Name: Great Homeschool Conventions (Columbus)
Start: 2025-04-24T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-04-26T23:59:59-05:00
Location: Columbus, OH

Tagged: Early elementary schedule, Elementary schedule, Schedule for early elementary, Schedule for six year old

This topic has 6 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 10 years, 5 months ago by mtnmama.

Viewing 7 posts - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)

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June 9, 2014 at 4:30 am
yen
Participant
Hi ladies,
This is our second year homeschooling, and last year we used a boxed curriculum that was also highly CM… This year though i decided to skip the boxed curriculum and instead got tremendous help from SCM in making our own curriculum and schedule… My son is 6 years old, and wondering if anyone has any suggestions in this schedule:
MONDAY
Bible story (we use the jesus storybook bible)
Dramatic play or application of the story
Memory verse
Copywork
Devotional book
Science: Our Father’s World
Math
Literature (read-aloud)
Early readers for reading practice
Foreign language
P.e./sports
TUESDAY
Bible story from the Bible itself
Memory verse
Music (worship song, intro before we move to hymn study)
Spelling
Science: nature reader
Math
Literature
Early reader
Social studies: biography
WEDNESDAY
Bible story in Filipino (we are Filipino btw)
Memory verse
Art book (illustrating the Filipino Bible story)
Copywork
Science experiment/activity
Math
Literature
Early reader
Handicraft
THURSDAY
Poetry
Memory verse
Spelling
Science: Our Wonderful World
Math
Literature
Early reader
FRIDAY
Journal (of Bible story for the week)
Nature study
Math
Literature
Early reader
Foreign language
It may seem silly, but my question is… Does this seem enough? I know CM is really more for short lessons and a banquet of topics, and we are really enjoying the books we’ve chosen, thanks to a lot of SCM recommendations, but I can’t help wondering if there’s anything more we can add? So far i’m planning to introduce hymn study and composer study next year… What else do you ladies think we can add? Or is this already fine for a 6 year old? 😉
Thanks very much!
June 9, 2014 at 7:22 pm
mama_nickles
Participant
I think it looks fine. However, I might propose some tweaks. My kids are 6, 5, 4, 4 and 2. We are reading from a Bible storybook and we just read the next story each day. I have found it helps with continuity. I think my kids would find it confusing to be reading different sections of the Bible each day. If you want to do Filipino reading as well, maybe you could do the Filipino reading at bedtime and the english during the day, or vice versa?
My other comment would be to do less science, and more foreign language. We do twice a week science, and also do nature study another day. I do also have my 6yo read Nature Reader independently. This year we’ve done Seed Babies, and are currently doing Among the Pond People, and in the fall we’re going to do Outdoor Secrets with companion, which includes some nature study. From what I have read about foreign language study, you really want to do at least a little bit daily if possible. I have also found that reading something once a week (like you have the biography scheduled) is not enough for my kids to retain anything, though I know a lot do AO and they have once a week readings.

Have you decided what handicraft you will do?
June 10, 2014 at 2:33 am
yen
Participant
Thanks for this, mama_nickles! You’re right about continuity… We actually do the Bible passage that corresponds to the same Bible story from the day before. I guess it gets a bit repetitive though 😉
As for science, I like the idea of having ds do independent reading of the reader instead of scheduling it as a read-aloud. We have the Christian Liberty Nature Reader, will have to check when he will be ready to read it on his own. He has just finished reading Owl at Home by Arnold Lobel and currently reading Mouse Tales. Maybe we can set the science readers sometime down the road when he has more practice reading longer words 🙂
Thanks for the suggestion about foreign language too! A little bit daily instead of a longer chunk in less regular intervals does sound more effective for retention.
Oh, and I just realized I haven’t picked a handicraft yet though it’s on the schedule! Ds loves to do origami these days, but it doesn’t seem to be counted as a “useful” handicraft, does it? I saw a blog that recommended paper sloyd, but I’m personally not too familiar with it. We did a bit of pottery last year but we never got to do it regularly, so we may do it more intentionally this year… What are you guys doing for handicraft?
Thanks very much! I’m so blessed by the wonderful ladies at this forum!
June 10, 2014 at 12:23 pm
andream
Participant
My son did some simple sewing last year, 5 years old. He made a pin cushion using fleece and a simple running Stitch. You could also start with a plastic canvas, yarn and a bigger needle.
June 10, 2014 at 6:20 pm
mama_nickles
Participant
I did sewing with my first grader this past year too. He ended up sewing doll pillows for his sisters for Christmas and is currently working on a teddy bear. He also did a bit of woodworking stuff with dh in the evenings. My five year old daughter learned to weave a potholder this year.
As for multiple bible readings, cm advocated a single reading to foster the habit of attention. Pick whether you think he can handle the real bible or a storybook and go with it.
June 12, 2014 at 2:22 am
yen
Participant
Thanks for all your help! We tried sewing yesterday, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much ds6 loved it!
As for the single reading, oops I guess I hadn’t thought of that in terms of going through the same story from different sources… Thanks for pointing that out! 🙂
June 17, 2014 at 4:28 am
mtnmama
Participant
That looks like a great schedule. I would recommend being flexible on days your child can or can’t do all of the work. They are still so young in 1st grade and need lots of time for play so they can process what they are learning. I have one more child coming through that age group and I wish I had realized that when his brothers were that age.