Tranquility7 Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I have 3 DC... DS9, DD6, and DD1. DS9 and DD6 are bright, easy to teach, and generally enthusiastic. We have some typical discipline issues but in general they are pleasant kids. They are energetic but usually not out of control. I'm happy with where they are academically. I'm happy with our year-round schooling routine. I'm happy with my Homeschool Tracker planning software. I'm happy with all the different subjects we do and curricula we use. I'm happy with how much we have accomplished over the last four years. What I'm not happy with is a generally chaotic feel to our days. What I'm not happy with is the fact that I am a block schedule person by nature, yet I really think shorter, more frequent lessons are far more effective academically. What I'm not happy with is feeling already tapped out of time, yet I only have 3 kids, and they are only 9, 6, and 1 - how am I going to ramp it up more as they get older? I can't imagine having DD6 doing all that DS9 is doing - how will I ever have time for that?? (And while I know outsourcing is the answer for some people, it isn't for us. Even outsourcing to workbooks or DVDs is not for us.) I am not a chaotic person. I am generally organized and I am a very faithful planner of our *week*, but not our *day*. KWIM? Every weekend I plan out our next week. I enjoy doing this, and every week we each start with a fresh To Do List (DS9 and DD6 each get an "Independent Work" list, and I have the master list of work I need to do with each of them). Sometimes we do well getting through most of it, sometimes not, though over the months, we get through enough that I'm pleased with our overall progress. The problem is, I really wish I could curtail how loud and chaotic the days feel to me. I keep thinking the secret is in getting our *days* organized better. I always make my plan for my week, but during the actual days I simply look at my weekly list and decide on a whim what to do next. I love the freedom of that, but I hate the chaos that sometimes occurs because of it. I have SO MANY friends who schedule out their days by the half hour or so - planning what each child will be doing when, who Mom will be helping when, etc. I see SO much wisdom in this! And I can't imagine that it doesn't vastly improve productivity and peace. Yet I cannot figure out how to implement it. I keep trying, but it makes me feel stressed out because we invariably end up "behind" our schedule for the day (because I usually underestimate how long something will really take, or because I end up making what was scheduled to be a short lesson (30 min) into a huge block lesson (90 min) because that is what I prefer (and DS does too, I think), or because my 1 yr old invariably requires more of my unscheduled attention than I would like to admit). I need ideas. How can I decrease the chaos? How can I increase the peace? How can I improve our productivity without saddling us with a strict schedule? If a strict schedule is needed, how do I make it work without it stressing me out and making me feel constantly behind? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beka87 Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I'm short on time, but here are a few quick thoughts.... Schedules are, I think, pretty much required to home school multiple children and still stay sane. Schedules are meant to free you, not hold you down, so if a "strict" schedule stresses you, it isn't the right one. Scheduling to the half hour, or even hour, makes me batty - we get WAY behind TOO fast EVERY day. No good. A schedule with times is great as a guideline, if you can remember that it is only that - a guide, not something rigid that Must Be Adhered To At All Cost. A general flow to the day is usually better than times, especially with little ones in the mix. Decide how your day should flow (the order in which you do things) and about how much time each thing should take (with margin built in), and then relax. Kids like to know what's coming next. I like to label my days 1 through 5, instead of assigning certain subjects to certain days. Then, if we skip Tuesday in favor of shopping thrift stores for Halloween costumes, we aren't actually behind. Wednesday just gets to be day 2. I hope some others chime in, and maybe I'll be able to add more later. Schedules are great, and I agree that having one would help your chaotic feeling. It certainly helped mine. :) However, schedules are a tool that you have to make work for you. Do some thinking about what you want your days to look like, write it all down, and start there. I find getting things out of one's head and onto paper helps to make all those moving pieces stand still long enough for one to actually to think about it all. Good luck!! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 The younger kids are going to get a ton of exposure that will make them easier to teach. I have seen this many times; it's the principle of the one room schoolhouse, really. