And now for something completely different.

Well, for our homeschool.

Perhaps one of the best known posts on my blog is Aligning your Academic Year with the Calendar Year. I’m really proud of that post and of the time we’ve been able to do just that – follow our own year and school year round.

Unfortunately over the last year “school year round” has very much looked like “school all the time” with no breaks at all. This is because as we’ve gotten further and further into high school, online class options have become a necessary reality, and for some reason they don’t follow my schedule. Sigh.

Everything would be easier if people did things my way.

I digress.

The kids have done very well with classes from The House of Humane Letters, True North Homeschool Academy, and Art of Problem Solving. We did 3 years with The Lukeion Project. And when it was just one class it wasn’t so bad, but when two classes extended through all of our PREP weeks and after Thanksgiving until right before Christmas, the kids’ workload essentially continued all that time. Music lessons never end.

Other than 2 weeks at Christmas, the kids haven’t had a true break – really haven’t had any days off even – since last summer.

So … we’re going to take this summer off and switch to a “traditional school year.” Wah wah.

Margaret will be a Senior taking French II and Psychology at True North; Nate a Junior taking German II at True North and some math at AOPS; and Rebekah a Sophomore studying with her adored Angelina Stanford at HoHL and German II at True North.

I shouldn’t complain that we’ve been able to sustain our preference this long – essentially all but the last 3 years of our homeschool journey. I’m not really complaining, but I did love – while it worked – our schedule.

The kids would like to get jobs over the summer. Nate has an offer to work with an organ builder some this summer. And we all need a rest.

I’m sure I’ll love the new schedule, too. I may mourn our past flexibility and freedom.