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Said I, “Well, kids, lounging in your underwear with electronics days are so over.” Summer has come to an abrupt end and I am in full-on Psychotic Homeschool Mom mode.
*Have you ever wondered what the heck homeschooled kids do at home all day, every day? (besides play Minecraft and read the Bible?)
*Have you ever toyed with the idea of homeschooling but thought it was just too overwhelming? (or have the irrational fear that you would possibly saw everyone’s arms off in desperation one day?)
Let me tell you, just like parenting, homeschooling your children is the most wonderful, worst job you could ever have. There are days when I can see the rainbows and smell the fruit-scented farts of educating at home and others where I find myself knotting the rope to hang myself in the laundry room amongst the dirty underwear and dog food.
Schedules and Calendars and Lists, Oh My!
Early on, I recognized the need for schedules and calendars. I have always been a planner, journaler and type-A mastermind of the worst kind. As I’ve grown and taken my lumps, I’ve realized that I cannot be a slave to the schedules, calendars and curricula. I’ve learned that there’s no right way to homeschool and what might work for my family would be a down-right nightmare for others. The homeschool world is saturated with every type of curriculum, style, schedule and guru. Finding the right groove takes time and effort and possibly years of mistakes. It’s okay. Your kids won’t know the difference.
How Do You Know What to Do?
I don’t. It’s a process that you make up as you go. It’s a living organism that changes and grows every year. People often ask me what I teach my kids. They want to know what I use, how I know if they’re learning all they need to know and how I decide what we do each day. For some, spying on the average day of a homeschool family would be a little like watching a dog walk on its hind legs. It’s strange and they just can’t fathom it.
Relax and know that you just figure it out. The resources are endless and you are the master of it all.
So, to put all your itchy minds at ease, following are the first views of my super-secret schedules for each child for this year.
Keep these points in mind:
- We don’t always follow these schedules and lists. I create them as a guideline or an “iron rod”, if you will, to keep me on the straight and narrow when I’ve wandered off and lost my mind. It’s good for both me and the kids to have these reminders of what we’d like to accomplish each day on a fairly regular basis. If we wake up one morning and decide that going to the park for a nature walk is in order – goodbye schedule. If we had a late family movie night and we’re all tired, school can absolutely start at noon or after lunch. If we want to go to Great Wolf on a Wednesday because it’s cheaper, heck yes, we’re going!
- If we get part way through the year and something just isn’t working – a certain math book or class – we’ll reevaluate and do something different or abandon it altogether.
- Homeschooling is a quirky little bird and tends morph based on the people involved. It’s different for every family and every child within that family.
- Homeschooling isn’t just books and assignments – it’s life. Caring for and teaching younger siblings, doing chores, cooking and playing are all part of it. I schedule chores and daily life right into our day. And if we need to go to the doctor or have a sick day – we do. No problemo.
- If the kids get fired up about something in particular, we’ll forget the schedule for a couple days so we can explore that topic in depth.
- Don’t be fooled by the schedule for Pre-K. I do it so Hope feels included and might be inspired to do something. Really, for the preschool age kids, I expect little more than roaming around and annoying the other kids while listening in on their lessons. The business of newborn to 5 years old is learning to walk, talk and explore the world. Playing, wrestling, traipsing around and aggravating everyone is their job. In my opinion, figuring out how the world works and interacting with it is the best curriculum for preschoolers. If she’s dead-set on “doing school”, I let her lead the way.
Hailey ~ 5th Grade
2013-2014
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Individual Subjects
Math-U-See (Epsilon) *Math Facts/Skip Counting Songs *Writing with Ease Writing Strands (Level 3) *Language and Grammar (Well Trained Mind) Handwriting Without Tears (cursive – letter writing, pen pals) *Spelling Power Map Workbook *Music Theory/Piano Science – Chemistry Mystery of History (volume 3) Independent Reading
*to be done as a group or pair |
Group Work Schedule
Monday – Co-op Day Joy Christian Academy Tuesday – Joy Homework, Piano Lessons, Math (Math Facts, Skip Counting, drills, apps, games), Wednesday – Language Arts (writing, Language and Grammar, Spelling) Thursday – Music (piano, theory, voice) Friday – Library, Letter Writing/Pen Pals (handwriting), Art
Goals: times tables, division review, skip counting, spelling and punctuation. |
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Hailey’s Schedule
9:30 – Eat, get dressed/teeth/hair, check Mr. Board for chores or updates. 10:30 – Dailies 11:00 – Math-U-See 11:30 – Jurisdictions 12:00 – Group Work 1:00 – Lunch 2:00 – Spelling Words, Writing Strands, Map Workbook, Piano Practice (15-20 minutes each) 3:00 – 30 minutes independent reading 4:00 – Any unfinished business, jurisdictions, any other chores from board.
