Considering a big leap - anyone here not schedule?

[rafiki]

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[Wendy in ME]

I make a list of what we will cover in each subject for the week but I do not schedule each day. This leaves some wiggle room if I want to change things around a bit such as spending extra time on a particular subject that we are really enjoying that day. I too used to write everything for each day and then I felt pressured to get it done or have to juggle everything around and mess up my pretty schedule. I like having the weekly list much better.

[Susan in SoCal]

I do "the next thing."

 

I do take time (a big chunk, actually) during our summer break to familiarize myself with the materials. I take the time to generate a history plan (where I pull together all my resources, pick my accompanying literature and make a rough list SOTW chapter by chapter). I look over each of our texts to see roughly how much we need to cover daily to finish in a year (just a simple rough guess - like, the math book has 140 lessons. we need to do 1 lesson per day to finish in a year, with some wiggle room.) For something like CW Homer B this year - there are 20 lessons. I want to take one year with this text. We can spend 1-2 weeks per lesson. I like to spend 1 week on a few of the lessons, so we'll have room to take weeks "off." I re-evaluate our progress halfway thru the year to see if we've accomplished enough to stay on schedule.

 

So I loosely plan before our school year begins. After that, I just do the next thing and re-evaluate our progress occasionally. I don't make any day to day lists of specific work to do. So far, this has worked fine with my children's personalities (what they need). And I'm only juggling two kiddos and we're still in our elementary years. So I acknowledge that this way that I do things may need to change as our circumstances change.

[Laura Corin]

I do the same as Susan. I do schedule blocks of time for particular subjects each day, but within those blocks I just do the next thing, always with an eye on what I need to accomplish during the year.

 

Laura

[Jenny in Atl]

I also don't schedule. I just list what we need to do for the day, subject wise and go from there. Some days we are in a grove and just keep going with a subject, say math, other days we need to stop and leave a subject off or only do half a lesson. I think I would drive myself nuts if I had every little thing planned out daily.

[SparrowsNest]

always with an eye on what I need to accomplish during the year.

 

 

Perhaps this is a dumb question, but how do you *know* what needs to be accomplished during a year?

[Chris in VA]

I do the next thing, too. I use curricula that works well that way. Saxon is definitely do the next thing friendly, as are Rod and Staff Grammar, our phonics and spelling programs, and SOTW. I did pick out things from the AG I wanted to do this year, but I've misplaced the list! Oh well. Love that open and go feeling.

And, if I find we get behind, I just do a little extra of whatever we are behind in. It all evens out.

Guess you could call me relaxed.

[Laura Corin]

Perhaps this is a dumb question, but how do you *know* what needs to be accomplished during a year?

 

For example, I know that I want Hobbes to do roughly a year's worth of maths in a year, so I just count up the exercises in his text book and get through them at an appropriate rate. Other subjects are more nebulous: maybe I think that if we do too little Greek he will get bored, so I want to move forward fast enough to keep his interest. Other subjects again fall into a long term plan: how many rotations of history do I want to accomplish by a certain age?

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

[nutmeg]

I just sat down and made a checklist with M-F on one sheet, just listing each child and subjects required from them. I broke it down into things they do daily, content subjects that we do together and also included others like thinking skills and test prep. I can just print one off each week, check off as we go, and also quickly be able to see what was covered that week. This just seems so much more efficient.

 

Your new simple schedule is still way more than I do. Not that there's anything wrong with that! Everyone needs to find what works for them.

 

Good for you for making the adjustment! It is easier, isn't it? :)

[Sweetpeach]

I am completely and unapologetically a "do the next thing" hs'er.

 

Tried for 2 years to squish myself into something I'm not . . . and now, I know what I want to accomplish and we work towards that goal. Trying to figure out each day or week is an absolute waste of time for me, because I won't follow my own sch, even if I had one.

 

If I lived in a state where I had to detail each learning moment, I'd be in serious trouble.

 

Good luck finding your groove.

