Simplifiying school

I have purposed to do even more multilevel teaching next year than before.  While I will have an 8th grader doing a lot independently the other seven children will be 4th grade and under.  So for family subjects that include the 8th grader we have:

Devotional, world geography and cultures study, artist study, composer study, hymn study, poetry teatime, naure study, some literature (for our homeschool book club). Some of these will happen once a week so they’ll be on different days, while devotional, geography, and literature will be daily.

The 8th grader will be independent for other subjects (science, more literature, writing, logic, copywork/dictation, Algebra I).

The 4th, 3rd, K, and little boys will do science together and more literature.

The 4th, 3rd, K will do writing together.

Everyone is separate for math, even when two children are in the same level. 

🙂

To simplify our Home School, I am actually doing something that may look the opposite of Less is More:  I am returning to paper record keeping and buying more books.  

Our internet service is unreliable.  I often spend more time on the computer trying to organize/record books, etc. than I would spend just writing down what we did or will do with pencil on paper.  I have already printed out a few forms from donnayoung.org to finish out this school year.  It will only be about 20 pieces of paper for each child next year (I have two), and I will feel that I have a clear record of what each child worked on throughout the year.  It is simplifying for my sanity.  

I also have already purchased a set of books for my younger child.  We have been relying on the library for our books, but having them readily available will be easier.  We do not live in town, so a special trip just to pick up one book is not a wise use of time or gas.  I am also planning on purchasing art portfolios and cds for our music next year.  We have been using free resources online for Picture Study and Music, but it has been frustrating with the unreliability of our internet.  

I think we tend to accumulate stuff so easily anyway.  If our shelves are filled with wonderful books and lovely materials, I think we will be less tempted to bring in mediocre stuff.  

Mostly, I am trying to plan less and trust God more.  I find that this step is the most simplifying (and most difficult) of all.

My problem is thinking I need to cover all subjects every day. So, consequently, I don’t spend enough time on math and reading, which is a struggle because of dyslexia and a lack of math processing skills (very deficient in math Also, my daughter loves art, but we have not been taking time to formally do art at home, although she gets it in co-op. She takes piano lessons, but when doing a full day of school, those get pushed aside as well. I know we just need to put that on our list every day. But, I think next year I will do a four day academic week and Friday do extracurricular activities.

We are doing Heart of Dakota, but I have had to change our Language Arts direction. Soaring with Spelling and Growing with Grammar have really been a good fit for my daughter. They are simple lessons and take very little time. I may begin Winning with Writing as well. I think this will be a big help in her writing, so I will not do any written narrations scheduled in the guide. Since I have to read most things to her because of the dyslexia, I want to focus on her attention skills while reading, and not worry about the extra work that may go along with the readings, other than a science notebook. 

Those are just my own personal ways to simplify our school work. After reading the ebook, Simply Homeschool, I am even more determined to reduce clutter. Having less ‘stuff’ to take care of leaves more time to spend with our children doing other things.    

I can really identify with “retrofam” — so, I’ve decided to not serve on the VBS committee next year (a huge time committment from Feb.  – June each year).  I’m unsure of where else to cut back.  Our homeschool is cluttered because of me, not really because of our curriculum.  But the other things that “clutter” my life seem to be things that I can’t cut – cooking meals, laundry, etc.  I hate to even mention that, because my children do help with the laundry.

@psreitmom – I’m considering doing Winning with WRiting this next year with my to-be 5th grader.  Do you know if they go to conventions? I’d like to actually look at a book instead of just the online samples.  Do you know of anyone who sells their things (I know RR doesn’t; not sure about anyone else)?

And I too am going to cut down on clutter!

I plan to look at each subject and decide what is my long term goal with this?  Does it need to come in small, consistent pieces or can it come when the child is interested and older?  When I started homeschooling, I was so excited by everything and wanted to binge eat it all.  Now, a few years later, I realized  that didn’t work so well.  We do better with a slower, more thoughtful pace.  I need to continue to cut back on the number of books and teach to everyone when I can.

I also make a regular schedule and a light load schedule.  When I compare the two, I often realize I am stressing over things that I cannot get to when emergencies happen.

Finally I have had to come to peace that I am homeschooling/teaching my children all day.  I used to find pride in being done with homeschool work in the morning, so we could rush to an activity, service project, or something else in the afternoon.  I have now realized I have cut too much into their time to think and play.  This is a criticial development step, I shouldn’t overlook. 

Thanks for that encouragement, Jennifer, that’s great.

Shannon, I think a reasonable amount of days spent out of the home is going to look different for many families depending on your needs. For this season in our lives we are not doing sports, ballet, or too many extra curricular activities. My plans for next year include one day away from home per week on a regular basis. That one day they will all three be in an enrichment program 7 mins from home. I can get all my errands and schedule doctor appointments on this day and they can get their extra curricular activities all in one place and time (drama, art, science experiments, choir, Spanish). Then we will be home the rest of the week. Play dates can be scheduled occasionally in the afternoons. We do have a piano teacher who comes to our home once every other week, but that’s not a big deal because we are home and don’t have to rush to get somewhere.

Of course other field trip opportunities will come up, but Like Jennifer said, I will have to be more selective. I notice I do a lot more field trips the second half of the year because I’m getting tired than.

I also love starting in July because I am not being pulled by all of the extra activities because most everyone else is on vacation. We get the most productive days in July and August.

I agree with what someone commented on earlier about scheduling less books. There are so many great ones out there that I don’t want to miss anything! But just like with the scheduling….we cannot do everything or read every book.