Can I do this? Moms of many please help!

[Meadowlark]

Well, I'm wondering if I can homeschool next year. My husband and I have decided we're open to having one more child, which God-willing would make 6. So, that would be 6 kids under age 9. I know many of you do it, but what curriculum do you love?

 

I gravitate toward teacher intensive stuff. I'll be adding a Kinder next year and then another for the next 2 years, all while having a new one if it works out. I just have no idea how I can do this and need some advice. I'd specifically like large family curriculum advice. What out there can I do to give my kids a great education but lesson the load on me? We're doing Veritas Press SP this year and while its stress free, it's not for us. I'd love to outsource SOMETHING ( online? DVD?) or choose an independent curriculum that is excellent but NOT teacher intensive?

 

I really want to keep homeschooling, but have no idea how to make it work curriculum-wise. I know I need to let go of my mindset that everything has to be perfect. I think I can do it but need some large family moms to share what they love and what works. Thanks in advance!

[Insertcreativenamehere]

We are using CLE math and language arts for 3rd and 5th graders as well as their LTR program for my kindergartner. I recommend them highly. Easy for planning, helps teach some independence. Great format. I save the teacher-intensive stuff for writing, history and science.

 

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

[LindaOz]

I had my first 6 in about 9 1/2 years. We did a lot of our content with Sonlight and SOTW. LA was a mixture of workbooks, Bravewriter and keeping subject journals, writing narrations etc. Much of this can be done together with young children because they respond at their own level. We read aloud a lot and the kids learnt to have their own quiet reading times as well. Activities from the SOTW manual were great together and created some awesome memories and I love looking back over their journals from these times. It's so very doable :)

[blondeviolin]

We have kids with about the same spread. The big thing I'd probably say is to really focus on math and language in the younger years. That is our focus in k-2. If I can get them to sit in on science and history, swell. If not, I'm not feeling too sadly about it. Every morning my school-aged kids complete grammar, spelling, writing, and math. If that's all my younger kids get in, I'm okay with that. They are in a home that values learning with lots of history, science, music, and Art books. We listen to memory work and academic songs, they read a ton of books, and have probably watched every BrainPop video they have at least twice.

 

With that being said, I do try to entice my youngers back during history/science in the afternoons. We pile at the table with a snack and whatever materials we need. More often than not, they come running for science. History not so much right now, but were doing modern history and it's not often age appropriate. I'm looking forward to moving back to ancients in that respect.

 

You can see what curricula we use in my sig...

[Holly]

We have only 5.   ;)  I'm also drawn to teacher-intensive materials.  For that reason, I try to combine my DC as much as possible.  We use SCM's history guides, but there are many others that can combine a large age group.  We just started reading SOTW for our main history book, and everyone is really enjoying it.  For science, we've tried quite a few different materials...most of them can be taught with a large range of children.  For Bible, we just read the Bible or children's Bibles, memorize verses, and sing hymns.  ELTL has been my favorite LA program so far.  We use it alongside Spelling Wisdom.  For phonics, I teach them with McGuffey readers and add in some inexpensive workbooks.  Math is taught with MUS.  They watch the video, then start their worksheets, and come to me for help as needed.  We can sometimes get through most of our materials before lunch, but usually have a few things to finish up later.  We do several fine arts/enrichment types of subjects following Charlotte Mason methods.  

 

Next year I'll have a HS student, so I imagine things will change a bit.  I'm leaning toward more independent and possibly some DVD courses for her.

 

Another thing I'd recommend is loop scheduling.  If you are unfamiliar with it, do a forum search...there are tons of great threads on it.  It's much easier to implement than a typical Mon-Fri. schedule!  Another thing I've found helpful is to time our subjects.  I like to keep our lessons short and focused.  We try to alternate them so they aren't doing several similar subjects in a row.  For example, we'll follow a read aloud with copywork, then follow with singing.  If I plan several read-aloud heavy subjects in a row, my DC quit listening as attentively.  

Edited January 7, 2016 by Holly

[Heidi]

I have 6.

 

I focus on only skills K-2:reading, writing, math. I make sure they have zero busy work and plenty of time for play/free time.

 

Morning time you can do memory work (poetry, songs,speeches,history dates, Latin vocabulary, grammar terms,phonics and math facts flashcards,ect), scripture reading, read-alouds in science/history/literature, geography. I wouldn't do that much, just a few things each year or semester.

