knit247 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Do you so the same subjects each day with your children or not? I am considering switching things up a bit as I try to move to a more CM-friendly plan for the girls. I found the schedules at SCM and also searched the archives here and found this thread but thought I'd poll y'all to see what you do. I like the idea of doing the exact same thing in the exact same order each day. DD#1 and I both have pretty severe attention issues (both diagnosed ADHD - I'm medicated, she's not :tongue_smilie:) I find that we are lucky to get the 3Rs in each day. I feel that that way we at least get in the basics. I will also admit that I need more discipline to keep us on track. It's easy for me to start working on something myself - and get totally lost in my own world - while she is doing her work (instead of staying right there and gently reminding her to keep on track). DD#1, however, would like to switch things up. She loves history and science and we truly never do these any more. She'd love to do art as well. Maybe if we do core subjects before lunch, letting her choose the order, and family work after lunch? Or, possibly switching between core and family work throughout the day so that more of the subjects she likes get "face time"? So, what works well for your family? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 No, we don't. My kids have checklists and I have them do their math first and then their grammar. After that, they can pretty much do things in whatever order they like. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca VA Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We don't do our subjects in the same order each day. I see the value in doing so, and I wish we did that. But we often have to accomodate interruptions, so I'll set my student to work on "short subjects" when we need to get a few things done fast, and "long subjects" when we have more time. We do whatever we have to do to get our list completed each day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jatoga Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 With my 8th grader, he has a weekly assignment sheet and he does it in whatever order he wishes. As long as it all done! With my 4th grader, we do math and grammar everyday...not necessarily at the same time each day. The other subjects get put in as we go. Sometimes we get them all in, sometimes we don't. Joan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 In the morning we do Latin, Greek, French, English (language arts) and religion. Each child has a weekly planner with their assignments for each day already written inside. We write them out each weekend. The morning assignments can be done in any order. In the afternoon we do math, history, science, geography and literature. The children must start with math and then can work in any order they please. As long as we are on track in our morning work and math I don't worry much about the others. I have one dd that loves science so she makes a point to get to that each afternoon and another that enjoys literature most, so always does that after math. If we don't get all of our afternoon work done by the end of the week I tend to roll it into the next week's assignments. However, any morning work or math that is not complete must be done over the weekend in place of free time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alison in KY Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We do the same order and same subjects here (with a bit of flexibility for the oldest if he wants to switch something), but we do have a more relaxed Friday and take away a few subjects and do some artwork, listening to cd's, etc. Alison Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitestavern Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We switched to a more CM focused approach this year and when we did so I created a new schedule. I'm pretty sure it was SCM that gave guidelines on how to set up a schedule. First I figured out everything each child had to do for the week (ie math 4x, reading 5x, history 3x, grammar 3x, etc.) Then I built the schedule trying to make sure that there was independent work followed by teacher led (like history), and writing subjects followed by oral subjects so it was varied. So far this year it has worked very well. I create a weekly schedule for myself, which really only takes about 1/2 hour a week. Then from that I create a daily checklist for each dc, which only takes about 1 minutes, so that they know exactly what they have to do each day. Obviously with only about 8 subjects per week, the schedule is not vastly different on a day to day basis, but it's just enough to keep it fresh and interesting. We also do a few more subjects than last year, but shorter time blocks. So far, this new schedule has been working very well for us! If you're interested, I can send you a copy of my weekly spreadsheet to give you an idea of how I scheduled everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhonda in TX Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 If they skip around, I find that things get missed (sometimes unintentionally, sometimes...not :tongue_smilie: ). If your kids can handle things mixed up, by all means let them choose the order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissKNG Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 There are subjects we do everyday but not always in the same order for my PreK/K dd. Prayer and the Bible lesson are always first. Then either we do a craft or start math. (Bible, craft and math are everyday). I bought a few more subjects to do for variety and have "safety" once a week, for example. And a community worker lesson once a week (this month is Police Officer). Phonics is twice a week but she also works on readingeggs.com or starfall.com almost daily. We also read everyday. Science is twice a week too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pageta Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Our core subjects (the 3 r's) are done in the same order every day. History, science, poetry and everything else come after and aren't necessarily in the same order because we don't do them every day. It also depends on whether we're running out of steam or if ds is begging for more. As for the subjects we do in the same order every day, I start out reading a story (literature - which he likes) followed by reading aloud (which he hates) but then we do spelling (which he loves and I use as a bribe to get through reading) and then we do handwriting (which is okay) followed by his favorite of all - math. Alternating loves with not-so-loves helps me keep him motivated with as little effort as possible. He's not old enough to have a planner yet, so doing things in the same order every day helps him know how much we're going to do as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mariposa Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 I have children close in age to the op, and I think that for early elementary it helps to have some "structure." That said, the way I do it is that (assuming we've stayed on track through the week) I mix things up on Fridays. We've been in school since late August and I just started this in the past 2 weeks, now that we have our routine. It's probably different for everyone, but my children like knowing what to expect next. Now that they know the schedule, they're enjoying our fun Fridays. And I am, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennefer@SSA Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We do things in pretty much the same order each day (except for those things we only do 2 or 3 x a week). We try and follow a CM schedule as well. In order to keep myself and ds on track I have a checklist that I keep right with me so I can see our progression. I don't write the times though (as in 8:15-8:30)...too much stress for me if we get off a bit! With short and varied lessons (ala CM) it's the only way for me to remember all we do in a day. For example: Math (Part 1) -15 min Grammar - 10 min Restroom/water break - 5 min Geography - 10 min Handwriting - 10 min Math (Part 2) - 15 min Reading (He reads to me) - 15 min Art Appreciation (picture study) - 10 min (5 to observe and 5 to discuss) and so on... I don't keep it to an exact.must.stop.math.at.15.minutes. kind of thing but use the times as a basic guideline. If I didn't do this there is no way we would get much done as I too can be very distracted - heck I am on the computer typing this msg now instead of working with ds! :D Hope this helps a bit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadiegirl Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Well, my thoughts are with that in mind but then we start school and it seems like we can't seem to keep the same routine...life gets in the way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindygz Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We don't do the same order. As we have a workboxish set-up, I mix most things up, and try to arrange some "break" stuff in between some of the less enjoyed subjects. But we do pretty much always have history or science last, as that tends to work out the best with having ds4 join in on the lessons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) . Edited September 5, 2023 by SilverMoon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy7 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We follow a schedule at our house as much as possible. I'm teaching 5 grades, so we really need it. So, the part of the schedule that involves my teaching is set. The part that is flexible is the "independent work" that they do. They do that in whatever order they want to, just so long as it all gets done. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We do all lessons that I need to do completely with him, or sit with him to finish, first. This is nearly everything. lol Among those subjects, sometimes I let him choose what's next, other times I pick. Sometimes he needs more physical activity breaks than others, he has trouble focusing. As long as we can finish the mom-intensive lessons and reading aloud sometime before lunch, I'm at peace with it. But then I need to get the baby down for a nap and during that time he is SUPPOSED to read for science or history, or fun reading, on his own, and do his math worksheets or any extra copywork, like extra spelling practice or copying to review his memory work. Of course, this doesn't always happen like it is supposed to, which is why we are still going at schoolwork later in the afternoon. Sigh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smrtmama Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 We alternate some subjects, but we do them in the same order on their requisite days. Monday: Math, History, Grammar/Vocab, Writing Tuesday: Co-Op Wednesday: Math, History, Grammar/Vocab, Writing Thursday: Science, Math Friday: Math, Science That's our pattern every week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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