How We Homeschool

I am a closet homeschooling parent. By that, I mean that my kids aren't homeschooled all the time, just on vacations. I would love to homeschool them all the time, but I realized very quickly when teaching Monkey preschool at home that I do not have the self-discipline to do this every single day all year long and actually accomplish anything.

Also, that, apparently, familiarity really does breed contempt because after a week or two, my children don't tend to want to do anything for me--they'd rather play all day. Go figure! 😜

Also, that if they were homeschooled full-time, they wouldn't get the socialization that my very social children obviously need. (This is the biggest reason I don't homeschool full-time--I can overcome the other two if I really need to, like now.)

For all of these reasons, my children go to public school, but I can't help myself--at heart, I am still a teacher; I am constantly finding lessons and activities online and downloading them, and when they are on vacation, we have an hour or two of school time every day. Not more than that--I bow to their desire to play on vacation--but enough to keep what they learned during the school year current in their minds.

All that being said, it should come as no surprise to anyone that with the current coronavirus situation and schools being canceled, etc., I very happily pulled out all my supplies and activities. And I have a lot! I still have a lot of the teaching materials that I used as a high school English teacher, and I inherited several things from my mom from her years as a 5th grade and then a kindergarten teacher. In addition, I subscribe to several different teaching blogs that are always giving out freebies, so if you have a child between the ages of 3 and 10, I've got you covered!

Today, I want to share with you our daily routine, sample lesson plans, the best websites with lots of free lessons and activities, and various other ideas for material to use to homeschool your children in a pinch. You don't have to subscribe to an online learning program like Reading Eggs or ABC Mouse (though those are GREAT programs!) or have a degree and experience in education like I do to successfully keep your children learning during all of this "social distancing". All you need is a computer with a printer, a little patience, an awareness of what your child is currently learning in school, and the willingness to spend a little time with them in the midst of all the working from home, etc. adjustments.

First, let me explain our daily schedule. I created it last summer as a way to keep my children from losing that 70% of information you read about children losing over the summer months when they're not in school, and as a way to keep them from watching YouTube all day. (Are your children addicted too? Groan! 😝 It is a constant battle!) As you can see from the picture below, I've built time into it for lots of free play, inside or outside, as well as time on the computer and TV. (My goal is to limit those things, not cut them out completely.)

In addition, for most of the day, they're on their own, with me just checking on them occasionally and telling them when it's time for the next activity, which allows me plenty of time to get my own work done (hint, hint, working from home parents 😉). For example, while they did their reading and computer time this morning, I worked on stripping the beds to wash all the linens, cleaning up the kitchen from breakfast, and cleaning and vacuuming the main part of the house. Now, during their TV time, I'm writing this blog.

The only time they have my undivided attention is during the two hours of school time, and this is mainly because I have two preschoolers who need a lot of supervision and direction. Monkey being in 2nd grade, I can give her assignments and check back in with her which makes teaching the other two much easier.

The thing to remember with the schedule is that it's not set in stone; you can be flexible. You may not get everything done in the same order from day to day; that's okay. The key is variety because I have found if my children are left unattended to do the same thing too long, they tend to get bored and argumentative or revert to watching YouTube on their iPads for hours on end. I'd prefer to avoid either scenario.

 I try to keep lesson plans simple. I decide what subjects they need to work on, and then pick one activity for that subject each day. For Monkey, that means lots of reading, out loud and to herself, on different subjects--biographies for History, science books for Science and whatever strikes her and my fancy for Reading. For Tater and Curly, this means being read to, practicing their fine motor skills and doing lots of hands-on activities. This week we're focusing on dinosaurs, so all three kids' science and reading books are about dinosaurs, both factual and fictional. My kids love dinosaurs, so we have quite a few books on the subject that we've picked up at flea markets, thrift stores, etc. 😉

For math, there's a lot more that you can do besides worksheets. For my preschoolers especially, it's important to use manipulatives and things from real life. Here's a picture of them stringing pony beads on pipe cleaners to match the number taped to the top of the pipe cleaner.

We also like using mini erasers from Target and other small manipulatives like buttons, pompoms and building blocks to do different math activities. They're great for sorting, counting, addition, subtraction, and I'm sure other math functions I haven't even thought of yet.

And now for my first recommended website. I love the blog Life Over C's--Kim has tons of great activities for literacy, math, steam, art, science and special education (two of her children have special needs), and over half of her activities are free! This is a picture of Monkey practicing greater than/less than addition with Kim's free LEGO printable.

Another great math blog, especially for older kids, is Math Geek Mama. Bethany is an actual math teacher who is passionate about creating engaging activities to help kids learn and understand math better, and she is quite talented at designing great activities for kids to practice everything from number recognition to algebra! I'm sure I'll be using more of her activities as my kids get older.

While I'm on the subject of educational blogs, here's a list of my other favorites that I use the most:
Playdough to Plato: literacy and math
the STEM Laboratory: STEM
Homeschool Preschool: early literacy and math
Stay at Home Educator: early literacy, math and STEM
The Kindergarten Connection: early literacy, math and STEM
Not Consumed: Bible studies
Teachers Pay Teachers: everything under the sun!

To access the free printables from these various sites, you simply need to sign up for their newsletter and before you know it, your email box will be simply inundated with free learning activities and special deals on their not-free learning activities to download and print. Check them out; I guarantee that you will find something you can use to make homeschool more interesting for your kids!

I also like using board games to practice various skills: Scrabble and Hangman for spelling, Battleship for letter and number recognition, Uno for color and number recognition, Rummikub for addition. Yesterday, I taught the kids how to play Monopoly Jr. and made Monkey be the banker, giving her her addition practice for the day. I had to read the cards for the younger two and direct them on which money to give the banker for different things, but everybody had a great time and they were all able to follow along the course of the game. And they didn't even realize they were learning! 😉

Finally, I am not above using the TV and yes, even YouTube, to add in learning new skills or information. Far and away my favorite educational TV show is the Magic School Bus, and my favorite educational YouTube channel is the Dr. Binocs show on Peekaboo Kidz!; both of these are science shows and make learning science really fun and interesting. Another great resource is PBS Kids; if, like us, you don't have cable , you can download their app for free from the App Store and you'll have access to all of their great shows that cover everything from math to science to reading to history. In fact, one of our favorite new shows is Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum which features three kids who go back in time to meet famous people and learn about their lives. Another favorite show from Universal Kids (available on YouTube TV) is Where's Waldo, which focuses on geography. And, if you have Chromecast or Firestick, like we do, you can cast it to the TV for everyone to watch at the same time.

If you would like to use my vacation schedule or lesson plans for your own family, you can download them here and here. The Morning Checklist and Bedtime Checklist listed at the top and bottom of the schedule I found at the blog And Next Comes L, a blog for hyperlexic children. My children are not hyperlexic, but having a chart (laminated and taped to their bedroom doors) of my expectations for getting ready for the day or bedtime is so helpful and saves me a lot of fussing. Incidentally, they don't get any TV time until they have completed their Morning Checklist, which includes tidying up their rooms. 😉

I hope these tips help you and your families keep their sanity in the days to come! Keeping busy and to a routine is very helpful in stressful times and makes life easier for everyone. Stay safe and healthy, my friends.