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I have 3 DC... DS9, DD6, and DD1. DS9 and DD6 are bright, easy to teach, and generally enthusiastic. We have some typical discipline issues but in general they are pleasant kids. They are energetic but usually not out of control. I'm happy with where they are academically. I'm happy with our year-round schooling routine. I'm happy with my Homeschool Tracker planning software. I'm happy with all the different subjects we do and curricula we use. I'm happy with how much we have accomplished over the last four years. This is truly a lot to be thankful for :-). I think you can do some tweaks to lessen the chaos and make your days more predictable, but I also think--life with young children isn't always predictable (goodness, I have a teen and a college student, and while our days are more predictable than with little ones, they still bring plenty of surprises and significant, unexpected turns in our days.) So in part I would say to also enjoy the days and know it won't always be quite this way...but that it's okay for now. Rest in this season. What I'm not happy with is feeling already tapped out of time, yet I only have 3 kids, and they are only 9, 6, and 1 - how am I going to ramp it up more as they get older? I can't imagine having DD6 doing all that DS9 is doing - how will I ever have time for that?? (And while I know outsourcing is the answer for some people, it isn't for us. Even outsourcing to workbooks or DVDs is not for us.) I think it's natural for us to look ahead and think certain things just aren't possible. But the truth is, you are not jumping into these changes overnight. Things are going to change gradually (for the most part!) It's hard, but try not to look so far ahead. Your 6 yo doesn't need to do 9 yo work for 3 years--and a lot is going to change in 3 years. How your time is used, what things make you feel "used up," what your children can do to help around the house--these will all change significantly. (How 12 and 9 yo's help around the house is significantly different than how 9 and 6 yo's help, just as one example.) So...it's not going to be like adding more work on top of your already-full, today-style day. It's going to be gradual changes into a different style of day, where all of you will change and adjust gradually. Carrying today's burdens is enough for any of us. Don't carry tomorrow's. I am not a chaotic person. I am generally organized and I am a very faithful planner of our *week*, but not our *day*. KWIM? Every weekend I plan out our next week. I enjoy doing this, and every week we each start with a fresh To Do List (DS9 and DD6 each get an "Independent Work" list, and I have the master list of work I need to do with each of them). Sometimes we do well getting through most of it, sometimes not, though over the months, we get through enough that I'm pleased with our overall progress. The problem is, I really wish I could curtail how loud and chaotic the days feel to me. I keep thinking the secret is in getting our *days* organized better. I always make my plan for my week, but during the actual days I simply look at my weekly list and decide on a whim what to do next. I love the freedom of that, but I hate the chaos that sometimes occurs because of it. I have SO MANY friends who schedule out their days by the half hour or so - planning what each child will be doing when, who Mom will be helping when, etc. I see SO much wisdom in this! And I can't imagine that it doesn't vastly improve productivity and peace. Yet I cannot figure out how to implement it. I keep trying, but it makes me feel stressed out because we invariably end up "behind" our schedule for the day (because I usually underestimate how long something will really take, or because I end up making what was scheduled to be a short lesson (30 min) into a huge block lesson (90 min) because that is what I prefer (and DS does too, I think), or because my 1 yr old invariably requires more of my unscheduled attention than I would like to admit). I need ideas. How can I decrease the chaos? How can I increase the peace? How can I improve our productivity without saddling us with a strict schedule? If a strict schedule is needed, how do I make it work without it stressing me out and making me feel constantly behind? A few thoughts for you here: Block scheduling versus short lessons: this doesn't have to be all or nothing. I found that short, daily lessons worked well for skill-oriented subjects, and block scheduling worked well for content-oriented subjects. So, things like math, spelling, writing etc... had daily lessons, but subjects like history or science could be alternated rather than doing them daily, allowing us a longer block of time for doing them. Schedule versus routine: you might feel less saddled by a routine than a schedule. A routine gives you a predictable order of subjects, but it can be started at 8:30 or at 9:30 and not really be "off." I used to think of my day as having "anchors"--meal times, rest times, bedtime routine/read-alouds, bed time...and then let our routine flex around it. A routine can have time guidelines--"spend 30 minutes on math" or "have a 60-90 minute block for history or science" that bring predictability to your day without being overly stringent--"Oh no, it's 11:00 and we're supposed to do X!" Implementing a routine: Start small. Don't go from 0 to 60--from completely un-scheduled to having every minute of your day accounted for. Come up with what you think might be a reasonable routine, but try implementing just the first hour, and then do the rest of the day how you normally would do it. Does that hour work well, or were there conflicts (did both kids need you at once, or did not having something for baby to do derail the time etc...). Implementing gradually helps you come up with strategies that make things run smoothly. When that first part works well, try to implement another hour, see what works and what doesn't, what's practical and what's never going to happen about that plan...and so on. When my kids were little, I used to "ramp up" over 4 weeks time before we got to our full school routine. Leave some free time/unscheduled time, depending