How in the world do you fit it all in?

[ChristusG]

I feel like I can't get it all done!! I get up around 6:30, do breakfast, exercise, devotion, start a few chores.....I wish I could get all of that done before the kids get up around 8:30, but I just can't. From there, I'm still trying to finished my morning stuff before starting school around 10. We never end up starting school around 10 because I'm running late. I block about 30 minutes per subject. Yesterday math ran over that time, as well as science. We do 6 subjects a day. In the meantime I'm trying to tend to my 3 year old as well, trying to interact with her, do a little preschool with her. DD6 is very high maintanence and needy, so I have to tend to her more. All the while I have to make lunch, clean up from lunch, wash clothes, do dishes, pick up toys, do household chores. Not to mention I have to find time to go grocery shopping and errands. Plus, what about all the stuff we have to fit in? Church? Art class? If we are gone during the morning hours, school is pretty much skipped for that day because we cannot get back on schedule. And I need to find time to read more books to the kids during the day. Then dinner time rolls around I have to start cooking that.

 

How in the world do you do it all? I feel like I'm losing my mind. And I only have one to school right now!

[....]

I get up at 4:45 am every morning - no kidding. :crying: I am also extremely organized.

[....]

Oh, and Read-Alouds are meant to be read at night, for a bedtime story. :D

[anissa]

IMHO 30 minutes a day for each subject with a 5 year old is a lot. With so many little ones I'd cut way back. Do school only 4 days a week. It will get easier as your dc get older ( they become very helpful with chores) but for awhile just concentrate on the mommy thing. Hopefully you are not feeling pressure to be the "perfect" homeschooling mom.

[Lindy]

We do not leave the house in the morning. We do have a 4-day school week, so it allows for a morning of homeschool activities outside the home. All extra curriculars are after lunch.

 

I get up around 5:30; my youngest is up by 7am. That's my time to have a quiet time, check emails, finish planning the day.

 

Housework can wait. I do a little bit throughout the day and train my children to do the rest. My dh insists on coming home to a perfectly spotless house so at 4pm (or before we leave for an afternoon activity) every child cleans his or her personal zone. A little training goes far and so far my dh has his wish almost every day.

 

We start school around 8:30 and finish before noon. I am not a slave to the clock; we have a routine we follow, not a schedule. We start our day with read-alouds--at breakfast--because I found that hearing good literature engages their mind and then helps them shift into math or language skills easier.

 

I have 3 upper-elementary students and school itself only last for 3 hours. When my oldest was K and 1st grade, school only last maybe an hour and a half. No wonder you're stressed! 3+ hours is a long time with young children. Besides, the bulk of my kids' education doesn't take place at a desk, it just happens in real life (growing a garden, reading a book, cooking in the kitchen, etc).

 

One book that helped me was Homeschooling at the Speed of Life.

 

Enjoy these years. Don't let them be a burden. :grouphug:

[Night Elf]

I feel like I can't get it all done!!

 

It sounds like you have a lot to do!

 

I get up around 6:30, do breakfast, exercise, devotion, start a few chores.....I wish I could get all of that done before the kids get up around 8:30, but I just can't.

 

Is there anything you can do before bed that will make your mornings easier?

 

We do 6 subjects a day.

 

I'm always in awe of the ladies who do so much. Is there any independent work in there? Can some things be alternated daily? For example, follow WTM schedule of science 2 days per week and history 3 days per week.

 

In the meantime I'm trying to tend to my 3 year old as well, trying to interact with her, do a little preschool with her. DD6 is very high maintanence and needy, so I have to tend to her more.

 

Ah.. you're schooling a 6 year old? Probably not much room for independent work. Sometimes the style of programs affect how long it takes to do them. In my mind, 6 subjects at 30 minutes per day is simply too much for a 6 year old to do. I wonder what the average amount of time for a 6 yr. old should be? And the number of subjects, I wonder if they are all necessary at that age? My 7th and 9th graders spend 3 to 3.5 hours doing school work a day.

 

All the while I have to make lunch, clean up from lunch, wash clothes, do dishes, pick up toys, do household chores.

 

Get help from your 6 yr. old. Choose lunch that is easy to prepare and clean up. Try doing one load of laundry a day, putting it in the washer first thing in the morning around 7am, flipping it around 8am, and folding it around 9am. We're a family of five and we do one load of laundry a day.

 

Not to mention I have to find time to go grocery shopping and errands.

 

Those should have specific day built into your schedule. Our major grocery shopping day has always been on the weekend, sometimes Saturday, but mostly Sunday afternoon. Post office, library, etc. can be done in one afternoon, can't it? Well, obviously I don't know what your errands are. :)

 

If we are gone during the morning hours, school is pretty much skipped for that day because we cannot get back on schedule. And I need to find time to read more books to the kids during the day.

