When people find out we home school we get mixed reactions. There are some who think I already have my hand full with 6 kids and I couldn’t possibly be able to handle schooling them as well. Others have a more positive response. It makes sense to homeschool in a large family. We must have all kinds of fun being together and living life together every day. Today I want to cover the topic of school time. How we plan out the school year. Where and who I buy curriculum and supplies for. How we complete schoolwork in a big family with lots of preschoolers, a toddler, and new baby. It may not be what you think. So let me explain what school time looks like for our big family.
Why We Homeschool
In The Bible you find The Shema in Deuteronomy 6: 4- 9. This states, “Hear, O Isreal: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down and when you rise…” We desire to teach and raise our children according to God’s Word. What better way to do this than by being together 24/7 like The Shema instructs.
While some days at home are rough, and a day of peace with the kids all gone to Day Care and School sounds nice, I know my heart could NOT take my babies being away from me all day. I truly enjoy the time I get to spend with my kids. This leads into the fact that I get to learn alongside them when we Homeschool. I LOVE to learn, and it is fun being able to relearn old things I have forgotten. Or learn new things I wasn’t taught in school all those years ago. Lastly, waking up early to get everyone out the door in a mad dash does NOT sound fun. While I still have to be up by a certain time every day before Sam heads off to work, I enjoy a slower paced morning where we are able to ease into the day together.
What Curriculum We Use during Our School Time
We have tried a few different types of curriculums over the years. My favorite by far has been The Good and The Beautiful. Everything you may need for a subject is provided and depending on your style of homeschooling (Traditional, Charlotte Mason, etc.) you can find something that encourages your child’s style of learning. Currently I only purchase workbooks for Olivia. As well as some group electives that we can complete as a family such as Safety and Birds.
For the boys I usually just buy them some books that we will read aloud together and a wide rule notebook for them to draw in, so they feel like they are doing something. I have recently started doing the Other Goose curriculum with the boys and they LOVE it. Every school day after we have had a snack, the boys, myself, and even Olivia if she wants will work on whatever the activity is for the day. Once completed the boys are free to go play while I do independent work with Olivia.
Our HomeSchool Year
Year Round
Years ago, when I was researching the different calendar options to complete schoolwork year-round schooling really connected with me. Due to the lifestyle we live of constant moves. Having babies, and lots of little kids I knew this would be a good fit. The pressure to complete school in 5 days per week for 180 days or 9 months was a bit too rigid for us. Stretching school out over a year where some weeks we do complete 5 days of work. Others only 2. Even some weeks where no bookwork is done but lots of outside time instead felt right for us.
We have been doing school this way for about 3 years, and I still LOVE it. Probably more so now that we have added more kids to the mix. When Olivia started Kindergarten, I only had three little boys ages 3 and under. Now we have 5 boys ages 6 years old down to 5 months old, so we need LOTS of flexibility these days and year-round schooling allows for this.
Weekly Fun Family Day
Typically, on a given week we have four days of bookwork and one Fun Family Day. This may look like going to the Grandparents for Nature School as they have a lake, hiking trails, horses, and more in the subdivision they live in. When we visit with them, we enjoy lots of outside time. I have many nature books, so we work through them one at a time and pick an activity to work on while at the Grandparents house. This may look like looking for signs of spring. Finding all the colors of the rainbow in nature. Gathering pinecones to make bird feeders with, and more.
If we are not visiting with the Grandparents, then we have a Family Fun Day. This may include eating donuts at a local donut shop then heading to a playground. Spending the day at a Zoo. Going to pick peaches at a local farm. Or just having a lazy day at home where we work on KiwiCo Crates or watch a movie if it is rainy.
Take Time Off when it Benefits Us
Another reason we LOVE homeschooling is because we can take time off when it benefits us. We never have to worry about “getting behind”. Some examples of when we have taken time off is on Birthdays… because who wants to do schoolwork on THEIR day? Postpartum with a new baby. With Baby #6 being born right before the Holidays, we took off over 6 weeks to relax and enjoy our new addition. We did not resume school until the New Year. Instead during that time we focused on completed Morning Time, Reading Aloud, and one fun Holiday activity every day.
Other times we have taken off before and after a move. Then there is the obvious sick days. This can last well over a week or two in our house once the cold or flu works it way through everyone. When our Big Girls are home, we may either decide to include them in our schoolwork fun or skip some days and just enjoy our time with them. If Sam has to travel for work, we may just focus on Morning Time, Reading Aloud, and a daily activity like Other Goose, with lots of outside time mixed in. Other times I have packed more schoolwork if a trip was going to be longer that 2 weeks.
Daily School Time Flow
Here is a look at the flow of our school time so you can see how we are able to complete all that we need to in a day. One thing I have learned over the years as we have added more kids is that I have to RELAX, be flexible, and think routine over schedule. Having set times for doing things tends to stress me out as I feel behind. The kids will pick up on this then are snappy themselves. Having a routine over a schedule to our school day helps the day go smoother.
Morning/AM School Time Block
My kids have been consistently waking up around 7:30a.m. for a few years by now. Once everyone is up and has had breakfast we do our Morning Time. This includes things like Bible reading, Catechism, singing a hymn, Gratitude Journal, character building, etc. From there the kids go complete their chores. This may consist of “making” beds. Considering my boys are 5 and under I don’t expect this to be perfect, but a habit to work on. Wiping down the table, sweeping, and picking up the Living Spaces are other chores the kids do. Once all this is done, we go for a walk or play outside until lunch time. If it is a rainy day we just have free play inside. After lunch we Read Aloud together. Then Nap/ Quiet Time is about 2 hours.
PM/Evening School Time Block
Once everyone is up, I fix a snack, and we work on our Other Goose activity. Once this is finished, I do individual work with Olivia. We are done with school around 3 or 4p depending on if everyone is being diligent that day or dragging their feet. If all chores and schoolwork has been completed, then I will let the kids have some TV Time and the Big Helper for the day gets to pick what to watch. In the evening after dinner, we go back outside to play or work on a KiwiCo Crate is the weather is bad. We also read the Bible again in the evenings and answer a silly question from these conversation starters Questions for Humans: Parents and Kids by Dr. John Deloney of Ramsey Solution.
Like I mentioned before I don’t do workbooks with the boys. They are included in Morning Time, our Read Aloud and whatever activity we are doing from Other Goose that day. I have tried over the years to have them do bookwork. They show interest one day then are over it the next. Right now, as long as they are participating in Morning Time. Playing inside and out. Doing an Other Goose activity, and we are reading aloud together then I am happy. I can also tell that is about all the schoolwork they enjoy doing right now.
Extracurricular Activities
As for Extracurricular(s) we begin those in First Grade when we start our bookwork. Usually, I will teach a child to read and when they have a good grasp on that we will introduce Language Arts and Math workbooks. Once the ball is rolling on bookwork, we let them pick any extracurricular of their chose. This may look like Art Lessons or a Sport of some type. They must complete a semester and then they may change to something else if they like or keep going with the same thing. Olivia did over a year of Art Classes and Camps because she enjoyed it so much.
While we currently don’t have anyone taking Music Lessons we have decided to begin with piano lessons in the Third Grade if the child seems ready. After a few years of piano we plan to let the kids pick a different musical instrument to try. Neither Sam nor I play musical instruments, so this is very important for us that our kids learn. Who knows maybe we will decide to learn right alongside them 🙂
What ways do you make school time work for your family?
Please share with us in the comments. Or enjoy reading more from our Big Family Logisitics Series.
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