on your personalities and needs. Whims...I think you might find that putting some regularity into your day and not letting whims change things last minute *most of the time* will make things run more smoothly. It really relieves a lot of stress and chaos when everyone knows what's next. Transitions between subjects will be less chaotic (and that can mean somewhat quieter....sometimes!). We used workboxes to organize our day and give it a flow. It was easy to see what was next--no decisions to be made along the way meant more got done. And whims could be saved for creative outlets (let's bake cookies tonight, or here's another way to understand this concept etc...). Having a routine does NOT mean you can't take part or the whole day off to go on a play date or a field trip. You can choose to do just part of your routine and still be free for other things. Finally, schedules/routines are tools--not masters. Just like your plans for the week might be adjusted--you might not get to everything but you are okay with that--let your daily routine be that way too. If you don't get to everything, it's okay. If you consistently don't get to your last school subject, then consider a loop schedule or a partial loop--do skill subjects daily, but let some other things "loop" so that during the block of time that you work on "loop" subjects, you start wherever you left off previously. As an example: Let's say that you have 4 subjects you want to do daily, and 4 subjects you want to loop. Day 1, you might do subjects 1-4, and then 5-7 on your list, but you don't have time for 8. Day 2, you can do subjects 1-4 again, but then do subject 8--the loop subject you didn't get to the day before. After that you can restart the loop with subjects 5 and 6. Day 3, do subjects 1-4, and then pick up the loop with 7...and so on. Another option is daily subjects vs. block schedule: Plan your dailies (maybe subjects 1-4), and then every other day have a time slot or two for a "block" scheduled item. You can alternate every other day or have some items that are once a week in a block (maybe you do history on M, W, science on T, R, and art on Fridays.) Get creative with your schedules, try something out, and see how it works. No schedule is forever. I often changed up a routine over Christmas break to freshen things up and match our current needs. (Especially with a baby--you may find you change your routine every few months for awhile, but eventually it will stretch out, and longer times on a routine will work.) Manager's of Their Homes has a lot of ideas in it. You may never have the "30 minute schedules" that they come up with in there, but that's okay. Thinking through what one child can be doing while you work with another, how you want to plan your time out, praying through the process etc... are great things you can glean from the process as well. I read it 3 or 4 times when my kids were younger. We never did a strict schedule, but would come up with routines each year, and that did bring a lot of peace to our days. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tranquility7 Posted October 27, 2015 Author Share Posted October 27, 2015 Thank you SO much for all of the helpful and wise advice. It gives me a lot to think about, as well as a big dose of encouragement (which I am totally in need of after the colossal failure of our "schedule" today). Off to read and reread and ponder some more.... thanks again!!!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 We have a general flow to our days but not a 1/2 hr by hour schedule. We used to. And that worked for me, but than I had a baby and so that went out the window. My kids are 8, 6, 1 1/2 and I am expecting twins this spring. So now we shot for a flow. We do have daily tasks and then subjects I generally tie to a day, because then it helps make it no brainer planning. But we vary from that occasionally. We might want to do a science week or art week instead. So this our typical "daily schedule"---- AM- Bible, Lang, Math (before lunch)--- About an hour and a half PM- Chapter reading, Spanish, subject of the day---about another hour and a half Mon - art & music Tues - science Wed - history Thur - library trip and nature walk / journaling subbed for AM work and handicrafts & cooking in pm Fri- park day or field trip day (usually no other work) I usually make a weekly plan and fill in the day to day breaking it into sections of independent work for my 3rd grader, k time and our core curriculum / unit study time (stuff my kids do together). Math and Lang is pretty much do the next thing. My "subject a day approach" helps plan out the core stuff pretty easily. I am doing 6 week units were I make a general overview of each unit and what we'll do for longer term projects and week by week overviews. