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Please help! I'm overwhelmed.
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I am homeschooling both my boys ages 6 and 16. We are using Module 6 right now. I am confused as to how much school I am supposed to be scheduling. Is Science separate from Nature Studies or the same for elementary kids? Is Picture Study different from Art? Is Handicrafts classified as Art? Is Composer study really necessary when the boys are taking piano lessons and choir? Is it really necessary to study Hymns and Folksongs? Dont get me wrong, I’m all for a broad education, but there is only so much time in the day. Are there some subjects that boys do better at than girls do?
If anyone has advice I’d appreciate it. I took a break for Christmas vacation and I feel more out of touch now than I did before. I dont even feel that I have time for myself or time in the Word. I also broke my own rules and joined the local virtual charter school to help with getting ds6 out of the house one day a week for PE and music because he has so much energy, is incredibley lonely, and is driving us all nuts. The good news is that I receive a stipend for curriculum/books and CM is a supported style as long as it does not have religious content. They just told me that when testing comes around that I shouldnt get alarmed if his testing scores are low for a while and that the scores will eventually be higher in certain areas. (That was very encouraging to hear that from the school.) The school will however allow me to use my own religious content if I pay for those books and they will still count those same subjects towards his education. The music teacher there at the school even homeschooled her boys with the CM methodology, so that is good for me in the way that someone there knows what I’m trying to accomplish. I just need some clarification though and if nothing else…please pray for me. I’m very overwhelmed with homeschooling, being mom for my boys, being wife to my husband, housekeeper(and not a very good one right now) and office manager for our business. Thank you!
I’m sure others will chime in as well but I will try to answer the best I can. Science and nature study are different, but in the elementary years, using only nature study and reading living books is fine. That is what we do. You could also use some of the SCM science curriculum for elementary science. There is outdoor secrets and 106 days of creation. Both are really good and we have enjoyed using them for a more structured science schedule. Melissa also has a lesson plan for among the farm yard people that we are currently are using and love. I’m on my phone so someone else will have to give the website. Nature study is only once a week, science is up to you. We do it once or twice a week, until they hit upper elementary and then we do more science, two or three times a week, but lessons are always short. We stick to 5 Minutes per grade.
Picture study and art are two different things also. Picture study is once a week, takes all of five minutes. Pick an artist, study his works for the term, one picture at a time. Art is more like drawing, crafts, etc. We do art once a week, but not the whole year. Usually for just a term. I don’t think handicrafts is considered art, but art is a handicraft, if that makes sense? Handicraft is another once a week thing – this past term my 11 year old son did drawing for his handicraft while my 8 year old daughter worked on crocheting.
Composer study exposes the kids to so many works of music, the same way picture study. Study one song a week. We listen in the car, while cleaning, while eating snack or during drawing. It’s easy to sneak in.
We use hymn study for our worship and bible study at night. We use the scripture box method for the hymns to keep reviewing the ones we’ve learned in the past. We don’t study folk songs often, and when we do, we often learn them in Swedish. 🙂
And all kids have different strengths and weaknesses, no matter if they are boys or girls.
Take out all non essentials and start there. Build up your schedule slowly as you get into the swing of things. Do what works for your family. Our family will be praying for yours!
I agree w/all Laura.bora said. And I totally understand how overwhelming it can be. The list of subjects seems so long that just putting them into a schedule seems like a lot of work, even though most of them take very little time:) I’ll admit that I’m not great about always getting these subjects in and wish I would have been better over the years.
