How Do You Schedule Your Homeschooling Day?

Personally, I like the idea of "routine" rather than "schedule" -- I'm quite a free-form person at heart, but have had to get more structured for my kids' sakes.

So, I've gone with the "middling" description of routine, so it's still a bit flow-y without being chaotic.

Maybe it's still a bit chaotic

We wake up about 8 (or so ...), and while the kids have breakfast and do their morning jobs (normal toileting like getting dressed, brushing teeth, as well as chores, which include some that are done every day like emptying the dishwasher and some that are the same each day of the week, like putting out new toilet paper rolls in all the bathrooms on a Tuesday), I get my own breakfast, throw on a load of laundry, and have my quiet time.

We start promptly at 10 every day. First, it's prayer and Bible song and Bible reading and Bible memory verses. This is followed by history.  We're currently reading this book: The Story of the World: Ancient Times v. 1: History for the Classical Child (Story of the World: History for the Classical Child).  We follow that with science (Jeannie Fulbright's Anatomy and Physiology).  

Strengthening the muscles
of our hands

Sometimes, the Fulbright is a bit dense for my younger ones, so they might drift away to do some colouring, drawing, or work in some kind of workbook like Thinking Skills.




Then the kids break up into separate categories -- my oldest and youngest play together for 15 minutes while I do maths with my 9-year-old, and the 6-year-old does her copywork and map skills or handwriting or art (depending on the day).

Busy Timmy's favourite part
of the school day is playing
with Phoenix all by himself

Then my oldest does her math while I help my younger two with their math, and 9-year-old does his copywork, guitar practice, and map skills/handwriting/art.

My younger two finish off their work-day by watching the Spanish language videos called Salsa. I read to the older two from Plutarch or Shakespeare or Robinson Crusoe or poetry. Then the 9-year-old finishes with Salsa while, some days, I do dictation with my oldest one by using a Geography textbook that she enjoys studying from.



By now, it's easily lunch time.


The kids play some computer game after lunch, and then if it isn't a day for shared art with a friend, or Spanish conversation, or music lessons, or a friend is visiting, then we'll get back together and do either art appreciation or music appreciation or something from the Keepers Club manual or just bake/cook/(in good weather, play in the garden).

Friends AND Baking:
The Best!

I also make it a habit to read to each child before bedtime, so that's when we get to our free reading from Ambleside Online (as opposed to the mounds of books they free-read on their own that aren't necessarily on the AO list). Many nights, I try to get Daddy to play a board game with them while I go for a walk.

There are lots of variation on this theme, but we stick to the general idea most of the time.

I've tried much stricter schedules and have written them all down and ticked boxes, but it always seems to move back into this undulating ebb and flow of education being simply an atmosphere and life (and a bit less of a discipline!).