 

If getting back on a schedule in the afternoon is something you know you have an issue with, then that is where you start your effort. Before you leave the house in the morning, tell yourself AND your child that when you get home you will start your schoolwork. Again, are you trying to do too much outside the house AND too much schoolwork? You don't have to be superwoman to homeschool! When my kids were much younger, we always had some read-alouds in the evenings. It was a great way to wind down from the busy day.

 

How in the world do you do it all? I feel like I'm losing my mind. And I only have one to school right now!

 

Again, you may just be trying to do too much. Just MHO though. :)

Edited June 29, 2010 by Night Elf

[ChristusG]

Wow, 4:45 AM! What time do you get in bed each night?

 

We already do a 4 day homeschooling week. Wednesdays (from Sept to May) is homeschool group day, so we don't do any formal school work.

 

We don't stick to the 30 minutes per subject. If it takes less time, that's fine. We just have more free time at the end of the day. Each subject takes so long because my DD6 is VERY high maintanence. Everything takes twice as long with her because she can be quite difficult. She loves to talk and goes off on tangents. And she is easily distracted. I constantly have to keep her on the task at hand. Plus, she's a whiner and whines and slumps to the floor when schooling is not going her way. She's very difficult to homeschool LOL.

 

Our subjects are Bible, reading/handwriting, math, science, speech therapy (we do this at home instead of going to a therapist), and an extra subject. Sign Language on Mondays, state study on Tuesdays, Art on Thursdays, and Story of the World on Fridays. So I don't really think we are doing a ton of work.

[Hedgehogs4]

i have a cleaning lady every other week. i feel guilty every time i say it to other homeschoolers because i know some can't afford one, but for my sanity, we can't afford not to. i am someone who needs a certain level of clean in the house or i get sincerely depressed, and this cuts back a lot on the need to constantly be worrying about if it's all going to get done! i can focus more on meals, laundry, school, etc.

[cat in black]

You don't. You don't get it all done. I encourage you to read "A day in the life" that Susan Wise Bauer has on the website. It used to be in the newsletters. Is that still on here? I haven't read it for years, but it used to lift me up whenever I read it. Guess what. In the big scheme of things, it won't matter. Your children are young. Just read to them all you can. Keep up with laundry and put decent meals on the table. Exercise. Devotions. Yes, art class and a bunch of other fun stuff. Get your priorities straight. Housework keeps. I used to agonize because we never got through all our lesson plans in a day. Especially when we got to high school. The house was always a wreck. I used to set a "goal of the day" and make sure I got that done. When I did, I considered that day a success. Know what? Learning took place in spite of all we didn't get done. College acceptance letters came from major universities....schools that are hard to get into. SAT scores were impressive. Sometimes I wonder how that happened. But it happened. Now my kids are grown and my house is empty. It is also clean and my To-Do list gets marked off every day. I wish somebody had told me years ago that I shouldn't fret over not getting it all done. Hit the high spots and enjoy your children. You blink and the homeschooling years are over.

[....]

Wow, 4:45 AM! What time do you get in bed each night?

 

 

10:00-10:30-ish...

 

My husband leaves for work at 5am and comes home between 7-9pm, so I get up with him when he goes to work and try to spend an hour or two with him at night. :glare:

 

I wouldn't wish that schedule on my worst enemy... :tongue_smilie:

 

It does help you get a lot done, though.

[1bassoon]

I don't have any answers, but this blog post by Marcia Somerville helped me to see this time as a blessing to be embraced. . . . .

[NanceXToo]

I spent an average of 3 hours a day on schoolwork with my fourth grader. You don't have to do that much with a 5/6 y/o. Maybe you can cut back a bit on amount of time spent per subject, or drop a subject or two.

 

A 3 y/o does not need any sort of formal preschool curriculum whatsoever. You could hold off for a year or two and just keep things very informal/casual play-based for now.

 

Your house does not have to be perfect, so only do the really necessary chores. Toys? Put them away once a day, at the end of the day, and let the kids help you. Make it a game, who can put the most toys in the toybox the fastest or whatever.

 

Starting school around 10 AM is fine. No worries. I did that on a pretty regular basis all year last year :)

 

Keep lunches simple. Can you enlist your husband's help on certain errands/chores?

 

Read books at bedtime. Or put on an audiobook for the kids to listen to while you are doing laundry/making dinner/otherwise busy.

 

You start to fall into a natural rhythm and it all works out, as long as you don't feel like you have to be supermom. Hang in there. :)

[Disney Dreaming]

Trust me, you can't. I just started homeschooling last fall-unless you want to be exhausted 24/7, it's not possible. I am going to a 4 day week this fall so I have Friday's to get some things done. Then you can probably finish on the weekends. I am going to make a schedule that lists what days we go grocery shopping, library,etc... And I learned that you do errands after school is finished(school in the morning from 8:00-12:30, errands in the afternoon).

