How many hours a day do you do school work?

[My3girls]

I just got flamed on another forum for saying that my middle schooler has 6-7 hours of work per day.  We haven't actually been getting it all done lately just out of laziness, and I was looking for a boost or kick in the butt to be more productive.  What I got was that I was expecting too much.  An over whelming majority schools their middle schoolers for 3-4 hours a day, and some others for 4-5.  Very very few schooled more than that.  From reading posts here on the board, I thought an hour per grade was about average.  Am I wrong?

 

Her subjects are science, history, math, language arts (composition, grammar, and vocabulary), literature, Spanish, and Music.  We do some extras like handwriting, typing, poetry, and scratch, as well.  I cannot see how we could possibly get everything done in 4 hours each day.  We've been doing a loop schedule, but it's going to extend our year so I'm trying to get us revved up to get our schedule back on track.

 

I'm not really planning to change our curriculum choices or expectations, but I am curious if you are spending siginifically fewer hours on school work how you get it all done.  Maybe, I can pick up a few tips.  Thanks!

 

[Kidlit]

I'm listening in, too, because I think I need to up my expectations for my fifth grader. How old is your dd?

[Kidlit]

Oops--I guess I should assume it's your 12 yo. I didn't notice your siggy. :)

[Silverwood]

My DD is in second grade and we do 3 to 4 hours a day (some of that is hands on, lap booking, or crafts related to our lesson). Since I give her a break in the middle, it really doesn't seem like its that long to us. With our lunch break that lasts around an hour, a typical day for us goes from 9:00-1:30 or 2 ish.

[MotherGoose]

I have a 3rd grader and a Ker. We, ideally, school from 7:30-about 1PM daily. Including about 20 mins for recess and 20 min for lunch, plus other play time when I'm working with sister. So I think you're in the ballpark. I can't imagine completing middle school in 3-4 hours a day. I guess it does depend on if people are seeking a college prep education or just a "regular" one.

[regentrude]

Maybe this is not what you want to hear, but you asked:

In 5th and 6th grade, my kids did 4 hours of focused academic work each day, 4.5 hours in 7th grade, 5 hours in 8th.

They would not have been capable of putting in 6-7 hours of productive, concentrated work, and I do not consider it necessary.

Time increases with age; in 9th grade I require 6 hours.

 

We homeschool for academic reasons. The above amount of time was entirely sufficient to meet our academic goals and prepare DD for a rigorous high school education (which included several semesters of dual enrollment at a four year university) and admission to a highly selective college.

 

ETA: An hour per grade? No, I do not think that 7th graders are in general capable of 7 hours of concentrated work. Sure, I can fill this much time with school related stuff - but part of that would have to be fluff.

[My3girls]

I have a 3rd grader and a Ker. We, ideally, school from 7:30-about 1PM daily. Including about 20 mins for recess and 20 min for lunch, plus other play time when I'm working with sister. So I think you're in the ballpark. I can't imagine completing middle school in 3-4 hours a day. I guess it does depend on if people are seeking a college prep education or just a "regular" one.

I mentioned this, but they seemed to think that it was still excessive. I had a couple even say that that was a more than they did in college. I was kinda flabbergasted by that because the rule of thumb when I went was 3 hours of homework per hour in class. I easily spent over 40 hours a week in college.

[Kidlit]

I, too, have heard the 1 hour of work per grade level, but I assume the student surely must "top out" at some point. It's yet untried in our homeschool, however.

[regentrude]

. I can't imagine completing middle school in 3-4 hours a day. I guess it does depend on if people are seeking a college prep education or just a "regular" one.

 

I disagree. Quantity of school hours is NOT the deciding factor, and absolutely no criterion on which to measure the rigor of the education.

Our home education is not just "college prep" but "competetive for admission to a highly selective university -prep".

4 hours in 6th grade were entirely sufficient to have my kids take their first college classes in 9th grade and DD tutoring calculus based physics at the university at age 16.

The amount of hours spent in middle school tells you absolutely nothing.