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abba12 Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 A few quick thoughts You say you are a block scheduler by nature, but believe shorter frequent lessons are better academically. I would disagree on the second point, personally, but, that aside, could you block schedule some things and keep short lessons for others? Math, language arts, usually better with short daily lessons. But do you think science and history could be blocked? Or, if you think daily lessons are important, could you do units, a month of history, then a month of science, done daily in those months? If you're a block scheduler by nature, as I definitely am, I feel like you are setting yourself up for failure to try and force yourself into an everything-everyday schedule. I tried to to begin with and nothing got done. Also, you can have a schedule without a 30-minute breakdown. We have a routine, and we do NOT move onto the next thing until the previous one is finished, which means sometimes lunch is at 11am and sometimes it's at 1pm here, and that's ok by me. I have younger kids than you, but, for an idea, our 'schedule' is Kids get up before me and usually play for awhile Get up, eat breakfast, listen to mummy read aloud if I'm doing well that morning (I have issues in the mornings) Morning chores, get dressed Reading lessons Math and logic for elder, handwriting and motor skills for younger baby gets attention, elder on independent handwriting and motor skills math and logic for younger, handwriting, motor skills and independent work for older Free play or table time activity, mummy makes lunch lunch is eaten, documentary on, baby goes to bed Bible time or content subject time Quiet time Outside time With this schedule, quiet time can occur anywhere from 12:30 to 2pm, or on a bad day be totally skipped altogether and go from content subjects time to outside time. There's no getting behind. It helps that my kids are very flexible about when they eat etc. But there's definitely structure, they know one will do math with me while the other does semi-independent work, and then they swap. We know which subjects come next in the routine, and we know we have to finish school before we eat lunch. Sometimes they finish school at 10am and get lots of free play time, other times they finish school at 12 or so because we had a bad morning and we skip free play, figuring they did it while i was busy attending to whatever made us run late, but we finish before moving onto the next thing either way. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sahamamama Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I am not a chaotic person. I am generally organized and I am a very faithful planner of our *week*, but not our *day*. KWIM? Every weekend I plan out our next week. I enjoy doing this, and every week we each start with a fresh To Do List (DS9 and DD6 each get an "Independent Work" list, and I have the master list of work I need to do with each of them). Sometimes we do well getting through most of it, sometimes not, though over the months, we get through enough that I'm pleased with our overall progress. The problem is, I really wish I could curtail how loud and chaotic the days feel to me. I keep thinking the secret is in getting our *days* organized better. I always make my plan for my week, but during the actual days I simply look at my weekly list and decide on a whim what to do next. I love the freedom of that, but I hate the chaos that sometimes occurs because of it. I agree with Merry, it sounds as though so much is going so well! :) The one thing that stands out to me is that the weekly list is too unwieldy, while a timed schedule might be too constraining. You don't want to implement something that just generates feelings of stress, failure, and guilt, especially when you have NO REASON to feel those things. I think you probably just need to work on routines, instead of an actual "From 9:00 to 9:15, we work on this" type of schedule. FWIW, I don't work well with chaos, either, but that type of schedule has never worked for us. What I like to do is to get a general sense of the whole week (over the weekend), based on finding out what my husband's week will be (it always varies), what we have lined up outside, and what we need to be working on for school. You already do this part. I'm wondering, perhaps it would help to take a few minutes each evening, after the kids are in bed, to break the master list down into the next day's plan? I like to make up Daily Work Lists, because it forces me to really prioritize, organize, and think about the next day's flow. I ask myself questions, and imagine the day. Was there any work from today that we didn't finish? Yes, we never did the 5th Grader's Grammar lesson, so let's be sure to get that done. Will this heavy line-up work? No, because Bang and Boom are slightly sick, so that's too heavy a workload for tomorrow. Should we do Group Work first? Yes, because we need to feel like we're together for the first part of the day. And so on. I add, delete, tweak, move things around, until I'm happy with how it seems the following day will play out, then I print out the lists, place each girl's list on her desk, place my copies on my clipboard, and I'm done. When I make up the Daily Work Lists each evening, it isn't stressful at all. The kids are in bed, the kitchen is done, the laundry is done, the house is quiet, the candle is burning, the tea is hot. My husband gets a few minutes to himself, LOL. Because I know at the beginning of the week what we're aiming at, overall, the DWLs only take about 10-15 minutes to type in and print out. That is much less stressful than having to decide what to do, bit after bit, with children all around. This way, you make your decisions while they are sleeping. When the girls come down in the morning, they can get to work on their Independent Work right away, and then when we begin school time, we just go by the list. This has the added advantage of having everyone on the same page, without me having to speak. ;) We all just "know" that we are, say, starting with Morning Chapel (Bible reading, hymn, Memory Work, JBQ) or diving right into Math. The lists are set up with each student's name at the top, followed by that day's date (so we all know that it's Tuesday). This eliminates the need to tell three children ALL DAY LONG, over and over again, what day it is, or having them pop up to look at the calendar just to delay the start of Composition. Then we have: Morning Routine Here I list everything they must do as part of our regular, predictable Morning Routine, including their chore set (Butterfly, Ladybug, or Bumblebee). Group Work Here I list whatever we are aiming at for that day's Group Work (we don't do every subject every day). Independent Work Here I list all the assignments they are able to complete on their own (Vocabulary, Spelling for 5th Grade, Independent Reading, Memory Work, History Timeline, some French, some Latin). Generally, I assign this to one grade level while I'm doing Tutor Time with the other grade level. 