As Laura suggested, I’d start w/your core subjects and get into a routine w/them. Then add one thing…maybe listen to a composer at a mealtime. After this is comfortable, maybe start artist study. The Picture Study portfolios sold here are wonderful to simplify this area. The book has a short story about the artist, and the copies are very high quality. I have a mini-easel on a table in my foyer and set pictures out there. My kids don’t love hymnns and folksongs, but one simple way to get hymn study in is Hymns for a Child’s Heart (think that’s the name) by Joni Ericson Tada. It has a short bio on the hymn writer along w/coordinating hymn. For handicrafts, I don’t schedule them in….I just try to go w/my kids interests. My daughter is interested in photography, so I set up a class w/a gal I know who studies it. I don’t fret over teaching tons of handicraft skills (others may differ w/me:). I’m not super crafty and once adult life hits there’s just so much time to spend on these things. I’m more concerned about LIFE skills…teaching them cleaning, cooking, repairs, etc. that they’ll need on a regular basis when grown. Plus this takes things off my plate…my kids do most of the weekly chores around here:)
That’s just how we do it. Try not to stress over it. Just focus on the basics first and if you gradually add one thing at a time it won’t seem like so much work and you’ll hopefully all enjoy them:) Blessings, Gina
P.S. And for your 6yo, I agree that I’d use some SCM resources. I’ve always used Apologia because I felt the need to be ‘covered.’ But really wish I would have been more laid back and made science more fun in the early years. We are now using Apologia for upper levels since they’re likely college-bound, but the younger years can be more relaxed…enjoy it:)
The nature readers from Christian Liberty Press are good for elementary science. My kids read them once a week and do nature study with nature notebooks once a week. They will do more science in 5th grade.
Composer study is very easy to work in. Read aloud a short bio. first or use a disc like Vox Music Masters or Klassics for Kids. I look forward to listening to the relaxing music everyday at lunch. I have grown to like it and play classical music in the evenings some too. Pick a composer and have a few of their music discs or get mp 3 sets for $2 @ Amazon:
As for working in these extras, go slowly, adding one subject at a time until you are comfortable with it. Here is a post that helped me:
http://simplycharlottemason.com/basics/started/transition/
We use Hymns for a Kid’s Heart. It is easy open and go, and about 5 min. each time.
As for being overwhelmed, I have been there; still go there some days. There are several books which have helped me, but I have come to know how important a daily quiet time in the Word is. It is important for me to know what *He* wants me to accomplish each day, not what *I* want to accomplish. I was doing a lot of cleaning myself and have come to realize that my children not only are capable of helping, but that it is GOOD for them. This is an excellent way to work on character training. So I have been teaching them new tasks while reading about chore systems so I can get the right system set up for us. For this I have been reading Vicki Bentley ‘s chore book and I am reading a great book on organizing my day which includes a chapter on chores, Managers of Their Homes by Teri Maxwell. She also has a book on chore system called Managers of Their Chores. They are at Titus2.com.
Another huge help is to get a menu plan set up to follow. This can rotate weekly, bi-weekly or monthly and can vary for each meal. I do bi-weekly M-F for lunch and monthly for supper. I am working on breakfast now. I have also found Large Family Logistics to be a good book for ideas on managing the home, and imho, “large” is greater than one dependent, for most things in this book.
I will leave you with a few quotes from my notes from the Maxwell book:
“The goal is to eliminate as many decisions as possible – since decisions take up much of your time and emotional energy.” page 52. If I have chore systems, menu plans, and schedules in place, I make the same kind of decisions much less often as they are made when creating the system. Now I have to decide to follow the system I created and prayed about. It is very important to keep the same wake-up time and meal times, something I am still working towards. It is a marathon, not a sprint. And limit computer time.
“A schedule is your plan for your family for your particular needs. It is like a puzzle with many little pieces that need to be meshed together for the greatest efficiency of your home.” page 103.
“Most of the chore issues are character related and are where I want my focus to be.” page 99. When children fail in their chores, see it as character training and calmly deliver the pre-posted consequence, like doing the job again in your free time. Be consistent in inspections, training, and discipline. Vicki Bentley says, “Children do what you inspect, not what you expect.”
I have also been working on getting my children more independent in their learning. I have read Joanne Calderwood’s The Self-Propelled Advantage. She also has a website at urthemom.com. This can work with CM methods. She stresses the importance of good character training as a prerequisite. SCM Laying Down The Rails is a great resource if you need to work on character and good habits. Again, it is a marathon. Their free ebook based on good habit training:
http://simplycharlottemason.com/store/smooth-easy-days-with-charlotte-mason/
I am not an affiliate to any of these books, but have found them all to be helpful to me. I hope something here may be of help to you.
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