It's Elementary
I get asked often what my day looks like as I home educate my kids. Most of the time, when I am in the moment, I feel as though I am flying by the seat of my pants. But I have had 2 weeks off for our winter break, and I can see that there is a regularity to our day, having spent the Christmas season with no schedule.
It all depends on the ages of the children, but this post is directed at the mom with elementary age children and younger. I can't stress enough that keeping it simple is so important. If you are new to home education, or still in the first few years, you will be bombarded with choices. Choices of subjects and curricula; choices of activities and groups to join. All of these can easily make you lose focus and get caught up in trying to have the perfect home school. Feelings of guilt over choosing a cheaper curriculum or not doing all the subjects your friends, who are on the go all day, are doing, may follow. And then you fear that your kids won't get into the best college or be successful in life because you did not do enough.
Not to downplay the importance of academics: when the kids get to middle school and high school, I aim for a college-prep approach, but in the early years, the focus really shouldn't be academics. You have here an opportunity to reach into your child's mind and heart to see how they think and process the world, to see what motivates them and where they need some spiritual building up. This is an opportunity that passes quickly, so take advantage of it. Spend time with them reading to them on a variety of subjects, have them listen to books on CD (my kids would disappear for hours at a time listening to stories, while I cooked dinner and cleaned up). Take long walks with them at the park or around your neighborhood, cook a meal together for a new mom or a bereaved neighbor, shovel someone's driveway together, take them to the grocery store. Just be together.
But back to academics. I have tried many approaches and curricula; some worked and some didn't. It's OK if you choose the wrong book; you can put it away for another child and pick something else out. Here is what we are doing now, with our 8 and 10 year olds, and the 5 and 2 year old just listen in. Math, spelling, geography, science, history and Latin. Yes, I know it seems a lot, but we are usually finished before lunch. If I didn't have the 2 younger ones, we could easily finish in 2 or 2 1/2 hours, but then, life would not be so exciting. Let me break it down for you.
Math- 30 minutes is enough for young kids. Teach at their level and pace. Make sure they have mastered every new concept before moving on. Sometimes they will get it the first time you present it; if so, move on. But sometimes it takes a while, so slow down. I use Saxon Math, and I typically start my kids in the next higher grade than they are currently in, and usually progress to the next level, so that they are in a book 2 grades higher. That way we can really take our time and use the book for 2 school years.
Spelling- 15 minutes a day is enough. Find a spelling book that heavily emphasizes phonics and groups spelling words together by their rules. I use the Spelling Workout series. Depending on their reading ability, work in some reading from whatever source you want.
Geography- 15 minutes a day and you can cover any topic you want. This year I picked the 50 states. We cover the state tree, flower and bird. The kids have a notebook where they draw these items, thus working in a bit of art. We also discuss the state's location and date of statehood and population. That's it for that.
Science- 15 minutes or so is enough to read out loud from a science book. This year, we are studying flying creatures. We use the Apologia science series all through 12th grade. There are experiments if you want, but they are optional. I also have the kids keep a science notebook; this year they are drawing birds that visit our backyard and other creatures we are studying. Again, I worked in some art.
Latin- I use Latina Christiana for the younger kids. It's a DVD course that gives the kids a lecture for the week's lesson, and the rest of the week we work in the workbook. On Mondays, they watch the video, which is about 20-30 minutes, but the rest of the week, we spend 10-15 minutes a day in the workbook. Why Latin? It is the foundation for our language, the course I use heavily emphasizes grammar and memorization, and it will help them immensely as they get older and study science and read more advanced literature containing difficult and new vocabulary. (My oldest child, now in college, had to suffer through many attempts at finding the right language program. She will tell you this is by far the best one she tried.)
History- I recommend studying history in chronological order when you are starting out. Too many times kids are expected to study history out of order and memorize a bunch of dates and names without ever having events put in their proper context. I use Biblioplan for Families, and I have cycled through it many times. But there are many other history curricula out there that follow this pattern. Most of this is reading out loud to the kids, and then assigning the independent readers their own age-appropriate books. Historical fiction works best at this age. You can spend as much time as you want reading out loud; sometimes I save it for right before bed, if it's an especially exciting book. They don't even think of it as 'school.'
Music- My kids do take piano lessons once a week, and spend 15-30 minutes a day (weekdays) practicing. But not everyone has a piano or the money to pay for one plus lessons. It is worthwhile, so keep your eyes open for a used piano and perhaps barter with a piano teacher (lessons for babysitting, for example). But until then, invest in many classical and jazz music CDs. Listen to them and talk about the music. Maybe get a book about a particular composer and listen to his music for a while.
At this point, you may (or may not) ask about time spent in the Bible. My history, science, and Latin materials are taught from a biblical perspective; in my opinion, knowledge apart from God is incomplete. Throughout the day, the kids and I discuss how God has created everything we study- even math! But if you want, there are lots of Bible studies out there for kids, or you can simply read out loud from a Bible for kids that has good illustrations. We also read from the Story Time with the Millers series, and A Hive of Busy Bees; but there are many more to choose from.
So, if you add it up, it's 2 or 3 hours a day. You don't even have to do all the subjects every day. You can easily alternate the science and history through the week. Geography doesn't have to be done every day either. I would do math and spelling/reading every day, as these are skills children will need their whole school career, and throughout life.
If this all overwhelmed you, I understand. Just start with the math and spelling/reading only. Do it for a month or more, until you are comfortable. Work in a new subject one at a time, going at your own pace. Don't worry about finishing the subject by the end of the school year. Whatever you get accomplished is OK. Your kids will be fine. It's called Elementary School for a reason.
Most importantly, keep your focus on your child's heart. If you are having a rough day because of disobedience or a bad attitude, then stop doing school, and minister to your child's spirit. If you and your child are in a right relationship, then the academics will follow.