 

3rd grade is the transition year I try and help them become independent. I use CLE math, ELTL/R&S grammar, Apologia astronomy w/notebook, MP's Greek Myths, my own u.s. geography, and require 30 min. of reading. And we just build on from there. I meet one on one to discuss grammar lessons and occasionally composition lessons, and latin. I check their work, write notes/instructions in their lesson book, and encourage them to read the lesson for themselves and self-teach first, but if they don't get it I will explain it.

 

That's about it. With a 6th,4th,2nd grader,and K I spend about 2 1/2 to 3 hours actually teaching.

[RootAnn]

I only have five & this year is the first year I'm teaching them all. (And K is pretty light at my house, so next year will be the one that tests my mettle.)

 

Try to combine as much as possible for content subjects (history, science). You could do a lot with just read alouds if you are willing to let go some. (I had to do that with science for my youngest two this year. We're doing once-per-week interest-led. They love it. It just seems like cheating to me.)

 

I lean toward teacher-intensive stuff, but try to get the kids as independent as possible when they are ready for it. Some are ready sooner than others. I figure out what each one can do on their own, if anything. Don't be afraid to pair up an older with a much younger kid for play time, game time, or helping for 15 minutes with a math/phonics worksheet. This works only if the individual kid personalities work well together. I don't really have that, though...

 

Mine are spread out a little more - which is both good (little more breathing room before adding another to the schooling mix) and bad (harder to combine). Weird thing is, right now, I'm combining the two that are farthest apart in age for the most stuff. The two that are closest in age are combined for absolutely nothing but memory work (which we do all at the same time) because of their abilities. Every year is like learning how to homeschool all over again. Good luck!

[Ms.Ivy]

I haven't read the other replies... but yes, it is possible to homeschool well with a big family!  I highly recommend the book "Teaching from Rest" by Sarah Mackenzie.  When I read it, I had already implemented a lot of the suggestions she offers for homeschooling a large family, but it was dang hard to figure stuff out.  I found myself saying, "YES!  YES!" at each section.  Sometimes "little" ideas like following a loop schedule for language arts, or spending one-on-one time with the kids beginning with the youngest first each day, can have a BIG impact on the school day for a big family.  

 

I think my suggestion is to look for ways to squeeze the most learning opportunities out of the fewest resources possible.  So for example, if you want your kids to learn Latin, you can pick a Latin program that includes Roman history, English vocabulary/derivative study, and diagramming.  And then you don't have to teach all those things separately.  Or you can integrate your history and literature, keeping all your kids in one volume of Story of the World, and use the activity guide to get a couple of books from the library for corresponding literature.  As the activity guide for SOTW suggests, you can use history as a way to practice narration, too.  Science can be done the same way with books like Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding, or the Berean Builders series by Jay Wile.  When I was a kid, my mom integrated spelling, copywork, and reading by having us go through the Moore McGuffey Readers.  We read a selection aloud to our mom, she had us copy a bit of it down, and look up several words from the selection in the dictionary and copy them into a notebook.  I integrate quite a bit of stuff with our Christian studies, using our catechism memory work as a source of copywork.  For poetry memorization, we work on one hymn a month, which we sing together every morning.  We all memorize the same lines from Shakespeare together.  My husband reads Plutarch to everybody, whether they can understand it or not, because it's beneficial for the littles to hear the words even if they don't yet know what the words mean.  

 

I find a lot of encouragement from Cindy Rollins.  She homeschooled a very big family.  You can find her podcasts for free at the Circe Institute, under the title The Mason Jar.  A lot of Charlotte Mason ideas work really well for big families.  Even if you don't like Charlotte Mason stuff, you may find some good tips as Cindy Rollins talks about what she did with her kids.  

 

[Ms.Ivy]

I have 6.

 

I focus on only skills K-2:reading, writing, math. I make sure they have zero busy work and plenty of time for play/free time.

 

Morning time you can do memory work (poetry, songs,speeches,history dates, Latin vocabulary, grammar terms,phonics and math facts flashcards,ect), scripture reading, read-alouds in science/history/literature, geography. I wouldn't do that much, just a few things each year or semester.

