Happy New Year! 2021 is here, and I’ll be honest – I haven’t yet had a chance to sneak away and work on my goals for the year. I idealize this time of year, and of course, it is rich in meaning; however, it is NOT rich in rest time for mothers!
I’ve been busy setting up my 2021 planner. I use a mix of paper and digital tools for planning and calendars and to-do lists.
It’s interesting to me that I have never come across a planner that facilitates planning for the education of our children. One of my core beliefs as an educator is that parents are responsible for the education of their children.
If that’s the case, why is this not an area of life that we would examine every year and for which we would develop new goals and routines?
So why would we not have goals for this area of our family life?
But how do you write goals for an area in which you might feel ill-equipped? I can hear your internal thoughts: “I’m not a teacher; how would I create education goals?”
A lot of moms feel that academic goals are best left to the professionals. And if your child is in school, I certainly understand that.
But here are some questions I would ask:
- How are your child’s school-related routine habits? Does he turn his work in on time? Does she get everything she needs for the day in her backpack? If you homeschool, how is your daily homeschool schedule working?
- How are your child’s study habits? Do you know your child’s learning style? (We have a free learning styles guide; email us and we’d be happy to send you a copy!) Where do they work best – at the kitchen table? At the desk in their room? With music? Do they need to talk it through with you? What are the homework routines in your house?
- What is your child’s attitude toward school and learning? We know that we as parents set the stage for this! If you are stressed or feel insecure as you teach your children or support them in completing their homework, your children will pick up on this.
Every parent who homeschools is, at least at some level, a goal-setter. If nothing else, your goal is to complete a grade level’s worth of work in one school year, whatever curriculum or system you’ve chosen.
I’m not suggesting that you set your little one up with a planner and have them get cracking on areas that need improvement. But we all know the truth – we as parents set the stage for most of our children’s habits, right?
I encourage you to think about the questions above and set some goals related to your kids’ education for 2021. I have some free time coming up this weekend, and will be doing the same thing. I’d love to hear your goals as you think through this!