Within the Lines

Our School Day Routine

(I avoid calling it a schedule to help myself remember to be flexible.)  I'm posting this for those of us who like to see how other homeschoolers' days look.  I have spent the last 4 years fretting and struggling to find a workable and balanced routine for us, and f-i-n-a-l-l-y got it.  We've actually stuck with this for over a month now, and all like it.  We "school" 4 days per week with 1 day (usually Friday) for doing errands, field trip, or Daddy Day.  (We also go year-round.  I'll post that schedule another time.)  This is our routine for school days, with bolded subjects:

7:00  -  kids up, dress, make beds, feed dogs

7:30  -  breakfast, clean up, brush teeth

8:00  -  Bible: family devotion

8:30  -  Life Skills: housekeeping chores (a rotation keeps it short)

9:00  -  Littles Learning: dd8 does toddler time w/dd18mos; ds5 does kindergarten crafts; I continue housekeeping

9:15  -  Music: Mon-dd8 teaches recorder lesson to ds5, Tue-Thu online music appreciation; I prep am snack, bottle, and math worksheet

9:30  -  Math: dd8 and ds5 do MUS video & worksheet; I rock dd18mos & do computer (if dd8 and ds5 finish math early, dd8 reads to ds5 until I'm done)

10:00 -  (baby down for am nap) Literature: kids snack while I read aloud (always includes discussion and vocabulary)

10:30 -  Language Arts: phonics, penmanship w/ds5; dd8 works alone on varied lessons in grammar, penmanship, spelling, etc 

10:45 -  Language Arts cont.: ds5 takes break-playing alone in room while I work w/dd8

11:00 -  Social Studies: w/dd8 geography/culture/missions read aloud and discussion

11:15 -  (get baby up) Social Studies cont.: w/ds5 people/places/maps read aloud; dd8 does timeline, mapwork or report

11:30 -  Health & P.E.: w/all kids read aloud from human body encyclopedia; then exercise to kids aerobic dance cd

12:00 - (throw in load of laundry; kids clean up) Spanish: while fixing lunch, teach kids basic Spanish conversation

12:30 -  (lunch) Bible: memorywork & recitation prior to leaving table

1:00  -  Science & Nature: nature walk or experiment & research (whatever presents itself)

1:30  -  ds5 rests till 3:30; I continue laundry, rock dd18mos, then lay her down for nap till 4 (my "free" time--laundry, bookkeeping, sewing, etc--roughly 2:30-3:30); dd8 reads Bible & journals 1/2 hour, has free reading 1/2 hour, rests 1/2 hour, and electives 1/2 hour (sewing w/Gramma on Mon and computer Tue-Thu)

3:30 -  Reading: read aloud about 20 min to each dd8 and ds5 (seperately...special Mommy time)

4-ish -  Music Practice (15min): ds5 practices recorder and drums; dd8 practices guitar

4:30 -  Home Ec (and free play): a mixture of alternating playing w/baby, helping Mom w/dinner, and free play

5:30 -  supper & clean up

6:30 -  Family Activity Time: a rotation of art lesson night, craft project night, story-telling night, & game night

7:30 -  handwork, quiet reading, baths, radio program

8:00 -  (kids ready for bed) Faith: read aloud kids version Pilgrim's Progress; then Daddy prays and talks w/kids individually

8:30 -  Reading: free reading in bed till lights out at 9

     (History is covered during the various reading times throughout the day and a timeline; I follow a 4-year cycle and order books from the library for the period we're covering.  I love All Through the Ages by Christine Miller for guidance w/this.)

So, that's it.  Not for everyone, I imagine, but great for us.  Lots of educating gets done, and I have some individual time w/kids and time to care for home.