[My3girls]

Maybe this is not what you want to hear, but you asked:

In 5th and 6th grade, my kids did 4 hours of focused academic work each day, 4.5 hours in 7th grade, 5 hours in 8th.

They would not have been capable of putting in 6-7 hours of productive, concentrated work, and I do not consider it necessary.

Time increases with age; in 9th grade I require 6 hours.

 

We homeschool for academic reasons. The above amount of time was entirely sufficient to meet our academic goals and prepare DD for a rigorous high school education (which included several semesters of dual enrollment at a four year university) and admission to a highly selective college.

 

ETA: An hour per grade? No, I do not think that 7th graders are in general capable of 7 hours of concentrated work. Sure, I can fill this much time with school related stuff - but part of that would have to be fluff.

I'm all about hearing it if it worked for you. I just can't comprehend how, though. Can you share a little more detail on what you and dd did? Her 6-7 hours aren't straight through. Generally, her day is something like 10-12... 1-3:30... and 8-10.

[MotherGoose]

I mentioned this, but they seemed to think that it was still excessive. I had a couple even say that that was a more than they did in college. I was kinda flabbergasted by that because the rule of thumb when I went was 3 hours of homework per hour in class. I easily spent over 40 hours a week in college.

I look at it this way:if they were in PS they'd spend 7 hours "in school," transportation time, and then an hour or two of hw. You're still coming out way ahead. I have thought about cutting back, but I've seriously assessed how much we're doing, goals, children's happiness, etc., and it came out that we are doing just fine. I think some of it depends on the kid too.

[Mbelle]

My 9th grader does 6 most days, if she has something she's working on she does 7.  My 7th grader does 4.5 - 5. 

 

They like to do social stuff, so they have to get some stuff done on Sunday, so they can do fun stuff during the week.

[regentrude]

I'm all about hearing it if it worked for you. I just can't comprehend how, though. Can you share a little more detail on what you and dd did? Her 6-7 hours aren't straight through. Generally, her day is something like 10-12... 1-3:30... and 8-10.

 

Not sure what exactly you want to know.

We started school at 8am. My kids got to choose what subject they want to work on for how long - I select materials for each subject, they pick from those. We had no fixed schedule. Some days, DD would binge on math and do 2.5 hours straight - other days she did none.

In middle grades, history and literature were interest led. We did not use any "program" and had no busywork.

Math - AoPS. Half an hour of thinking hard about a hard problem in AoPS is worth more than pages and pages of worksheets.

 

Not sure what to tell you, since I am not quite sure what it is you are asking. I'll be happy to answer more specific questions.

[happypamama]

12yo does 6-7 hours a day, 7 being if she's dawdling. She could maybe get it all done in 5 if she really worked hard, but 6-7, which includes some breaks, is about right.

[Doodle Mom]

Mine (both 6th grade) do 1 hour with me individually (lesson time), 3 hours together for general shared subjects that I lead (fun time), and 3 hours alone (break time) at a minimum each day. Then they each have evening sports and music activities every weeknight, as well as instrument practice. I feel like my kiddos end up schooling constantly while they are awake. We have just made it into a lifestyle so they don't think of it as schoolwork. I think it works because we mix things up during the day and don't call it school time. Also I noticed this year that things are going so much better now that I have blocked out a lot more time that we need for general shared subjects. That way I don't feel rushed and can embody my calm and happy mamma, instead of tense mamma. Then the kids end up being happy and calm too.

I think that whatever works well for your family is the right approach for you to take. Every family and every child I have met works differently. And that, afterall, is the beauty of homeschooling. (that, and the ability to wear PJs all day!)

:001_smile:

[My3girls]

Regentrude, that does help me understand where you are coming from.

[KeriJ]

My 6th grader does about 4 hours of focused academics per day, but only 4 days per week.  I don't count extra reading, typing or music practice etc. in those hours.  We don't do every subject every day, but what we use is in my siggy.  I feel that it's balanced out well this year.  