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Dailies (with weekly focus points)
Prayer Book of Mormon (Cards, stories) Scripture Mastery (one per week) Articles of Faith (one per week) Primary Songs (one per week) Bible Studies (The Dig, cards) |
Hannah ~ 2nd Grade
2013-2014
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Individual Subjects
Math-U-See (Beta) *Math Facts/Skip Counting Songs *Writing with Ease Raceway Book (Sing, Spell, Read and Write) *Language and Grammar (Well Trained Mind) Handwriting Without Tears (letter writing, pen pals) *Spelling Power *Music Theory/Piano Science (My Father’s World) History (Renaissance and Reformation) Independent Reading
*to be done as a group or pair |
Group Work Schedule
Monday – Co-op Day Joy Christian Academy Tuesday – Joy Homework, Piano Lessons (Hailey 7:30pm), Math (Math Facts, Skip Counting, drills, apps, games), Wednesday – Language Arts (writing, Language and Grammar, Spelling) Thursday – Music (piano, theory, voice), Hannah piano lesson Friday – Library, Letter Writing/Pen Pals (handwriting), Art
Goals: comfort and fluency while reading aloud, times tables, spelling, punctuation and grammar. |
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Hannah’s Schedule
9:30 – Eat, get dressed/teeth/hair, check Mr. Board for chores or updates. 10:30 – Dailies 11:00 – Jurisdictions 11:30 – Math-U-See 12:00 – Group Work 1:00 – Lunch 2:00 – Raceway Book, Handwriting, Piano Practice (15-20 minutes each) 3:00 – 30 minutes independent reading 4:00 – Any unfinished business, jurisdictions, any other chores from board.
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Dailies (with weekly focus points)
Prayer Book of Mormon (Cards, stories) Scripture Mastery (one per week) Articles of Faith (one per week) Primary Songs (one per week) Bible Studies (The Dig, cards) |
Hope ~ Pre-K
2013-2014
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Individual Subjects
Math Tangrams, Math-U-See blocks, Wooden Shapes, Puzzles, Montessori Sand Numbers, Color by Number Phonics, Letter Recognition Sing, Spell, Read and Write Games, Scrabble Soup, Montessori Sand Letters, Books, Tag Books Handwriting Without Tears Reading with Mommy or Sisters Join group studies whenever desired |
Group Work Schedule
Monday – Co-op Day Joy Christian Academy Tuesday – Joy Homework, Piano Lessons (Hailey 7:30pm), Math (Math Facts, Skip Counting, drills, apps, games), Wednesday – Language Arts (writing, Language and Grammar, Spelling) Thursday – Music (piano, theory, voice), Hannah piano lesson Friday – Library, Letter Writing/Pen Pals (handwriting), Art |
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Hope’s Schedule
9:30 – Eat, get dressed/teeth/hair, check Mr. Board for chores or updates. 10:30 – Dailies 11:00 – Jurisdictions 11:30 – Math (quiet time) 12:00 – Group Work (join if desired) 1:00 – Lunch 2:00 – Nap or rest time (books) 3:00 – Play time/Learning activities 4:00 – Work with sisters. Any unfinished business, jurisdictions, any other chores from board.
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Dailies (with weekly focus points)
Prayer Book of Mormon (Cards, stories) Scripture Mastery (one per week) Articles of Faith (one per week) Primary Songs (one per week) Bible Studies (The Dig, cards) |
Jurisdictions
(Totally stole this idea from the Duggar Family)
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Kitchen
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Living Room
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Mommy’s Room/Bathroom
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Bathroom
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I noticed that one of the activities is “Joy Homework”. Do you do any Joy School curriculum?
I did Joy school for my 2 youngest sons and it was wonderful.
[Reply]
Jesi Reply:
August 25th, 2013 at 7:43 pm
We go to a homeschool co-op in Decatur called Joy Christian Academy and the “Joy Homework” you’re referring to is the homework for their classes they’re taking at the co-op. I’ll have to check Joy School. Thanks for reading!
[Reply]
Hi Jessi
Very interesting. I thought about home schooling my daughter when she was young. However, it wasn’t an option. We lived in California at the time and you could only home school if you had teaching credentials. Looks like you have a pretty good handle on this. Questions about the jurisdictions though. Does each child have their own jurisdiction? Do you rotate their jurisdictions? How does that part work?
Thanks for sharing.
Regina Partain recently posted…A Home for Everything….
[Reply]
Jesi Reply:
August 26th, 2013 at 10:02 am
Yes, each child has their own jurisdiction that they’re in charge of and it rotates weekly so as not to incite a rebellion. I just shuffle them clockwise around the list every Monday. Someone usually has to help the preschooler with her jurisdiction. She usually picks up one shoe and is down for the count. She has to get a little extra nudge to finish. Thanks for reading!
[Reply]