Skip to main content

Our Current Homeschool Routine - Virtual Homeschool Fair - Week 2

For week 2 of the Virtual Homeschool Fair, which is hosted by Homeschooling Hearts and Minds, we are talking method of homeschooling.

When it comes to the how of homeschooling, and the method that we all follow, with the 20 plus blogger participating I can guarantee you, no method will be the same. Homeschooling is a lifestyle and a path unto a goal or toward a direction that each family sets for itself. For us, this encompasses academic rigor, as well as Christian values and depth of understanding of how to live in this world as Christians. To that end, earlier on we had settled on a classical education.


10 years into it, I cannot say we have been very good classical homeshooler. We did not follow the method and philosophy to a T but instead adapted it to our family's routine and rhythm. We became more relaxed classical homeschooler. I had good intentions with the Latin and Greek, but not enough discipline and it did not appeal to the boys; my oldest son did two years, the other son, one year. Memorization and copywork has not always been consistent, but present. That said, even with our method becoming more relaxed Classical homeschooling, we have been able to work toward our goal. How you may ask? By focusing on the essentials:
  • Strong emphasis in the humanities
  • Solid Math foundation
  • Instruction in logic and reasonning
  • Instruction in writing and rhetoric
  • Instruction in Biblical literacy and doctrine
  • Emphasis on critical thinking
When it comes to routine my goal has always been to steer my boys to independent work. My youngest, being an organized child by nature, picked it up early and does all his school work on his own schedule. My oldest on the other hand has had a harder time, being the procrastinater and dreamer that he is. So, with this year being his sophomore year, I had to be more hands on and work with him every night on his next day's schedule. This has been going on a week, as this is the new endeavor of this semester (since the first semester on his own did not go as planned), and he has been liking it leading to his work been completed. Success!!!!

I do not run a school at home, so the boys have lots of latitude when it comes to time. They tend to go to bed late, but I do require their work to be completed on a weekly basis. My youngest is a late riser, but self-scheduled. My oldest does not mind waking up early, so we set a schedule up for him with an early start and fluid transition time between his subjects.

We always eat dinner together, which is when we go through our catechism. We play a lot of games together and watch lots of movies or TV shows together, as my oldest is very much into movies and everything that has to do with the movie industry. I find that watching the movies and tvs shows opens up a lot of conversation and keeps the boys  aware of what our society is like and what they will have to face in the future. I do not believe in sheltering. Homeschooling is shelter enough, now they need to be taught wisdom and discernment. I love this definition I read recently:
“Discernment is not knowing the difference between right and wrong. It is knowing the difference between right and almost right.”
—C.H. Spurgeon
Next week I will talk more specifically about the curriculum we used and have used, but for this week, this is in broad strokes, what our routine and method consists of.

What do my fellow homeschool bloggers have to say about their Homeschool Method? Go visit them to find out!

How Our Academic Co-op Completes Our Eclectic Homeschool by Susan @ Homeschooling Hearts & Minds
A Method to Our Madness by Michele @ Family, Faith and Fridays
Finding Our Homeschool Method by Christy @ Unexpected Homeschool
How We Homeschool by Amanda @ Hopkins Homeschool
Give Us.... by Annette @ A Net in Time
A day in our Home by Sarah@DeliveringGrace
Lit-Based Education: How We Homeschool by Debra @ Footprints in the Butter
Overhauling Our Homeschool - Adjusting our "How" to fit our "Why" by Sabrina Scheerer @ Kids, Crunch, and Christ
A Day in the Life of a Homeschooler: Expectation Vs. Reality by Leah @ As We Walk Along the Road
How Charlotte Mason Transformed Our Homeschool by Brittney @ Mom's Heart
Captain's Log, Supplemental - Our Homeschool Days by Kym @ Homeschool Coffee Break
How we get it done. by Kim @ Good Sweet Love
How to Organize Daily Curriculum with the School Cart by Jeniffer @ Thou Shall Not Whine
Learning For LIfe by Lori H @ At Home: where life happens
Eclectic Homeschooling: When It All Comes Together by Jen @ A Helping Hand Homeschool
A Typical Day? by Lizzy @ Peaches@Home
This is the Way We Do Our School, So Early in the Morning by Laura @ Four Little Penguins
A Little of This and a Little of That: Eclectic Homeschooling by Laura O @ Day by Day in Our World
Still Classically Educating After All These Years by True North Homeschool Academy
So what exactly is Life Led Homeschooling? by Dana @ Life Led Homeschool
The way we learn ~ 2018 Virtual Homeschool Fair by Jacquelin @ A Stable Beginning
Our Homeschool Routine by Joelle @Homeschooling For His Glory
Homeschool Methods – 8 Tips for the Journey by Kristen @ Sunrise to Sunset






