 

T

[Karen in CO]

I have a plan and a rhythm. Okay, I guess it is a schedule sort of. I choose the material before we start the year. I also have an overall plan that has gotten my high school ds all of the courses needed for college on time. I have a plan for my girls that will get them to their higher maths, 3 history rotations and a fair amount of other things by the time they graduate. Inside of that big plan, we do math and reading year round right after breakfast. I make sure that we read history and literature two or three times a week, and that we have one or two grammar lessons a week. We write something everyday. I have tried to be unscheduled, but the list maker in me wasn't happy. I am relaxed, but we get the next thing in the basics done everyday right after breakfast. It keeps me accountable.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

I don't do even as much as you are planning. I'm definitely a "let's open the book and see what we're doing today" kind of person.

 

I have found, in our seven years of homeschooling, that some subjects/curricula simply can't be planned. Singapore math is like that. Ds just spent his fourth day on Ex. 15 in PM4A (multiple-digit multiplication). In another topic (measurement, for instance), he might do 3 or 4 exercises in a single day. R&S English is like that, too. Usually, we do one lesson a day. But, sometimes it's easy to do 2 or 3 lessons in one sitting. Other times, writing assignments take two or three days. It all works out in the end, though.

 

I keep a planning book for each child. It has M-F listed down the left side, and space for up to 13 subjects across the top of a two page spread. Each week, I fill in the dates down the left, and the subject headings across the top (these hardly ever change, but doing it each week allows me to substitute different subjects if we're being led in a new direction). Our subjects for 4th and 6th grade are Piano, Math, Grammar, Cursive, Memory work, Spelling, Bible, Latin, History, Science, Reading, Typing, PE, Art/Music, and Life Skills. We don't do every subject, every day. By scanning the previous week, I can see where we need to focus this week.

 

Each day, I write the day of our school year (we're on day 125 today). Then, as we go through the subjects, I write down what each child DID that day. The only planning I do is history, and all I do there is go through the SOTW AG, and check out books from the library that we will be needing.

 

Dd finished her R&S English book early this year, so I'm going to be starting Classical Writing - Older Beginner with her, and I am currently looking at how that all works, but I don't expect that it will need much weekly prep time. I don't see a need to map out when we will do what. We'll get through it when we get through it. I expect it will take through next year.

 

It doesn't bother me at all to just take things as they come, and take as long as we need to complete each book. If we finish them early, then we just move on to the next level, or do something else in the interim. I certainly wouldn't have planned for dd to finish her grammar course 3 months early, but it works out great. We'll be able to focus on her writing for the rest of the year. Similarly, we can take the time we need to thoroughly understand each topic of her math, without some arbitrary schedule putting undue pressure on us to keep moving.

 

Both of my kids are doing well. They're up to date on their books, and do well on their standardized tests every year. Not scheduling works great for us. If they only get through their world history cycle twice, instead of three times, that doesn't bother me. I only got one semester of world history in my entire school career. If they fly ahead and finish 8 grades of spelling by the end of sixth grade, Cool! We won't need to do spelling anymore! We'll be able to do something else. For us, scheduling might have held us back. Who needs it? Not me, at least not at the elementary grade levels.

 

OTOH, as the kids get older, I want them to be more independent. Dd will be in 7th grade. I plan to go through her books for next year, and make a schedule for HER to follow, giving her the liberty to move ahead or linger as needed, as long as she keeps up with monthly or quarterly goals, so she'll be able to finish on time. She likes schedules, and checking things off lists, so I think this will work well for her. I'm thinking of getting Homeschool Tracker for her, to practice keeping records, setting goals, scheduling her time, etc. We'll need to be accustomed to doing that for high school.

[KIN]

I also "plan" as Susan in SoCal. I plan during the summer how many days we need to do math, grammar, Latin, etc, etc, a week. Roughly plan my history and science the same way. Once school starts I just do the next thing, every few months I kind of review where we are at and adjust things if I need to. I've also decided to not sweat 180 days - if it takes longer to get done, oh well. :) So, my plan for the end of the year is to drop subjects as we complete them and continue others until they are done - whether we are at 180 days (IN state requirements) or longer.

