People often ask how I schedule school with so many kids and so many different levels of learning. I don't know, it depends on the week you ask me! One of the things I've learned, with this many children, is that no schedule is solid. Things change from week to week, depending on the kids, things I have to do to maintain our home, whether or not Daddy is home, if some are unwell, etc.
Now that I no longer have a Toddler, however, things, being fluid as they are, don't change quite as drastically. With the babies, into toddlerhood, it changed every 5 minutes!
We do follow a 'school year.' We're 'off' during the summer. I keep an Excel spread sheet of grades and they keep notebooks of their work.
This year, this is our schedule:
Monday 9-12 is Government and Economics (Bri, Josh, Jon). During class, Daniel, Becca and Drew do chores off a list I print for them (change sheets, vacuum, clean bathrooms, etc.) Then they go on to school lessons that they can do together, without me. Monday night, Bri has CAP. He drives himself now, and sometimes a sibling or two.
After Gov't, they have assignments for other classes to do - Physics, Grammar, Math, Physical Science, etc.
Tuesdays we meet at a friend's home, from 10ish to 12ish. We are going through the Chain of Christianity. Brian and Josh stay home and work on assignments. When we get home, we do lunch, chores and then prepare for dinner.
Wednesday, we're home. We sit around the kitchen table, or the computer and work together, but individually. Grammar, Spelling, COC reports, Math, 'Social Studies' (Rod & Staff), Bible, etc. We're finished by lunch, or soon after. Brian has Physics, which I try to attend, from 3-5 in Pine.
Thursday we're home too. Becca has dance in the afternoon, and sometimes she spends the night Wed or Thurs or both (depending on snow). Our plan today is the same as Wed, except Ted comes over to teach Physical Science to Jon and Josh from 1-4. I try to attend this class or work with Becca and Drew.
Every other Friday Daddy is off. So we don't 'do school' on those off days. Sometimes the boys will work with Dad on woodworking, or we'll go somewhere. They went skiing on some of those Fridays during the winter. The other Fridays, I'm trying to incorporate games that teach. We don't always get to those, but that is a goal. Drew likes alphabet bingo. We have a lot of good teaching games. Yatzee is great for math! Scrabble, Rummy Cube, 13 Solitaire, etc. are all games we like. Then, if we have time, we do bookwork, too.
Each of the kids has a day that they are supposed to cook dinner. They must prepare and plan ahead (a good lesson to explain Providence!). While cooking we manage adding and multiplying fractions, if needed, too. Even Drew has a night to cook, after much expression of his desire to do so. :-)
What courses are they taking?
Sciences: Physics, Physical Science (both Apologia), Health & Safety (Abeka)
Math: Ray's Arithmetic, mostly, and Saxon drills
Social Studies: Rod & Staff
Grammar: Rod & Staff (really, really like this one!)
Spelling: WRtoR (we're behind in this...)
History: Story of the World, Streams of Civilization, a whole plethora of books, and the internet
Government: A Guide for Teaching and Learning the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, "Steve" for short, Common Sense, The Federalist Papers, the Red Books, including GACE
Economics: Bob Jones (it's ok...), and several others, including GACE, and "Steve"
Literature: Abeka, World and American, and the internet (we're really slow on this one, but plugging along)
Woodworking: all sorts of stuff
Home Ec: you name it - laundry, cooking, house cleaning, yard work, sewing, ironing, etc.
Art? Well, not this year. Josh and Becca like to take classes that are offered locally. And Becca is taking dance with CMA
PE? Sporadically, self-directed
Music? self-directed, piano, harmonica, djembe drum, guitar, violin, singing...no real plan here yet
What do they do in their free time? Walk dogs, ride bikes, skate, gaming (computer, game system, figures), watch movies, board games, Becca plays with dolls, makes jewelry, etc.
When do I study? From 6-8 in the morning or in between everything, whenever I can.
Off to change tires in town, and then off to co-op (today's Tuesday)
No comments:
Post a Comment