[Embassy]

My 7th grader does 6-7 hours of school work, but I wouldn't say it was all focused, concentrated work.  Today, for instance, he spent over an hour on a Zome Geometry project and yesterday he watched an hour long video on ancient Africa.  That said, my 5th grader spends about the same amount of time, but he has less "seat work" than my 7th grader.  His last hour+ of his school day involved doing a history project on Minecraft and learning how to use Pickle for art.   

 

I've had plenty of responses through the years about how I spend too much time doing school with my kids.  Oh well, it works for us.  I think part of it is that others picture my child's school work to look like their child's school work.  Just be in tune with your child's needs and create your own flow.   If I trimmed down our day to what others thought was appropriate, I would have to cut the things my children like best.  

[Woodland Mist Academy]

We do many hours with no fluff. (Unless AoPS and the ilk are now fluff... ;) ) No busywork either. Everything has earned its place.

 

Every child is different. Families are different. We have more than 4 or 5 subjects, which adds time. It works for us, but it's not for everyone.

 

We have dropped back hours in the past....the extra "free" time wasn't worth what we lost. YMMV.

[GrammarGirl]

I think 6-7 hours is appropriate considering a typical public or private school student would spend 7 hours in school plus have two or more hours of homework per night.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

Remember there are many factors in each success story...there is not a one size fits all formula...

[texasmama]

My 8th graders spend about 5-6 hours per day on average on schoolwork.  They are diligent workers and not dawdlers.  No ADHD here.  They do not have a foreign language this year.  It is difficult to quantify exactly how long they work per day because some of their work is done on their own schedule, but I would say 5-6 is a fair average.  The specifics are in my siggie. 

[wintermom]

Are you trying to compare apples to apples, or apples to bananas. My homeschool probably doesn't look like yours. Our only similarity is that we both educate our children at home, and I have a 12 year old. The number of hours I put in a day with my dc will have very little relevance to the number of hours you and your dc do. If you feel comfortable with the amount of hours you and your dc are able to handle at this point in time, then who cares what others do and think? 

 

I will add, though, that I do not see one single physical activity in your 6 - 7 hours/day. This is a pretty poor idea, according to recent educational research. I'll see if I can find an article to link. Not only is PE a require high school subject, it's a health risk NOT to include physical activity. You are teaching the whole child, not separating out a brain to fill up with all sorts of great academic information.

 

 

[regentrude]

I think 6-7 hours is appropriate considering a typical public or private school student would spend 7 hours in school plus have two or more hours of homework per night.

 

How many of those hours in school are actually time-on-task with a task that requires the student to think? (And how much of the homework is something beyond useless busy work?)

My kids did attend public school until I pulled them out in 5th and 6th grade, respectively. They did not even spend two hours per day on anything I would consider an appropriate level of difficulty and engagement. Sure, they were kept busy doing something for seven hours- but that did not mean they learned what they could, and should, have.

 

When I withdrew DD from school, her first words were:

"I am so glad I don't have to go to school anymore. I can finally learn something!"

 

'nuff said.

[Nemom]

My 7th grader does between 4-5 hours a day with 4 hours probably being the norm.

 

I have a PS'd freshman who has been in the Diff (now AP) classes since starting middle school. 15-20 minutes of math homework was the norm in middle school. No homework in the other Diff classes. He is now in the AP Geometry class and has probably had homework on average 3 nights a week for 15 minutes-10 problems max. A few minutes of Spanish or Oral Comm here and there but that is it for homework including-nothing from his other AP classes. I know that will change in the next two years but I just do not know where this number of homework for 2-3 hours in PS comes from. I was in all the Diff classes myself back in the day and I was able to get any homework done during a 45 minute Study Hall.

[My3girls]

Are you trying to compare apples to apples, or apples to bananas. My homeschool probably doesn't look like yours. Our only similarity is that we both educate our children at home, and I have a 12 year old. The number of hours I put in a day with my dc will have very little relevance to the number of hours you and your dc do. If you feel comfortable with the amount of hours you and your dc are able to handle at this point in time, then who cares what others do and think?