 

Kathy

[SparrowsNest]

I just count up the exercises in his text book and get through them at an appropriate rate

 

OK! Thanks! :)

[G5052]

I am completely and unapologetically a "do the next thing" hs'er.

 

Tried for 2 years to squish myself into something I'm not . . . and now, I know what I want to accomplish and we work towards that goal. Trying to figure out each day or week is an absolute waste of time for me, because I won't follow my own sch, even if I had one.

 

If I lived in a state where I had to detail each learning moment, I'd be in serious trouble.

 

Good luck finding your groove.

 

T

 

That's me. DH asked me a few a weeks ago why I wasn't recording every book read and every math score, and it took some convincing to get him on board as to why this isn't necessary (the state doesn't require it). My SIL has to do that for the umbrella school they're involved in, and she spends an hour or more a night grading for her five children (she uses all A Beka). I can't imagine! Obviously that will need to change for high school, but they'll also be more independent then (smile).

[elegantlion]

I am a planner by nature, but hate being tied to a schedule. My ds, otoh, thrives on structure, he wants to know what we are going to do next.

 

I make a master plan schedule for the year divided into weeks, then I schedule 2-3 weeks in advance. My calendar is undated. I number the weeks 1-36, and the days are .1 - .5, not M-F. this fits well for both of us. That way ds knows what subjects we do on what day, but it is not tied to a specific date. I hope that makes sense, it's early yet and the coffee has quite kicked into gear.

[BizyPenguin]

I'm not a planner, list maker, nor am I organized. We just "do the next thing" each day and I write a weekly report over the weekend to document it all. Papers get graded (hopefully sooner than later) and everything gets filed in a 3 ring binder. That's it!

[my2kidsmom]

When we started, almost 4 years ago, I would write out weekly lesson plans for dd. I did that for two years. Then, I started writing out daily lesson plans for what we would cover the next day. That quickly lead to what I do now which is keep a steady pace with our lessons and do one after another. I know we need to cover math, English, Bible, and spelling everyday (or almost everyday) and history for two days and sciene for two days. Iv'e ben able to cover everything I need to cover this year. For example, in SOTW vol. 3, we are just where we need to be to keep doing 1-3 lessons each week (usually 2), take a few more breaks for spring break and a couple of summer breaks and be done with the book before we "start" school next year with vol. 4.

[Storm Bay]

That's me. DH asked me a few a weeks ago why I wasn't recording every book read and every math score, and it took some convincing to get him on board as to why this isn't necessary (the state doesn't require it).

 

The first 2 years we homeschooled I kept a list of books read. But no more. I keep all the kids' work up in the attic in case anyone ever asks. But I don't give them grades for their courses yet. Next year I'll have to as my eldest is heading into high school and she may need it for some college she may end up applying for that may not take portfolios (this is all maybe--I suspect she'd make a good fit in a college where you design your own program). I dread it. I don't even want to think about it yet because it's only March. I'm more concerned about thinking about her writing skills, the curricula we're going to use, etc.

[Beth in Central TX]

I have read through this thread with great interest, because the thought of not scheduling has never, ever crossed my mind. Quite honestly, I don't think I would get anything done. Maybe that's why I like to plan and schedule everything...so that it gets done.

[Osaubi]

Like elegantlion my ds thrives on structure. When I first started homeschooling I was an open the book kind of person, but my ds hated it. I had to create a plan. I let him pick what subject he wants to do first, and that is about as much wiggle room as I get from him. I used to write my plans out, but found myself changing and moving things around, so I started using homeshcool tracker software. I really like using the software better than paper.

[kalanamak]

Perhaps this is a dumb question, but how do you *know* what needs to be accomplished during a year?

