A day in the life of a minimalist homeschooler.
My homeschool schedule has to be a few things.
It must be easy. No muss, no fuss. All the cool and creative details might be great for a composed online photoshoot... real life. 3 kids. Home based business. Ha! Good luck.
It must be flexible. Some days it's super cold and cozy and we need to snuggle in our pj's and binge on movies. Some days it's perfectly warm and sunny outside and staying indoors is a prison sentence.
It must be fun! If we're not having any fun, forget it! I don't want stressed out kids, and if I can't stay awake while reading the book, how am I to expect them to be engaged?
We released our 13 week homeschool program to finish off the 2016/2017 school year and here's our family's take on how the program goes!
7:00 AM : Kiddos wake up, they chillax in their beds with their tablets (we use the FreeTime program so that the tablets turn on at 7 AM and give them 1 hour of play time), I am in bed trying to ignore my mini dachshund as she acts as an alarm clock.
8:00 AM : The hubby and I drag ourselves out of bed. I am kicking myself for staying up far too late trying to finish Parenthood. I have to get to sleep earlier... stinkin' Netflix.
We make breakfast (triple berry muffins - YUMM!) and I grind up some coffee and put it in the french press. Ahhh, it's cold today and I need something hot.
It's cold, I'm tired, we snuggle and watch Mulan. Within 30 minutes I realize the kids are off playing in their room and I am sitting alone watching the movie. When the movie is over I read in my Bible for a bit. The kids get dressed, brush their teeth and get their beds made.
10:00 : This is our 'let's get started' time! Before we start the day I send the kids outside to run like hooligans and get their wiggles out! This one activity each morning makes our days go SO much smoother! (On warmer mornings they'll usually go out to play after breakfast.)
After this we head in, find a spot on the couch and sit down to spend 5 minutes in silence. I set the timer and explain to the kids (especially the 3 year old) that it is a time of silence -- we are to be still and silent while we focus our hearts and get ready to spend some time reading God's word. We do this until the timer dings and then read the devotional and passage from Day 1 of our program.
We spend a few minutes talking through the meaning of this verse, what that means to us and what they can do in their lives to follow this. Then we all go sit around the dining room table and pull out the notebooks so they can journal. They both opt to do copywork and write down the verse.
Today's supplies. Yep- that's it.
While the 6 year old is still writing, and the 3 year old has left to play in her room, the 12 year old and I go to Week 1 on Big Kids and get started working down the list on the 'Daily' items.
Spelling - he does the assessment and pulls up that level of words for Week 1. As we go through the list of words in the first module I have him write each word down five times each.
Writing - he does the news reporter activity (which the 6 year old joins in on too), we leave the part where you get to be a news anchor to do tomorrow. We have all week to work through these activities so no worry to rush.
While the 12 year old moves onto his math lesson, I take the 6 year old into the living room, we snuggle on the rocking chair and work on her daily reading lesson. She's getting so good at this, we rush in to show off to Daddy once we're done!
The 12 year old is done now - except for reading A Series of Unfortunate Events - and goes off to play with his little sister.
We complete the Week 1 tasks for Littles with the 6 year old.
Writing - I print out the practice sheets for the letter of the day, which she tells me she already knows how to do, duh! I know this, but explain that a little extra practice on neat penmanship wouldn't hurt.
Reading - I offer to read Homer Price, while she likes this book, she REALLY wants to read Lemony Snicket's with her brother so we skip Homer Price.
Math - She completes a mission on Khan Academy, I help her with the mouse a little bit... she's used to touch screens and needs some work with the mouse.
12:00 PM : We've finished everyone's daily items - except reading - and it's lunch time. The kids heat up some leftover homemade chicken noodle soup and we gather at the table. I read the first chapter of the book while the kids eat, then we get in a game of Uno that the 3 year old asked for.
The kids take off outside once we're done and ride their bikes while playing some sort of game where one kid seems to be a zombie and the other two are fleeing for their lives. I'm thankful for medical insurance.
1:00 PM : I call the hooligans in to wash up, they get their tablets for 1 more hour while everyone lays down for quiet time. They don't nap anymore, but taking one hour each afternoon to relax has made a huge difference in their evening behavior. I take the hour to get on the computer and handle some work related items. Mail comes and I get my monthly delivery of rooibos tea- the hubby and I are so happy and I immediately make us a pot of tea in the french press.
2:00 PM : The kids are free to get up and they get an hour to play Arc together on the Xbox- this game is actually really neat. There is a discrepancy about the compass on the game which prompts an informal lesson from mom and dad on direction.
3:00 PM : We sit down to watch the What's in the Bible with Esther. The girls are super restless and take off about 10 minutes in, the 12 year old and I sit and enjoy the rest. I contemplate scheduling myself a napping time.
4:00 PM : The kids are off playing with Lego's and running amuck. I pick up a few things and then start prepping dinner. With a glass of wine poured and some tunes playing I make tortillas for burritos, it's not too long before kids pop in and out of the kitchen to help out. Even though it may slow me down I try to get them all involved as much as possible in any baking/cooking. The 3 year old is actually the best helper in the kitchen.
5:00 PM : We call Daddy in from his seminary studies and sit down for dinner. We take a couple moments before for silent prayer and then chat over theological topics with Daddy. I'm amazed at how much our kids understand and are able to chime in on so many "grown up" topics.
After dinner we clean the kitchen, put the leftovers away, the kids go brush teeth and put on pj's. They know to get their rooms picked up- my robot vacuum goes on every night after bedtime so anything on the floor will be gone! After a full day my whole home is darn near spotless and we're ready for some family snuggles!
We all pile onto the couch and watch a couple episodes of I Love Lucy together, we laugh far too much and the hubby and I chuckle when the kids see the Ricardo's TV and don't understand how they could see such a small screen or how their lives went on without a remote.
7:00 PM : The kids go potty and get a drink, we give loves and tuck everyone into bed. The girls lay in bed and chit chat a little bit, they're asleep by 7:30/8:00. The 12 year old gets to quietly watch a little TV in his room until 8:00, then he comes out for another hug and goes to bed. I pick up the rugs and start my vacuum. While the floors get cleaned I hop on my exercise bike while I finish the last couple episodes of Parenthood... well, until the crying kicks in big time and I stop the workout.
That's our day-- pretty much every day. We didn't get in one of the elective items today- but we've got all week for that. Some days we do one elective, some days we do a few of them. If we start one project and the kids aren't into it- we skip it! No worries! That's our Minimalist Homeschool! Easy, flexible and fun!
How does a typical school day go for you?
[This post includes affiliate links - our MINIMALIST HOMESCHOOL PLAN isreleased FREE of charge, checking out our affiliate links is greatly appreciated instead of having to purchase any of the homeschool content we release! 😊 Thanks a bunch!]
