Finish Strong: 3 Simple Tips to Help You Succeed
Finishing Strong
Do you desire to finish your homeschool year strong? So do I. Last week, as we were on spring break, I took a little time to review where we stood in regards to the end of the year.
Have you ever gone to a mall or a giant amusement park and noticed they had a big map with a star that says YOU ARE HERE? Sometimes to get to where we want to go, we start by determining where we are now.
That is what homeschool evaluations help us do. As homeschool moms, we evaluate all the time; in this particular instance, we will determine where we are in regards to the end of the year.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 tells us, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.”
When you read that verse today, does it make you groan aloud a little bit? Yeah, me too.
As we are nearing the end of the homeschool year, sometimes it can be hard to maintain the perspective of doing it “with all your might.”
After homeschooling our children day in and day out for an entire year, we can become tired and weary. We can begin to wonder whether these last few weeks really matter.
You probably already realize that some things do matter, but other things, not so much. What we want to do as moms right now is be honest with ourselves and determine what matters and what doesn’t.
I want to give you a quick shot in the arm today to help you finish strong this year. There’s no hype here or long, drawn-out plan. Nope. Instead, here are three seemingly small but practical tips I am using myself to get through the next few weeks of homeschooling. Together we will evaluate our expectations, mix things up, and add a bit of fun. Easy peasy.
Yes, you can do this. If I can, then you can too.
Evaluate our Expectations so We Can Finish Strong
It is normal to have grand expectations at the beginning of the school year and have to adjust them along the way. That does not make us failures. I repeat, altering our plans as needed for real life is typical. The ability to do it with grace is what a successful homeschooling mom does.
It reminds me of the verse in Proverbs 16:9 “We make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” When we can make plans understanding God will probably meddle in those plans, we can have peace that will endure from day one to the final day of the school year.
It’s especially good to remember even though the teacher’s manual says it will take one year to complete, it doesn’t necessarily make it so. It may take more than a year, and it may take less. As a homeschooling mom, you get to decide. If you love it, you can take longer and finish it. If not, you can choose to call it done and move on. (kinda makes you feel all warm inside, doesn’t it?)😊
In topical studies (think history), we rarely finish everything because there is so much information. In sequential topics (such as math), we tend to keep moving forward without skipping and find it is usually the most effective strategy.
Pro Mom tip: This is one of the reasons why I am a proponent of not using a boxed curriculum. Determining what to weed out is challenging, even for long-time homeschoolers. In my experience, piecing together subjects according to the needs of each child is a little more work in the beginning, but the result is much more user-friendly for us moms.
Mix Things Up
Evaluating helps us see where to mix things up and accomplish a particular goal.
For example, we’ve worked hard this year on writing. However, in spelling, we covered less than I had hoped. So we paused writing for a few weeks and fast-tracked spelling.
Changing up what we were doing enabled us to finish strong.
Add Fun for Energy to Finish Strong
After evaluating where you are, you may notice you are completing certain subjects early, which makes this time of year a great place to add fun. It’s an excellent strategy whenever you feel the days are getting into a boring rut. For us, this typically happens close to the end of the school year. Adding fun is a terrific way to help you finish strong.
This fun can be as simple as bringing the studies outside or doing a unit study that requires being outdoors. It could be adding in park days or field trips. Especially ones that tie into something they’ve studied already during the year. Another way to add fun is with a good read-aloud. Something like The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White is nice to read in the spring.
We are completing a World History unit and reading Animal Farm by George Orwell. It has been quite a comical read so far. Indeed the conversations about the idea of animals overthrowing humans on a farm has made for a bit of fun.
Remember Where Our Real Strength Comes From
Ephesians 6:10 says, “Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might.”
I can’t think about finishing strong without considering how all my strength comes from God. My best days begin and end with me asking him for help.
I love how the AMP reads, “Be strong in the Lord [draw your strength from Him and be empowered through your union with Him] and in the power of his [boundless] might.”
With all of our looking for practical tips and strategies to accomplish homeschooling successfully, let’s always remember that God will help us when we ask for help and draw our strength from him.
Conclusion
In the end, finishing strong doesn’t mean grinding out our curriculum so we can declare, “It’s finished,” nor is it throwing up our hands and saying, “Oh well, the year is almost over. I guess it doesn’t matter anyway.” It’s remembering our original heart for homeschooling and imparting that to our children.
We can do that effortlessly when we evaluate our expectations, are willing to mix things up, and add some fun along the way. Ultimately, it’s remembering the strength available to us when we ask God for help. When we can do that, we’ll be able to look ourselves in the eye at the end of the year and say, “I did my best and finished strong.”
Here’s to finishing strong! Hear me cheering – for both of us! 🥳
Much love, Tammy
This post was originally published on April 13, 2023, and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