[JudoMom]

I feel like I can't get it all done!! I get up around 6:30, do breakfast, exercise, devotion, start a few chores.....I wish I could get all of that done before the kids get up around 8:30, but I just can't. From there, I'm still trying to finished my morning stuff before starting school around 10. We never end up starting school around 10 because I'm running late. I block about 30 minutes per subject. Yesterday math ran over that time, as well as science. We do 6 subjects a day. In the meantime I'm trying to tend to my 3 year old as well, trying to interact with her, do a little preschool with her. DD6 is very high maintanence and needy, so I have to tend to her more. All the while I have to make lunch, clean up from lunch, wash clothes, do dishes, pick up toys, do household chores. Not to mention I have to find time to go grocery shopping and errands. Plus, what about all the stuff we have to fit in? Church? Art class? If we are gone during the morning hours, school is pretty much skipped for that day because we cannot get back on schedule. And I need to find time to read more books to the kids during the day. Then dinner time rolls around I have to start cooking that.

 

How in the world do you do it all? I feel like I'm losing my mind. And I only have one to school right now!

 

I get up at 5 (I go to bed somwhere between 9 & 10).

 

I run my errands early (as in I'm home by 8 before dh leaves for work) one morning a week. Other errands (library or PO) are after school is done (and I try to tack them onto the days we have Judo or piano in the afternoons).

 

I really try not to have anything in the mornings, because we're awful at getting back on schedule as well. I dropped a co-op because it met on Friday afternoons (then started one that meets on Wednesday afternoons--at church, before Wednesday night dinner and activities).

 

Our best days tend to be when we start school at 8:00. This year I'm going to try starting with read-alouds over breakfast at 7:30 (we're doing Sonlight 6), and we also have a family read-aloud before bed (this is when I read a book that isn't tied to school at all).

 

I try to keep laundry moving throughout the day, and I pick up all day long. I've also taught my boys to mostly keep the toys in the playroom, so that helps cut down on the messes in the main parts of the house. I try to do a thorough cleaning once a week, usually on Friday afternoons.

 

I'm not involved in breakfast at all (except for pouring milk)--they eat granola bars or cereal or something. Lunches are simple--cheese sticks, crackers, fruit, an occasional sandwich, lunch meat slices, hot dogs, carrot sticks, etc. On busy days, dinners are simple (tacos, spaghetti, etc.), and I save the more labor intensive meals for the weekends.

 

Another thing I do is to sit down with a weekly planner and block out my week so I can realistically plan. If we've got a doctor appointment in the morning, I know we won't be getting a full day of school in that day, so I plan our school week accordingly. It also gives me a chance to plan meals for the week (so I know if I need to plan a crockpot meal, etc.).

 

Oh, I also get a lot more done if the TV is off and I don't waste time on the computer :glare:.

[SailorMom]

Oh my - get everything done? Yeah - sure.....

I had to decide that housework would wait, and that during our school hours - school was the priority (this became important after 3rd grade).

I also think cutting back on school time would be a good thing for both of you :) For a 6 year old, an hour or two a day is more than enough :)

When you homeschool - it becomes your full time job - so no guilt allowed when you can't accomplish what other SAHM's accomplish in a day. Even getting up ridiculously early won't gaurantee getting it all done:grouphug:

[jujsky]

I have no real advice because I'm having the same problem, but i wanted to offer :grouphug:. I also have a very difficult, high-maintenance 6 year-old. I just keep telling myself that in another year or two when he is able to work more independently things will be so much easier.

 

Oh -- and M & Ms. Have you tried bribery? I'm not above it. When he has a worksheet he doesn't want to do, I give him one piece of candy for every answer he writes quickly & neatly. It definitely helps with the flow.

[SailorMom]

Oh,,,, bribery is good,,, very good :)

[alpidarkomama]

I feel like I can't get it all done!! I get up around 6:30, do breakfast, exercise, devotion, start a few chores.....I wish I could get all of that done before the kids get up around 8:30, but I just can't. From there, I'm still trying to finished my morning stuff before starting school around 10. We never end up starting school around 10 because I'm running late. I block about 30 minutes per subject. Yesterday math ran over that time, as well as science. We do 6 subjects a day. In the meantime I'm trying to tend to my 3 year old as well, trying to interact with her, do a little preschool with her. DD6 is very high maintanence and needy, so I have to tend to her more. All the while I have to make lunch, clean up from lunch, wash clothes, do dishes, pick up toys, do household chores. Not to mention I have to find time to go grocery shopping and errands. Plus, what about all the stuff we have to fit in? Church? Art class? If we are gone during the morning hours, school is pretty much skipped for that day because we cannot get back on schedule. And I need to find time to read more books to the kids during the day. Then dinner time rolls around I have to start cooking that.

 

How in the world do you do it all? I feel like I'm losing my mind. And I only have one to school right now!

