I had this grand plan of blogging on our first REAL day of homeschooling as a family. I was going to have photos, examples of work done, and it was going to be a happy, uplifting and encouraging piece of writing.
But then real life kicked in.
No, it’s not that the first day was terrible at all. In fact, it went very well! It’s just that between trying to work out assignments lists, grade papers, answer questions, conduct science experiments, while still doing all the normal “mom” stuff, and taking three college classes myself, and trying to figure out how to run errands with my kids in tow (or at home alone?)... I have had a hard time trying to prioritize in this blog!
So now we find ourselves in the third week of homeschooling and things continue to go well. The kids have found their stride, I think, but I am still struggling a bit to keep up with everything. (My Facebook obsession certainly isn’t helping matters any!) It’s getting better though and I am sure I will get in the groove of things soon.
All of this brings me to the real purpose of this blog post... two questions about how YOU teach your kids.
Number One... On Sundays I make a schedule for the kids of the work they need to accomplish each day the next week. There is a wide variety of subjects. Some classes are from textbooks, others from workbooks, and others on the computer. But the “problem” is that they are done by noon most days. They’ve put in 3 1/2 to 4 hours of work by that point, which I know is solid work time (unlike in a traditional school). I’m wondering, though, if it is enough and if I should add more work. How many hours do your kids school on a typical day?
Number Two... If I add more work, should I be adding depth or breadth? Do you teach a wide variety of subjects at once or do you have your kids study fewer subject more deeply?
I know there is a wealth of homeschool knowledge out there and I am a “don’t reinvent the wheel” kind of girl... I look forward to hearing your advice and ideas based on how YOU homeschool.
Not that I know a lot about homeschooling, but from my education background, I think you could look at this a few ways. First, and most obvious, is whether your kids can retain and apply the information they've learned. You've probably got this covered, but you could always put aside some time for a special applied project each week. For instance, if you've just covered mammals, have them create their own. See if they've included all the mandatory characteristics.
ReplyDeleteIn the same vein, you could always cover one or two topics more in depth based on the kids' interests. That way they have some ownership of their lessons. You could also have the "extra lessons" one week behind the regular lessons in order to give yourself more planning time.
I can see why you might want to cover more topics. Maybe one or two would be fine, but you do have to balance the amount of information with the retention rate. If the subjects are interrelated (like what I suggested above), your kids will probably remember everything they've learned better. If you teach too many disparate topics at once, they will have a hard time remembering it all.
As far as needing to add more education at all in the first place, knowing how you went about preparing for homeschooling - you're probably fine compared to the public school system. Teaching two children is always going to be more efficient than teaching 30. But, giving them a little extra won't hurt them. Maybe do a compromise where they get a bit more "school time" but not as long a day as their friends in public school?
Hi! A friend sent me over :) I have nine kids and have homeschooled for about ten years, including one that graduated last year. In my house, the quicker you get your work done the better, and mine also only take a couple of hours or so to do their work for the day. That frees them up to help around the house (learning valuable life lessons that they wouldn't get otherwise). It also frees them up to pursue things they love, like guitar for my oldest son, who literally mastered playing in only a year - his professional musician teacher finally told him that he couldn't teach him anything more. Had he been in a school at the time, he surely couldn't have pursued his passion with the same intensity...and he's had the opportunity to share his talent in three different countries so far. So I would say, with the time your kids have leftover in the day, let them pursue what they love. Otherwise, let them read a good book or spend some time outside. I see these pre-college years as a time to teach them how to learn, not necessarily for them to learn as much as possible, but just to get their minds ready to learn whatever it is that they decide to pursue in their adult lives. Hope this helps!
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