joyfulhomeschooler Posted September 9, 2012 Share Posted September 9, 2012 Posting this here because I am not getting any response over at the HOD board. I am really nervous about trying to school with a new baby in the same year that we switched curriculum. We are new to HOD this year. So I was hoping to get some feedback on my rough schedule. We are going to be doing Bigger with a 9 and 7yr old. I realize I may have to change this many times to get it right, but is there anything right off that anyone see's that sends up a red flag. Like I said we've never used HOD before so I am unsure of how long or how involved each box will be. 7am Nurse baby while two big kids get morn jobs done 9yr old reads extensions, 7yr old does cursive and explode the code while I finish with the little ones and then start breakfast 8:30 Breakfast and Poetry reading (baby starts nap at beginning of bkfst) Poetry copywork after done with breakfast while I get myself ready for the day 9am Music & Bible Rotating Box English (9yr old R&S, 7yr old FLL after I present R&S lesson to 9yr old) Spelling & Dictation 9yr old DITHOR 7yr old Reading with me Science (baby nursing some time around here 10:30-11 usually) Math (after I explain the topics or go over anything new I put baby down for nap and then make lunch) 12:00 Lunch and History reading Toddler down for nap after lunch History activity on that day 12:30-2:00 Quiet time for older two and hopefully the younger two are still napping so I can have some quiet time too. Now I know this is ideal and that with a new baby you can never count on exactly when they will nap or wake or eat or do anything for that matter... but this is usually what time he sleeps and eats. So what do you all think? I am all ears, like I said I am very nervous about this year and how it's going to work. This baby came as a total surprise and I never thought I would have four kids. God has his own plans and they outweigh mine apparently He obviously thought I could handle it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 What is your toddler doing during those times? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joyfulhomeschooler Posted September 10, 2012 Author Share Posted September 10, 2012 What is your toddler doing during those times? Very good question! :) I was thinking he could be either playing with a tub of toys only brought out during school hours, finger painting at the table with us, or watching a movie (although he never stays still long enough for this). I usually spend one on one with him and read him some books right before nap time. And of course he is always welcome on my lap during school too. Any other ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjlcc Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 You may want to do your history reading before the rotating box. The two are usually connected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joyfulhomeschooler Posted September 10, 2012 Author Share Posted September 10, 2012 You may want to do your history reading before the rotating box. The two are usually connected. I was kind of wondering about that. Good idea, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 I also schedule time first thing with my toddlers/preschoolers and then also try to do a short read aloud before nap. I find this helps them a lot. I call that morning time their "school time" with me. I would definitely have a list of things ready to offer the toddler. Is he two? We have found the Curious George DVD's (from the tv program) to be inexpensive and educational and my preschoolers really enjoy them. I am not sure about a two year old. You can get some of them for only 5.00 on Amazon. They are broken into episodes, too- so you can schedule a certain block of time with them if you want. Other educational dvds for a two year old include the Leap Frog DVDs and Signing Time DVDS. I usually teach HOD like this: Poetry(or rhymes), Bible (this would include Bigger Hymns if we were doing that program), History, Storytime, and then Rotating Box. Rotating Box can sometimes be moved to afternoon if it is an art project, etc and time is of the essence. This is just my default flow. It doesn't mean you should change your plan. You can save storytime selections for lunch time as long as that will work okay with your toddler. I have found there are often interruptions with little ones at the lunch table and I need to be able to be available for that or have my older sons (who are 11 and 12) handle that so I can continue on with a reading selection. Then I would do the other right side of the guide components- including poetry copywork and the LA programs of my choice. This is my usual flow. I like to "chunk" things. I like to chunk the reading aloud portions into one chunk and table time sections into another. I say this loosely- I am teaching multiple programs and so- some are taught differently (order wise,etc.) than others. My encouragement to you would be: go with what you have planned. If you find yourself really frustrated I would chunk things a bit more. For an example of chunking a bit, have your 9 and 7 year old do ALL their independent assignments (ETC, cursive, copywork) in one section of time (before breakfast or right after breakfast-etc.) The reason why I say this is that young children are prone to distraction. You might find yourself having to be constantly directing them back to their tasks which will be frustrating while you are trying to do your other things. This is just a thought- I certainly don't know for sure if this will happen with your family. Also, expect your timing to take a bit longer as they learn the routine. You could even take two weeks to do the first unit-just to ease in slowly and help them learn the routine. There is a definite pattern and order to HOD and once you are in that flow- you are golden. ;) I hope this helps. Rebecca Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joyfulhomeschooler Posted September 10, 2012 Author Share Posted September 10, 2012 I also schedule time first thing with my toddlers/preschoolers and then also try to do a short read aloud before nap. I find this helps them a lot. I call that morning time their "school time" with me. I would definitely have a list of things ready to offer the toddler. Is he two? We have found the Curious George DVD's (from the tv program) to be inexpensive and educational and my preschoolers really enjoy them. I am not sure about a two