feeling overwelmed with planning and scheduling

Here is my best tip for getting a schedule/routine figured out:  Write each child’s work on individual sticky notes or bits of paper, as well as the words Monday, Tuesday, etc.  Put the days of the week in a row left to right.  Under each one put the subjects papers for each child and move them around until you like it.  Notice that if you want a child to do math 5 days in a week you need to make 5 papers that say math for that child.  If you decide you want to do science 2 days per week only make 2 pieces.

Once you get a first plan sorted out write it down on a piece of paper.  Then gather all those sticky notes or bits of paper into an envelope.  Try out the schedule you made and when you find something needs tweaked you can get those sticky notes back out and rearrange again!

I am working out these details right now for my house (9 kids, 6 school age this year).  I know some things, like we will do math daily.  I know my 6th grade and under kids will do art 2 days a week because that was their request.  We will do history daily because it also contains a lot of our literature.  Science will probably be 3 days a week.  Writing will probably be 3 days a week outside of oral narrations.  At the same time I know my high schooler will be working on her science more, probably 4-5 days a week.  She has an online class for it weekly and then she chooses how to divide up her assignments for that week and usually divides it up evenly, but occasionally divides all the work into 2 longer days.  She’ll be doing writing lessons 4 days per week and the 5th day will be writing with a prompt.

For time for each age – start with 10 minutes per subject for younger ages and increase a bit each year for older ones.  So my Kindergartener will spend about 10 minutes doing math at most each day.  My high schooler usually spends 40 minutes doing math.  My 6th grader usually does 20-30 minutes.   Also, remember that copywork is a lot less!  5 minutes at most.

Hope those random thoughts help some!

I guess what jumps out at me is that you could drop/combine a few things.  For the 11yo:  cursive, copywork, Spelling Wisdom, and prepared dictation can all be ONE thing.  Have the 11yo do copywork in cursive.  What will they use as their passages to copy?  Their Spelling Wisdom passage (which is prepared dictation, explained in the introduction of the book).  I’m serious!  Here is exactly how I have done it before:

Monday: Pass out the Spelling Wisdom passage my child will do that week (we do 1 per week, not 2).  Monday they use it as copywork (in cursive if that is what they are doing, or print if they aren’t doing cursive).  They also circle words they don’t know how to spell already.  Tuesday they copywork JUST those words.  Wednesday they copywork the whole passage again, noticing the punctuation while they are at it.  Thursday or Friday they do the prepared dictation – I read the passage a phrase at a time and they write it, remembering the proper spelling and punctuation hopefully!

Does that make sense?  I just took 4 separate assignments and blended them into one – which saves us time and sanity!

I don’t use the SCM Organizer.  I simply have assignment sheets in Word I fill in each week for the kids.  Then if we get to the end of a week and haven’t finished something it goes on the next week’s assignment sheet.  Their assignment sheets are simple.  Across the top of a table are the days of the week.  Down the left hand side are their subjects.  I fill in what to do each day in the boxes.  Often these don’t change.  Literature, for example, always says “Read 1 chapter”.  Math will say Do Lesson with Mom on Monday, Tues-Thur will say Do practice page, and Friday will say Math Test.

Remember the sample is just that, one possible way to do things.  You have to decide what will work for your child.  If it is an especially long passage we will break it in half and use over 2 weeks, depending on the child’s age and ability.

Ok, I feel silly.  I just read the last paragraph of your last reply. 🙂 I need a nap…

Isn’t it fun to start a new year?! I like your plans. For grammar it’s up to you. We’re using Fix It Grammar this year and enjoying it, and it’s taken the place of Spelling Wisdom for this year as a trial. I’ve never used easy grammar.