This year has been a very different one to previous years. Up until last year I had five children who were all home at different times throughout the week, studying or working part time and for the few years before that there were seven filling up the house. It’s been a very a different dynamic this year with only the two youngest at home during the day.
I’ve always had a flexible approach to home schooling and whilst I can’t see myself getting rigid, I think I do need to be more structured. When I had lots of kids to teach, I naturally fell into a routine. I had to or I never would have got anything done. Now that I don’t have the same pressure of circumstances, it’s easier to let the time leak.
I’ve always had a flexible approach to home schooling and whilst I can’t see myself getting rigid, I think I do need to be more structured. When I had lots of kids to teach, I naturally fell into a routine. I had to or I never would have got anything done. Now that I don’t have the same pressure of circumstances, it’s easier to let the time leak.
Sometimes I find it helpful to write down what we’re doing as we go, to get a better idea of where the leaks are occurring and to see where I need to be more intentional.
This is a fly on the wall’s view of a couple of days of this past week.
Wednesday
Got up at 7am.
Zana (22) first year of teaching (Year 6); Nougat (18) apprentice plumber, have already left for work
Benj, Moozle & I do our individual Bible reading
8am – Dad leaves for work
Benj (15)- Maths & Science; Jensen’s Format Writing
Hoggy (20) goes for a run, and then heads off to TAFE – he’s in his 3rd year of a 4 year cadetship & studying electrical engineering technology.
Moozle (10) – Cello practice. I do some patchwork and keep an eye on her practice to make sure she’s doing what she should. She has an exam in about three weeks.
Copy work; listens to times tables & does her drawing practice using Mark Kistler’s Draw Squad:
Singapore maths with me
Age of Fable – I’ve been reading this aloud to her; oral narration
Drawing practice while listening to Dvorak’s Largo:
Benj – piano practice
Moozle – Dictation, Grammar using the dictation passage (colour the proper nouns blue, underline nouns in purple, circle the verbs green.
‘Europe was at peace, and Napoleons in exile on the Isle of Elba. Matthew hardly knew of this, for he had been in bed sixteen weeks, steadily becoming weaker.’
Maths speed drill
Poetry review while continuing with drawing
Lunch – free reading
Together time
Devotions: Bible, memory work, prayer time
Poetry – William Wordsworth. I’ve used The Harp & Laurel Wreath by Laura Berquist to delve a little deeper with poetry with the older children. She has some commentary on various poems & a good selection.
Read aloud: A Fortunate Life by A.B. Facey – an Australia classic set in the outback of Western Australia. It’s good.
Hoggy comes home – takes Benj to work at 3.30pm
Moozle and I go to Orchestra rehearsal
Home around 5.30pm
I pick up Benj from work. He’s doing some training for the part-time job he’s starting which has thrown a spanner in the works a few days this week.
Dinner
Zana and I have a quick trip to the Library
Come home and spend some time with that man of mine.
Thursday
6am – Dad has a conference call at home for work
7am – I head off to the markets on my own to do a quick shop
8am – I get home; cook breakfast & dh and I have some time together before he goes to work
Benj – Maths, Reading, oral narration, piano practice
Moozle – Maths, Cello practice, Latin
I read aloud Old Man River and Monarch of the Western Skies to Moozle while she
does her drawing practice (she likes drawing, in case you didn’t realise)
French & copy work
We take Benj to work at 12pm
Lunch
Listen to Folksong
Washing & other domestics
We leave home around 3pm to pick Benj up from work and go to swimming lessons.
5.30pm – I head home with Moozle & make dinner.
Thursday evenings are generally erratic at our place with swimming, soccer, and everyone arriving home at all different times.
Usually I go back to the pool to get Benj but not tonight. Dad is running late so he goes straight to the pool so I can start:
Thursday evenings are generally erratic at our place with swimming, soccer, and everyone arriving home at all different times.
Usually I go back to the pool to get Benj but not tonight. Dad is running late so he goes straight to the pool so I can start:
7pm – Book Club at my place. We’re working through Start Here by Brandy at Afterthoughts.
I’ve really enjoyed reading through For the Children’s Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay yet again. Brandy’s study links the chapters in Schaeffer’s book to Charlotte Mason’s Philosophy of Education:
The rest of the family go to bed before we finish our study…
11.30pm – winding down & off to bed at midnight.
Some things are worth losing a bit of sleep over…now & again.
journey & destination 
It sounds like a full and wonderful week. I'd say whatever you are doing looks like it's working, relaxed or not. =) It sure is nice that you have those bigger kiddos to help take people here, there, and, everywhere! We tend to really limit our activities so that we are home more than out. It is nice to get a peek into what it might be like when my youngest is the age my oldest is currently.
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I really love reading these sorts of posts! I imagine they are helpful for you also…just to review and have things right in front of you. I might do these on Saturdays. Blogging is so slow for me right now. Just not a ton of time. 🙂
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This year I'm doing more outside the home than I've ever done previously but when my kiddos were younger I didn't stray too far from home. It is very helpful to have the older ones do some of the running around & being able to call them and ask them to bring home some milk or whatever on their way home!
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I used to jot things down in a notebook before I started blogging & I like looking back on that. Maybe a Saturday post would be a good idea for you – it is helpful to have things in front of you, as you said. I like reading your bookish rambles, Amy. The technical side of blogging is a pain for me.
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Thanks, Carol. I enjoy rambling. 😉 I think part of my issue with blogging is just the season I'm in…still have a lot of little kids and then my schoolish age kids. I actually got off facebook for now. Big family dynamics are unique, aren't they? That's why I appreciate your perspective so much!
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The dynamics are unique. Most of my friends who have children the ages of my olders are in a very different season to me. They either don't have younger children or they don't home school. When my children started growing up I realised how fleeting the time with them really is – gave me a better perspective & appreciation for the different seasons of life & what's really important now & what can wait for a later time.
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It is funny how time flies no matter what the scenery of our lives are. Glad you have a productive week. I'm visiting from weekly wrap up!
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I did it! A recap! 🙂 Fun! 🙂
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Thanks for the snapshot of your days! I enjoy seeing how other families arrange their routines. While we're up early, we don't actually sit down for school until 9am. How do you get your crew sitting down that early?
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