Sunshine and Play

One of the biggest concerns with homeschooling has been getting my kids outside to play. At school they had a 45 minute recess every day, and that was my daughter's "favorite" class. In fact, I could hardly ever get her to talk about what she was learning in school or her classes, but every day she would regale me with playground escapades with her friends. With only the two of them, going outside to play just isn't as fun, and I find myself having to make them. That is less of an issue for Denver, who doesn't have daily organized sports, but Aurora often has basketball practice followed by rock climbing followed by running around in the gym for an hour or two, so she doesn't need the exercise. Less light is definitely an issue, especially for my daughter. When the days start getting shorter and shorter I find her being sleepier and quieter and crabbier. This was true even when she was in school, so there is not a change there (if anything, she is less lethargic than when she was in school), but I still feel like the kids need to get OUTSIDE and play every day.

One decision we made in this regard was to not get a snowblower or plow. Shoveling snow seems like a good organized outdoor activity that can count as exercise, so now that we're getting more snow, I am hoping that will help with the outdoor part. And once my semester is over and I have fewer prescheduled commitments we'll be out hitting the ski trails often.