How We Do It All

And by "it" I mean get through what we need to get through each day.  And we actually don't.  But we try :)

I see a lot of posts on both the Sonlight and BookShark Facebook pages asking what a typical day looks like or how a space is organized.  I never respond because everyone is working with their own types of kids or their own special space restrictions in their homes.

My home is quite spacious and for that I'm extremely thankful.  We have an open floor plan with lots of large windows...and no wall space for hanging maps or timelines or white boards.  I have a dining room, complete with table, desk, and computer, with a sliding door leading to a porch and a large fenced yard.  We live on 15 acres and have the fenced play area to keep my babies from wandering off and drowning in our pond.  On the opposite side of the sliding door is a sunken living room, also quite large with a nook that holds five full sized bookcases and three small ones.  We also have two desks and a computer in the nook.  The living room has two couches and is divided in half: one side for TV watching (or doing schoolwork) and the other for playing.

Workboxes for E, F, D, and L

Each morning, my Grub Club sets up a small plastic table and four or five little school chairs in the living room.  Because I'm pregnant, I sit on the couch and not on a little plastic chair ;)  D and F bring their "workboxes" downstairs while I get my basket of IGs.

All Sonlight, but will get upgraded to BookShark

I keep all my IGs intact because I know that I will lose a page here or there if I try to take out only a few weeks at a time.  I use Post It notes as bookmarks so I know which week I'm on for each subject/level because there is no way I can keep us all on Week X on each subject all year long.

Grub Club and Usborne Children's Encyclopedia

The older three kids take turns on the two computers getting their math (Teaching Textbooks) done.  S finished his math last week, so he helps out with the two babies.  I start my teaching day with History and Science for the Grubs.  I don't read the book at all, I just open to the scheduled page and let them ask as many questions as they want.  That is one thing I love about the Usborne encyclopedias.  When they are out of questions, I fill in whatever information they missed.  Then I get F started on her Saxon timed test, which I don't time, while I do D's math and LA.  He likes to finish first (because first is best in his mind) and go off and play while I finish math (and maybe LA) with F.

Dining Room "Isolation" table-for older kids and those who aren't focusing.

After the Grubs are done and if we don't have to go anywhere (like Homeschool PE at the YMCA), I read History to E and S.  Neither one comprehends the Landmark book if I read it straight.  Honestly, I can't stand the Landmark book for this reason.  I paraphrase and ask questions and make up examples to help explain what is happening the whole time I do the reading.  I usually read two days worth at once because I never know if I will get to this subject the next day.  I've skipped the map and timeline activities so far, but have plans to incorporate them soon.  Then I go over the LA assignments for each of them (E keeps her work in a workbox and S works from a 3-ring binder) and they go off to read or write.  On nice days they like to read in trees or move my little table to the porch:

LA 3 and S in the sun!

I keep all the books I need for each reading/history/science level on the one bookshelf that isn't in my "book nook."  In front of the bookshelf I keep an open ironing board.  One might think I use it to iron things, but I actually use it to keep my IGs open while I pull down the books-of-the-day.  I have to be very strict with my kids when it comes to putting their readers back on the shelf when they are done for the day.  I have lost too many books and too many teaching days due to lost books.  Right now the bookshelf has only the two main cores and the readers since IJ finished BKSK 7 and I packed it away.  I won't need that level again for a few more years and I don't want to lose any of the books!  If IJ wants to revisit a book he enjoyed, he can just check it out from the public library.

Afternoons are tricky, especially when the sun starts shining.  I often find my kids outside instead of finishing up their daily work.  This is why several of them will be working through the summer.  By the time we get home from PE or Scouts, I need to make dinner and cannot teach.  I've had to make an effort to limit evening activities so we can get our work done after dinner.  I do the reading aloud for the youngest at bed time while the older three rotate through the dishwashing chores.

What I'm missing in my week is reading aloud to the older kids, science, and art.  It seems that my older kids would rather go off and follow their own interests instead of hearing a story or doing an art project.  Science is just plain tricky for us this year.  My husband and I both have science degrees and have no problem teaching or explaining scientific principles.  I had been following the four year cycle of science: biology, earth and space, chemistry, and physics, but we somehow got all screwed up over the last two years thanks to a cranky baby (H) and independent study.  My older three have no interest whatsoever in chemistry, so they are just going to not do science until BKSK 7 Science is released.  Sometimes I throw together a chemistry demonstration that I can do after dinner on Mondays while IJ is at youth group.  When E starts BKSK 4 Reading with History, she will also do Science 4 (which my older two did a few years ago from the Sonlight package). 

What I have learned, through trial and error, is that I really need to have a solid routine in place in order to get everything done.  Every kid needs to know where their stuff is and what space in the house they occupy while they use their stuff.  They need to put their stuff away too.  And I need to make sure I know what space I need to occupy with what materials so I can help them be successful.  And most importantly, I've learned that although I need to have routine and stay focused, I also need to be flexible for those days when kids are sick or the sun is shining or...*insert fun alternative to book learning here*