I've read so many different things about a typical "year round" schedule. Care to share? I've read about 6 weeks on 1-2 weeks off? I've also read 9 weeks on, etc? I would prefer not to "wing it" we did that this past year in our first year homeschooling because we've done a lot of trial/error, finishing things up here and there. Now that I have a specific curriculum all laid out, I'd like a more "set" schedule, of course I know there will be days we fall back, here and there, with trips, or sickness, etc. I'd just like a more set schedule to follow, as I need organization to keep me on track!
Are you trying to do just one "full" year of school (36 weeks-180 days) spread throughout a year (no summer break)? Or are you trying to add more days/weeks into a year?
My friends DD went to a public year round school awhile back & I think their schedule was 3 weeks on then a week off. We school year round, but its more like just longer holidays - more time off at Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter plus a week here and there when there's too many school weeks in a row =) Also we took a whole month off this year for "summer" which I won't do again.
With my current situation, schooling Other People's Kids, we're kinda stuck with the traditional 36-week school year August-May. But if I had my druthers, I'd try to do a 40 weeks year, which would leave about 12 weeks to take off. Forty weeks would either be about 5 weeks 8 times or 10 weeks 4 times, with bigger or smaller vacation breaks between, according to when holidays fall. But I don't foresee that happening in this universe.
Kricau, the major benefit to my family is that my son doesn't lose half of what he has learned in a 2-3 month break in the summer. Also, we don't get so out of the swing of things that starting back up seems like such a hurdle. And the final piece of why we do it is that instead of falling behind, we are getting ahead little by little. Whether being ahead will continue or not, right now we are in a position that if we need to take a few extra weeks on this or that, it won't put him so far behind that it will be difficult to catch him back up.
IMO, schooling year round is more of a lifestyle of learning than a time-compartmentalized learning, to be done only during certain hours at certain times of the year. And of course, there'd be less "grade level" thinking, since learning is continuous. OTOH, when I was in public school myself, summers were "endless" and there's something to be said for that. When I'd get bored is when I'd get creative and come up with my own "projects" or activities to entertain myself. So there's something to be said for that too.
We school "year around" kind of. We start the Monday after July 4th. We school for 9 weeks and take 1 off. We then school 9 more weeks and take off 6 (this is the week of Thanksgiving through New Years. We start our second half of the year the Monday after New Years. We school 9 weeks and take 1 off. We school 9 weeks and take 8 off. (This is mid May through the Monday after the 4th). These are the 180 days we count, but we are really learning all the time
You make VERY good points. I hate that after summer "jet lag" sort of feeling. And yes my daughter seemed to have lost the swing of reading ?! I will have to seriously think about this for next year
We have a 38 week school year here. We pretty much go full time with a few short breaks from early September through the end of June. In July and August I do a little. This summer we are continuing with math and learning about botany. Year round can look however you want it to look. For our school year we are doing about 6 weeks on and one week off. It doesn't always work perfectly due to holidays and birthdays (also school holidays for us), but you are the one in charge and you can adjust it to fit your family.
I remember Joy at FIVEj's writing about this at one point. She has an example calendar and talks a bit about it, in this blog post.
Thanks, that's a bit more helpful! Silly me, I should've just thought of simply looking at the calendar with a prospect of how much time we'd like off around the holidays and calculate from there! Looking at it as a whole can be overwhelming, rather than just looking at it in "terms" Thanks for all the info, it does help!
