How to Make Homeschool Fun

Homeschool fun – 2 words that may not seem to go together! At least not if you are new to homeschooling. When thinking of the start of a new school year or a whole new adventure in just starting out with homeschooling, fun is probably not the first word that comes to mind.

But it should be!

And it can be! Yes, responsibilities have to be met, both for you as the homeschooling parent (legal responsibilities being especially important) and for your kids, sticking to their work and progressing in their studies. But you can absolutely have FUN while doing so!

I have compiled a list of some of the easiest, most attainable ways to have some homeschool fun with your kiddos. The best part, it’s a no pressure, start any time, do what works for you list of ideas that can easily fit into any “style” of homeschooling.

Homeschooling Seasonally

The first topic that comes to mind for me when thinking of homeschool fun is for sure homeschooling seasonally.

The idea that your homeschool life changes with the seasons. Makes sense when you think about it.

You probably change your lifestyle a bit with each season, regardless if you homeschool or not. Seasonal decorations come out, or certain recipes are made depending on the season, etc.

So why not keep that in mind when thinking about your homeschool life? The foundation of all homeschool families is the gift of being home together.

Making your home & your learning experience together as comfortable as possible while creating memories with your kids is one of the most beautiful aspects of choosing to homeschool.

Here are some ways to embrace the seasons:

Fall

In our home fall is the start of school. We do a traditional calendar for the most part, with some flexibility here and there.

Fall brings a fresh start, with excitement for both me and my children. Getting back into a routine (a very flexible routine at times!) is nice for us all.

We also find ourselves gravitating more towards seasonal books and fall activities as well. By Thanksgiving though we are usually looking forward to a slower pace that is something we call Christmas School.

Christmas School 

A couple of years into our homeschool life we came up with the idea of  Christmas School.

This has already become such a wonderful time of year in our family that definitely makes homeschool fun!

We start to wind down our formal curriculum the first or second week of December. We usually come up with some ideas of how we want to spend our days leading up to Christmas and then a full week break until after the New Year.

Activities like:

• Read Christmas books aloud while enjoying hot cocoa
• Make gifts for family members
• Make ornaments
• Watch holiday movies
• Bake cookies for family and neighbors

Pair these ideas with the coziness of spending our days in pajamas listening to holiday music while doing most of the activities, you can see why my kids look forward to this so much!

Actually, I love it too, maybe even more than them haha!

Putting aside our math books and instead use our math brains while baking, or for budgeting for last minute online gift shopping is a nice break.

As is reading favorite, once a year only, stories instead of sticking to their regular reading/grammar practice.

Writing Christmas letters or cards to family and friends is a great way to practice penmanship and spelling too!

Again this is such a special part of our homeschool and family and I love the memories that are made each year.

Hygee Homeschooling

The Danish art of hygee (pronounced hue-gah) is a wonderful transition after Christmas school for us while looking to add some more homeschool fun. 

Although the idea of hygee is mainly associated with winter, it can be adapted for year round enjoyment. A good quote defining hygee can be found at hyggehouse.com/hygge :

“While there’s no one English word or simple definition to describe hygge, several can be used interchangeably to describe the idea of hygge such as cosiness, charm, happiness, ‘contentness’, security, familiarity, comfort, reassurance, kinship, and simpleness.”

Winter is a perfect time to add a little hygee if you don’t already do so.

Come January we do get back into our formal curriculum, with a bit of re-invigoration after the nice break December gave us as a family. That being said, I do make sure to make it as cozy as possible while settling back into our routine.

Having the fireplace going while doing school work, baking a nice treat to enjoy and continuing the hot cocoa while reading aloud together are a couple of ideas to add some hygee and have some more homeschool fun.

Spring Fever

After a cozy fall and holiday season, winter can feel never ending (in some states), so spring fever can be a very real affliction for homeschool families.

Getting back outside is a guaranteed way to add some homeschool fun to your days. Meeting up with homeschool friends you haven’t seen since before the holidays, or meeting new homeschool families for a field trip or outdoor class can be a welcome addition to your weeks.

Check local homeschool Facebook pages for group activities; there always seem to be an abundance as spring approaches.

Another great idea to add some homeschool fun to your days in spring is planning or starting a garden with your kids.

No matter the size of the outdoor space that you have (a container or potted garden does the trick too!) planting a few things is such a wonderful experience for children to take part in. 

Planning, researching & choosing the seeds to grow, the actual planting process, and then the required care, which promotes responsibility can be a great project for kids to learn from.

Tracking which vegetable, flower or fruit will grow first, and coming up with hypotheses can lead well into an earth science lesson.