3rd or 5th Grade Tutor Time Here I list the work we will do for Tutor Time (e.g., Math, Composition, Grammar, Spelling for 3rd Grade, Latin, some French, some Latin, etc.). Notes Here I include any special notes to the student, such as reminders to have their Awana bag ready to go before supper, due dates for assignments, or upcoming events (Family Movie Night). In thinking about this, I realize that it works so well for us in part because I gave a lot of thought this year to how to set up our environment so that the girls can function as independently as possible. Independently doesn't mean "alone." When I say "independently," I mean that when it's time for anything -- Science, History, Math, whatever -- they (1) know that is what is next, and (2) they can access all the materials for it themselves, and (3) they can put those materials back! We use shelves and "workbox" drawers for storage (like Merry used/uses), but we don't actually do the workbox system. Just the lovely drawers, because the drawers were so much easier than shelves for the children to use. The drawers make their materials accessible to them, nothing falls on their heads, and the kids don't have to worry about messing up a whole shelf full of stuff. So, for example, we finish our Bible Memory Work, and they just get up and put back their Christian Discipleship binders. Then they look at their DWLs and say, "Oh, great! We're doing Science next!" And they get out their binders and books for Science. They even get mine, I don't have to get up, LOL. Or, during their Tutor Time, they know what's coming, so they like to get it all out at once and line it up on their desks in order. Heaven help me if I change up the order. "Mommy! You're messing me up!" I will also say that we've had to practice routines at times. What are the routines you'd like to become automatic? You might think about those, discuss them with your children, even practice them. Kids think this is funny, if you keep it light. We also practice making less noise. I will sometimes look at one of my (loud) children and say, "Your volume control knob broke off at birth, didn't it?" :toetap05: Or (they love this one), I poke them all over (tickling) and say, "I'm trying to find your Quiet Switch. Hunh, can't find it. Must be on the inside. Do you think you can find it in there? And use it, please?" I sometimes say, "We need to bring the general noise level down, please, or Mommy is going to become cranky." This always works! :lol: I realized early on that a schedule wouldn't work for me. I did try a few times, honestly, but I suppose I don't like to be told what to do at or by 9:15... not even by myself. HTH. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I also agree if you like block scheduling you can do that with core subjects and then do content subjects 3-5 days a week. For us, we do Lang, Math, Bible, Spanish and literature about 3x a week but we only do art, music, science, nature journaling,handicrafts, etc about 1x a week. And that works ok for us! We usually spend about 45-90 minutes on our "subject of the day" depending on what we're doing. The daily stuff is in shorter lessons- Spelling - 10 Phonics - 10 Free Reading - 15 Book basket (unit theme tied independent reading)- 15 Bible - 10 Spanish - 20 min Grammar - 10 min Read aloud time - 25 min Core subject of the day - 45-90 min Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 We also have non academics "routine" in place. With some "time anchors". Kids wake between 7-8 Kids dress, brush teeth / hair, make beds, tidy rooms, and feed pets Breakfast Help mom with housework Play together with baby Bible (together) ---start no later than 10:30 but usually more like 9:30-10:00 K time w/ mom while dd does independent Lang + math Mom does grammar with dd Lunch Chapter reading 1 hr quiet time / baby naps 3 hrs. ---baby goes down around 12 pm - 1 pm depending on our schedule that day Spanish Subject of day--done at 3 or 4 or when baby is up Free time, errands or extra curricular activities Dinner / evening ---baby goes to bed after dinner Family time Bed---9-10 pm for kids 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I like having a schedule. However, it is more of a guideline of what needs to get done, not an order. I do insist on Monday that I get to teach my portion of things first so I can go about my day and not be hostage to waiting on them to both be ready. I found my kids are more motivated to get things done if allowed to pick their own order. They have one book they share(grammar), but so far it hasn't been an issue both wanted to do it at the same time. I tried the 15/30/45/1hr blocks. It didn't work. Some days take longer than others. I found having a daily schedule was best utilized as a list to get done. I am available for questions after any teaching I do. I do ask reading to be done after book work. (this gives them time to read more than required which