Christmas break is a great time for all sorts of reasons. There is the obvious reason: celebrating and teaching our children about the season. And then next on my list of reasons is we have a break from our schooling routine. And that gives me a chance to take a breath and focus. It also gives me a chance to power through a pile of books I really want to read. This year I took a turn through our home library and grabbed up all the books in the “I really wish I could read this if only I had the time” category and stacked them on my desk. After separating them into two piles (one for fiction and the other for nonfiction), I sorted the stacks so that if all goes well and I can power through the books two at a time (one fiction and one nonfiction), I will be reading one light-hearted book and one serious one all the way through the break.
I am sure a lot of you are like me. Our lives are segmented into short tasks. We focus first on our children and our husband. We rarely find the time to read, even though we love it, because sitting down with a book when there is laundry to be done or children to teach feels really wrong. And so our life is filled each day with short household and homeschooling tasks. I have found that nearly everything I do is naturally binned into a 10 to 15 minute slot, with the exception of cooking and washing dishes. I think this is a consequence of children and homeschooling. If you really delve into a task, whatever it is, for a long time – say beyond 30 minutes, your children will need you or it will be time to make dinner. And so a break from homeschooling gives me time to focus on reading.
Here is the Christmas Reading Challenge:
- Gather up a pile of books you really wish you could read. It doesn’t matter how big the pile is (mine was definitely bigger than it should have been).
- Now sort your books. I sorted into two piles (fiction and nonfiction) because I like reading multiple books at once. We work the same way in our homeschooling which gives my children the opportunity to enjoy the week even if one particular book is not their favorite.
- Get out your washi tape. Label each of the books in your list and then number them so you know automatically which book to read next. I follow the same idea in our homeschool as well by labeling our books by the day we read them. That way I can easily jump into reading time without refering back to a master sheet or planner.
- Now comes the great part: put your stack somewhere that you walk by many times a day so you don’t forget. And take a picture of your stack of books. This is a picture of your plans. Make the picture your phone or tablet wallpaper – that way you are always reminded of your Christmas reading plan and reminded to find that hour or two every day for yourself to read.
- Lastly, do not worry if you don’t make it through your reading stack. The goal is just to set your list. To prioritize your books and to start reading. Even if you only make it through part of a book, you win.
For those of you really tired of the trite “do something for yourself” concept that pervades media today, I totally sympathize. Reading a pile of books that you really wish you could read does two things directly for your children and husband: first you expand your understanding which you then use to teach your children better and engage your husband in stimulating discussions, and second reading expands your vocabulary and enhances your ability to write and this makes you a much better teacher to your children.
So consider the Christmas Reading Challenge. Think of it as a break. Think of it as a mini private bootcamp for homeschooling. But consider giving it a shot. You will be glad you did.