 

Here are things I do:

 

LUNCH - I keep lunch simple. Toast and eggs. Tuna and bread. Leftover veggie from night before, or grab a handful of salad (I make a week's supply on Sunday).

 

DISHES - I never do them during the day. I let them pile up in the sink. After dinner I do a big dish wash.

 

TOYS - Right after dinner the kids (even the 2-year-old) put away all their toys. Not me!

 

LAUNDRY - Tuesday is BIG laundry day. I just keep shuffling it through all day. So in the morning, it just takes starting the first load. It only takes a minute to do the shuffle.

 

MY CHORES - kitchen is cleaned up after dinner. Living room and bedrooms are picked up by papa and kids. I vacuum every other day or so.

 

GROCERIES - One night per week I leave after everyone is tucked into bed. Don't really do any other errands very often. Sometimes I leave for groceries early and wander around a bookstore for an hour just for a relaxing time. :)

 

DINNER - plan it at least a night before (usually a week before). Everything stops at 5:00 and I start dinner.

 

We usually do two blocks of study: 10:00-12:30 and 1:30-3:30 or 4:00. I have monthly goals, and if we miss a morning or an afternoon or a day, there's usually plenty of time to get done what I wanted to do. If we don't get done what I hoped, then I just readjust the remaining months.

 

My kids are 2, 4, 5, and 7. Some of that time is everybody time, some of it is just DD8, and usually DD4 and DS5 have their time together except for reading.

 

Don't try to get anything else done on church day. Just the basic house things that need to get done. We do the same on Saturday. Only religious activities and only the most essential things around the house.

 

It IS a very demanding job! :) But well worth it. Just figure out what the minimum is of other stuff to be done during your homeschooling time. It sounds like you have 3 hours a day, so if you do it 10:00-11:30 or 11:00-12:30 it shouldn't matter too much. It's nice having the flexibility. I wouldn't worry too much about sticking to the clock if it feels stressful.

 

Hope something here is helpful!

[2squared]

Each subject takes so long because my DD6 is VERY high maintanence. Everything takes twice as long with her because she can be quite difficult. She loves to talk and goes off on tangents. And she is easily distracted. I constantly have to keep her on the task at hand. Plus, she's a whiner and whines and slumps to the floor when schooling is not going her way. She's very difficult to homeschool LOL.

 

I would spend some time working on this. My kidlets, especially my 6yo, would melt down if I tried to keep them on task for 30 minutes. I don't even want to think of my 6yo's reaction for that length of lessons. So, I took some CM advice and set the timer for 15 minutes. He does 15 minutes of reading and 15 minutes of math. If he whines, complains, dawdles, etc, the timer is stopped until he's done. If my 8yo does those things, I add time to the timer. It didn't take long for them to figure out that staying on task was preferrable to the attitude. They seem to be relieved by the timer because they know their lessons have an end. Before the timer, I think they thought I just extended things to torture them. :D And, you know, when I was irritated I did do that sometimes. :001_huh: The timer keeps us all honest.

 

While they are throwing an attitude, I move on with other things on my to-do list. I don't participate with them. Their life stops while they are having the attitude and then we continue on with school when they are done. Meanwhile I read to the littles, throw in laundry, etc.

 

I don't know how to help your dd, but I do know that a 6yo's schooling shouldn't take anywhere near 3 hours. I'm guessing that's one of your big time leaks.

[alpidarkomama]

Just wanted to add too that our schedule allows me 3 hours every night to get things done. Kids and DH are asleep by 9:30. That gives me 9:30-1:00 to do whatever I want. (We get up at 8:00.) 9:30-11:00 is for the house and for planning our learning (usually Sat/Sun nights). But 11:00-1:00 is MINE. :)

[m0mmaBuck]

I feel like I can't get it all done!! I get up around 6:30, do breakfast, exercise, devotion, start a few chores.....I wish I could get all of that done before the kids get up around 8:30, but I just can't. From there, I'm still trying to finished my morning stuff before starting school around 10. We never end up starting school around 10 because I'm running late.

 

I get up at 6:00 to head to the gym or go for a walk/run in the nice weather. I try to be home by 8:00 to wake DH, get breakfast if the kids haven't already (and at 6yo your daughter should be able to get herself a bowl of cereal IMO), shower and get ready for the day (as we run a home business and I need to look "presentable" 9-5 for clients). I try to do a readaloud or read a chapter from SOTW during breakfast on days where we run a little late. I also try to have a few educational videos (related to either science or history that we are studying) on hand and will pop on of those in if I am feeling like I need to do household chores vs. teaching at that moment. I make DS summarize the video for me and then do either copywork or dictation RE: the video which also buys me a few more minutes on those days.

 

I block about 30 minutes per subject. Yesterday math ran over that time, as well as science. We do 6 subjects a day.