 

I will add, though, that I do not see one single physical activity in your 6 - 7 hours/day. This is a pretty poor idea, according to recent educational research. I'll see if I can find an article to link. Not only is PE a require high school subject, it's a health risk NOT to include physical activity. You are teaching the whole child, not separating out a brain to fill up with all sorts of great academic information.

They run cross country so they get plenty of exercise, and they play outside with friends for several hours each day. I'm not comparing just interested in what others do. I like having an idea of what others in my "community" are doing. There's always something to be learned.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

My daughter gets her exercise in the evening, too. There are many hours in the day. :)

[Coco_Clark]

No middle schoolers here to compare to, but I wonder if some of the confusion is specifying what is and isn't "school".

 

My K and 1er have three hours of school each in one sense.  Which seems like a lot to some people, for their ages.  But an hour of that is read aloud.  I'd read aloud to them even if they were in public school, so does it count?  Some folks count piano, other's don't.  Some count field trips, other's dont.  Some count private reading time, ect and so on.    

[My3girls]

My 7th grader does between 4-5 hours a day with 4 hours probably being the norm.

 

I have a PS'd freshman who has been in the Diff (now AP) classes since starting middle school. 15-20 minutes of math homework was the norm in middle school. No homework in the other Diff classes. He is now in the AP Geometry class and has probably had homework on average 3 nights a week for 15 minutes-10 problems max. A few minutes of Spanish or Oral Comm here and there but that is it for homework. I know that will change in the next two years but I just do not know where this number of homework for 2-3 hours in PS comes from. I was in all the Diff classes myself back in the day and I was able to get any homework done during a 45 minute Study Hall.

Maybe, it's your area. I had homework most nights when in high school honors... Research papers, reading, math, science projects, etc... Not necessarily 2 hours, though.

[Mrs Mungo]

I just got flamed on another forum for saying that my middle schooler has 6-7 hours of work per day.  We haven't actually been getting it all done lately just out of laziness, and I was looking for a boost or kick in the butt to be more productive.  What I got was that I was expecting too much.  An over whelming majority schools their middle schoolers for 3-4 hours a day, and some others for 4-5.  Very very few schooled more than that.  From reading posts here on the board, I thought an hour per grade was about average.  Am I wrong?

 

Her subjects are science, history, math, language arts (composition, grammar, and vocabulary), literature, Spanish, and Music.  We do some extras like handwriting, typing, poetry, and scratch, as well.  I cannot see how we could possibly get everything done in 4 hours each day.  We've been doing a loop schedule, but it's going to extend our year so I'm trying to get us revved up to get our schedule back on track.

 

I'm not really planning to change our curriculum choices or expectations, but I am curious if you are spending siginifically fewer hours on school work how you get it all done.  Maybe, I can pick up a few tips.  Thanks!

 

We generally spend 6 hours. Since you say that some of it is typing, scratch, poetry, music etc, then I think you are fine. That's probably about what we do. We rotate some of those extras so that they do some of them each day to break up the "seat work." I would think that 6 hours of seat work would be too much, but it doesn't sound like that is what you are doing. LOTS of homeschoolers do less. Some homeschoolers will do more. Do what seems right for your child and family while maintaining sanity among everyone. 

[Mom22ns]

My kids are not fast workers and never have been. Ds has multiple disabilities that make him extremely slow. If we did the number of hours/day that Regentrude did with her highly gifted kids, my senior in high school would now be ready to start high school level work - seriously. Her kids were able to focus and get work done. That doesn't mean yours can.

 

My oldest started homeschooling in 6th grade. He routinely did a 6-7 hour day. That did include a read-aloud time and time he spent reading literature. We spent at least an hour on math, a couple of hours on LA, an hour on science, an hour on history. We did some light logic, and frankly, I don't remember what else, but he worked hard and consistently for 6-7 hours, day. Today as a senior in high school he works at least 10 hours/day. It isn't unusual for him to have to spend 12 hours to get his work done. His AP English class takes 2-4 hours/day. We knew it would going in. I'm sure Regentrude's dd could have done it in 90 min/day, but that isn't my kid.