Comments

Brittney said…
Hopefully your plans for the new semester go well. I completely agree about not sheltering the kids, and I'm glad that we can do it in a safe and controlled environment.
Sabrina said…
Thanks for sharing! It is always fun to see how others schedule their school days!
Michele said…
I love how you have tweaked things to fit your needs!
Susan said…
I consider "reasoning" to be the fourth "R" in education---it is too often neglected. My husband teaches logic and critical thinking in college. So often the young adults he teaches don't have a strong background in reasoning or writing. Congratulations on finding a way to stick to the parts of a classical education that are important to your family. :)
Annette said…
teaching wisdom and discernment is a big part of our schooling as well.

Popular posts from this blog

Reformation Day Giveaway

We are approaching October 31, which is an important date for all protestants. This date commemorates Martin Luther’s nailing of his ninety-five theses to a church door on October 31, 1517 in Wittenburg, Germany, which in turn provoked a debate that resulted in what we now call the Protestant Reformation. As the “Father of the Reformation”, Martin Luther is a vital figure in Church History. His sacrifice and willingness to wage battle against the spiritual, religious, and political powers of his medieval world allowed Christians throughout time to embrace the following truths: salvation by grace alone , through faith alone,  and in Christ alone, along with the supremacy of Scripture, referred to as  Scripture alone, and all of it for God's Glory Alone. These being commonly called the Five Solas of the Reformation.  Danika Cooley, author and creator of the Bible curriculum Bible Road Trip ,  has recently written a book for young people recounting Luther's story:   When

Middle School Junction - Learning Independence and Responsibility

In my previous posts about Middle School I have shared about how I have been blessed with quite independent kids. I had promised a post about how I went about to encourage independence in my children. Here it is finally! First off I have to say that some kids are naturally independent, and in this case it is quite easier to cultivate that. With others, it is a bit more difficult and requires intentionality and being more aggressive about it. When you have kids who have learned to be independent and to own their learning, they end up being kids that do their school work, even if mom forgot to write a subject on the list of to do for that day. Here are a few steps I took in developing independence in the boys. Give them freedom - the first step is to gradually give them freedom in how they want the school day to go. Involve them in the decision making of what subjects to do each day and in the order as well. Build trust - the kids need to know that you trust them and expec

Amazing Science - TOS Review

We were delighted in the past month to review a science experiment DVD. It came from ScienceandMath.com , a company dedicated to providing resources in Science and Math to help students understand the subjects better, and enjoy them as well. ScienceandMath.com offers focussed products: Science DVD called Amazing Science, Volume 1 Math programs ranging from Grade 4 to college Math We chose to review the science DVD as my kids love science (especially my youngest), and the 30 seconds sample video  on the site looked really cool. We were not disappointed. We all enjoyed watching the video, better yet we enjoyed actually doing some of the experiments. The DVD is great for all ages. For the young ones (K-G.2) the explanations might be above their head, but they will surely enjoy watching what happens with each and every experiments, which will help spark curiosity. I used it with a 3rd and 5th grader. This DVD comes in two disks. Here is a list of what is covered: