So before you all say no way, let me explain. I have been thinking about the possibility of taking 1 day per kid every week and focusing on a weeks worth of book work. So for example my oldest would do a weeks worth of school on Monday, 11yo dd tue, etc. for all subjects that have book work. On their days "off" they would be required to read, watch educational shows that I have approved or work online on approved sites. Fridays would be for history and science. As it sits right now I feel like I am running around trying my hardest to help all of them (and not always succeding..there are many days that 1 or 2 of them don't get done with their stuff) that at the end of the day I am so exhausted I just want to sleep for a week. Has anyone ever tried doing this??
I think it would be more possible if you did two kids per day, with the same idea in mind, so that each gets your time every other day. In theory, though, it works. You could always try it and change your mind later.
I currently have only 4 kids officially doing school (my 1, 2 and 4yo join us when they feel like it) so I would be schooling individually Monday through Thursday with Friday as group subjects. It seems like it could work better for us but in my state I have to count hours AND days so I am a bit worried about that.
Hmmm....I understand the reason why you are thinking of this. Buuutt...I'm not sure if it would work. How long of a day do you think it might be to get a whole week done in one day? In thinking of my own daughter and her schedule, this would amount to 4 or 5 math lessons, 2 science lessons, 3 history lessons, 5 grammar lessons, 5 spelling lessons, 4 writing lessons, and a few miscellaneous things. I think it would be too much for a kid all in one day. Sometimes my dd doesn't even want to finish one of those lessons and would "have a cow", as they used to say when I was in school, if I told her we had more of that subject to do. And, I would think it might not be a good idea to have an entire week go by before they get back to their day of formal lessons again. It's a lot to think about, and I know you are trying to figure something out to give you a break...I'm just not sure if this is it. But, that's just my opinion.
IMHO I think you are asking for a rebellion if you expect multiple lessons per subject per day. What are you using for each kid for each subject? Can it be done independently? If not can you change to something that can? I'm on my tablet now so typing a lot stinks but think there has to be a way to do a schedule for you that works.
I agree I think a kid would bog down and not get it all done and retain it. I think they would need practice for math, spelling and grammar to keep it retained. Only doing the core subjects one day a week would be tough. I do sometimes do a double day with my kids and that in itself is kind of tough for them. I have in times past did alternating schedules Math and Hist. on M,W English and Science T, Th and spelling daily with extra stuff on Friday. It is not easy to juggle several kids at once. I have tried to give assignments they can do on their own, while I work with another child. But still there are many days I feel like all I did was run in circles. Hang in there!
It might be more doable if you take 13 and 11 on Monday and do half their week, then do the other half for those two on Wednesday. Then on Tuesday you take 10 and 8 and do half, and do the other half on Thursday. Then do whatever on Friday. Surely there's some part of their book work that could be done independently on their "off days" instead of just watching shows and reading whatever. With DGS, age 8, we're trying to get two reading lessons (both on the same story), and two LA lessons done at least three times a week (four or five if we possibly can), trying to catch him up in those subjects. He's finally gotten used to it. But I cannot even imagine trying to get him to do five lessons of anything done in one day -- never mind five lessons of everything done in one day. Never mind not doing it again for a week??
I wouldn't say impossible, but I think it would be difficult at best. That is a lot of work for one day, and retention would be difficult with little day-to-day practice. I also school four, and it is a juggling act at times. My oldest is a senior and mostly independent, though I have to help with math lessons at times. The next is 9th grade and does some on her own. She has some learning struggles and requires more of my attention than the others at times. Next is a 7th grader. She works independently for math and language arts and does Bible, history, science, and art with her younger sister. My 4th grader usually needs a bit of help with math and language arts. All know to wait until I finish helping their siblings before asking for help. They can read or work on something else independently while waiting. My sanity has been in combining kids' lessons when possible. Multi-level curriculum is awesome!