often happens) I do my planning in pencil on paper. I printed out a weekly grid with places for both kids. I like being able to erase when life happens :-) I think planning is a very personal thing. Some people thrive on 15 min blocks. It drove me crazy. My kids want a schedule of what to do, but the freedom to pick what order they do it. I hope in the next few years they can put together this schedule on their own and just do it. That is the goal at least. LOL 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I haven't read everything, but rather than a timed schedule, I think "flow" Cleaning happens after breakfast. What I clean can vary. Breakfast can happen any time between 7:30 and 8:30. but we clean up dishes and kitchen after that. Then we do school. School starts after breakfast and cleanup happened. Schedules are times, flow is to do what happens next, whatever time we get up in the morning. So there is no "behind schedule" 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doodlebug Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 If your schedule is working, but now you're feeling caged in, it might be time for a 1 week change-up. Just get the core subjects done... and use your time to do some intentional thinking about what's working and what's not... Then, tweak as necessary, and incorporate those things into your plan for the next 6 weeks (or so). That's where I am right now (at the 12 week mark). There's a lot that's working really well (block scheduling content areas). But the constant drive of the daily to-do doesn't allow room to consider AND implement meaningful change. That feels like prison, even if 90 percent of it is working really well. If I give myself time to consider the 10 percent that's awkward and bumpy, and get a plan going, it's like fuel for the next stage of our school year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 We have a routine, not a schedule. I try to get most of our work done in the mornings, leaving afternoons for extra projects, chores, and free time. This year I came up with a weekly schedule. It just lists what subjects we need to cover that day. I highlighted each subject using different color highlighters, grouping similar subjects together. For example, read aloud heavy subjects are highlighted with orange, writing-heavy subjects are green, active subjects are blue, etc. That way we can vary our lessons without needing a specific schedule. I spread out the orange subjects, with other colors in between. It's been working really well for us, and I love not having a set schedule. Our lessons are planned with a non-dated planner, so we can stop in the middle of our day's plans when interruptions pop up. I just check off the lessons in the planner as we complete them. I've also given up with Monday-Friday plans...Now we have Day 1, Day 2, etc. It always seems like we take time off on the same day. For example, we usually have company leaving on Mondays (which throws off several Mondays during the year). This ensures that we aren't constantly skipping Monday-only subjects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purplejackmama Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 Ha! I WANT to homeschool until I HAVE to ;) Kidding. Sort of. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 You need a routine and NOT a schedule. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Princess and the Jedi Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 I think the desire to keep a schedule would create more stress for me. What I do to tame the chaos and keep us in a routine is give my son a checklist of what we are going to do, in the order I would like us to do it in. Our schedule to day looked something like this: --handwriting (done during read aloud* time) --W&R 82-84* --Megawords p. 65-66* --Samurai's Tale Chapters 4-5 (I ask him a couple questions about what he read after) --Life of Fred --Xtra Math --Math Lesson* and WB 156-157 --Read SOTW Ch. 18, Narration* --Play Stack the States 10 minutes --Typing: 2 Lessons --Finish Science Experiment* Asterisks are for lessons he needs me for. My daughter cannot follow a checklist, but we follow the same pattern: drawing or play doh during morning read aloud, a phonics lesson after read aloud, then play time, read aloud for her and little brother when my son reads Life of Fred, play time, sit in on science experiments, art, or history activities, then she reads to me during little brother's nap. I don't worry too much about coordinating "Mom/tutoring time." I have enough built in breaks and independent time that things work out ok. It's about finding a flow that works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbes Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 I think the desire to keep a schedule would create more stress for me. What I do to tame the chaos and keep us in a routine is give my son a checklist of what we are going to do, in the order I would like us to do it in. This. I do spiral notebook checklists each day and once we are done our Bible/Morning Time, the girls start working through those lists. They are at the kitchen table, so I can direct them and I'm nearby if they get stuck. If one of the things is more of a me-teaching subject and I'm not available, they move on to the next thing. It works well for getting through a lot while I'm managing a toddler. I'm training the toddler to sit quietly for Bible Time, so that is rarely interrupted. Often I ask one of the girls to take a break to play with the toddler while I teach the other, then we switch. The lists are part of a routine - - Kids up, dressed, beds made at 7:30 - I aim for breakfast by 8ish and Bible Time starting at the table by 8:30 - By 9:30 we are generally on independent work and they just move through the list until done, then they have free time. (Gr. 1&2) - Lunch between 12 and 1 - Quiet time 1:30-3:30 - Free time and chores - Dinner generally around 6 - Bed at about 8 The meals and quiet/bedtimes create a frame and the school days flows between it. For me, its the perfect balance of schedule and routine, though the times for things change with different seasons/babies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 I went with a loose schedule. We sort of keep to it and have rules. But right now, for example, they are carving pumpkins instead of school work. Basically, we have hours. 