Three Areas of Mental Clutter that Sabotage Homeschooling

by Jimmie on March 21, 2011

Welcome to my Homeschool Spring Cleaning series. For the next three days, I’ll have posts related to sprucing up your homeschool. We’ll start with the mind where it all starts and then we’ll look at more concrete organizational tips for clutter and for mom’s planning notebooking.

My series is part of a larger Spring Spruce Up, so if you’re in the organizing mood, be sure to visit all the other posts listed below. Your entire home could be spruced up and organized if you implement all the suggestions in this blogging event.

Spring is here! Fresh buds and blooming trees renew my hope once again. There is something about bright sunshine and warmer temperatures that motivate me to clean and organize. But beyond scrubbing the floors and tidying the kitchen pantry, there is mental cleaning to be done.

Do you harbor mental clutter which is quietly sabotaging your homeschool efforts?

1. Noise

Our modern world is noisy. We are plugged into devices that deliver a constant stream of music and talk. Even if you aren’t actively watching or listening, the television or game console provides a backdrop of noise that can sap your energy without your even being aware. You may think that you’re tuning it out, but your brain still has to work to achieve that state of oblivion. Day after day of trying to concentrate in a noisy environment wears on you mentally and saps strength that you need for teaching your children and managing your household.

Even the appliances that save us so much labor– the washing machine, dish washer, and vacuum– invade our brains with a droning noise that keeps us from giving our full mental powers to whatever activity is at hand. You may be so accustomed to the noise that you aren’t even aware of how draining it is. But invite silence into your home and watch how a layer of irritability just sloughs right off.

2. Self-Doubts

Another area of mental clutter is self-doubt, those nagging questions that cause us to feel inadequate or guilty.

The key here is to directly face the question and come to a definitive answer. If you determine that changes need to be made, then make them swiftly. But if those fears are unfounded, refuse to allow them to clutter your brain and sap your mental energy. Throw them away.

3. Comparisons

We homeschool moms have a terrible tendency to compare ourselves to others. We compare our curriculum choices, our meal planning, our housekeeping standards, and even the progress of our children.

The problem with comparison is that it always ends up destructive. Either you come up short and feel ashamed or you come out on top and become prideful. Neither situation is helpful for you in teaching your children.

So come to grips with the fact that, because of our human perceptions, the grass truly is greener on the other side of the fence –until you cross over that fence. There are two ways to sweep out the mental clutter of comparisons.

1. Have goals and work towards them.

Evaluate your homeschool only in light of the goals you’ve set for your children and not in light of other families.

2. Be thankful

Looking for your blessings is a surefire way to combat the dissatisfaction that comes from unhealthy comparisons.

Tomorrow I’ll be tackling the physical clutter that so often comes with homeschooling.

Be sure to check out all of these great ideas for sprucing up your home:

Sprucing Up the Laundry Room | Mama’s Laundry Talk
Sprucing Up the School Room | Homegrown Mom
Sprucing Up the Craft Room | Many Little Blessings
Sprucing Up the Bathroom | Feels Like Home
Sprucing Up the Playroom | …Life’s About a Dream
Sprucing Up the Garage/Storage Space | A Slob Comes Clean
Sprucing Up the Master Bedroom | Raising Arrows
Sprucing Up the Kitchen | So Happy Together
Sprucing Up the Garden | An Oregon Cottage
Sprucing Up the Backyard | Successful Homeschooling