 

I pull out the Core Knowledge books, What Your Child Needs to Know... (I found them at goodwill over about a time period of a year) every 3 months or so for the year we are in and next year and look through them. As we get more complicated in older years, I'll probably use the "tick and bookmark" method I love...pencil checkmark in upper right hand page when covered and a book mark in those I need to remember to do.

I'm sure there are websites on what is expected in each subject, although school-schools have their own history path that may not match yours. I also use the "surprized stranger" method for general knowledge. Child asks a question or makes a comment and nearest adult stranger does double-take, and if they are a mature grandmotherly type and says "goodness, what a bright boy you have", it counts for two. :)

 

Happy Monday all, hi ho, hi ho, its off to work I go....

[Tami]

We just have a weekly routine, doing this on such -and-such a day and that on sucn-and-such a day. Other than planning history, science and fine arts (following it loosely) we just do the next thing.

 

Dd has a blank weekly checklist and writes in assignments AFTER they are done. That way we have a record, and we never feel behind.

 

There are some posts and forms at my blog outlining how I schedule.

 

Blessings on your planning (or lack thereof)!

[asher]

:) Subscribing because I'm curious about the same.

[rafiki]

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[dfrecore]

I am with a public charter school, and we have a certain amount of "work samples" we have to turn in each period (I guess to "prove" that we're actually working :)). And, my dd5 is only in kindergarten, so please don't think that I'm an expert! But, I just have a general plan for what we need to accomplish for the year. I know that we need to do phonics and math every day, which we do first. I then leave it up to her to choose from the many other things we can do each day. Right now, she loves doing ETC, so we've put HWT on the back burner (her hand gets "too tired to do more writing" she whines). We kind of do things like that. If we get a science kit, that's all she wants to do for a week. If we get books at the library, it's a reading-fest for 2 days. So, I try to be flexible and allow her to make choices, and everything seems to go in spurts. But, we still seem to cover everything - just not in any logical order, if you know what I mean.

 

Now, as she gets older, we'll incorporate more things that have to be done daily, but she'll still be able to pick and choose what she likes to do each day somewhat. I also take her with me to the homeschool store, and she always finds something new and interesting that she wants to do.

 

I find this to be a good balance between "child-led" learning and more rigorous classical-type learning. I feel like I never got to run with anything that was really fun or interesting in school, never developed a "passion" for anything, and want to give my kids a chance to see if one develops.

 

We also plan on schooling year-round - I can't imagine taking the summer off! So, we'll continue on with our phonics and math, but I will give them even more chances to find new exciting things to do! More field trips, more trips to the library, more trips to the homeschool stores, etc. But, this gives us extra time to finish anything we haven't yet when the school year ends, and we still have plenty of time each day to do the "fun" stuff because whatever we've finished we don't have to incorporate in (like, if we finish our grammar book, I won't feel the need to do grammar each week, same with writing, history, etc.).

 

Just my way of doing things. I write almost nothing down ahead of time, then write in what we've accomplished for the last 2 weeks (because I have to turn it in), and it always seems to be what I would have planned out for us IF I planned it!

 

Good luck with whatever way you choose to do things. We all have to do what fits with our personalities, what's working for our families, etc.

[Emmy]

I have an excel spreadsheet chart that lists the subjects we are covering on the left column and the days of the week across the top. Since I conveniently have my laptop on all the time :rolleyes: I just leave it open and I type DONE in the sections of the chart as we finish topics. I started doing this so I wouldn't forget to do math with one kid or accidentally miss out on spelling with my oldest (trust me - he wouldn't remind me!).

 

I type notes for myself to the right of the chart - mainly things I want to remember for the following week.

 

I don't plan for the week or anything, I just do "the next thing" and I keep an eye to when we will finish things for the year. It never seems to work out quite right (we finish early or start new curriculum in January) but I like to keep us on track (whatever that means).

 

I live in a state that requires almost nothing so this is just a tool for me to make sure I'm covering what I want to cover.