As promised, today I’m going to share a peek inside our homeschool to show you what our daily homeschool routine looks like.
Whether you already homeschool, you’re just getting started, or you’ve suddenly found yourself with your kiddos at home due to the Coronavirus pandemic, I hope that today’s post gives you ideas and encouragement for how you can structure your own homeschool days.
Okay, so first of all, I have three kids aged 5 years (Kindergartener), 3 years (“tot schooler”), and 6 months (along for the ride). Our rhythm changes some as nap schedules change, but we’ve managed to stick to a fairly consistent routine all year. With three kids, there’s some juggling that I have to do to make sure everyone’s needs are met throughout the day, but thankfully Nora’s a superstar napper and Elliot has recently shown an interest in actually sitting at the table and completing some of his own “tot school” activities. 🙂
For those of you who are long-term homeschoolers, we follow a Charlotte Mason-style of home education, so lessons are short, we try to get as much time outside as possible, and nature studies are an integral part of our homeschool.
For those of you who are home with your kiddos thanks to the craziness that the Coronavirus has caused, you may be doing some eLearning each day. I don’t know exactly what that will entail for you, but I’m guessing that your youngsters won’t be on the computer all day. And I know that a lot of you are hoping to avoid an overload of screen time.
So how will you fill your days?
Well, here’s a peek inside our daily homeschool routine. Hopefully this gives you some ideas for how you might structure your own homeschool days!
Here’s the loose schedule that we generally follow each day. And then below, I’ve described what we include in the different blocks of time.
- 7:30-9:00 Morning Routine (get up, get dressed, complete morning binders, & eat breakfast)
- 9:00-9:30 Morning Basket
- 9:30-10:00(ish) Loop Subjects
- 10:00-11:00 Core Academic Subjects
- 11:00-12:00 Free Play
- 12:00-1:30 Lunch & Quiet Time
- 1:30-2:30 Wonder Tales Treat Time
- 2:30-3:00 Afternoon Occupations
- 3:00-5:30 Free Play
- 5:30-7:00 Dinner & Baths
- 7:00-7:30 Family Worship
- 7:30-8:00 Quiet activities
- 8:00 Bedtime
Morning Binder.
Right after the boys get up and dressed, Clark usually sits at the dining table and works on his Kindergarten morning binder. This includes writing his name, filling in the date and weather, copy work, and some CVC word practice. Lately, Elliot has been joining in and completing pages from his preschool morning binder, which includes shape identification and coloring and some basic counting and alphabet activities.
If you don’t have a morning binder or specific activities, this is a great time to have out some puzzles, books, warm-up worksheets, or some other gentle activity available. I’ve found that having something fairly simply and enjoyable for them to do first thing in the morning gets them in the mindset of learning and moves them to the dining table so they’re already there and ready for breakfast.
Check out these Preschool and Kindergarten Morning Binders HERE.
Breakfast & Proverbs.
We eat breakfast, and then as soon as I finish eating, I read one Proverb for the day. This is actually a recent addition to our morning. I used to read from the Jesus Storybook Bible right after we finished eating, but we’ve finished that and Blaise and I have made a move to read mostly from Scripture.
At a recent women’s conference, a breakout session speaker (shoutout to Kim!) suggested reading one Proverb per day…which means they’ll hear the Book of Proverbs approximately 12 times per year for all the years they live in our home. Pretty awesome!
Just after breakfast, Nora goes down for her morning nap. We quickly clean up from breakfast and then transition into our Morning Basket Time. For fun, we sometimes march and sing into the living room together, and other times I just send them in there to pick out books while I get Nora settled. And then there are those rare days when it’s like pulling teeth to get them to come and join me at all.
You know, life with littles!
Morning Basket.
Y’all, no matter how long you’ll be homeschooling your kiddos, I would ABSOLUTELY, HANDS-DOWN recommend having some type of Morning Basket!
WHY is it so important?
For one, it gives you a launching-off point for your day. By starting your day reading together, you’ve made a connection with your kids, you’ve already sparked their imaginations, and you’ve hopefully piqued their interest to continue exploring and learning.
This is the ONE THING that we NEVER skip in our daily homeschool routine.
And it doesn’t have to be complicated at all!
Our morning basket is a pretty loose time in which we just gather round – sometimes at the table, sometimes on the couch, and sometimes on the floor – to read. We have a read aloud basket (with a mix of free choice books and books on the topics of study) that stays on the living room floor so the books are there and easy to grab anytime throughout the day.
For our Morning Basket, we do the following:
- Read 2-3 books (most mornings we each choose one)
- Sing our hymn
- Recite our catechism
- Recite our nature poem
- Read the book for that day’s Loop Subject (either nature, art, or a composer)
Loop Subject.
This is where we include nature and fine arts into our days. I won’t get into what a loop schedule is or how we implement it here (I’ll get to it in another post), but we do one subject per day and include the following in our rotation:
- Nature Study
- Handicrafts
- Art Study
- Nature Study
- Handicrafts
- Music Study
I plan to write more about what each subject entails and what our favorite resources are, because our loop time is incredibly rich and one of my very favorite parts of the whole day!
