It may have felt like yesterday when your child was three, five, or even ten years-old. Now you blink and they’re a teenager, or could even be nearing high school graduation. There isn’t enough time no matter what you may think, but you may want to spend as much time with your children as possible before graduations. If your children have been enjoying online and home learning, this is the perfect opportunity for all of you to spend more time together and create stronger bonds for the years ahead. 

 

Starting Early

Before you start feeling like an empty nester, don’t fret. It’s very common to look towards the future and think there’s not much time left before it’s just you and your spouse in the home. Although a small part of you may be relishing the peace and quiet of an empty home, you will miss spending time with your children before you know it. Online learning can help you strengthen that relationship further, no matter the age of your kids. If they are smaller, you’re likely more hands-on with their learning already. You’ll be guiding them through the school materials and helping them understand the curriculum through exercises and projects. This type of learning is great in bolstering you and your children’s relationships. And as your children grow up, you’ll have a better grasp of their favorite activities that you can correlate to their schoolwork to help keep their attention and make learning fun.  

 

As They Get Older

AS your children age, sometimes you may feel like you’re on another planet when talking with them. The speed of new apps and games gives kids multiple platforms to find entertainment. This can feel a little overwhelming to some parents as technology moves quickly, and by the time you’ve downloaded a few games and got into them, your kids may have already moved on. But teaching your high schoolers and helping them with their homeschooling assignments can help you stay connected without the help of apps. Homeschooling provides more time for you to connect and find more activities in common. Even if you don’t find much in common, you’ll still find out more about your child’s growing tastes, whether it’s in music, science, art, or math. This can help you cater more to their interests when it comes to teaching, and make it more relatable as when they were younger. If they are getting close to graduation, it’ll make choosing colleges that much easier as well with a better understanding of possible majors and careers.     

Finding so many activities in common will also help when it comes to activities outside of the classroom. Being able to talk to your children, no matter what their age, will help build your relationship that much more. It will encourage them to seek your guidance if situations get rough, and allows you into their world a little more each day.   

HomeschoolFacts.com has a complete list of support groups to help support you in your homeschooling endeavors and connect with homeschoolers near you.   You can search the list of support groups here: https://www.homeschoolfacts.com/homeschool-support-groups.html

Katie Kyzivat