7 Habits of Highly Effective New School Years

Karen E’s post on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective New School Years was very inspiring! I am adding my 7 cents’ worth, going with an “art” theme this time around.

1. First and foremost, always begin your efforts with prayer. It is said that Fra Angelico painted his beautiful, sacred murals while in a state of ecstasy. Wouldn’t that help our homeschooling? (Insert little smiley face here.) Two tried-and-true resources for taking a prayer-centered approach are Holiness for Housewives by Dom Hubert van Zellar and The Soul of the Apostolate by Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard.

2. Buy some fun supplies. Around here that could be as simple as a brand new pack of felt-tip pens. (We use them for the “tracing” part of penmanship.) Even if you’re a starving artist there are lots of good deals to be had, especially this time of year. If there’s a Michaels Craft Store in your area you can use the 40% off coupon once a week to get something crafty & fun.

3. Hang out with like-minded artists at a cafe (real or cyber-space). Exchange ideas and find support for your beautiful endeavors.

4. Use a lot of local color in your painting. Determine ahead of time when you might sneak in some good field trips. Have you been to all the museums in your area? How about the children’s theatre? Read the paper to get ideas for outings.

5. Don’t forget to make room in your curriculum for the fun stuff. Like art class, for example!

6. Seek further inspiration from nature. Around here we only have a few more weeks of dining al fresco and hanging out at the park. The balmy days of Fall are to be drained to the last dreg!

7. Finally, study in great depth the still life that’s your life. Be fully present to the little moments, like when your 3-year-old is cuddled up into your neck or when your pre-adolescent is excitedly explaining the difference between WWII bombers. T.S. Eliot calls it “arriving where you’ve already been only to see it for the first time.”

God bless you! Have a great school year!