Today was the first day of school for the kids in the district where I live. I can't help but feel sorry for them. It's hot. It's still August. There is a fire nearby and the air is thick with smoke making it feel warmer than it is and breathing is something to avoid if you can. Everyday I find a new reason, or the same reason over again, for loving that I homeschool. We aren't without structure to our day but there is always room for flexibility. This is not something you get when you are on the schools schedule. If you miss a day of school it may take a week to catch up with what you missed. The school district will start breathing down your throat for too many missed days ($$$$).
Today I found a deal on line that I did not want to miss so my kids had their chores and reading books and I took off to claim my find. I came home and chores are done, and reading is done and they are ready for the more assisted part of their studies. It has taken years to get to this point but here we are. You see? Flexibility. I have never sent my kids to "regular" school. I don't even want to think about the ways our life would be constricted by needing to conform to such a rigid and redundant schedule. I love catering to the mood, the weather, the season, or outside the family event. This week we have friends moving. This doesn't mean school doesn't happen, it means we will focus on the subjects we can accomplish the first part of the day before heading over to help pack and move them. We will catch up on the subjects that take more time and focus next week. We also take advantage of car time, with clip boards and pencils in hand, so there is no dead time. If the writing is too difficult on the windy roads there are also books on tape which is how we manage quite a few of the classics.
I could list the many reasons I homeschool, there are a bazzilion of them and they are all equally valid, but I think over all the lifestyle we enjoy must be in the top ten reasons.
I am not a very organized person. I am not a teacher by my education. I am mostly responsible. There are days I really just muddle through. I do know how to use the library as a resource. I do look to other more experienced, and obviously successful, homeschool moms when I get stuck. With all that in mind, let me walk you through a typical day at Haven Ridge:
Sun-up: out to the barn. Feed, water, scoop poop for the animals. The kids don't have to do this but if they want any kind of allowance they do.
When the animals needs are met we head in for our own needs. My oldest (14) usually makes stove top oatmeal for us. I get coffee, wash up, check email.
Morning list: This "list" is all the regular things the kids need to do daily but I got tired of listing it all out for them. This includes making the bed, getting dressed, brushing teeth and hair, practicing their musical instruments (like how I slide music in there?) and then one chore. The chore changes with the day of the week. M-laundry T-pick up and vacuum living room W-clean their bathroom Th-work with thier 4-H animals F-clean room. By three of them touching these things once a week it keeps them from getting out of control.
On a regular stay home day this is where the reading, writing and arithmetic comes in. Get in and get it done. Some days they go to a homeschool group for extra lessons. Tuesday afternoons and evenings they have music lessons, gymnastics and karate. Other days depending on the week we are very active in our 4-H club. I use this as part of our curriculum.
If the kids get their work done in a timely manner they are allowed tech/screen time between 7-9. That is all. I have learned that the more screen time allowed the less respectful they are to authority. They get two hours. They can game, catch up on a recorded show or chat with a friend but at 9 it's back to the real world. There a exceptions to this for research purposes, papers to write or ebooks but I make sure they always have a paper book available.
Bed. Because Sun-up is always earlier than you wish it was.
Sometimes my husband works weekends and has a weekday off. Flexibility again! We still get our daddy time because we will just change our schedule with his. It is one of the best things that my husband does not have to miss time with his kids because they have to go to school.
I could talk about the failures of the school system, inefficient teaching, out of control students, immunization requirements, food allergies, safety, ridiculous rules, violence in schools and on buses, bullying, clothing requirements, potty language. . . . . . . . . . What it comes down to is that the ability to live our lives without someone else telling us when and where we need to be is the primary reason we do what we do. By doing that we are also able to focus our kids education toward their interests. They learn more when they are actually interested in the subject than when it is being crammed down their throat because this is what they are supposed to be learning at this grade level. Did that method work for you?
If you feel trapped by the mandated school schedule consider some of the variety of ways there are available now to bring your kids home.
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