 

My youngest is much more typical. She has no disabilities. She started homeschooling in 5th grade. She spent about 5 hours a day on school the first couple of years. In 7th and 8th she was up to 6 hours. In high school, she is running 7-9 hours. She would not be able to attain her personal goals if she worked less. 

 

Are my kids intensely focused? I guess not. Do they focus to the best of their ability? Yes. Do they have time for exercise and other healthy kid stuff? Dd has been a competitive gymnast since she was 5. Ds is very active in our youth group, but doesn't have a ton of outside interests. He loves reading, writing, and hanging out on his forums on the internet. They are happy and well adjusted. They are not overweight or unhealthy.

 

There have been polls on this board about number of hours. You might be better off to ask on the middle school board specifically though so that you get only responses that more closely match you your child's age/grade.

[sewingmama]

3-4 hours a day. My kids are Grade PreK to 2. They can't concentrate more then that. For middle school I won't be going more then 4-5 though. I value spare time to much and having time to work on their own projects. Time enough when they older teens and adults to do the 9-5 grind.

[FairProspects]

Yes, processing speed and focus make a huge difference. My kids work for about 6 hours a day and they are mid-to-late elementary. We mix it up and move around a lot with projects and different subjects, but that is the minimum amount of time they need to work to progress. You just have to do what is right for your family knowing your kids.

[Woodland Mist Academy]

 Time enough when they older teens and adults to do the 9-5 grind.

 

Interesting...we actually have a roughly 9-5 schedule, but it's far from a grind...

 

I think you are correct in the idea that values come into play.

 

 

[Luckymama]

(WMA, I miss your avatar :()

[Woodland Mist Academy]

(WMA, I miss your avatar :()

 

Me too. :sad:  It might be OK, but I want to check before I put it back. Maybe this weekend....

 

[Reefgazer]

My middle schooler does about 6 hours a day.  Some days it's 5 and some days it's 7, but average of 6; she's in 7th grade, 12 years old.  That is 6 hours of decent effort, not 6 hours where half the time is spent daydreaming or not on a task.  That said, we don't work in all one chunk, either. Couple hours in the AM, couple hours after lunch, couple hours after dinner.  Which sounds inefficient, but that's the way she prefers it.  My 4th grader puts in 3-4 hours per day.

 

ETA:  I don't intentionally schedule DD for 6 hours of work a day, but that's how long it takes her to complete her work.  I personally think she has a somewhat heavy course load and I would like to see it reduced.  But....I insist on core classes, and she insists on extra stuff she wants to do, so....here we are at 6 hours.  Her current class load is:  English language (literature, writing, grammar, vocab), math, 2 sciences, history, 2 languages (French and Latin) as well as co-op classes she does for fun.  I've tried to get her to cut back, but she wants to keep everything she's doing except math (which of course, isn't negotiable). 

[Reefgazer]

My DS (4th grade) has been pissing and moaning about my expectations for him every.single.day since the beginning of the school term. But last Friday he said to me, "wow, I learned more in 2 days than I learned in 2 years at ________School.  Made it worth it.  I think the adjustment has just been rocky for him because I am trying to instill independence, personal responsibility, and organization.  The academics don't seem to phase him, but the organization and responsibility part, aye yi yi.....

How many of those hours in school are actually time-on-task with a task that requires the student to think? (And how much of the homework is something beyond useless busy work?)

My kids did attend public school until I pulled them out in 5th and 6th grade, respectively. They did not even spend two hours per day on anything I would consider an appropriate level of difficulty and engagement. Sure, they were kept busy doing something for seven hours- but that did not mean they learned what they could, and should, have.

 

When I withdrew DD from school, her first words were:

"I am so glad I don't have to go to school anymore. I can finally learn something!"

 

'nuff said.

