— December 11, 2024

When December arrives do you feel at peace? Or do you feel overtasked, overwhelmed, and already over it? Moms have new expectations added to their plate on top of the normal tasks and daily activities during this wonderful time of the year. It is easy to feel burdened instead of at rest. Then as a homeschool mom we have so many options for making the holidays magical. 

Everywhere we look we see other homeschool moms stopping all their regular lessons to solely focus on Christmas. Others are incorporating beautiful crafts, activities, and goodwill endeavors into their already packed schedules. Christmas in your homeschool can be restful and magical. It all depends on you! I share how an advent calendar plans our Christmas and a printable of Christmas advent tags that you can use in your homeschool at the bottom of the post as well. Let’s see what’s right for your homeschool!

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Christmas in your homeschool should reflect your family’s values.

Christmas is a special time of year full of trimming trees, gift giving, and feasting. It’s a time when many recognize and celebrate the birth of their savior. For others it is time for family and creating beauty and magic during dreary winter months. 

My family falls into both groups. We include the traditions of adorning our home, wrapping presents, sending cards, enlivening the cold months with warmth and cheer. We even anticipate the arrival of dear old Santa Clause Christmas eve night. But these are all shadows in comparison to the real reason for the season in our home. Most of all we look to why there is now peace on earth, Jesus Christ.

Do you need to do anything different in December? 

Absolutely not. Many of us probably grew up attending school outside the home. Did the magic of the season lose its luster because weekdays continued normally and holiday festivities could only be completed on the weekends? I know the magic still abounded in our home. Returning home after a regular day of school to flip the switch on all the Christmas lights was festive enough.

You can plan your homeschool schedule similar to a public school’s calendar if you wish. Regular classes continue until the week of Christmas. Then after the New Year, classes resume. Nothing changes in your homeschool schedule and lessons. Exciting Christmas errands and events are planned for the weekends and the week of Christmas is long enough for a special craft and extra baking. 

This time of year can be difficult as a homeschool mom. 

Despite our own childhood Decembers being full of Christmas spirit, as a homeschool mom we still feel pulled to create an extra something this time of year. The extra time we have with our children creates the potential for so much more! Right? 

If you’re not careful, that so much more turns quickly into frustration, chaos, and losing the peace on earth in your own home. How do you guarantee not to overwhelm yourself or overcommit? In the blog post, 18 Homeschooling Books to Determine Your Next Read, I offer suggestions for books that help moms align their homeschool with their priorities and family values.

One book that stands out to me for specifically the seasons of the year is The Lifegiving Home by Sally and Sarah Clarkson. You can also begin with the tips and encouragement offered here to choose how Christmas in your homeschool will look, feel, and be implemented.

Choosing how Christmas in your homeschool looks.

Your family’s priorities.

What is most important to your family this December? 

How you celebrate Christmas throughout December will be determined based on what your priorities are. As a homeschooling family, is your focus on academics? Enrichment? God? Family? Instead of overcomplicating this, ask yourself a few simple questions.

“Let your heart be light…”

1. What do you want your family to focus on this holiday season?
2. How do you want your kids to feel come December 26th? 
3. How do you want to feel come December 26th?

“Next year all our troubles will be out of sight…”

1. How demanding is the core curriculum? 
2. How is my child doing in his/her core curriculum? Will they be okay setting it aside for a month?
3. How much extra time in our day(s) do we have for a festive activity?

Assess your answers.

These questions are designed to help you consider your family’s ideals for the holiday season. As well as, decide how much time you can devote to Christmas activities and how much time to regular lessons. There is no prescriptive formula and they are open ended for a reason. Consider all your answers to decide how much of your days will go to Christmas festivities, which festivities are not a priority, the subjects that cannot be paused, and what subject lessons may need to be set aside for a month,

Determine which past traditions to keep and new traditions to implement.

Along with Christmas usually comes old, and sentimental traditions. With each one that comes to mind, you must ask yourself, does this still fit in with our family’s priorities? If the answer is no, then, although it may be difficult, we need to set that tradition aside. Maybe in the future it will be one to revisit but for this year, let it rest. 

In its place, a new tradition can be placed that aligns better with your family’s priorities. But depending on what your priorities are then you may forego something altogether. When looking for a tradition that is more aligned,  I have enjoyed perusing other family’s traditions and simply brainstorming with my husband. As a military family, we have had the opportunity to seek new ones for our children. 

All or nothing or somewhere in between.

Replicating the school calendar.

Many homeschooling moms forget that including Christmas in your homeschool is an option. Just because we see Christmas Schooling curriculums all over Pinterest does not mean we have to buy it and use it in December. 

The alternative is to follow a schedule that more closely resembles a public school calendar. Continue regular lessons during the weekdays and special activities are saved for the weekend. Then when the week of Christmas comes around, that week is a break. This leaves plenty of time for holiday crafts and Christmas festivities.

Christmas is still Christmas.

As the Grinch realizes in How the Grinch Stole Christmas, “He hadn’t stopped Christmas from coming, it came! Somehow or other… it came just the same.”  We too must realize that Christmas will come the same, whether we’re rushed and panicked or if we have found peace in our homes.

Now this does not make you the Grinch by choosing to not do Christmas schooling. You are simply aligning your homeschool schedule with your family’s priorities. Evenings are still spent with the illuminated tree, Christmas festivities are still conducted, and a break can still be taken closer to  the holiday. 

The difference between this and Christmas schooling is that special activities for Christmas are not an everyday occurrence. And regular lessons are not paused during the holiday season. 

Christmas schooling.

Setting aside the entire month of December may align with your family’s priorities this holiday season. Desiring to emphasize God and Jesus or teaching your child the importance of goodwill and benevolence.  If this is the case and math, reading, writing, history, and other lessons can be set aside, then the only challenge is finding the Christmas curriculum that will best suit your family.

Many of the curriculums will still incorporate these lessons into the Christmas theme. The question is are you willing and able to set aside your core curriculum for a month. Does it align with your priorities and the season of life you are in to do that? Treehouse Schoolhouse offers the Connected Christmas for a complete December of lessons and has great reviews. If I have not created my own by the time my youngest is old enough this will be the one we go with.

In a few years I plan to try Christmas schooling. Once my youngest is a kindergartener it will be the perfect time. The season of life we’re currently in is disrupted enough with three children 6 and under. I do not want to completely change our December on purpose.

The compromise: Blending Christmas in your homeschool schedule.

Until we’re in a different season of life I enjoy doing a blend. A few times a week we do an activity. Whether that is a craft, poetry and teatime, baking, or just something extra. So in December I am sure to plan these activities to be Christmas themed. Regular lessons continue as usual but almost daily we do something special to celebrate the season even if it’s not a big craft or baking experience. Keep reading for more insight into how Christmas looks in our homeschool.

Christmas in your homeschool can be full of peace.

Ultimately as the mom, you determine how stressful or how peaceful this time of year can be. By answering the questions above you can get your thoughts out on paper of what you want for your family this holiday season and how to best execute that.

The advent calendar for including Christmas in your homeschool.

An excellent way to blend Christmas in your homeschool without completely disrupting or over tasking yourself is by using an advent calendar. The calendar system also helps you plan your December . When will you drive around and see Christmas lights? What day will your family be visiting the train museum and sitting on Santa’s lap?  We need to bake sugar cookies on the 23rd of December so that they can be decorated on the 24th. A hot cocoa bar will be perfect for a Friday because Fridays are already low key and we can read extra Christmas poetry during that time then. Maybe even planning to make those delicious snowball cookies on that Thursday to go with the hot cocoa bar would be a good plan.

The following advent calendar includes 60 slips. There are two sets. The first set has a list of ideas  while the second set is blank to allow you to write your own plans, Bible verses, or however you want to set up your advent calendar. This is an excellent way to take advantage of being a homeschool family while not completely changing curriculums for a month or ignoring the freedom that homeschooling offers either.

What will Christmas in your homeschool look like this year?

Have you determined your family’s priorities? Are you ready to plan Christmas in your homeschool? I hope so! Whichever way you wish to celebrate the season is the right choice, if peace remains in your homeschool and in your life. Was it the advent calendar, replicating the school calendar, or Christmas schooling that you chose? Let me know in the comments and why it aligns best with your family’s priorities.

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