After the Christmas decorations have been packed up and the new year officially welcomed in, it’s time to re-start your family’s homeschool year. Our family generally takes most of the month of December off as a Christmas break. The beginning of January marks a homeschool refresh for us. And if hitting those school books right away seems a bit too harsh, perhaps I can offer a few suggestions for a soft start.
Embrace the Season
When I think of winter, this image often comes to mind:
It seems to me that winter days often lend themselves to stark, crisp stillness. Even on our island home, our seaside community has a pause from the tourists and festivals, and everything seems much quieter. The cozy and comfortable becomes more desirable than ever. Winter is for scented candles, hot cups of coffee and cocoa, and sharing stories.
I love to incorporate seasonal poetry into our homeschool. A free collection of winter poems can be found at The Homeschool Compass. Just add warm sugar cookies and steaming cups of cocoa.
Many other sites offer winter-themed units, like this free winter anatomy study from Mornings Together, this snow science unit from BloggyMama, and this Arctic unit from Whole Child Homeschool.
Check out more ideas over on My Island Homeschool’s Pinterest board.
Movie Nights
Don’t underestimate the power of an excellent movie to supplement your homeschool lessons. I wrote about this in the post Watching Movies in Your Homeschool and offered a list of family-friendly movies that are based on books. With the early nights that winter offers, turning out the lights, popping some popcorn, and curling up on the couch with a good movie can create some truly cozy moments.
Start a Fresh Read-Aloud
Reading Aloud is one of my favorite activities to do in our homeschool. While the chilly winter winds are blowing outdoors, adventuring through a fresh story can be especially appealing. Perhaps you can experience a blizzard with the Ingalls family in The Long Winter, learn about Antarctic penguins in Mr. Popper’s Penguins, enjoy some wintery folktales in Jan Brett’s Christmas Treasury, or race for the silver skates with Hans Brinker.
Winter as a New Beginning
Above all, I think winter offers us a fresh start. We have the opportunity to reevaluate decisions made in the fall and keep what worked and re-work what didn’t. Give your family time to create a new rhythm and organize accordingly. Use this free downloadable weekly winter planner to help!
May the new year invigorate and inspire your homeschool!
My Island Homeschool 
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