 

3rd grade is the transition year I try and help them become independent. I use CLE math, ELTL/R&S grammar, Apologia astronomy w/notebook, MP's Greek Myths, my own u.s. geography, and require 30 min. of reading. And we just build on from there. I meet one on one to discuss grammar lessons and occasionally composition lessons, and latin. I check their work, write notes/instructions in their lesson book, and encourage them to read the lesson for themselves and self-teach first, but if they don't get it I will explain it.

 

That's about it. With a 6th,4th,2nd grader,and K I spend about 2 1/2 to 3 hours actually teaching.

This is pretty much how we've done things, too. Good stuff!

[abba12]

I don't touch extra subjects formally until the child can do them independently. Lots of documentaries and field trips and impromptu discussions, but there's no science or history textbooks here until they're old enough to work on them alone and then come to me with the assignment/test. Books about science/history get introduced once the child is old enough to read independently, but they're not tested or turned into specific 'lessons'

 

Math, Language Arts, Logic (for us, but many families don't do it) and usually one rotating unit or special study (a month focused on art, a term focused on engineering toys and lego, 6 weeks focused on books about other cultures, as some examples), that's it. Even that is more than many mothers of large families I know do. Math and Language Arts are vital to cover, and cover well, but imo they're the only essential formal subjects for elementary. 

 

Teaching some independence early on. Handwriting, certain revision math worksheets, spelling pages, can be done independently once they're taught how. That independence is a process, first i sat and supervised the whole thing, then i would get up for a drink or bathroom break while she did it, then I'd ask her to do a page while I worked on something else with her sister, glancing over regularly. Eventually we got to the point where I could ask her to do a sheet independently and she did, but that has to be taught. 

 

Pushing yourself to choose more independent curriculum. Things like Rod and Staff language arts, or the more independent math programs. Combining if that helps and suits you for the more open topics (we intentionally do not combine any subjects, but most families do)

[....]

Just random thoughts:

 

I only have 5, but one of them counts as 3 or 4...   :glare:   If we turn our heads for a second, he is getting into something life-threatening.  He tries to pull plugs from sockets, climbs bookcases, dumps trashcans, ugh - you get the idea.  Sigh...

 

My suggestions are to be very organized.  I have a planner that follows me at all times.  Our schoolbooks are organized on specific shelves on a bookshelf that sits 2 feet from my bed.   :001_unsure:  We have a daily routine.

 

We don't do a ton of independent/workbook work, because several of my kids are very right-brained learners and I need divine intervention just getting them to do Writing with Skill...

 

My kids who are close in age are easy to teach.  I'm combining as much as possible.  My older two work together and the middle two work together.  I've found that the 3 year age gap is hard to work with.  I plan to completely combine the oldest two for high school (except math).

 

My middle kids do very well with Charlotte Mason techniques (someone already mentioned).  My oldest two kids are using a Loop Schedule this semester and really like it.

Edited January 7, 2016 by Evanthe

[TracyP]

Mostly a repeat of the great advice you've already been given...

 

Get them working independently from a planner. This has been so, so crucial to us not falling behind. If you start (slooowly) teaching this skill when they are 7 or 8, you will have an older kid who can get school started (on his or her own) no matter what catastrophe is going on with the little kids. I can't overstate how important this has been for us.

 

Think about *your* daily rhythm when you make a plan/schedule. My oldest and I get up at 5:30 to do math. We are early risers because of dh's schedule, and this gives us a quiet hour to get a jump start on the day. Everybody is up and our regular school day is started by 7:30. This would be far too early for many other people. I like to do group subjects in the a.m. and work 1-1 after lunch. I am too tired for projects and activities if I save them for later, but many other people find the opposite to be true. Take some time to think about what is natural for you and your family. (And yes, I know this changes as babies get added, naps get dropped, etc. I used to have to totally rethink my master plan about every 6 mos. :lol:)

 

Focus on math and language arts with the younger crowd. With young kids solid math, reading, and writing skills are far more important than a science project or mapping activity. And with young kids math and language arts are going to be teacher intensive no matter what you use. Once they are solid readers, they can do reading assignments in history or science on their own, which takes some pressure off you.