9-noon and 1-3. They are not supposed to goof off during that time. We can get off schedule for a day or two and we are fine, but after that, they go crazy and start fighting again. Last year, we got little done and needed to remedy it. They are not behind grade level. But one it teetering on average and the other was years ahead of grade level and now is on an average college prep track. We cannot really afford to continue to get behind. Setting the hours has helped, a lot. They "get" that the work needs to be done. And I have the freedom to insist they focus on school work during those hours and they don't argue about it. They are arguing less and getting along better. We still have a ways to go, but things have gotten better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mb4 Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 Having a schedule helps me to cut down on decision fatigue throughout the day. The more decisions you have to make in a day the more overwhelmed you are going to feel. (You can read more about it in this article: http://simplehomeschool.net/decision-fatigue/) It is good that you plan your week beforehand, that is one way to decrease decision fatigue. But, waking up every day and trying decide how to implement it in the moment can be very stressful- especially when the 1 year old is crying and the other two are wondering what to do next etc.. etc.. (I know, I have 4 kids.. 9, 7, 5 and 2). I think that it is a good idea like others suggested to schedule out the skill- based subjects (math, spelling, etc.) and then leave longer blocks to be more creative with the content based subjects. (Science, History) Start paying attention to exactly how long the skill based subjects take right now and start making some decisions beforehand about how long you WANT them to take. I realized that I was assigning too much math for my daughter, who is already at least a grade ahead, and it would often drag on for a hour and a half. Looking over the lesson beforehand helps you say: this much math should take about how long I want them to work on it each day... but also if they have been working hard and it has been an hour go ahead and let them stop. I also realized that my son who is 7 is not really ready to be as independent as I thought. He spent so much time dawdling, and I spent so much time nagging... until a good friend pointed out that he still needed me to sit at his elbow. Duh! Now my 9 year old knows that every morning she plays with the younger kids for 1 1/2 hours while I hammer things out sitting right next to him. I am typically more of a "big picture" kind of person, so I never thought I would be able to hold down daily schedule. However, I have been amazed at how many of my scheduling problems can be solved by really focusing on the details. For example, last year our mornings were feeling really stressful, until it dawned on me that my oldest daughter is NOT a morning person, and will inevitably be grumpy for the first hour after she wakes up. So, I let her sit on the couch and do her reading right when she wakes up, while I work with my son who is cheerful in the mornings. Also, making snack and meal times consistent (and planning what you are going to eat beforehand) cuts down on decision fatigue. My daughter pops us popcorn every single day at 10:30 while she plays with the little kids, and she brings some popcorn to my son while he does his math. That way we don't have to stop when he wines he is hungry at that time every day. Obviously taking full advantage of your 1 year old's nap time is also a must. The difference between doing a lesson with our without a toddler involved is HUGE. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 The schedule is a guide and it's there to help but we can make changes. For example to day we walked to the library (hour round trip), stayed for story time for my toddler and browsed a half hour, then came home and we made lunch. I had planned some stuff for school but felt like it was nothing I couldn't roll over for Monday. We enjoyed an hour documentary on Lewis and Clark and then I napped for an hour and the kids had quiet time for an hour (no electronics in their room). My 6 year plays quietly in his room, and my 8 year old does crafts. I am calling it a day- PE, Literature, Library Skills, cooking, history, crafting or imaganitive play----sounds good to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kolamum Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 I haven't read every reply so forgive me if I'm repeating or barking up the wrong tree.. I'd start by planning your days. Your littlest one is 1, can your 6 & 9 year old have individual play time with a specific roll or "thing" to do with baby. So while your 6 year old was learning phonics with you perhaps your 9 year old is playing blocks with