Hmmmmm…..Impossible? I say NOTHING is impossible? Difficult, yes. Extremely. I have a girlfriend who's daughter is almost an elite gymnast. Her daughter does all of her schoolwork in 2 days a week. Her daughter is a MESS. And on the days she does work, it takes FOREVER. Ends up being more stressful for both her AND my friend. She just recently switched it back to her doing a little each day….so far, so good. Honestly, your two older ones should be mostly independent. IN MY OPINION! I give my kids a schedule of work that needs to be completed…my 14 year old works on it how she feels like, as long as all the work is done by 5:00 Friday, i really don't care. My 12 year old, I am giving him some freedom in that regard as well….but not as much, he lacks the same level of discipline that she has. All three work at their own pace, and I am here to help when they need me, but none of their subjects (including the 3rd grader) are the "hand holding" type, except for MAYBE history. Most times, we read the text together and discuss. Does this mean I'm not their TEACHER? No….I do TEACH them many things. And we discuss often, throughout the day, week, even weekend (gasp!). BUT, this has allowed THEM to take ownership of their learning and take responsibility. I will not always be there to be the one to MAKE them work. They need to own it themselves. I find that my children learn more, and retain more, when they are responsible for it. I hope that makes sense….maybe there would be a way to transition them to a few subjects during the week that are independent, so that one day a week isn't over minor things, but majors?
All of the points that have been made are ones I have thought about. Would they retain as much? Would they HATE me for making them do 5 lessons in one day per subject? Would it really be better for them? or me? I have thought of everything. Believe me. As for my kids, my 7th grader will NOT work independently. Not because he doesn't want to but because his brain wanders and he has a lot of trouble focusing. I literally have to sit next to him through each subject. Even if I am in the room with him doing something else he won't do his work. It takes him ALL, and by ALL, I mean 8-12 hours to get his stuff done for 1 day. However, when he has been behind and I make him so 2-3 days at once it takes him LESS time! I think it has to do with I am more focused on him and that is why he can get everything done in less time. I suspect he has ADD, and should probably have him diagnosed but it is not at the top of my priority list right now. If he has it, it is mild enough his dr probably wouldn't put him on anything. My 5th grader is VERY independent and can pretty much teach herself every subject with only asking a few questions. So she is easy. She can get everything done in just a 3-4 hours every day as long as she isn't interrupted by anyone. She needs solitude to get her work done which she usually gets by doing her work in her room. She is not my concern. She is working at 6-8 grade levels right now. My 4th grader is similar to my 7th grader. He needs me to sit with him for the WHOLE time he is working. He has high functioning Autism and can't focus very well and can't remember what I asked him to do. Plus if he doesn't want to do it he gets angry. He doesn't lash out though, he just sit there and pouts and says he feels very angry. Sometimes he will just disappear to somewhere in the house if I turn my back for a second. He gets behind in school work faster than the others because he quietly disapears and by the time I find him it is too late to do school work because dinner needs fixed or other kids need my attention. I can't put him school though because when we tried school he was a nightmare for his teacher. He was always in trouble (even though he didn't mean to do things that were bad) he just can't function in a regular classroom with his autism. My 3rd grader is still learning to read, but she is catching on quicker now that I bought a reading eggs subscription. She is at a Kindergarten reading level and still needs a lot of parental involvement for her to even understand what she needs to do. Her work doesn't take that long....maybe 3 hours. I was thinking of trying the 1 day a week thing for the rest of November and then if it doesn't work, then we can try something else. What we have been doing is NOT working anymore. I have also thought of the split schedule so MW we do certain subjects and TTH we do the others. Friday would be history, science, art, fun days. Maybe I should just try that instead of the 1 day a week thing....I don't know. I just worry that I am not doing the best job and I just want to find something that works for them and me. *sigh* Currently I feel I am failing them.
Just the fact that you are trying to find a solution shows you are not failing them. I would definitely try to find a way to get your oldest to a point of more independence. Maybe break things down into smaller chunks that he can manage? My 15yo needs more help than my younger ones at times, so I understand where you are coming from. I do strive to force independence as much as I can, because in a few short years, independence will be a must! Just keep trying to see what will work for you and your kids. I will say, a few time that we didn't finish math and I made the kids double up--it was awful! I can't imagine 5 lessons in one day!
