Minimalism and Some Personal Insights

My question for the week is when is minimalism a sign of boredom? This comes from some of the work that has been handed into me this week (really it's been over the course of the summer for most subjects, but this week has been the worst). It has been well below performance level, and I'm not sure how to take it. Does it mean "I'm bored with this stuff", "I need a break from all these expectations", "Hormones are starting to kick in and I don't feel like dealing with authority", or just plain kids pushing boundaries.

I pulled out all my old Psychology books to refresh my memory of child development stages, but there was nothing I hadn't already thought of in them. I've tried to evaluate my feelings about the mediocre work, and I find myself having a hard time separating my abilities as a person/parent/teacher with my expectations for the kids school work. In reality perhaps sometimes a cigar is just a cigar and we all just need a break.

With that thought in mind I haven't changed our schedule for the week. Next week they'll be staying with their Nana and attending camps. I'm sure it will be good for us all to have some time apart. I plan to use the week to prepare for the upcoming semester, and try to figure out some solutions to our monotony. I'm wanting them to be excited about learning, but it's hard when I'm not excited about the material I'm teaching. I keep thinking that it's time to skip the pre-made material and do our own thing, but it scares me to death.

Somehow I need to get over the idea that they're missing something in their education if I plan their units. It seems like every single unit I've planned has been fantastic. They've learned a lot, been very excited about it every day, and we've all had a lot of fun during those times. Perhaps it's not the units that I make up that are impeding their education, but rather my inability to believe in myself as a teacher. I'm not sure which is scarier: the amount of work this could take, or the idea that I might actually be good at something. How's that for some personal insight?!