the baby in another room where it can't distract. If you can utilise sibling help it may help you to plan out the days better. Do you want to accomplish specific things in the day? Which things are the most important to you & why? Prioritise. How much can each child do on their own? Even if it's only ONE thing each that might be enough for you to get children set up & keep baby out of their hair until they are done with that activity. FWIW, if I don't schedule out the day & my children don't schedule out their days it's easy to lose track of things.. quickly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lots of little ducklings Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 I haven't read everything, but rather than a timed schedule, I think "flow" Cleaning happens after breakfast. What I clean can vary. Breakfast can happen any time between 7:30 and 8:30. but we clean up dishes and kitchen after that. Then we do school. School starts after breakfast and cleanup happened. Schedules are times, flow is to do what happens next, whatever time we get up in the morning. So there is no "behind schedule" This is us, too, and it works well for us. The kids know what to expect, but we aren't confined to time-slots and I can change things up easily if I need to. I also do all one-on-one skills subjects very early in the day (before breakfast, usually) so that if the day falls apart later because of appointments and whatnot, I can take comfort knowing that something important was accomplished. I also school year-round, which just means that we take shorter, more-frequent breaks. For scheduling, this is helpful because I feel less compelled to "just finish xyz textbook!" by an arbitrary date in June. I have general guidelines and benchmarks for books that I'd like to finish within a set time-frame, but I don't stress about it if we "fall behind." I just adjust my goals to fit reality. And for the last two years, I've used a "journal-style" planner; I track what I accomplish each day rather than what I fail to finish. It's far less time-intensive than other methods of planning that I've tried, and it's a much nicer way to look at things. :thumbup1: In my case, my "planner" is a printed week-by-week calendar for each child with all possible texts/activities/labs listed on each day for each subject in a bulleted (check box) list. (I use this, though I shuffle it up a bit to suit my taste; if you check out the sample pdf, you can see on page 10 what each week's editable page looks like. For each child, I do subjects down the left, days across the top, and checklists inserted in the grid. Then print off forty copies for forty weeks of school.) Then all I need to do is check off any completed items and jot down page numbers, if necessary. At the end of the day (and year!), I have a dated record of all that was accomplished. I love it. There's no shuffling dates around if we take an impromptu vacation, and there's no falling behind. ETA: The checkboxes cover everything each day, even if it's a subject I only plan to cover two days per week. So I never complete all the checkboxes (typically only about half of them) but it's always there to be "checked" if I need to swap days. In fact, when I was uncertain about spelling options this year, I just threw both of the texts on the calendar. Now if I change my mind in January and switch, I'm covered and it looks like I meant to do both all along. :D Hope any of this makes sense... It's way past my bedtime. ;) ETA: Oh! and I use a forty-week file system so that printouts and other items are prepped in advance on breaks and kept right at hand. That way I don't spend lots of prep time each week. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 I haven't read every reply so forgive me if I'm repeating or barking up the wrong tree.. I'd start by planning your days. Your littlest one is 1, can your 6 & 9 year old have individual play time with a specific roll or "thing" to do with baby. So while your 6 year old was learning phonics with you perhaps your 9 year old is playing blocks with the baby in another room where it can't distract. If you can utilise sibling help it may help you to plan out the days better. Do you want to accomplish specific things in the day? Which things are the most important to you & why? Prioritise. How much can each child do on their own? Even if it's only ONE thing each that might be enough for you to get children set up & keep baby out of their hair until they are done with that activity. FWIW, if I don't schedule out the day & my children don't schedule out their days it's easy to lose track of things.. quickly. We do this, too! Ideally I can sit both my kids down at the table and do k time with my ds and dd can work on independent work getting most of her Lang & math done while I am still nearby enough to answer an occasional question and keep her on task. And baby play nearby or sits at the table with play dough or scribbles or something, but so mornings that's not going to happen..... So on those mornings I might send my dd to the table or her room to do independent work whilr me and my k'er play with baby. He might be entertaining her while I remain in view doing some chores. Then when dd's done I might ask her to play with the baby in their room while I work with my k'er. She's 8 so able to play with baby without needing me in the same room. Not quite as time efficient but it still means we got to Bible, Lang and Math in the AM before her nap. Then we utilize nap time for the rest of our school day to the best we can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.