Homeschool Done the Simple Way!

Homeschool Schedules and Scheduling ; Life Savers or Dead Weight?

The only problem is that your kids will almost certainly NOT feel the same way about a set in stone schedule day after day.

I will let you in on a little secret of mine - I have made up a homeschool schedule faithfully every year since we started.

1. I put it in a nice, neat, little chart
2. I bold up the days of the weeks
3. Add in my plans for the kids
4. Color code subjects
5. Print out a copy
6. Put it in a sheet protector, and
7. Pin it up on a wall where everyone can take a good look at it

If you flash forward four weeks into every school year that dang piece of paper is either missing or we've gone so far off track we haven't looked at it since the first day.

Schedules are good, but sticking to them is not.

YOU WILL DRIVE YOURSELF AND YOUR KIDS UP A BRICK WALL IF YOU INSIST ON KEEPING TO THAT PRETTY LITTLE CHART.

Let it go...take a deep breath and realize that it WAS NOT a waste of time.

Schedules are for moms. They keep moms on track and they make things make sense. We like them because we want to know just how much we're going to cover this year even though the year hasn't started yet. I do this all the time. I count out lessons in the math book to see where we will be by Christmas.

I'll tell you right now - this is the first year - in SEVEN - that we are on schedule for math and that is only because we switched curriculums. (I'll tell you about that brilliant move later.)

So why bother with a schedule if you never expect to stick to it? Like I said - it keeps you organized and it gives YOU a PLAN of ACTION! When you make a schedule you know where you're headed. If you plan out week by week, then for the love of God you will, for one week at least, have a vague idea of what you MIGHT accomplish during that time period. Don't bother scheduling out more than that because you'll be behind almost immediately because Little Moe got the stomach flu or Suzy Q had a tooth knocked out when she fell off the monkey bars.

Let's go over again WHY you are homeschooling - OK -

1. You can PERSONALIZE your child's CURRICULUM
2. You can PERSONALIZE your child's PACE

Get it? Pace?

That means if Little Moe needs 10 days to learn fractions that should have taken 2, Little Moe had better dang well have gotten his 10 days. If he doesn't - send him back to school, this won't work. You must be willing to go slower or faster based on your CHILD'S pacing.

You must hand over some power to them, not a lot mind you or believe me - they WON'T MIND YOU! But enough so that they feel comfortable saying - "Hey Ma, little help here please?"

Homeschool Schedules and Scheduling can be what you make them, a monotonous trap or a useful guidance tool!

Leave Homeschool Schedules and go to Homeschool Timelines