Scheduling

Here are some simple ways to count down until Christmas!  These ideas are great for little kids, big kids AND adult kids! Our 25 Days of Christmas Countdown This mom uses things she already owns, and combines them into a daily family tradition. "Each day we will read a Christmas book, watch a Christmas movie, make a fun craft or do a fun Christmas activity, and eat a yummy treat." Read EnjoyingLifeWith4Kids Advent Activities This mom...

I always encourage parents to schedule free time. We worked our heavy academic subjects 4 days a week.  The 5th day was when we focused more on delight directed learning.  In elementary school, the 5th day was when we went to the park, or roller skating, or met with friends.  In high school, that was the day for my children to do special projects, or work on their electives. They had to get their math and...

Summer is a great time to compile your student’s reading list, in preparation for college applications.  A reading list is simply a list of books your child has read, including title and author.  Often requested by colleges, and sometimes useful for scholarship applications, reading lists are an important part of your student’s high school record.  Include books you have assigned your children to read over the summer, books they’ve used in their coursework, and books they...

As the resident homeschool adviser to your children, it’s important that you don’t drop the ball when it comes to deadlines, plans, and requirements. You will need to keep track of the academic calendar and what courses your children need to cover, when they need to study for specific tests, what year to take those tests, and what specific tests they should take. My husband works as a project manager.  He doesn’t actually build the building,...

Progeny Press, Easy Grammar, Strunk and White - when you mix and match within a subject area, how many credits should it be? If you are using two completely unique, completely credit-measured classes, then I would feel comfortable calling it two separate credits.  For example, one year I did Sonlight Language Arts PLUS  we did Learn to Write the Novel Way, so we did have two English credit that year. (We also nearly died trying, but...

Seniors – Fill out an application for College and Register for Tests It normally takes a rather long time to finish a college application form. Get started right now, and mail the application in as soon as the colleges begin taking applications. Financial decisions could possibly turn out to be made “first come first served” and applying early might possibly enable you to obtain the most beneficial financial aid package. Sign up for ACT test by...

How much is enough?  How long should they work?  It's not always easy to know!  One mother asked me to review her school plan, wanting to know if her expectations were appropriate. We're off to a rough start this year due to bad attitudes (both kids and mine!).  In 10th grade, how many hours/day/subject should she be doing?  So far here's what's suppose to be done: *Music - 1 hr, *English (IEW student writing intensive B)...

When did you start the Delight directed Learning?  Did you find it hard to get through a year-long school course when doing it 4 days a week?  Did you just tell the kids they could do whatever they wanted on the non-school day, or did they have certain things they always did, like going to a class in a homeschool coop?  Did you allow them to watch TV or play video games during the free day?...

Audrey asks: How do you balance what you feel they need to know and do with what they feel they want to know and do? There are not enough hours in the day! This question is actually TWO questions! Q1: How can you get more hours in your day? To some extent, homeschoolers will ALWAYS feel like there aren't enough hours in the day!  It's part of parenting, and even more a part of homeschooling.  There...

Moms are often their own worst enemy.  When my eldest was in public school, he didn't stay on track, didn't finish his textbooks in the year, goofed off much of the day - and other kids didn't turn in their homework or finish the reading, yet nobody cared. (Gifted program, Top Washington State school district, 4th grade.)  If you find yourself struggling with staying on track in your homeschool, remember that even the best public school...