 

On days where I really feel the pinch, I focus on the 3 R's-- reading, writing, and arithmetic. We spend 30-60 mins on Math and Grammar/LA's and then read something related to either science or history followed by a short (3 sentence) narration or copywork. DS8 knows that if he goofs off and runs over his time, he has "homework" for later in the day. He can ask for help but is expected to finish primarily independently. Most days, music, art, geography, Latin, and other subjects fit into the schedule, but there are those days...

 

In the meantime I'm trying to tend to my 3 year old as well, trying to interact with her, do a little preschool with her.

I didn't look to see what curriculum you are using but I have found that DD4 likes to do "math" while DS does math, work on her letters and handwriting while DS does LA's, and so on. I don't force her to do work, but she tends to want to be where we are doing something of her own. Maybe that would work for your YDD.

 

DD6 is very high maintanence and needy, so I have to tend to her more.

DS8 was that way which in part is why I chose CLE for Math (and LA which bombed miserably, lol!). Maybe you need to re-evaluate some of your curriculum choices to find where you could encourage more independent work? I know it worked for us.

 

All the while I have to make lunch, clean up from lunch, wash clothes, do dishes, pick up toys, do household chores. Not to mention I have to find time to go grocery shopping and errands. Plus, what about all the stuff we have to fit in? Church? Art class?

Well... Lunch I usually make while the kids are on a break or listening to an audiobook (I get the CD and the book so DS8 can follow along). As for the rest, delegate. Cleaning the table has been assigned to DS8 and I try to keep lunch simple so there is little to no mess to deal with after lunch. Picking up toys is split between the kids as they are not my things. Household chores quite honestly go to the wayside or are passed along to the kids as they are able (our house is tidy but not always in the condition I would have it in and I have learned to live with it). Grocery shopping and errands usually occur in the afternoon after school or I squeeze them in in the evening when DH can be home with the kids. Church has become a family activity on Wednesday nights and Sundays. Art is usually included with history or science (and I alternate the subjects each day). Outside classes I try to limit to the afternoons because I know we will be offtrack if I leave the house in the a.m.

 

If we are gone during the morning hours, school is pretty much skipped for that day because we cannot get back on schedule.

 

Exactly! We don't leave the house until after lunch unless it is absolutely necessary.

 

And I need to find time to read more books to the kids during the day.

 

Breakfast or lunch time and evenings work well for us.

 

Then dinner time rolls around I have to start cooking that.

 

Can DD6 help? I know my kids love to be in the kitchen with me, even if it's just to bring measuring cups or plates. Sometimes I prep for dinner while the kids are on break or working independently on something. Crockpots are great for busy days too.

 

How in the world do you do it all? I feel like I'm losing my mind. And I only have one to school right now!

 

I don't do it all. Some days are better than others. Some days we have to deal with life. Most weeks we will have two or three really productive days and the others we just do the 3 R's. But you have to remember that some days public and private schools spend most of their time in assembly or shuffling from point A to point B or waiting for other kids to catch on. You are doing fine!

[Mejane]

Wondering why two hours in the morning is not enough time to have your own bf, exercise and devotion and be done by 8:30. I can have a cuppa coffee and some fruit, run on the treadmill for twenty minutes and do yoga for ten, and throw some clothes in the washer, straighten up, and make my bed in an hour. I shower later if I'm going out. Maybe cut back to 15 minutes for each morning activity and have another session in the afternoon when the kids are quiet?

 

I also think 30 minutes is long for each subject at that age.

[Karen in CO]

I don't even try to get it all done.

 

First from TWTM website...

3. I could spend ten hours a day on the classical curriculum! How will I cover all the work I need to be doing?

When you’re teaching young children, don’t try to cover a set amount of material per day (or per week). Rather, allot a reasonable amount of time for each subject. Spend that much time on the subject. Then stop until the next day! Children grasp some skills quickly, but take much more time to master others. If you try to go by lessons, you may end up spending a frustrating two hours on spelling one day, and perhaps ten minutes another day. For kindergarten, an hour of instruction time (total) per day is more than enough, and we suggest that you concentrate this time on reading and writing skills. First and second graders should be spending 3-4 hours per day in school work. Third and fourth graders can spend 4-5 hours per day, depending on maturity.

 

I'll disagree with this and say that I aim at one hour per grade for the early years. I do read alouds at bedtime unless it is rainy.

 

Your kids are young. Spend time with them now because you won't have it later. One of the things I really like about CM especially when you have young kids is the emphasis on habit training and time in nature.

 

I'm done with my older-mother speech :)

 

Now. I never ever try to get it all done. I focus on trying to do a few important things and do them well. We do math and reading before anything else. I aim to keep the laundry baskets empty. I have a very simple shopping list and meal plan that may be boring but it is healthy, fast and easy to shop for.

 

I rotate school subjects - LCC is terrific inspiration for this. I make time for me to read while the kids are playing outside so this could be your personal time. I involve them in the chores so that I'm spending time with them, teaching them skills and habits, and not feeling like I have to keep them entertained while I act as their maid.

