworth Longfellow
It must be by his death from Julius Caesar
The Clipper Ship by Nancy Byrd Turner

Dad:
The Villiage Blacksmith by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Me:
The Lady of Shalott by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

I'll also use break week to get our next six-week's worth of poetry and recitations loaded into the kid's folders and ready to go. The boys will also choose one of the poems and I'll print it and get it ready as well.

Regular Stuff

We still did morning time, regular chores, piano practice, and daily nature journal entries. Two kids still spent one-on-one time with their Nana and two kids had soccer practice and their first soccer games. My husband was busier than he has been as it was the first week of classes at the university, so he was out early and late with breakfasts, receptions, and evening talks.

Extra Stuff

I use the flexibility of break week to schedule extra errands, extra fun things, and extra chores. I have to be careful that it doesn't get too full though!!! I have had break weeks where I felt like the week was busier than a normal week. That is not what I'm shooting for.

This week we toured the local wastewater treatment plant, met up with friends at a nature preserve, visited our nearby farmers market for a big order of fruit, milk, eggs, and honey, hit up a few playgrounds, and had a physical therapy consult for one of the kids. We also celebrated a 5th birthday and plan to attend a not-back-to-school party.

Around the homestead, I try to get caught up on errand and kitchen work. I baked 4 loaves of bread and will make an Aldi, Target, and discount grocery store run before the week is through. It is Friday and I still have many items on my to-do lists, including hair cuts for the boys and work on our yearly photo album and calendar. Some will be done and some won't make the cut.

Self-Care

It is a break week for the kids, but also for me, so I try to take extra care of myself. I squeezed in a few 3-mile walks while listening to podcasts, and flopped down every afternoon to read my current Lord Peter Whimsey mystery (it seems to be the least liked one in the series, but I enjoyed it!). I also plan to attend an exhibit opening at the local university gallery. I laid down for a nap on the weekend and went to bed one night at 7:30pm. Very importantly for my sanity, I also spent time setting out some goals for the next 7 weeks to keep my expectations reasonable.

More time for interests 

Everyone in the family was able to find time to pursue interests this week. John started a new audio book, Peter spent a lot of time on sewing a skirt for his sister's birthday and had more time to work on math, Sylvia did a lot of creating and working on puzzles. All of the kids played with blocks, we cuddled on the couch with books, and many games were played.

I took advantage of the slower pace of life to ferment pickles and beets and to make some more technically difficult meals full of the fresh produce from our garden. I love eating good, local food, but I often don't have the energy for anything beyond soup. Soup is great, but on a break week, I have the energy to make some favorites that are a little more labor-intensive (like tortillas!).

I also found time to work on this post and another that is a huge list of free G.A. Henty books on Google Books. I hope to finish that this weekend. And that is our break week in a nutshell!

Do you do break weeks? If so, what do they look like?