The extracurricular dilemma

Extracurricular activities can be something of a dilemma for many homeschooling familes. The diverse interests of the children in a large family can result in a scheduling and chauffeuring nightmare. Is the importance of extracurricular activities exaggerated? Should we just keep the kids home all week and forge ahead in our planbooks? Is there a happy medium?

How do we juggle babies, toddlers, and the regular homeschool schedule, not to mention the household schedule, with these seemingly extraneous activities?

On the whole, we belive extracurricular activities are highly overated. But, there are some things that just can’t be handled within the homeschool. Our Fridays are reserved solely for Homeschool Co-op, with four children attending for most of the day. Dance lessons, and guitar for the boy, are the only extracurricular activities we currently participate in. Thank goodness, because that’s 10 different classes on six days each week. No, it’s not easy and not always convenient. Four nights are very late nights for two of my girls, but this is something they enjoy and have invested many years in. Both the Co-op and the dance studio are within 15 minutes of our home. Dance studio is also our guitar studio. That’s a big plus!

Many families have their own way of dealing with outside activities. What works for one family may not work for another. How do you deal with outside activities for your children? What is your family philosophy regarding exracurricular activities? Post your approach to the extracurricular dilemma! I would love to hear from you.