Planning a Day - 3 of 3

 "Prepare thy work with out, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thine house."  Proverbs 24:27

Once my year and units have been planned, planning my day is easy. I usually break up my day into 7 parts. Let's talk about those parts and the reason behind each.

The first part of the day, I do calendar work or morning work depending on the grade. Both get brains turned on and ready for a day of learning. Calendar work works well for the youngest learners or any really high-needs learners. We go through what day it is and the plans for that day. Morning work is a bit more independent and allows students to practice skills on their own, while you have a moment to set up the rest of the day. During this time they can practice things like spelling words or math problems. 

After the morning routines are done we have some prime learning time. The goal for the next chunk of time is one-uninterrupted-hour of either language or math. Both are the backbone of learning and both need to be taken seriously when homeschooling. That is why they get the best time slots; one hour after morning routines and another hour after lunch. If I do math in the morning I'll do language after lunch, but it is equally fine to switch them based on your preference for the day.  

Next, I have a time slot for learning other basic subjects like history, geography or science. Honestly, I often merge these subjects with language or math, but I make sure I have time in my schedule to address each subject properly.  

I also make sure I have time each day for enrichment activities like foreign languages or the arts. If you are working with a struggling student you may not want to fill the day up too much, but for most young people this adds a change of pace in their day and can pay-off in the future. 

I like to schedule time for household chores as well. It is important that children have responsibility within a household for their own self-confidence and worth. I make sure to have time everyday for them, (and myself,) to get done what needs to be done around the house. This includes things like taking care of animals, dusting, folding laundry or other age-appropriate activities. 

Last, but not least, I schedule time for review.  Reminding yourself and your children what they did in math or science that day will help them recall the specific lessons and store it in their long-term memory.  Many students get out of class and go home for the day and their parents ask what they learned in school and the response is always, 'nothing'. This happens in homeschools too, if you neglect to review. Reviewing is a time investment that pays-off. 

If you want to see an example of how I plan my day, click here for your free homeschooling template with Google Slides TM. 

Graphics by Innovative Teaching Ideas