[How do you get it all done?]

1. Prioritize. Stick to the most important things and let the little stuff go.

 

2. Integrate subjects.  Plenty of LA / writing can be integrated with history, science, literature and art.

 

3. Develop a severe allergy to busywork. Don't do every problem in the lesson unless they need the practice.  If they get it, they get it.

 

4. While do the next thing without much planning ahead can be the best option in some situations with some homeschoolers, consider that it also has the potential to make you feel like you need to do more when you've already done plenty because you're not keeping track.  One of the benefits to planning and prepping the year in the summer is that you know exactly when you've completed a full year's work. If you get done early, great! 1. Prioritizing and 3. Not doing every problem just because it's there still applies in this situation. 

 

5. Not every subject needs to get done every day.

 

6. Beware the potential busywork of many phonics curricula.  Getting the training wheels (phonics readers) off as soon as possible and just riding the bike (real books) even if they're a bit wobbly at first can make your days so much better.  This doesn't apply to the kids who really do need more practice to "get it," but people seem to want to please the imaginary curriculum police by doing every single little thing in the curriculum/guide/readers/worksheets because dog gone it, they paid for it after all and they're going to get their money's worth.

 

7. With kids who need less repetition during a lesson, look for curriculum like English Lessons Through Literature with short, simple, concise lessons that can be done in a short period of time.

 

8. Discussion and answering the questions orally is often a valid approach to an assignment.  Not everything has to be written out.

 

9. Outsource as needed or preferred.  Things like math drill can be so much easier if you have a computer game for that.  We had great results with Reflex Math for drill practice. It's $35 a year no matter how many kids use it, it keeps track of what they need and adjusts accordingly.  While one child is getting one on one with mom, the other kid can do math drill.

 

10. Conscientiously teach your children to work independently, step by step. Homeschoolers who don't and who don't have kids naturally inclined to work independently on things are headed for a real challenge.  Here are the basics in a nutshell:

 

After you have explained, demonstrated and worked with the child on how to do a type of assignment,

 

A. Have the child read the directions out loud to you.  (Read them to the child if they're not able to read yet.)

B. Have the child tell you back the directions in their own words.

C. Have the child look at the examples and describe to you how they were done.

D. Have the child do the first problem (if applicable) in front of you.

 

If those go well, move on, if not, backtrack through the steps to clarify any misunderstandings.

 

E. Have the child complete the assignment sitting next to you or near you in the same room so you can make sure they're on task and so you can answer any questions that come up while they're working. This is a good time to work one on one with another child.

F. Have the child show you their completed work as soon as they finish (or shortly thereafter.)  See what clarifications, if any need to be made.

 

Once that level of independent work is going smoothly most of the time, you can do that with 2 assignments, then 3, then a day's work, then a couple of day's work, then a week's work, and so on.  You can still have one on one time with them as needed, but when they don't need it as much don't burn time with one kid sitting idle while the other is being worked with.

 

 

Thank you!!

 

[How do you get it all done?]

I do alternate some days for some subjects.  But also, at some point, it just takes what it takes.  Also, just because it takes YOU all day doesn't mean it necessarily takes THEM all day.  

 

Double check that you're not doubling up unnecessarily.  A lot of LA seems to overlap.  I don't do a lot of formal grammar, for instance, because the writing instruction programs cover so much, especially for the younger ones.  WWE, for instance, points out a lot of grammar, and I feel like that also gives it some context, which makes it stick better.

 

I haven't thought of it that way.. "Also, just because it takes YOU all day doesn't mean it necessarily takes THEM all day. "   There is definitely some going back and forth even with just two. I've combined where I can, but on things like language and math they work at their own level.

 

I'll keep an eye on next year's choices to see if we're over doing some of the LA. Thanks. :)

[How do you get it all done?]

How do you organize your day to cover all you've planned - and not end up teaching/doing school from morning until dinner? One of the main reasons we decided to homeschool was to allow the kids more time to not be at the desk and in school for 6 - 7 hours a day, but I find if I try to fit everything in (definitely not everything all on the same day, every day), we're still at the table at 3pm, even if we start by 8:30am. Of course we have lunch, but... What am I doing wrong? I don't feel like we're doing too much. Heck, I don't feel like we're doing enough as it is.

I'm sure part of the problem is my motivation to teach some mornings. But I'm also sure there are tips and tricks to scheduling to keep (most) days running smoothly and not feeling like you're ditching the 'fun' stuff like science, history, geography, etc... because you've spent too much time on math and language. 

Do you alternate days for particular subjects? Do semester like blocks? How do you keep on track yourself?

Any thoughts? My two are 7 and 9 and we're finishing up our 4th year of homeschooling - I should feel just a tad more seasoned than I do! ;-) I'm pretty certain we're not doing too badly, but some days I feel like we're floundering and others like we could take over the world! And I have a suspicion that I'm not alone in feeling this way! :-)

[Science Choices]

We haven't used Elemental or R.E.A.L., but we have done some of the mysteries on Mystery Science and really enjoyed them. I feel you could use it as a thorough curriculum if you brought in some extra books/materials on the topics, and use their extras. 

We use and enjoy apologia, but since it's topically focused, I bring in other topics by using MS. We're finishing up Astronomy, but I wanted to glance at other topics, so we recently used MS for their Plant Adventures unit. Both of my kids (7 and 9) really enjoyed that. We're moving onto Botany with Apologia next, so we'll probably use MS for topics like weather, animals, etc... The activities are simple, but provide good understanding of the topics. Also, MS is fantastic with their communication. They're quick to answer any questions you or your kid(s) may have and are very receptive to feedback.