I'm tired just looking at your list of children and their ages. I don't think you can escape exhaustion even if you didn't homeschool! I think it would be better to use a multi-age curriculum and some self-paced, self-taught programs for the individual subjects. I don't think our brains can handle a mass of information dumped on it in a short amount of time.
Six is right on the money here! YOU ARE NOT FAILING THEM AT ALL!!!!! I think I like your 2nd suggestion better than the doing it all in one day thing. I think that would get more exhausting for you. My 7th Grader, a son, I would believe he has ADD. He had LOTS of trouble up until this year…staying on task, staying focused, wanting me to sit with him (not needing me to, but wanting me to), etc. I do NOT want a diagnosis for him b/c it would mean hoops to jump through in my state. So I leave him undiagnosed…or self diagnosed anyway. Well, he gets a cup of coffee on school days. I'm not proud of it. But he likes it, and it helps him settle down and focus. It's made a world of difference. There are also VERY clear cut consequences to his dawdling and taking all day with his schoolwork. My husband laid out the consequences…and we picked my son's currency (video games, tv time, etc). My girls literally are NO problem at all. LOL I feel blessed that way - but I hear that often - girls, I think, in general, are more self-motivated….LOL
Ok my thoughts.... 3rd grader seems to need lots of attention, not doing reading every day and maybe math too would probably spell disaster. I also don't think her work should take that long a day ESP if you are doing science and social studies as a family. My thoughts of her is if math is taking more than a half hour it's taking too long. Reading instruction should take 15-20 minutes and she should read for 10-15 minutes per day alone. Spelling and handwriting should be combined and take no more than 15 minutes a day and writings in a journal every day should also be short and sweet. Combine any grammar for her with your 4th grader. 4th trader's schedule should be similar. Reading time should be a little longer. 5th grader sounds like she is doing ok but I wouldn't think she needs more than 2 hours a day for la and math subjects. 7th grader needs a timer and a workbox system. ADD or not he needs to work in independence. I would hit Dollar Tree for a crap load of timers. He would have several that were his... one foe each subject that isn't a family subject. His LA and math shouldn't take more than 3 hours a day. I would make mornings group subjects... history, geography, science, art, music, all on a rotating schedule. You should be able to finish this stuff in 2-3 hours a day. If you start at 8then by 11 they should be ready to go to individual subjects. This is where you can start rotating individual time.
My kids have 5-6 hrs of school work Mon thru Thurs, and Fri is for anything they didnt finish during the week and tests. There is no way that they could get all of their work done in two days, let alone one day. My kids are 13 and 15, and fairly independent. We use the same curriculum, just different levels for math and language arts and typing. Science and history is done as a group.
I like Sommer's workbox idea, and I think you could make it work for all of your kids. You can modify that system with folders/large envelopes/etc. if space is an issue. When I did them, I didn't do twelve as suggested. You can include educational games or activities to be chosen if you are busy with another child. The goal is letting them see what is there for the day and letting them take control of it.
Maybe 5th grader could give some assistance or read aloud to 3rd grader for 20 minutes here and there, and take a little of the pressure off you? It sounds like you really need to work with 7th and 4th yourself, so maybe this would help some?