 

[wintermom]

They run cross country so they get plenty of exercise, and they play outside with friends for several hours each day. I'm not comparing just interested in what others do. I like having an idea of what others in my "community" are doing. There's always something to be learned.

 

Running and play are not really a full PE program, but what ever. I find that many posters on this forum seem to place a very low priority on PE as being an important part of a child's education and way of life. Kind of weird, when I tend to think of sporting opportunities as important for a Classical education. 

[Woodland Mist Academy]

Um...so what is a full PE program? If someone runs cross country, I take it they are not just running a few minutes a day.

 

Do mean playing dodge ball? What is a full PE program?

 

We take physical fitness pretty seriously here. I don't call it PE, and I don't call it school. That doesn't mean we don't take it seriously.

[duckens]

 

My3girls says:

I just got flamed on another forum for saying that my middle schooler has 6-7 hours of work per day.  We haven't actually been getting it all done lately just out of laziness, and I was looking for a boost or kick in the butt to be more productive.  What I got was that I was expecting too much.  An over whelming majority schools their middle schoolers for 3-4 hours a day, and some others for 4-5.  Very very few schooled more than that.  From reading posts here on the board, I thought an hour per grade was about average.  Am I wrong?

"THOU SHALT NOT compare thyself to other homeschoolers."

 

I'm not sure if it's an official homeschool commandment, but it should be.

 

Your job is to educate your daughter(s) in the best way you can.  If that takes 3 hours a day for some people, then good for them.  If that takes 6-7 hours/day for you, then good for you.  If it takes 24 hours/day, then that is what it takes.

 

-----------------------------------------------------

There may be a difference in what specific curriculum you choose, too.  A curriculum with just reading is not the same as one that asks open ended, multi-step questions that must be answered (written) in full sentences.

[Soror]

For my 2nd grader she is at about 2.5ish hrs, including read- alouds.

 

For my 10 yo (4th/5th) were averaging around 4-5 or so a day I think.

Math -1 hr 2/3rds spent on BA the rest on fluency practice, ds needs this due to his Memory and EF deficits otherwise I could see others could spend less

 Writing is 30-45 min (we've doing about 30 min as of late in TC but we were doing about 45 last year and previously with WR and looking ahead I see that we will be back towards the higher end as we progress through TC, especially with dc's writing being so slow )

Grammar- 5-15 min (since we've finished GT and PT now we will just be doing a sentence a day in Practice Town and some work in Language Mechanic- so separate grammar/mechanics will just be around 5 min now, anything else will just be incorporated into writing.

Poetry/Vocab-10-15 These will be taking the place of the extra grammar we were doing- around 10-15 daily- we will be doing Poetry and then starting vocab when it is finished

Spelling- 15 min

Readalouds-Lit/Science/History/Geo- 30-90 min- usually at least an hour

Science- 20-30 min reading on his own (longer on some days for projects)

History- 20-30 min reading on his own

Current Events - 10 min

 

The kids also have activities as well, Scouts, TKD/Dance, and now Robotics Club for ds but those aren't in my schedule (although I count the hours as we have to track for our state). We also do physical activities as a family and ds is a voracious reader.

 

[8filltheheart]

I didn't read through the responses, but we are about 1 hr per day until around late middle school. 7th and 8th grade is anywhere from 6-8 hrs per day. High school is anywhere from 7-9 hrs per day. (some days my high schoolers actually put in longer days, though. But my recent high schoolers also take a lot of credit hours. My college freshman took as many as 10 crs in a yr. My current 10th grader is taking rhetoric, lit, pre-cal, history, physics, Russian 2, Latin 4, and French 4/5 (which is 8 credits). She starts at 5 and finishes around 230. She only takes a short break for lunch.)

 

It works here. :)

[Soror]

Um...so what is a full PE program? If someone runs cross country, I take it they are not just running a few minutes a day.

 

Do mean playing dodge ball? What is a full PE program?

 

We take physical fitness pretty seriously here. I don't call it PE, and I don't call it school. That doesn't mean we don't take it seriously.

