Do you need inspiration for developing a practical homeschooling and work routine? Explore the suggestions below to assist you in structuring your schedule.
I am a homeschool mom, a special needs mom, and a working mom. I work a typical 40 hour work week from home, while homeschooling my son. My eldest son is blessed with high functioning AuDHD, giving him super hearing powers, super energy and speed, and an amazing imagination.
Homeschooling was not always the plan, because I also need to work to support our family. However, due to the lack of support for my son from our local schools, I learned it was possible to work and homeschool.
Starting in 3rd grade, we transitioned to homeschool. Not only is it possible, it's liberating. No longer worrying how my son is being treated, worried that the school isn't providing the support from the IEP, worried my son thinks he is less than important for being different from his peers. My son is tremendously happier, and progressing academically as well.
Take a look at our schedule to see how we manage it. Keep in mind that everyone's needs and situations are different, so creating a personalized routine is crucial.
Incorporating Homeschool into our Schedule
When we started, I had the rigid traditional school schedule ingrained in my mind. I was overwhelmed at the thought of working and homeschooling a solid 8 hours each day.
After joining social support groups, and exploring how other moms accomplish homeschool, I realized I needed to simplify and be flexible.
The most liberating part for me was removing the rigid schedule of traditional school. Homeschool can happen anytime, and can be accomplished in just a few hours.
Remember that homeschool is in your terms. Every year may look different.
Planning Our Homeschool Schedule:
Phase 1- What is required and what is desired from homeschool?
Which subjects are necessary to meet Florida state standards and which subjects does my son enjoy to foster independence with learning?
Combining both Florida education standards and preferred subjects that my son enjoys, we identified which subjects to include. You can refer to the HSLDA website for further details.
Homeschooling offers great flexibility, with a wide range of curricula, virtual schools, virtual micro schools, and co-ops to cater to individual needs.
Reflect on Their Previous School Year
What went well, and what did not? Is there anything lacking, or something that needs to be removed from the curricula? Were there enough breaks or too many?
Plan the Curriculum or Type of Homeschool
Which areas need my guidance, and which areas can be learned independently?
My children are particularly interested in science, reading, and history, which require less explanation from me and allow for more independent learning.
On the other hand, writing, spelling, grammar, and math demand more instruction. To address this, we have opted for a virtual tutor to supplement his learning for three hours daily and provide opportunities for social interaction in a virtual classroom. While this doesn't cover all aspects of his education, I have adjusted language arts and math around my work schedule.
Phase 2- