Holidays and homeschool

Each year, I hear worried homeschooling parents wonder about how much time they are "allowed" to take off for the holidays. So I thought I'd share a few thoughts: Homeschoolers in Florida (those who sent in a "letter of intent" and so are legally considered homeschoolers) are *not* required to meet any attendance requirements, are *not* required to have "school" for a certain number of days each year, and are not required to have lessons for a certain number of hours each year. In addition, the parents of homeschoolers are the "directors" of their child's education, so they have the authority to decide on the school calendar for their child.

Every homeschooling family handles the holidays differently. Some continue homeschooling throughout, but they may do less bookwork and more hands-on lessons that relate to the holidays. Baking cookies can count as a home economics lesson, a lesson in reading and following directions, a lesson in math (measuring and dealing with fractions), and even science (chemical changes caused by baking, for instance); so why not spend a few days baking cookies and include it in the log of academic activities? As the family puts up holiday decorations, the child is learning about our culture (i.e., social studies), and if the family takes the time to talk about the history behind the holiday even more social studies is covered.

Some families may stop some of their regular studies and do unit studies at this time. Perhaps a study of how Thanksgiving has been celebrated throughout the history of our country? Or a study of how other countries in various times throughout history have celebrated holidays for giving thanks? Or a study on the turkey, its biology, its place in our culture and history, how to cook it and how others have cooked it? Or a study of deciduous trees, why they lose their leaves, and then a drive up north to grandma's house (a field trip) and notice the trees that have lost their leaves. Or pick some other aspect of a holiday and turn it into a unit study that can be part of your curriculum.

Some families have too much going on and decide to take a longer vacation at this time than the public schools do. There's no reason you can't decide to do that. Especially since, with the one-on-one nature of homeschooling, children tend to learn more in a shorter period of time anyway and so they may already have covered more than the public schoolers will by the end of the year. Or some people in Florida use this time of the year to schedule a long vacation,when the weather is more pleasant, and then do "school" throughout the hot,miserable summer months when it isn't fun to be outside much anyway--that's fine, too.

Pick the method that works for you. Work celebrating the holidays into your lessons. Or take a break from lessons to celebrate the holidays. But however you decide to do it, we hope that you have an enjoyable holiday season!