Spring Cleaning Your Homeschool

OK.  I’ll admit it.  I’m not the most organized person I know.

As a matter of fact, I’m not even in the top 20% of organized people I know.

I could probably be even further down the list, but I’ll spare some of my self esteem and leave it at that.

I have, however, been trying to get things in order lately, because my days run noticeably smoother when everything has a specific place!

The days that start with “go find your math book,” “why aren’t there any pencils in the box,” “where did your protractor go,” and “let’s see if we can find our geography book,” are generally not our smoothest days!

I made a list of the top 10 things that often go wrong during our homeschool days, and this is what it looks like:

1. Books out of place
2. Can’t find math supplies
3. No blank notebook paper
4. Kids get distracted when I’m helping a sibling, and often wander off
5. Some subjects take much too long
6. My stress level gets too high
7. Kids get hungry for snacks, often
8. House gets messy while schooling
9. Chores aren’t completed while schooling
10. Some subjects (mostly electives) aren’t often completed

I decided to fool proof our homeschool days to the best of my ability.

How?

Preparedness.

Go to the ant, O sluggard,
Observe her ways and be wise,
Which, having no chief,
Officer or ruler,
Prepares her food in the summer
And gathers her provision in the harvest.
How long will you lie down, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?
A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to rest”–
Your poverty will come in like a vagabond
And your need like an armed man. (Proverbs 6:6-11)

Also…

So he gathered all the food of these seven years which occurred in the land of Egypt and placed the food in the cities; he placed in every city the food from its own surrounding fields.

Thus Joseph stored up grain in great abundance like the sand of the sea, until he stopped measuring it, for it was beyond measure. (Genesis 41:47-49)

Preparedness has always been a very important aspect of life!

Where would Noah have been without preparing for the flood??

Where would Joseph and his family… and all of Egypt, for that matter… have been without storing up the grain?

History would have been significantly altered without these preparations!

I knew it would take some time.  Going from my usual methods of “flying sideways on a banana peel” to enjoying “organized chaos” is only a slight step forward.  But it is a step, none the less.  And positive, permanent changes don’t generally happen overnight.

First, I wrote out solutions to our problems.  Such as:

1. Books out of place… Label all books with color codes, and create cubbies for subjects
2. Can’t find math supplies… Make a box for math supplies and create a cubby for it
3. No blank notebook paper… Take inventory each Friday, and add low supplies to grocery list
4. Kids get distracted when I’m helping a sibling, and often wander off… Always have manipulatives/brain teasers on hand for when kids finish their subject early
5. Some subjects take much too long… Set a timer, and let child finish rest of long subject at the end of our homeschool day.  Then, they’re motivated to finish their school day faster.
6. My stress level gets too high… If we’re organized, my stress level won’t be so high!
7. Kids get hungry for snacks, often… Keep a healthy supply on hand, and within easy reach
8. House gets messy while schooling… Schedule in 30 minutes of chores in the morning, and again after lunch
9. Chores aren’t completed while schooling… See #8.
10. Some subjects (mostly electives) aren’t often completed… A daily school schedule will solve this problem.

I proceeded to label our books, create cubbies (purchased at Ikea for approximately $15 per cube), created a manipulatives box, hung a magnetic board in our homeschool room for lists of diminishing supplies, purchased a timer, created a list of healthy snacks (which I pre-cook on Saturday mornings, so I can have them on hand for the following week), and created a homeschool schedule.

It might sound like a lot, but once I had my list of problems created, and started mapping out solutions, the rest didn’t take that long!

Here is an “after” picture of our homeschool room:

(sorry, this one is a little blurry!)

Each child has their own morning routine, hanging on the back of their door that includes:

Showering, getting dressed, making their beds, bringing down their dirty clothes, making sure their bathrooms are clean, etc.

And as far as our homeschool schedule goes, here is a snapshot of it:

Homeschool Schedule

8:30-9:00              Bible & Dictation (Bible Verse written into notebook)

9:00-9:30              Math (30 extra minutes for my 11 year old son in Algebra)

9:30-10 :00          Learning writing and learning cursive for my younger children (son is finishing math)

10:00-10:30         Geography

10:30-11:30         M,W,F:  Japanese

T, TH:     Science

11:30-12:15         Lunch

12:30-1:00           English/Grammar

1:00-1:30              History

1:30-2:00              History

1:30-2:00              M, W, F:  Literature

T, TH:        Vocabulary/Spelling

2:00-2:30              M, W, F:  Creative Writing

T, TH:     Art or Music

After School         M, W, F:  Make sure all chores are completed

T, TH:     Pick up homeschool room and reorganize cubbies

Sometimes our homeschool day doesn’t last quite this long.  Sometimes, we’re having “slow days,” and we take an hour longer.  But we are hardly ever spending our school day searching for supplies or books.  Everything has a place, and our house stays much more organized.  This was one of the best things I could have done for myself, and for my family!

If your are in need of a homeschool schedule of your own, feel free to use mine to help you get some ideas!  But, I would not recommend copying this schedule exactly, because this is just what works for us.  And of course, every family is different!  So experiment, make your lists, free up your time, and get out there and enjoy your days!  Remember, we’re not meant to be constantly stressed out, chasing our tails!  Don’t less stress and disorganization be a thief in your home, or in your life.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10)