 

As far as the curriculum I use, I do a lot of my own piecing together. I also do a lot of tweaking and supplementing so I don't always like listing everything. But the bare bones list for my younger (pre 5th grade kids) is:

Math - CLE

Learn to read - 100 EZL/Phonics Pathways/ETC

LA -  WWE (text, not workbook)

        Pentime handwriting

        Climbing to Good English

Science - interest led: lots of documentaries and library books

History - Tapestry of Grace      

 

 

[Guest]

We are considering adding a new one, too so I understand where you are coming from. My lifesaver is CLE. Try to get the kids going on independent stuff now. My kids correct their own work after showing me it has been done. 

 

Drop extras. This alone will save your sanity. The kids will be fine without intensive extras for a while. What we do now is K12 but it is purely as enrichment. Other than writing narrations for the history lessons or an art project if they want to do it, it is hands off for me.

 

Something else we have done {and I am now with Miss Priss] is Five in a Row. It can be your easy to do extra with all the kids.

 

editing for spelling...repeatedly!

Edited January 7, 2016 by Paradox5

[Meadowlark]

Ah..sorry, my internet was out but I appreciate all of the responses! I really have a lot to think about, but I know that I need to start combining a bit more and need to find a way to add that spark into our homeschool. Thanks again!

[maize]

Good luck!

 

I'm in the thick of it and ask myself frequently "can I really do this?"

 

We just tackle each day as best we can and keep going forward.

[ForeverFamily]

Yes it is possible, not always easy but possible. Unfortunately, I also tend to gravitate towards teacher intensive curricula as well. Subjects, like math and phonics, I need to sit with each of my kids and teach/guide them through the lesson no matter what curriculum I use so I use what works for each kid. For the other subjects I just have to pick and choose what I really want to spend my time on and what will realistically happen. Easier said than done ;-). I have discovered that for me finding a routine that works the best for our family, which is constantly evolving, is more important than finding that perfect curriculum. Also this year I have been trying to prioritize what is most important and make sure no matter what those things get done first.

 

Here is what I would do if I could go back in time to when my oldest was eight. I would focus on the three R's using what best fit the learning styles of my kids. For us this would have probably been Singapore Math, WWE, FLL, phonics/Sonlight readers. Your kids may thrive with very different curricula then what has worked for my kids, use what is working. Aside from the skill subjects reading aloud would be my next priority (science and history would be included in that, and I would also pick a fun chapter book such as one off a sonlight list). For history I would use something simple like SOTW and living books for science.

 

I would try and leave time for nature journals and science projects and activities. I would also do an art project here and there, nothing too formal and time consuming.

 

The other thing I really, really wish I would have done better at, and we are currently working on, is getting down a good chore system/routine. Having a good system where everyone pitches in to keep the house at an acceptable (not perfect) level of clean makes a big difference. Like I said we are working on this, and we have a lot of room for improvement. Hope some of this might help.

 

You can do it. Figure out your goals and priorities, a realistic way of making them happen, and take it one day at a time. :-)

[Rebecca]

Yes, you can do it!

 

My curriculum choices changed each year depending on the needs and number and ages! of my students. It is OK not to know what exactly you will use just now. It is OK to change from year to year. It is okay to have a year rich rich rich in literature via audio books and read aloud and cover basics like reading and math and loving one another.

 

Curriculum I use that might help you:

Explode the Code thru Level 7

Memoria Press Copy books and Cursive to teach handwriting

Saxon Math starting in 4th grade with mandatory Teacher CDROMS

Horizons in Grades K -3

 

I had 6 children 8 and under and I now have 9 ages 15 -2 including 4 year old twins that I had when my oldest was 11.

 

I didn't read the other posts (yet).

 

Please feel free to PM message me or ask a question if you feel to...

 

Best wishes!

[stinab1]

I have children in 6th, 4th, 2nd, and preschool.  I agree with a fellow post to only focus on math, reading, and handwriting during PK-2.  I would also throw developing good character in there.  If I manage to cover anything extra with them, great!  If not, it's no big deal.  We do art, science, and history together.  The little ones sit in or are close by and participate in some of this.  My children are all 2 years apart, so I combine some subjects like spelling.  For example, I'm currently using All About Spelling with my 4th and 6th grader.  This worked well because my 6th grader is weak in spelling and my 4th grader is strong.  Both children are also doing grammar and writing together.  Curriculum that's great for large families: Five In A Row and Konos both allow you to do art, history, science, geography, and some language arts all together as a family.  Heart of Dakota, My Father's World, and Sonlight allow you to combine a few grades together.  We are also big on project-based learning, where the kids choose a subject of interest.  For example, during our last PBL, one child focused on fashion design, another on dinosaurs, another on the Statue of Liberty, and another focused on animals.  I'm basically there to mentor, help them check out books or give suggestions, provide supplies, and drive them to a field trip (such as the Museum of Life and Science because they have a space and dinosaur exhibit), but they are in charge of how and what they learn.  My kids have the most fun when we learn this way.  

