Activities:

Homeschooling.

School started on the 2nd January for us, as we wanted to achieve a week of schooling, before we went travelling.

We began by reading our goals from the previous year and chatting about how some goals had been easy to achieve, whilst others had been more difficult. The goals that we had not achieved were then adjusted and moved forward into this year. Goals for this year were written down and displayed on the office wall. -The children and I had long chats about our goals and discussed how to set short, medium and long term goals.

Read; How to Create and Achieve Your Child’s Goals, to help you with your goal planning.

We also wrote down our dreams for the year, which are usually about possible travel destinations. -Boy, do my children dream big… which is awesome!

The school year started where the children left off at the end of last year. Due to having many years of homeschooling under our belts, starting a new year has now become an easy exercise. The children soon knuckled down, to achieve their daily goals.

The school office had a spring cleaning over the Christmas break, when new stationery was purchased, so our first day of school was ordered and focused. Planning, order and discipline are certainly necessary, for us to achieve homeschooling greatness.

Paula Joy has now slowed her working pace, due to the difficulty of some of the course work. This is OK, as once she grasps the new concepts, she will fly again. Murray John is still at the age where the work is straight forward and goals easier to achieve.

Homeschooling Art.

January is a fun month, when the children enjoy all the art and crafts gifts they received over the Christmas period.

Horses.

We started the month by inviting many friends for a long outride, covering the whole farm. We spent a week preparing exactly where we were going to ride and what natural jumps we could jump along the way.

With ten horses saddled up for our friends to ride, we had an awesome three hour ride around the farm. Such a special day it turned out to be! The rest of the month was spent hacking and riding the younger horses. This month was a fun horse month, with little pressure.

We received two new horses, in late December. One came straight off the race track and the other from a friend. Both horses need remedial work, which will begin in February, with both Paula Joy and Murray John learning how to re-train these horses to play polo.

Homeschooling Sport.

Golf.

The children managed to get in one eighteen hole golf competition, which they always enjoy.

We followed this with our week’s trip to, Troutbeck, Nyanga in the Eastern Highlands of the country. Here the children played golf every day with us and enjoyed taking on their father, at a few games of ‘skins’. We used this week to improve the children’s golf game, as we coached them around the course.

They so enjoyed their golf! Even when it rained, they were still keen to get out onto the course. Some wonderful family time was had by all, as we walked around the golf course together.

The other sports, such as horse vaulting, gym, tennis and cricket, only began towards the end of the month. With a cricket match happened in early February, the children have to quickly change their focus, from golf to cricket.

Adventures:

Farm Life.

January started with a New Year’s Eve dinner on the rock overlooking the dam. An awesome way to welcome in 2020!

The fun part of farm life this month was organizing the out ride day, followed by a picnic at the dam. The children had great fun with the digger, getting logs into place so that we could jump them on the ride. They also had to help slash the grass and collect firewood for the picnic area. Finally, we added some hay bale jumps to the out ride course,- so it was a busy few days.

The rains eventually arrived in mid January, so the crops have started looking better and the dams have begun to fill. As we were almost out of water on the farm, the rain was very well received.

Due to the late rains the wild Flame Lily flowers only came into bloom after Christmas. Finding and picking these beautiful Flame Lilies in the bush, is a wonderful and exciting yearly tradition for us.

Environmental Awareness.

The children learnt this month, first-hand, how a lack of education and affordable medical help can result in a number of adults and children dying from rabies, which happened recently on a neighboring farm.

Rabies is a very scary and dangerous disease, which can easily be controlled, by the yearly vaccination of all domestic cats and dogs. In the past the government vaccination program used to insure that all animals were vaccinated. Sadly, this has fallen away, resulting in a significant increase in the disease. If bitten by a rabid animal there is medical help one can get. However, the local government clinics no longer stock the medication, plus rural people have not been educated to seek immediate help, once bitten.

We keep our gates closed, so that no stray animals can enter our yard. We also vaccinate all our cats, dogs, and horses, every year, to prevent them from contracting rabies. I do hope and pray for economic stability, so that these controls can once again be put into place, thereby reducing animal and human suffering.

Zimbabwe Economics.

A shortage of national electrical power means bigger and more numerous farm generators. The children have enjoyed watching all the different generators arriving on the farm, – the biggest being a monster 400kva.

Sadly, there is still no light at the end of Zimbabwe’s economic chaos, so we take one day at a time, praying constantly for guidance and survival.

I continually hang onto this quote: “Greatness is often achieved through adversity!”

Travel.

Nyanga.

Travels. In mid January we headed off to Nyanga, an area in the eastern districts of Zimbabwe, which is an easy six hour drive from the farm.

We went there for a week of relaxation, golf and exploring, in this mountainous area, which is very picturesque and peaceful. We returned well rested and ready to tackle any challenges which may lie ahead… I have written another post about our trip which you can read… Our Trip to Troutbeck, Nyanga, Zimbabwe.

“You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore”. Psalm 16 vs 11.

• Our Victoria Falls Celebration Trip.
• Our Homeschooling Adventures and Activities for May-June 2024.
• What is a Healthy Homeschooling Culture?
• Our Homeschooling Adventures and Activities for March-April 2024.
• Developing Life Skills through a Houseboat Adventure.

Please tell me how your homeschooling January went or leave a comment below……