Please feel free to ask questions or comment!
It all depends on the ages of the children, but this post is directed at the mom with elementary age children and younger. I can't stress enough that keeping it simple is so important. If you are new to home education, or still in the first few years, you will be bombarded with choices. Choices of subjects and curricula; choices of activities and groups to join. All of these can easily make you lose focus and get caught up in trying to have the perfect home school. Feelings of guilt over choosing a cheaper curriculum or not doing all the subjects your friends, who are on the go all day, are doing, may follow. And then you fear that your kids won't get into the best college or be successful in life because you did not do enough.
Not to downplay the importance of academics: when the kids get to middle school and high school, I aim for a college-prep approach, but in the early years, the focus really shouldn't be academics. You have here an opportunity to reach into your child's mind and heart to see how they think and process the world, to see what motivates them and where they need some spiritual building up. This is an opportunity that passes quickly, so take advantage of it. Spend time with them reading to them on a variety of subjects, have them listen to books on CD (my kids would disappear for hours at a time listening to stories, while I cooked dinner and cleaned up). Take long walks with them at the park or around your neighborhood, cook a meal together for a new mom or a bereaved neighbor, shovel someone's driveway together, take them to the grocery store. Just be together.
But back to academics. I have tried many approaches and curricula; some worked and some didn't. It's OK if you choose the wrong book; you can put it away for another child and pick something else out. Here is what we are doing now, with our 8 and 10 year olds, and the 5 and 2 year old just listen in. Math, spelling, geography, science, history and Latin. Yes, I know it seems a lot, but we are usually finished before lunch. If I didn't have the 2 younger ones, we could easily finish in 2 or 2 1/2 hours, but then, life would not be so exciting. Let me break it down for you.
Math- 30 minutes is enough for young kids. Teach at their level and pace. Make sure they have mastered every new concept before moving on. Sometimes they will get it the first time you present it; if so, move on. But sometimes it takes a while, so slow down. I use Saxon Math, and I typically start my kids in the next higher grade than they are currently in, and usually progress to the next level, so that they are in a book 2 grades higher. That way we can really take our time and use the book for 2 school years.
Spelling- 15 minutes a day is enough. Find a spelling book that heavily emphasizes phonics and groups spelling words together by their rules. I use the Spelling Workout series. Depending on their reading ability, work in some reading from whatever source you want.
Geography- 15 minutes a day and you can cover any topic you want. This year I picked the 50 states. We cover the state tree, flower and bird. The kids have a notebook where they draw these items, thus working in a bit of art. We also discuss the state's location and date of statehood and population. That's it for that.
Science- 15 minutes or so is enough to read out loud from a science book. This year, we are studying flying creatures. We use the Apologia science series all through 12th grade. There are experiments if you want, but they are optional. I also have the kids keep a science notebook; this year they are drawing birds that visit our backyard and other creatures we are studying. Again, I worked in some art.
Latin- I use Latina Christiana for the younger kids. It's a DVD course that gives the kids a lecture for the week's lesson, and the rest of the week we work in the workbook. On Mondays, they watch the video, which is about 20-30 minutes, but the rest of the week, we spend 10-15 minutes a day in the workbook. Why Latin? It is the foundation for our language, the course I use heavily emphasizes grammar and memorization, and it will help them immensely as they get older and study science and read more advanced literature containing difficult and new vocabulary. (My oldest child, now in college, had to suffer through many attempts at finding the right language program. She will tell you this is by far the best one she tried.)
History- I recommend studying history in chronological order when you are starting out. Too many times kids are expected to study history out of order and memorize a bunch of dates and names without ever having events put in their proper context. I use Biblioplan for Families, and I have cycled through it many times. But there are many other history curricula out there that follow this pattern. Most of this is reading out loud to the kids, and then assigning the independent readers their own age-appropriate books. Historical fiction works best at this age. You can spend as much time as you want reading out loud; sometimes I save it for right before bed, if it's an especially exciting book. They don't even think of it as 'school.'
Music- My kids do take piano lessons once a week, and spend 15-30 minutes a day (weekdays) practicing. But not everyone has a piano or the money to pay for one plus lessons. It is worthwhile, so keep your eyes open for a used piano and perhaps barter with a piano teacher (lessons for babysitting, for example). But until then, invest in many classical and jazz music CDs. Listen to them and talk about the music. Maybe get a book about a particular composer and listen to his music for a while.
At this point, you may (or may not) ask about time spent in the Bible. My history, science, and Latin materials are taught from a biblical perspective; in my opinion, knowledge apart from God is incomplete. Throughout the day, the kids and I discuss how God has created everything we study- even math! But if you want, there are lots of Bible studies out there for kids, or you can simply read out loud from a Bible for kids that has good illustrations. We also read from the Story Time with the Millers series, and A Hive of Busy Bees; but there are many more to choose from.
So, if you add it up, it's 2 or 3 hours a day. You don't even have to do all the subjects every day. You can easily alternate the science and history through the week. Geography doesn't have to be done every day either. I would do math and spelling/reading every day, as these are skills children will need their whole school career, and throughout life.
If this all overwhelmed you, I understand. Just start with the math and spelling/reading only. Do it for a month or more, until you are comfortable. Work in a new subject one at a time, going at your own pace. Don't worry about finishing the subject by the end of the school year. Whatever you get accomplished is OK. Your kids will be fine. It's called Elementary School for a reason.
Most importantly, keep your focus on your child's heart. If you are having a rough day because of disobedience or a bad attitude, then stop doing school, and minister to your child's spirit. If you and your child are in a right relationship, then the academics will follow.
Please feel free to ask questions or comment!
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