Our Morning Time Routine

Hi there, Mamas!

Looking for some ideas for your Morning Time routine?

I don’t know about you, but I feel like all the normalcy- and comfort- of life-as-we-knew-it got turned on its head in the past few weeks.

Since there’s no definite end in sight (yet), how are we supposed to manage our lives- and our kids- until “normal” comes back?

I’m an INTJ female and an Enneagram type 1, which translates simply to this:

I need routine.

Badly!

If you’re feeling at loose ends right now, let me share some encouragement: we absolutely CAN finish the school year strong… and sane.

Okay, at least strong. *wink*

I promise!

Today’s post is a peek at a beautiful homeschool routine I love, called Morning Time.

This is a simple solution for any family who is doing school at home right now:

• homeschool veterans
• families whose kids are doing school at home because of the quarantine
• any mom who simply wants more structure in her kids’ day!
  

The beauty of having an intentional Morning Time is that it can be as simple or as structured as you need it to be.

I personally find that some days call for more flexibility, but having a predictable routine in place helps all our homeschool days to go more smoothly.

Let’s have a look!

—> As always, if you feel like this post is helpful, will you please hit a “share” button? Thanks for spreading the homeschool inspiration! xoxo

what it is

In case you’re wondering, What is Morning Time?

—> Morning Time is simply an intentional gathering together with your kids to officially start the day.

Because of my type A personality, Morning Time was just the way I naturally began the day with my kids since they were very young.

(I didn’t really know it was “a thing.”)

A few years ago, I started working from home (which I love to do).

Most mornings, I hit the ground running and had to be on the phone a lot (which I hate to do).

Because of my work schedule, Morning Time kind of disappeared out of our day for a few years.

Eventually, I gave up my direct sales job so that I could continue to homeschool my kids (that’s a story for another day).

But Morning Time didn’t just magically reappear in our schedule.

I felt like my younger kids, especially, were missing out of a beautiful part of our homeschooling. My older kids had memorized Scripture and poetry, and were familiar with books that I had never introduced to my little boys.

But as much as I missed our Morning Time, I never could successfully work it back into our schedule.

why we do it {again}

In January, I decided to make the commitment to having Morning Time with the kids, at least once-a-week.

Simply because-

—> Morning Time is how I’ve been able to focus on goodness, truth and beauty in our busy lives as a homeschool and ministry family.

—> It’s the most simple way I know to streamline my role of educating five kids.

For two months, we faithfully had Morning Time every Monday morning.

(I knew if I jumped straight in for four or five days a week, I’d feel overwhelmed and give up.)

Then, abruptly in early-March, we found ourselves quarantined and with ample time on our hands.

I knew immediately what I intended to do with all the extra margin in our lives:

Morning Time!

I’ve taken advantage of the slower pace during this quarantine and have jumped back in to having Morning Time every school day again.

It feels to good to be back!

What Morning Time Looks Like At Our House

• Lighting a candle and saying “the blessing:” The Lord bless thee and keep thee; the Lord make his face to shine upon thee; the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”
• Someone shares a favorite Scripture. This gives my younger kids a great chance to practice reading the Bible aloud.
• Scripture memory review. Right now, we’re reviewing “The Lord’s Prayer,” which we memorized in January.
• New memory work. Currently we’re learning “The Beautitudes” (Matthew 5:1-12).
• Read aloud. Probably my favorite part! We’re enjoying Alice in BibleLand books and Children’s Book of Virtues.
• Something to Learn. This month, we’re focusing on Latin (I know, I’m such a nerd.) I found these free “Latin roots” worksheets from All About Reading and my kids actually enjoy this part of Morning Time!
• Sing. It’s important to me that my kids are familiar with hymns and songs of the church, so I chose “Doxology” as our song for this month.
  

And that’s our Morning Time in a nutshell!

It takes us about thirty minutes to explore each of these areas, and it’s all very laid back.

After Morning Time, the four older kids each start their independent school work and I help our first grade tackle a math lesson.

getting started

So what do you think?

Do you feel like you could use a little more structure in your days as a homeschooling mom- or a mom who is suddenly doing school at home with her kids?

I have a feeling the answer is yes, or you wouldn’t be reading this post.

Let me leave you with a few simple places to start:

—> If you’re completely new to Morning Time, please read this by Pam Barnhill.

I had the privilege of meeting Pam in person- and hearing her speak– at a homeschool convention this year.

Pam’s website, Your Morning Basket, has been my Morning Time inspiration this time around.

Find Better Together on Amazon.

So what about you?

Are you familiar with Morning Time?

How do you start off your homeschooling day?

Want more inspiration?

I’ll be popping in with a post later this month, with links and pictures of how Morning Time looked for us in April.

Would you also like some ideas for how to have Morning Time with preschoolers and toddlers in the mix?

Drop me a comment and let me know what you want to read about this month!

Want to subscribe so you don’t miss a post? (Just be sure you select “homeschooling” from the list of topics of interest.)

—> For now, I’d love for you to check out my ebook, Homeschooling Day By Day, and connect with other homeschooling moms over in my Facebook group.

You can find my ebook on Amazon, and request to join the group right here.

Here’s to living & loving well-

xoxo,

Kristy

P.S. Thanks a million for sharing this post!