LOL I was wondering the same thing. We are a pretty fit family and way more active than the vast majority of the population but we don't really do traditional sports, it works for us and meets our goals.

[texasmama]

Running and play are not really a full PE program, but what ever. I find that many posters on this forum seem to place a very low priority on PE as being an important part of a child's education and way of life. Kind of weird, when I tend to think of sporting opportunities as important for a Classical education. 

I suspect that many people may not have it in their siggies, but I imagine that plenty of physical activity is occurring. 

 

The "middle school basketball league" in my boys siggie runs five months a year, is competitive, and meets four days a week for practices/games.  Practices include a lot of conditioning activities.  (I know because I'm married to their coach, who uses Tony Horton as a model.)  It is far exceeds the activity an average kid their age gets.  On the off season, they get together with their friends and practice.  My boys are out at our backyard court practicing just about every day unless the weather is prohibitive.

 

My point is that you can't "get" all of that from "middle school basketball league".  Also, I've never gotten the impression that "posters on this forum seem to place a very low priority on PE". 

[Wildiris]

Yikes!! 6-7 hours of seat time would make the butt hurt, plus it's unhealthy for kids and adults alike.

 

Does 2 hour of surfing count as school time?

 

Why compare?

 

Seriously, it is never about quantity; it is always about quality, and of course how one defines quality. If one can watch movies for history, then one can surf for science and PE. Seeing a giant crab on the ocean floor and watching a surfer pal dive down to bring him/her up for a look is some awesome schooling, or checking out a sunfish in the water is amazing, or being out in a red tide--just what is that anyway? It's the kids job to figure it out and report back at the dinner table. 

 

My 6th grader does a solid 4 hours of school a day acquiring academic skills, but quality learning happens when we are in the car discussing books, history, current events, or math problems that stumped us earlier in the day. 

 

Goat herding is a time for daydreaming outside, but it isn't academic, yet daydreaming is essential to creativity.

 

To the original poster: Look at your academic goals for the year. Are you meeting your goals or moving in the right direction? If so, relax. Be your own yardstick.  

[Soror]

 I have some notes jotted down, but I don't know the name of the book now. It listed 2.5 hrs. as the max for grades 1-3. For high school this book listed 4 as the max.

 

 

 

I'd be curious as to the book. I don't have a highschooler yet but from my albeit limited understanding I don't know how one could possibly get enough credits to complete even a minimum highschool load with so few hours, there are generally recognized guidelines as to what constitutes a credit in highschool and I don't believe that cuts it.

[ebrindam]

I just got flamed on another forum for saying that my middle schooler has 6-7 hours of work per day.  We haven't actually been getting it all done lately just out of laziness, and I was looking for a boost or kick in the butt to be more productive.  What I got was that I was expecting too much.  An over whelming majority schools their middle schoolers for 3-4 hours a day, and some others for 4-5.  Very very few schooled more than that.  From reading posts here on the board, I thought an hour per grade was about average.  Am I wrong?

 

Her subjects are science, history, math, language arts (composition, grammar, and vocabulary), literature, Spanish, and Music.  We do some extras like handwriting, typing, poetry, and scratch, as well.  I cannot see how we could possibly get everything done in 4 hours each day.  We've been doing a loop schedule, but it's going to extend our year so I'm trying to get us revved up to get our schedule back on track.

 

I'm not really planning to change our curriculum choices or expectations, but I am curious if you are spending siginifically fewer hours on school work how you get it all done.  Maybe, I can pick up a few tips.  Thanks!

6-7 hours would be longer than  my PS 9th grader is even in school...so I think that's way more time than it should take for one on one instruction and study. 

[Woodland Mist Academy]

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[Soror]

Considering so many of us are utterly unimpressed with PS's educational results I don't see how comparison to them is anymore helpful than comparing to other homeschoolers. Personally I want to offer my kids more than ps, I want them to have a greater education. I expect that will take more time and effort quite a lot of the time, not less, unless we're talking about the younger years. If you are meeting your goals and in compliance with your local laws then all is well and good for you.