Just after we finish our Morning Basket, we head back to the dining room table (or outside) and gather round for that day’s study. I utilize A LOT of printables, picture books, and hands-on activities for this time of the day.
There is no set time limit for our loop time, but it usually lasts from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on what we’re doing and how interested the boys are. When they start to show they’re ready to move on, I usually go ahead and start cleaning up. It’s meant to be a time that lays out a generous feast of ideas, and they can “eat” until they’re full for the day.
At this point, Elliot usually moves on to play with something on his own while I begin the core subjects with Clark. Lately, Elliot has been joining us more, but I definitely don’t push.
Core Academic Subjects.
Since Clark is in Kindergarten, this doesn’t take up a whole lot of our time. We do our All About Reading lesson, our Math-U-See lesson, and our Handwriting Without Tears lesson.
And that’s it for our core subjects!
Here are some tips for keeping core academic lessons enjoyable for everyone, but especially for kiddos under 8:
- Set a timer for 20-30 minutes. Have your kids work for that time, but then stop when the timer goes off (yes, even if they aren’t completely finished right then) and take a break. This is especially necessary if your kids are working on a lesson that they don’t love or that is a bit challenging.
- Have some “brain break” activities ready for them to do while they take a break (do a quick Pinterest search for TONS of ideas). Sometimes I have Clark run a few laps around the table, jump on the trampoline, or even play with Legos. Just give them some time to mentally refresh before continuing work.
- When your kids start showing frustration, STOP THE LESSON. This is NOT the time to push through, to get frustrated with them, or to keep explaining a difficult concept. Once your kids get frustrated, they’re no longer in a place where they can mentally attend to the lesson, therefore it won’t be very productive. Take a break, take a walk, throw a ball. Whatever, but just walk away from the lesson for a while.
- Help your kids transition from activity to activity. For most kids, abruptly switching activities is a challenge. Set visual timers, give them warnings, and then help them make the transition by helping them clean up/put away supplies and move to the next thing.
- Let them get lost in learning. I know that just above I said stop them after 20-30 minutes, but gosh, if they’re really into something and enjoying themselves, then let them keep going. I know that I hate to be interrupted when I’m really getting into something, whether it’s a book, painting, writing, etc. Unless you have somewhere to be or something pressing that needs to be done, let them experience the JOY of learning without the pressure to move on until they’re ready!
Free Play.
I feel like this shouldn’t need explanation, but I just want to reiterate the absolute importance for kids to have completely unstructured, undirected time to play, explore, and yes, even get bored!
It’s even better if this time can happen OUTSIDE!
Lunch & Quiet Time
Clark no longer naps, but Elliot still does. And because I feel like it’s good for all of us to take some time to just recharge mid-day, Clark has quiet time in the playroom. He can choose his activity, but it has to be something that he can work on quietly and independently. Generally he settles on either drawing or playing with Legos. Sometimes he chooses play dough or dinosaurs, but drawing and Legos are the top contenders.
During this time, I try to nap since I still nurse Nora a bit at night and teach early in the mornings. If I don’t nap, I read a bit and at least rest. This bit of the day is good for my sanity!
Wonder Tales Treat Time.
We LOOOOOOOVE this time each day! This is part of the Gentle + Classical Level 2 curriculum (get it FREE right HERE) that we’re using and loving (find out why we love it HERE). Each day, we go over our memory statements, read some poetry, and read either a classic fairy tale or fable together…all while gathered around the dining table snacking on some treats.
I have adored watching my boys fall in love with poetry, been blown away by how quickly they memorize ALL of our memory work, and delighted in hearing them narrate our stories back to me.
It’s also such a delightful time of the day where we just enjoy the stories and each other. Even if you don’t have or want to implement a formal curriculum, I would absolutely recommend some read aloud time together in the afternoons.
Read poetry, read classics, read chapter books.
Read, read, read together!
Afternoon Occupations.
This is a Charlotte Mason concept that we’re newer to putting into practice. Right now as we’re still figuring out what to include during this time, we’re using it to work together on getting chores done. I usually have a load of laundry to fold, so the boys help me. We also load the dishwasher, tidy up the house before Blaise gets home, and clean up their bedroom.
We don’t spend a lot of time on this, but we work together and try to get it all done cheerfully. Also, as the weather warms up and we can get outside more, we’ll probably scrap this and just go outside!
To read more about afternoon occupations and get some ideas, I’ve found this post incredible helpful!
Family Worship.
I plan to dive into this more in a future post, but for the last month and a half or so, we’ve been consistently doing family worship each night after baths and before bed. This is another crucial time in our day that we will not skip UNLESS we’re not home until later.
So what does family worship look like for us?
- Sing worship songs and hymns together
- Read Scripture (we’re just reading chronologically through the Bible)
- Pray together
After we finish our worship time, we have more read aloud time together. The boys usually get a protein-rich snack and a little bit of milk (to avoid the “I’m hungry!” “I’m thirsty!” cries at bedtime), and then off to bed they go.
So there you have it: our daily homeschool routine in a nutshell!
The most important thing is that you figure out what works best for your family. That’s the beauty of homeschooling. And even if this is a temporary situation for you, they’re still your days to structure however you want!
And most importantly, I pray that you and your kiddos THRIVE during this time!
I’m rooting for you!!
