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The first week of school is done and it actually went better than expected! In seven years of homeschooling, I’ve learned that the best thing you can do right off the bat is to find that routine, that steady flow of the day. When the kids know what to expect and what is expected of them, when I can get even a tiny grasp on chores and other responsibilities…the days then become smooth and productive. There will always be hiccups and small changes (life!) but the general routine is what keeps homeschooling from feeling like total chaos.
Recording what is working so far, for posterity’s sake:
- I rise around 6-6:30, drink my coffee, read my Bible, start a load of laundry and get the dough going in the bread machine. Then I hop in the shower, dress and eat breakfast. During this time, the kids trickle downstairs, eat breakfast, get dressed, and sometimes watch a cartoon.
- At 8:30, we all meet together in the kitchen to divvy up the day’s chores from The Confident Mom’s Household Planner.
- At around 8:50, I have a mini meeting with my two middle school boys, go over the assignments/reading of the day and then send them off! They pick different quiet places throughout the house and will typically sprawl out while reading and head to a table for written work.
- At 9:00, we do kindergarten! We start with TJ because he will otherwise relentlessly bug me for his turn. This is the time we work on his math, letters and read aloud.
- I take a quick break to switch laundry and put bread dough in pans for their second rise.
- At around 9:15, my elementary students (K, 2nd & 4th) all meet at the school table for our group subjects like science, history, art and geography. We do these altogether and just toggle the amount of work depending on grade.
- I take another quick break to switch laundry again, put bread in the oven to bake for lunch and check in on big boys.
- At around 10:15, we split up. My 2nd and 4th graders do their math on the computer with Teaching Textbooks, so while one is on math, I work on the individual subjects of the other, like language arts. With Mark home full time right now, he’s taking on their catechism and they love that special one-on-one time with him.
- This takes us to about lunchtime and we break from 12-1. This used to be our household quiet time but now that my kids are older, we just kind of hang out and relax. It’s like a midday siesta minus the nap. (Although I sometimes could go for one, ha!)
- After 1:00, we finish up any work we haven’t completed yet. If they work diligently and we don’t have any big projects, we easily can be done by early afternoon. Sometimes we get in the kitchen and bake something at this time, or they play, draw, play guitar, get outside, etc. On Fridays, we take a nature study hike through our back woods.
100 Little Things Update: I checked off the first two tasks on my new list!
+ Get Lucy a new dog bed. (#57) – This technically breaks goal #100, but I found a reasonably priced dog bed and it was a Lightning Deal too! Lucy cuddled right in, so I’m calling it a success.
+ Buy myself a pair of snow pants. (#79) – This one is random for late August, but my thinking is that I would pay less if I bought now versus later in the fall. I ended up finding a secondhand pair, like new, for only $9!
On the Nightstand: I just finished The Woman at the Window by A.J. Finn. Still working through Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola, Gaining Ground by Forrest Pritchard and Saint John Paul the Great: His Five Loves by Jason Evert.
Recipe of the week, A is for Applesauce Muffins:
adapted from Mom to Mom Nutrition
2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla
Preheat the oven to 375. Combine the dry ingredients together in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another. Add the wet to the dry and stir until combined. Scoop into muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes.
So glad your first homeschooling week went well! Today was my first day all on my own (since we're living with my mom and she works on Mondays), and it was definitely a challenge to try and homeschool my kindergartner with a two-year-old around who wanted to get into everything and be crazy! I would love a post on some general homeschooling tips you've learned over the years from doing it for so long!
It's a juggling act for sure! A couple of ideas that have worked for us over the years:
+ "Including" the toddler in the lessons – I've used old workbooks, extra printouts, crayons and paper that are "their schoolwork" and they sit at the table with us while we work.
+ For more of my rambunctious toddlers (aka most of my boys!), I've gotten a few special toys that can only come out while we're doing school. They play on the floor while we're at the table and that's usually exciting enough to give us a little time!
In all honesty though, when they're especially distracting or crazy, I've resorted to waiting until naptime or just plopping them in front of the TV for a 30 minute cartoon. Whatever works, right? 🙂
That's such great advice! My kids definitely do better when we stick to a routine and they know what to expect.
How sweet that your baby does Catechism with your kids!
Random but, I'm shopping for a breadmaker, having never owned one before. Do you have any recommendations?
I've only owned one and it's a cheap find from Tuesday Morning that I got for $40! I've used it mostly for the dough setting and while it's nothing fancy, it gets the job done and I've been pleased. This is similar to the one I have: https://www.oster.com/oster-site-catalog/oster-2-lb.-bread-maker-with-gluten-free-setting/CKSTBR9050-NP.html#start=1
Sorry I can't be better help!
Thank you that's very helpful!
Also, my comment should have said how sweet that your "husband" does catechism with your kids, not baby ha!
I love to see other people's schedules! How did you like Jason Evert's book?
I'm only about 80 pages in, but I've really enjoyed learning about JPII's childhood and early life so far. An incredible story!