Timers are a big thing here, I have quite a few of them. Rylee is one who day dreams A LOT!!! If I don't set a timer for her, math takes her all. day. long. literally. I know if she focuses non stop she can get done in about 20 minutes (just the work, not the lesson she watches on the computer), so I set the timer for 35 minutes. It gives her some extra time in case she has to go potty or she does zone out for a second or she finds a tougher math problem that needs more time. When the timer goes off, she has to bring me her papers... done or not. I check them, mark what is wrong and give them back. She fixes the problems and brings it to me for another glance and then goes and enters the answers into the computer (she uses TT). I also think workboxes could be great for all of your kids, and you don't have to refill them every day.... just keep the same work in the same drawers and maybe have one or two that get changed up. I hope you don't mind, I copied your list from your blog.... just looking at it makes me tired... that isn't even multiplying it by 4 kids and 3 more roaming the house! Math: Math-U-See (MUS) History: Story of the World (SOTW) and A History of US Science: Simple Schooling, living books with notebooking, and Netflix Writing: Wordsmith Apprentice for my oldest 2, and Writing Strands for my 8 and 9 yo Foreign Language: Prima Latina for Latin Music: Color the Classics Art: Drawing with Children and McGraw Hills Art Connections Grammar: Easy Grammar Spelling: Spelling Power Logic: Mind Benders Literature/LA: Learning Language Arts Through Literature (LLATL) Reading: Whatever the book is for LLATL or personal reading Learning to read: McGuffey readers and the app that goes along with it Scriptures: reading and activity sheets Keyboarding: We use this fun BBC website but may switch to this one. Next semester my oldest will be using this site to learn programming, and this site for foreign language. Can I ask why you are doing LLATL if you have another Grammar, another Spelling, another Writing... and you have them reading on top of it sometimes it seems??? In my opinion, math needs to be done almost daily. If we are having a horrible day and nothing is getting done, math is the only thing I make sure does get done. I don't know a lot about MUS, I know I looked at it once and saw black and white worksheets and knew my kids would throw me overboard. If you can switch to TT it is a life saver for many! I'm not saying it takes you out of the equation... many people complain TT failed their kid, when really they failed their kid because they thought the program let them go Scott free. I totally believe they need the workbook, so they can work the problems for you to check.. checking takes a minute and you can quickly see where the kid needs help. I'm not beyond using page protectors and dry erase markers if you need to save money by using the book with multiple kids. McRuffy math is great too... it puts me front and center... but there is no better math out there. Very hands on, very colorful and my kids all love it (it just became too "heavy" for Ry this past year... but it was a perfect time to move into TT). Language Arts... there are so many parts to this and you have some of them doubled! Drop something! Once you trim here then you can split it up, some days you do this, some days you do that. Writing, why not WS for all the kids? I don't know anything about Wordsmith, but WS is a great program. I know it's set up to be used every day until a lesson is done and then take a week off... but rules are made to be broken! Do it every other day every week! Easy Grammar... do it 2 days a week! Spelling 3 days a week. Keyboarding or handwriting... 2 days a week. For reading and literature.... let them choose what to read, if you feel they need some specific books require them. Let them test on bookadventure. For your oldest look at Hewitt's Lightning Literature. I would probably drop grammar if you switch him to that and there is writing in it too, he also could drop spelling... vocab is included in LL. Science, History, Geography, Music, Art, Latin, Logic.... rotate these. Maybe 2 a day? Here is how my schedule would look: Together subjects: MW: History TTh: Science M: Music T: Art W: Logic Th: Logic Friday would be for science labs, bigger history projects (build a pyramid with sugar cubes) MTWTh: Math MWF: Writing Strands TTh: Easy Grammar MWF: Spelling TTh: keyboarding or handwriting Daily: Independent Reading or reading lessons for the ones who need it. I don't think kids need to know how to analyze a book at all until middle school... when Hewitt's Lightning Lit starts (they now are doing elem. too but only have 1st grade out and it's pretty all inclusive for LA). Honestly, when I read a book, I read it for my own enjoyment... I don't sit and think well what is the plot, who is the protagonist, etc.
Sommer-I wasnt very clear in my listing about LLATL. I use it for the book list and a few random things I find in it that we aren't covering any where else, like cursive and book studies. I was gifted most of the LLATL so it was cheaper than buying something else. We don't use it for writing, grammar, spelling and stuff I am already covering. I feel it is weaker in those areas, that is why we use the other programs. I have more to say but I am on my tablet and breakfast needs made and my 2yo is having a meltdown. I will come back and comment more later.
