needing more

(We moved our morning walk to the local cemetery today. I'm sort of a cemetery fan, if you are too, then enjoy the pics.)

The kids are ready to start school. Now. Our expansive Summer Rhythms which served us well during our break in July have now turned around on us. There is bickering. There are tears. And a couple nights ago, J uttered the telling words "It's almost night already? But we didn't DO anything today!" In fact, we haven't DONE anything in well over a month. And it's starting to show.

Unfortunately for us all, I'M not ready to start now. I didn't anticipate them being in need of a more supportive rhythm yet. Our beloved lake beach is still open! And I still have much curriculum planning, reading, manipulative gathering, etc to attend to. All of our supplies aren't here yet. And I haven't even cracked the lid of the Enki 1st Grade Movement book yet. I was counting on another three weeks of nothing!

Which of course doesn't mean that I can't pony up and add a bit more structure to our days. Our basic Summer Rhythm has been:


-wake
-eat breakfast (eventually)
-walk
-eat lunch
-rest
-lake
-supper
-bed

So starting yesterday, I began adding in some stronger components. Breakfast at a more dependable time. The calendar activity we do during the school year (where we identify the day of the week, sing a song specific to the month, recite a seasonal poem). Some formal Speech and OT work prior to dressing. A focused sensory integration activity after our morning walk. A formal call to rest, and reading a chapter in our chapter book at the start of rest (currently we are reading, and enjoying tremondously, The Enormous Egg, by Oliver Butterworth). And an outing each day, something other than just hanging out at the lake (although sometimes it WILL be hanging out at the lake).

The outing seems to be the glue that holds the whole thing together, and makes it feel like we DID something. It doesn't even need to be particularly educational in nature. In fact, yesterday's outing was grocery shopping, and today's was a trip to the bank (wahoo!) and a stop for ice cream on the way home. But I've not heard the complaint about not having done anything, so hopefully I can keep the rhythms loose enough to benefit me, but structured enough to benefit them.

I just need three more weeks....