Leading a disciplined life is not one of my strong suits. I am a creative type with bursts of energy, spontaneous ideas, and routines rather than schedules. In answering God's call to homeschool, I am learning the value of planning, organization, and follow through. Here are five ways to help make the most of your homeschool day.

1. Start out your day with quiet time in God's word. For me that isn't first thing when I wake up. It is after I get my middle child off to Christian school and my toddler fed and onto his morning play time. Then, I can sit down and spend a few minutes of time filling my tank. Washing my mind with God's word helps me to have the strength, energy, and motivation, not to mention the spirit, to tackle homeschool.

Read more: 5 Ways to Make the Most of Your Homeschool Day

Calvary Christian Academy is a ministry of Calvary Chapel San Diego. We offer Guidance, Support, and Accountability for homeschool families. Calvary Christian Academy's Independent Study Program is available for record-keeping, social interaction, and educational opportunities. Your commitment to your children’s education will be supported by Calvary Christian Academy. Homeschooling has its share of difficulties and challenges, but the Lord is faithful and will honor your commitment by empowering you with His wisdom and strength.

Read more: Calvary Christian Academy - PSP Spotlight

Now that you have chosen a curriculum and are ready to begin your homeschooling schedule, there are various questions that trouble you. Should you study continuously, take a number of short breaks or a long vacation? What about public holidays? When should you take a break?

The answer to these questions and many more like these are actually quite simple: Do whatever suits you best. This is one of the appealing benefits of homeschooling. You do not have a set pattern to follow. You do not HAVE to take that autumn break, or close shop for a prolonged summer vacation. Flexibility is the key here. For some practiced unschoolers, even a definite curriculum is not necessary because lessons are a part of their day- to-day life. But this may not be the case with beginners. Beginners may need to chart out their activities to fall into a pattern.

Read more: Structure the Home School Year

A topic that frequently comes up in meetings and forums that deal with homeschooling is record keeping. The importance of record keeping cannot be ignored. It is not only legally required in various States, but also provides important milestones in your child's learning experience.An interest-initiated homeschooling approach means that the topic of studies is far ranging and multifarious. Thus, it can be something of a challenge to write quarterly reports for the school district, when it is difficult to classify learning into neatly pigeonholed areas.

Record keeping is important not only for the sake of regulations. It is also an exciting way to record and document the learning process of the child. When most of the learning is done through play and there is no clear cut index of topics that have to be covered, it is necessary for the parent to keep some sort of a log which records the child's progress.

Read more: Record Keeping In Homeschooling

The world has become a jungle of knowledge. During any given homeschool day, you may find a nugget of good information that just has to be passed onto your child. In the middle of all the knowledge flying to and fro, and between the teaching time, the seat work,and the learning activities, we sometimes forget to talk and relax with our children.A mom who doubles as a teacher needs to leave the teacher behind and simply become mom for a few hours everyday.

Read more: Homeschool - Staying Connected

It's not all hunky-dory and smooth sailing on the homeschooling front. Let's take a moment for a little reality check. what discourages one homeschool parent might spur another to greaterdiligence. We each respond differently based on what we bring to the table, but there are certain common things to consider.

1. The responsibility of teaching your child rests solely on you. Recognizing and owning your responsibility in this task can be daunting and frankly, overwhelming at times. There won't be a teacher or peer-pressure to blame if your child is seen wanting in the skills and education they need to apply themselves in life. If your child cannot do the things that are expected from other children in the same age group, it can reflect poorly on you as an educator as well as a parent. Are you prepared to face this?

Read more: Homeschooling: Common Concerns