year old. You can get some of them for only 5.00 on Amazon. They are broken into episodes, too- so you can schedule a certain block of time with them if you want. Other educational dvds for a two year old include the Leap Frog DVDs and Signing Time DVDS. I usually teach HOD like this: Poetry(or rhymes), Bible (this would include Bigger Hymns if we were doing that program), History, Storytime, and then Rotating Box. Rotating Box can sometimes be moved to afternoon if it is an art project, etc and time is of the essence. This is just my default flow. It doesn't mean you should change your plan. You can save storytime selections for lunch time as long as that will work okay with your toddler. I have found there are often interruptions with little ones at the lunch table and I need to be able to be available for that or have my older sons (who are 11 and 12) handle that so I can continue on with a reading selection. Then I would do the other right side of the guide components- including poetry copywork and the LA programs of my choice. This is my usual flow. I like to "chunk" things. I like to chunk the reading aloud portions into one chunk and table time sections into another. I say this loosely- I am teaching multiple programs and so- some are taught differently (order wise,etc.) than others. My encouragement to you would be: go with what you have planned. If you find yourself really frustrated I would chunk things a bit more. For an example of chunking a bit, have your 9 and 7 year old do ALL their independent assignments (ETC, cursive, copywork) in one section of time (before breakfast or right after breakfast-etc.) The reason why I say this is that young children are prone to distraction. You might find yourself having to be constantly directing them back to their tasks which will be frustrating while you are trying to do your other things. This is just a thought- I certainly don't know for sure if this will happen with your family. Also, expect your timing to take a bit longer as they learn the routine. You could even take two weeks to do the first unit-just to ease in slowly and help them learn the routine. There is a definite pattern and order to HOD and once you are in that flow- you are golden. ;) I hope this helps. Rebecca Thank you so much, this really helps :) He will be two in December, so almost two. He doesn't really watch T.V. that well. He's a busy little guy. My older two would have sat in front of a movie or t.v. episode at that age, but he is a little more active. I will try those episodes you suggested though and see if he does any better with those. So far the only thing that keeps him still in front of the tv for a little while is an old Wiggles movie we had for our first. He's had a hard enough time adjusting to the baby, I hope he does alright with more attention taken from him. I really like the idea of doing the one on one time with the toddler in the morning before starting school. This would make him feel less left out later I think. Some good tips! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkermamaof4 Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 I also wanted to mention that I've noticed that unlike the WTM forum, when I post on the HOD forum, I don't get emailed to say there is a response. Maybe I have to change my user setup. Anyway, it is possible that there are replies there as well. I've found I do get replies there always. I haven't had trouble with lack of answers there. I just have to remember to go check. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lab1 Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 We did Bigger last yr. My kids are similar ages to yours. I found homeschool with a baby pretty easy, its the toddler that makes things hard! If we were at the table, we were all there! I had all sorts of table activities for my little ones. I like to chunk activities. We always start with math, then did dictation and poetry. Then we moved to the couch for English, science and history. Then back to the kitchen for science experiments or the rotating box. We ended with their reading books. My kids would take forever sometimes on the rotating box activity. They love crafts and the like. Having it last was best for my sanity level. I didn't need to stay close while they went crazy making it perfect. I could play or work with my little ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heart_Mom Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 I also wanted to mention that I've noticed that unlike the WTM forum, when I post on the HOD forum, I don't get emailed to say there is a response. Maybe I have to change my user setup. Anyway, it is possible that there are replies there as well. I've found I do get replies there always. I haven't had trouble with lack of answers there. I just have to remember to go check. HTH! When I was first on the HOD board, I found this to be true. However, I was able to change my settings in the user control panel, and now I get an email when there's a response to a thread I've started or subscribed to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joyfulhomeschooler Posted September 10, 2012 Author Share Posted September 10, 2012 We did Bigger last yr. My kids are similar ages to yours. I found homeschool with a baby pretty easy, its the toddler that makes things hard! If we were at the table, we were all there! I had all sorts of table activities for my little ones. I like to chunk activities. We always start with math, then did dictation and poetry. Then we moved to the couch for English, science and history. Then back to the kitchen for science experiments or the rotating box. We ended with their reading books. My kids would take forever sometimes on the rotating box activity. They love crafts and the like. Having it last was best for my sanity level. I didn't need to stay close while they went crazy making it perfect. I could play or work with my little ones. Do you have any activity suggestions for the toddler? The ones I have already thought of are finger painting, play dough, coloring books (which he tires quickly of), a tub of "school toys" only to brought out during school, and the Wiggles movie :) I also have the Slow and Steady Get Me Ready book and plan to make some of the idea's in there as time allows. Anything you can add would be a huge help, since you have been there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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