Typically, around this time of year, it helps to pause and take time to refocus or refine the vision for our homeschool journey.  The following are books that I like to revisit from time to time for encouragement, to remember why we do things the way we do, to regain focus for ending the year well, and for assistance in the upcoming contemplation of curriculum choices  for the start of the next year… 

Encouragement
Help For the Harried Homeschooler by Christine Field
Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit by Teri Maxwell
Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe by Todd Wilson
Beyond Survival: A Guide to Abundant Life Homeschooling by Diana Waring
The Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson

How To’s
Educating the Whole Hearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson
The Three R’s / You Can Teach Your Child Successfully by Ruth Beechick

Obviously, I don’t have time to reread all of these books – LOL!  As a busy mom, I barely had time to read through each one the first time.  I usually scan my underlines and any notes that I might have originally made in the margins.  This is done in an attempt to jar my memory to reapply some things that I might have let gradually slip by the wayside over the course of the craziness of our school year.

Here are some quotes from the above resources that stuck out to me during this last perusal…

May we never choose to turn back from the path the Lord has set us upon simply because it isn’t easy.  (Homeschooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit, p. 44)

On being a servant to the needs of your students….  This concept of being the servant means that if your best laid plans are not giving your children what they need, scrap them and find something that better fits their learning style.  When what is most important to you is the fact that your children truly learn something, the method of that learning becomes secondary. (Beyond Survival, p. 112)

God uses ordinary people, calling and equipping us to do a job we sometimes feel is beyond our ability.  We rest in the faith that he never calls us to do more than we are able.  (Help for the Harried Homeschooler, p. 222)

Conviction comes from the Lord.  It comes with the power and promise of the Holy Spirit to help us repent and take appropriate action.  Condemnation comes from the Enemy, whose goal is our discouragement and defeat.  The irony is that the more we seek to walk with God and desire to know him, the greater our self condemnation when we think we have blown it. We set such high expectations of ourselves that our world comes crashing down around us when we fall short.  Yet Romans 8:1 tells us, ‘There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.’   God does not want to condemn us, especially when we are so eager to condemn ourselves.  Instead, he longs to embrace us, to welcome us back to his heart, which is our source of strength, refuge, refreshment, and encouragement.  God’s grace is never used up, even when our human grace runs dry.   (Help for the Harried Homeschooler, p. 252-253)

Don’t set unrealistic expectations for you, your children, and those around you. Since you can’t realistically do it all, you need to determine what you can do and then be secure in that.  (Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe, p. 95)

All that God requires from any of us is a desire to serve him and a trust that he can make up the differences for the things we lack.  The Lord would have us know that he is the one ultimately in charge of our children.  He will use our willingness and our efforts, then fill in the gaps of our inadequacies , to prepare their hearts for what he has in mind.  (Mission of Motherhood, p. 84-85)

What homeschool books do you like to revisit for encouragement, for vision, or for additional ideas for how to make your homeschool run more smoothly?