 

I take them with me for an after dinner walk of 1.5 to 3 miles every day. It helps to settle them down for bed, counts as nature time, and gets me exercise. We don't watch tv except for some things from Netflix onDemand - we just don't have time for it. But I am not at all above putting them infront of an educational show so that I can get dinner started or catch a bit of quiet for myself.

 

But I never try to do everything in one day. I'm not perfect nor do I have any hopes of becoming June Cleaver.

[musicmommy]

We have 3 boys ages 10, 8 and 6 that we homeschool. I also teach private music lessons out of the home. (16 students currently). That means the house has to be reasonably presentable at all times.

 

The thing that has truly helped me has been to get some systems in place to help with organizing. My friends joke that I'm the most organized person they've met. Truth be told though, it goes against everything I am, but I have to do it to maintain my sanity.

 

We have routines in place for chores, school work and how the day flows, but they don't just absolutely run the day. We have a routine, but not a strict schedule.

 

I'm generally up around 6:00 and the boys are up at 7:30. That gives me time for some excercise, devotion and a good ole cuppa. Once they are up, they have about 30 minutes to get dressed, make beds, straighten rooms. We aim for breakfast on the table around 8:00. Although I usually make breakfast, our oldest knows how to make oatmeal, eggs and a few other things. During breakfast, we usually have some sort of devotion and then it's off to chores. (nothing super major) We try and get some school work going by 9:00. Then our day is off and running.

 

Now, my boys are older so they are able to be a bit more independent than younger children. Honestly though, it took me several years to get to where we are right now. I've tried other systems that worked for other people and it just fell apart in our house. It took me time to just get to a place that worked for our household.

[Mom0012]

Well, housework takes a backseat to schoolwork around here. I do get up early and usually work out, start some laundry and unload the dishwasher. Then, I wake the kids up if they aren't already awake and we get started by 8:00. I work with each of them one-on-one for about a half hour to get them started and then I begin cooking breakfast while they do a little of their independent work.

 

My house is generally in decent condition as far as clutter and being picked up go, but the deep cleaning doesn't get done often and it's not my first priority. I also keep meals very simple. Part of this is because we have lots of allergies in my family, but it is also because I don't have time to be preparing elaborate meals. So, I do a lot of grilling year-round and then just add in a starch and some veggies. My rice cooker gets used probably about 4 or 5 times a week.

 

Lisa

[Night Elf]

Each subject takes so long because my DD6 is VERY high maintanence. Everything takes twice as long with her because she can be quite difficult. She loves to talk and goes off on tangents. And she is easily distracted.

 

That isn't necessarily personality, it can be age. As the mom of 3 children ages 12, 13 (very, very close to 14), and 18, age 6 was still as young as age 3 to me. My son, in particular, was a huge handful at 6 yrs. old, much like you describe your dd. He was totally different by age 8, and is totally different now at almost 14. Don't beat yourself up about homeschooling a 6 year old. Enjoy her. They get older quickly. Boy do I miss those days! Homeschooling middle and high schoolers is totally different, and not nearly as fun IMHO. I was always stressed out when choosing elementary curriculum and implementing it. That wasn't nothing compared to my stress about high school! Egads!

[rawbanana]

Havent read any of the replies but i wanted to send you ((HUGS)) and tell you it has a lot to do w/ the ages of your children. Mine are 9.5, 8, 6.5, 5 (girls) and a boy who is 2.

Now that my older girls can help out a lot more, life is much better =) They do a LOT of the chores (sweeping, mopping, loading the dishwasher, vacuuming, etc etc)...I get up (try to at least) around 630 or 7 and get a workout in, shower, breakfast, bible time all before they wake up between 8 and 830. School usually starts at 10 and we are done with most all of it by noon.

If I wake up late and dont get my workout in, I run on the elliptical in the afternoon when Duggars is on, my girls LOVE to watch the Duggars. So we all watch that together while I exercise and my little guy runs around and plays =)

It will get easier =)

[mooooom]

and while they were eating lunch. Grocery shopping was always on the weekend so I could go alone - although for awhile we all went as a family after church Sunday morning. If the subjects don't all get done, it's not going to matter with a 6yo.

[Garga]

Have been mulling on this since yesterday, since I get up at 6:00 and also find it's a struggle to get started. I mean, how long should 30 min of exercise, breakfast and bathing take??? Somehow it drags on for hoooouuuurrrrss.

 

The only days that I can start hs-ing early is if I've totally prepared the night before. I lay out EVERYTHING I'll need for the morning, even down to putting the toothpaste on the toothbrush. My skin cream, my q-tip, my hairspray, etc, is all lined up on the side of the sink. My clothes, incl. underwear and bra are already picked and on hangers in the bathroom.

 

My exercise stuff is all ready, even the shoes are untied--ready for my foot. The drink is already poured and waiting in the fridge.

