I mentioned on my Bulkapean thread that I'm organizing my day from the inside

[ArmsOfLove]

out :rockon So I thought I'd share what is working for us to maybe inspire others to find their own rhythm :)

My challenges are: 30 minute blocks are too short for some things; hour blocks are too long for some things; 5 children are hard to wrangle :shifty and I need huge blocks of freedom and a lot of flexibility. Plus, we're structured unschoolers so planning lessons in advance leaves me frustrated and feeling rebellious to the schedule as well as like a failure :( So, with those challenges, here's what we're working with:

8am Breakfast/get ready for day
9am Math (including problem solving)
9:30am Social Studies (includes SOTW, maps, government, etc)
10am Language Arts (includes reading, grammar and art)
10:30 am Spelling and handwriting
11 am Chapter Books
11:30 am lunch
NOON TV time (including video games which they earn minutes on with their math pages--10 minutes per math page)
1 pm Babies down for nap and play time for older children
2 pm Clean house
3 pm prepare dinner and get ready for dh to get home
4 pm dinner or snack
OUTSIDE or Free Play/Family Time
7:30 pm dinner or snack
8:30 pm bath/get ready for bed
9 pm bedtime

The nice thing about this is that there is so much freedom built into it--and if we are cranking on one subject then I just pick a shorter activity for the next subject that day. For example, the children did about an hour of math today and wanted to read SOTW so we did one page in our maps book and then moved into art and I did Alpha Phonics during the babies' naps with the older children so that we could watch a movie during and after lunch. I'm seeing it more as target times and subjects within which we have a lot of room for picking what we're in the mood for. Just like we're structured unschoolers this is structured flexibility :heart

[JJsMom]

:rockon Wow, I've been thinking a lot about homeschooing since my ds is almost 4 yo. I've been wondering what my approach will be and your schedule looks roughly like what I imagine our day looking like eventually. I've never heard of structured unschooling. Maybe I should start a new thread about that so I don't hijack. :shifty
What is SOTW? :O

[ArmsOfLove]

Story of the World :)

[tempus vernum]

:rockon Hope it goes well. :tu Keep us posted.

JJSmom, there are some threads around here somewhere about "structured unschooling". Let me see if I can find them for you :heart

[tempus vernum]

I thought there were more :scratch but I only found one on structured unschooling http://www.gentlechristianmothers.com/mb/index.php?topic=94383.0

[birthchic]

That is so great!! I think often where schedules/ timetables fail is that they are imposed from the outside, rather than being organically created from how one's life actually operates.

We function so much better when we have a frim routine in place, but like you, one that still allows for flexibility. Here in the aftermath of our youngest being born- we are floundering in the eddy of unstructured life. However I feel like I just want to bide my time until summer...when we have a new routine for a couple months- and then begin anew next year.

[illinoismommy]

That's neat. So what DO your toddlers do while you do the morning stuff? What I want most is to get anything formal done by lunch so that the afternoon and evening is all free (well for the kids ;) ) ...

[JJsMom]

I thought there were more :scratch but I only found one on structured unschooling http://www.gentlechristianmothers.com/mb/index.php?topic=94383.0


Thank you! :hug I really like this concept, it feels like it fits our family. I think that seeing your schedule like that really helped me to put my ideas in perspective. :rockon