 

It's a big decision and homeschooling definitely is challenging, but so worth it.  I wish you well in whatever you decide!

[FO4UR]

Develop a rich Morning Hour, Lunch Hour, and Bedtime Hour.  (They don't need to really take a whole hour.)  Use these moments, with all the kids together, to combine what you can.

 

Don't get stuck in the rut of trying to fit perfectly into any one educational philosophy or paradigm.  Charlotte Mason style teaching works very well for large families b/c it lends itself well to those rich combined hours.  We can go outside and the kids can draw and work in their Nature Notebooks while I pull one aside at a time for a 1-on-1 lesson.

 

Doing school outside when the weather is warm is wonderful when you have little kids.  Instead of containing them inside and dealing with meltdowns and messes, I'm dealing with big kids who are more efficient with their work so that they can go play too.  win-win!

 

If your kids will work well with CLE math, that is a great option.  My one caution is that it is weak in word problems.  That is an easy fix, however.  Supplement with Singapore CWP for Fun Friday Math Day.  Do 1-3 word problems each, and then play a math game altogether.

 

 

You can come up with all sorts of great ideas to make it work, but the main idea is to find a routine that meets everyone's needs.  Curriculum is simply a routine and a plan...if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't work...sometimes the marketing done to sell currics is more harmful than not.

 

 

 

 

[LindaOz]

Develop a rich Morning Hour, Lunch Hour, and Bedtime Hour. (They don't need to really take a whole hour.) Use these moments, with all the kids together, to combine what you can.

 

 

I so agree with this. It's much easier to combine at natural together times than to pull everyone together once they've scattered. And they certainly can be rich times with multi ages. We had our 'Morning Hour' around the breakfast table this morning consisting of Bible reading and prayer, memory, singing, and a chapter of read-aloud. After lunch we had another read-aloud. This was with many different ages. It really can work beautifully.

[Camy-7 boybarians 1 lady]

I have not read the replies to you inquiry, but it seemed a good idea to let you know how and what we do.

 

This is our 18th year of home-education and we have 8 children.  6 are still at home.  We have done things consistently the same, with the exception of 1 1/2 years of private school (when I was burned out and exhausted).

 

My high school kids get to choose their educational pathway, for the most part.  They do part-time public school electives and homeschool core classes.  They are at school all day, which makes our life at home much more pleasant (haha).

 

Otherwise, this is we are doing with the younger ones at home full-time:

 

Silas (6 yob):  Reading (Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading), Saxon Math 1 (love this program for early math, and we get a lot done w/ little time).   Silas also sits in on our read aloud time, as well as history and science.

 

Sam (10 yob):  Grammar: Rod & Staff 3 (with his 12 yo brother), Math-U-See Gamma (with DVD instruction), Writing (WWE with his 12 yo brother), History (SOTW, Monday and Wednesday with his brothers), Science (we do experiments and research on items of our curiosity).  

 

John (12 yob):  Grammar (see Sam's), Math (Saxon 76), Writing (see Sam's), Writing (see Sam's), History & Science (see Sam's), 

 

Bible Together Time is for everyone.  We read the Bible, pray, and learn a verse and hymn.  We also do memory work of other sorts during this time.  

 

We do regular school work Monday through Thursday, with tests on Friday morning.  I clean house and do paperwork on Fridays.  The boys earn computer time on Friday if they complete their schoolwork throughout the week as well as their chores.  This time is precious to them!

 

I would love to help you figure things out.  Make sure you find ways to take care of yourself mentally, physically, and spiritually, or you will crash and burn.  Start slowly with school (reading, writing, arithmetic) and add on from there.

 

 

[Camy-7 boybarians 1 lady]

oops...I forgot to add that we do Spelling Workout, too.  I make flashcards on Quizlet and the boys practice them each day online.  

 

They do 1 page per day of the spelling chapter.  The first day they read the paragraph selection to me and then we go over the spelling rule and the correct spelling of each word.