 

For breakfast we always eat pancakes, so the mix is ready, the spatula, skillet, etc.

 

If I wake up at 6:00 and have everything ready to go, we can start hs about 8:30. The kids are still eating, but I start reading history or bible to them while they eat.

 

Also, the night before, I pick up everything around the house. In the morning, after a few subjects of school, we pick up again. Then after lunch we pick up again. Then before dinner: pickup. Before bed: pickup.

 

If I skip even a single day of this routine, it all falls apart and I have to start over again the next day with a mess. I really don't know how to do it any better than I'm doing it. (Today I didn't set out everything I needed in the a.m. and we weren't ready for hs until 10:30.)

[Parrothead]

Wondering why two hours in the morning is not enough time to have your own bf, exercise and devotion and be done by 8:30. I can have a cuppa coffee and some fruit, run on the treadmill for twenty minutes and do yoga for ten, and throw some clothes in the washer, straighten up, and make my bed in an hour. I shower later if I'm going out. Maybe cut back to 15 minutes for each morning activity and have another session in the afternoon when the kids are quiet?

 

I also think 30 minutes is long for each subject at that age.

:iagree: I was wondering the same myself. What exactly do you do for breakfast? How long do you exercise? Can devotions be done before bed? Why aren't all the necessary chores done by the time the dishes are washed in the evening?

[Rosy]

 

We don't stick to the 30 minutes per subject. If it takes less time, that's fine. We just have more free time at the end of the day. Each subject takes so long because my DD6 is VERY high maintanence. Everything takes twice as long with her because she can be quite difficult. She loves to talk and goes off on tangents. And she is easily distracted. I constantly have to keep her on the task at hand. Plus, she's a whiner and whines and slumps to the floor when schooling is not going her way. She's very difficult to homeschool LOL.

 

Our subjects are Bible, reading/handwriting, math, science, speech therapy (we do this at home instead of going to a therapist), and an extra subject. Sign Language on Mondays, state study on Tuesdays, Art on Thursdays, and Story of the World on Fridays. So I don't really think we are doing a ton of work.

 

She may be trying to tell you that she's not ready for formal schooling, at least not that much. It is not necessary for a 6yo IMO, and could make your job more difficult when she gets older. She wants to talk and go off on tangents? Why not get some science books from the library and combine science and reading? Plan on taking half an hour to get through a book or two. Instead of doing full-blown SOTW, just read a book from that time pd. a week. I wouldn't even bother with state study. 15 minutes tops of math and Bible is all you need at that age. Let her go off on tangents! That is probably how she learns--being able to think and figure things out for herself.

 

It's easy to want to jump in with both feet when your oldest reaches school age--especially if you dreamed of and planned for homeschooling for a long time. But trust me--you'll have plenty of time to get to all the stuff you're trying to do right now, and if she's ready for it, she will benefit from it way more. It may not seem to you like you're doing a lot, but if she is resisting you that much, it's probably too much for her. When you think about it, and adult work day is 8 hours. She's doing almost half of that! or at least a quarter. I would cut it back at least by half and let her grow into it.

 

To answer your question...I don't. I get up around 7:00, make coffee, have breakfast, check email, etc. I try to do devotions during that time...I am working on consistency in that. Ideally we do chores from 8:30-9:00 and then school until 1:00. This is for 4 kids though--the middle two get lots of breaks when I'm working 1:1 with someone, DD9 is mostly independent and DD5 is just getting started, so she only does reading (10-15 min.), math (10 min.) and sometimes writing (as long as she wants). I up my expectations every year, but it's always based on what they're ready for. DS still does WAY less than his older sister was doing at his age.

 

Anyway, lunch around 1:30, then we take a break until we leave for the Y (can be any time from 3:00-4:30...and yes, we go pretty much every day). I work out, the kids have their activities, then we're home at 6:00 for dinner. We do Wed night church, Friday co-op and Friday night Young Adults Ministry. DH helps a lot with housework, and the kids are old enough that they can pitch in.

[fairfarmhand]

I feel like I can't get it all done!! I get up around 6:30, do breakfast, exercise, devotion, start a few chores.....I wish I could get all of that done before the kids get up around 8:30, but I just can't. From there, I'm still trying to finished my morning stuff before starting school around 10. We never end up starting school around 10 because I'm running late. I block about 30 minutes per subject. Yesterday math ran over that time, as well as science. We do 6 subjects a day. In the meantime I'm trying to tend to my 3 year old as well, trying to interact with her, do a little preschool with her. DD6 is very high maintanence and needy, so I have to tend to her more. All the while I have to make lunch, clean up from lunch, wash clothes, do dishes, pick up toys, do household chores. Not to mention I have to find time to go grocery shopping and errands. Plus, what about all the stuff we have to fit in? Church? Art class? If we are gone during the morning hours, school is pretty much skipped for that day because we cannot get back on schedule. And I need to find time to read more books to the kids during the day. Then dinner time rolls around I have to start cooking that.