Just being outside at some point each day is beneficial for all.  Fresh air and sunshine help all, mom or dad included, to lose some cabin fever!

Summer break/school

Summer for some families means a total break from all school work.

Some families school year round, and some unschooling families don’t need a defined time to break at all. Whatever category you fall into homeschool fun can be had in the summer!

Our family does take a summer break, but we have light summer work most days.

Mainly math and grammar practice to keep up on what they worked so hard to learn all year.

Reading is a part of our daily lives so that is a given.

Summer road trips or vacations can  be a great time to explore another state’s history, or culture if traveling internationally.

If it’s hard to fit in creative subjects and fun projects like art and science experiments during your regular school year, summer is a great time to take the time for these things.

Maybe keep a list throughout the school year of things your kids would like to try, or ideas you saw on Pinterest for a fun art project that you just never fit in.

Summer, like homeschool in general, can be flexible and fun!

Other Homeschool Fun Ideas

Below you’ll find a list of some ways to incorporate more fun in your homeschool days!

Remember, this list is just a small sampling of activities and ideas, you’ll likely come up with many more on your own or get some ideas from other homeschool families you meet.

Chocolate Math

A big favorite in our homeschool days is when we incorporate a sweet treat!

Obviously you don’t want to be “bribing” your kids to do their schoolwork every day, but a little treat or reward is so fun to add from time to time.

In our house an idea we came up with is “chocolate math.”

We started this because during our first few couple of years of homeschooling , we almost always found ourselves doing math after lunch and needed a little pick me up.

When I added the idea that they could have chocolate as a brain booster (haha!) to say it was a hit is an understatement.

I like to make it more special sometimes and buy individual chocolate bars for each child, only to have a piece of during math lessons.

If you have an Aldi’s near you it’s a great place to buy nice chocolate bars at a reasonable price!

Book & a Movie

Another favorite way to add some homeschool fun in our family is to watch the movie version of a book we all read aloud together.

There are so many fun movies made from classic books! Pop some popcorn and curl up together on the couch.

After the movie you can discuss how it was the same or different from the book.

You can also tie it into a book report for older kids, to compare and contrast.

Younger kids can illustrate their favorite scenes from the book and movie.

Spelling/Sight Words Practice Ideas

So many ways to practice spelling or sight words!

One fun way is with sidewalk chalk and the driveway, sidewalk, patio etc.

Getting outside and still learning is a great way to add some homeschool fun!

Music

Playing some classical music in the background of your school days can help set a peaceful vibe to your day.

With all the ways to stream music these days you don’t even need to be knowledgeable on the various composers (if you are though, even better!)

Just ask your device of choice to play classical music for studying, or upbeat classical and see what fits for your family.

Another fun idea is to randomly blast some favorites, Disney music, show tunes, top 40 (clean version of course!) whatever your kids like, and have impromptu dance parties!

Movement breaks

Music flows nicely into this idea – movement breaks.

Dance parties are one way to add more homeschool fun to your days but so are a few other ideas.

Jumping jacks while reciting states & capitals or practicing multiplication facts is a fun way to break up the day.

Also, if you choose to use a block schedule you set some time for breaks throughout the day to run around the backyard and have some “recess” breaks!

Getting your kids and yourself up and moving often will help with productivity and is just plain fun.

Baking/Cooking Related to Lessons

Another way to have fun with homeschool, cook or bake a recipe related to a lesson!

Some curriculum actually have recipes to try along with history lessons, or geography lessons.

Even without those you can definitely research recipes that go along with your kids’ studies and have some fun doing so.

Read Alouds & Tea Time

An idea based of off the Poetry & Tea Time of Julie Bogart. Turn your read aloud time, whether it’s poetry or a chapter book into a special time.

Add tea or hot cocoa and a favorite cookie or some fruit for a sweet time with your kiddos.

Gameschool

Gameschooling has become so popular the last few years with homeschooling families for good reason!

It’s a surefire way to add some homeschool fun! Adding in a game in place of, or in addition to, your lessons is such a creative way to learn while having fun!

In fact, I wrote a whole post all about the best math board games!

Have fun!

I hope these ideas are helpful for when you feel stuck or are hitting a plateau in terms of motivation.

Adding in some homeschool fun can recharge you and your kids to get back to loving learning. Or at least will help you get through the days which can feel long at times!

And remember, this list isn’t to pressure you to add more to your plate. It’s to help remind us all to step back sometimes and remember to enjoy this time we have with our kids, making precious memories while we do so 🙂