 

How in the world do you do it all? I feel like I'm losing my mind. And I only have one to school right now!

 

Ok...here is what I learned to do after trying to do it all and spiraling myself into a horrible depression...

 

Every night before I go to bed (usually around 10:30-11) I make sure my kitchen is SPOTLESS! Nothing on the table, counters, or in the sink. It makes a HUGE difference when I don't have to clear off yesterday's mess before starting today's work.

 

I get up later around 7. I found I was more effective in what I did if I was well rested. We would eat breakfast and get the kids started on chores. While the kids were doing their morning chores I could put away the breakfast stuff and lay out some school work. I also would check out my e-mail and read a short passage of scripture (not my whole Bible study just something to start my day) At 9 I'd get my dd 8 started on her handwriting worksheet and some spelling and my dd12 would start her lessons. At 9:30 dd 8 would do some spelling city practice.(on the computer http://www.spellingcity.com) (perhaps with your dd you can use starfall.com) She had to do this for 20 minutes and then she'd get a 10 minute break to play. While she was working at the computer and having break time, I answer any ?'s my older dd would have and then I spend the remainder of the time in the laundry room. My favorite radio program comes on at 9:30 and I listen while I wash, dry, and fold laundry. At 10 I sit back down with dd8. We work on English or Math for 30 minutes. At 10:30 we have a healthy snack and she has a 10 minute break. After snack it is time for the Math or English we didn't get to before. (after snack, I allow my younger 2 to enjoy a video upstairs) It takes about 30 minutes and then we have "couch time" this is when she practices her reading, and I do any read-alouds. We also have a Bible story at this time. Then after couch time, she will do some projects or workbook pages that go along with the history or science we did that day. During couch time, I sometimes have to break to field ?'s from my older daughter and tend to my littles.

 

I've found that my kids need frequent breaks to keep their focus and a couple changes of scenery help too.

 

Also, if I feed my kids starchy sugary things for breakfast I am fighting a losing battle in the morning. They are bouncing off the walls and then they crash around 10 am. So we eat boring "old people" (raisin bran, fiber one, cheerios) cereals or eggs and stuff to keep them level.

 

We are almost always done by lunch time. I try to exercise in the after noon or evening; we do errands in the afternoon and hardly ever plan things to have us out of the house prior to noon. My devotional time is done later during our afternoon quiet time. We try to clean up between 4 and 5. This is pick up and vacuum time. If I have to scrub a bathroom or mop I squeeze it in in the afternoon or sometimes during the kids snack time. Then at 5 I start supper prep and do baths then so that after supper they are out of the way and I can concentrate on getting my kitchen "spotless" and playing with dh.

Edited June 30, 2010 by fairfarmhand

[ourjourneys]

I have this same struggle but I have found that if I do a sort of block scheduling that things are much easier. I suppose it needs less time for planning and switching subjects with the kids having to change their train of thought. We do math everyday because they do it at lunch with their dad. But I will take a day for Latin, History or Science. Sometimes we will focus on one subject for a week. This allows us to concentrate on something and get a lot accomplished. Meanwhile it frees up some ME time for mom. I do not have to plan out the entire week of all subjects daily... I have a little more time to focus on the kitchen and myself.

[SproutMamaK]

I'm with the others - I do the house stuff at night. I may throw a load of laundry in the washer first thing in the morning and switch ti to teh dryer when I get a minute (snacktime, lunch, whatever), but everything else - folding, dishes, floor cleaning, dusting, etc - happens after bedtime. It's surprisingly fast when there are no kids around, and waking up in the morning to a clean hosue that doesn't need work really helps relieve the morning stress. And ITA about getting everything ready ahead of time. I pick out the boys clothes and lay them out so changing is fast, etc. Then all I have to do in the morning is do devotions (I'm with you, I need to do those in the morning), shower, and get everyone dressed. We do simple breakfasts like cereal, pancakes from a mix (or waffles from a box), toast... food that's simple. We can have something hot for lunch if they want it, but unfortunately they've learned what happens if they're too demanding of Mommy in the mornings. ;) . I can't start my morning off with that much work or I'm stressed before we even start working.

 

In other words - if it CAN be pushed to the evening after bedtime, try to do it then.

[JadeOrchidSong]

I get up at 4:45 am every morning - no kidding. :crying: I am also extremely organized.

Starbuck12, Can you please share your schedule?

The reason I ask is that I see your kids' ages are similar to mine and you are doing Prima Latina, WWE, and German. I plan to add Prima Latina and we just started WWE, but it is hard for me to schedule things in. Can you share in detail your daily schedule please?

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

I am the opposite-- I am up until 1-2am getting all my housework done, then drag out of bed by 8 or 830 to do it all over again.

[JadeOrchidSong]

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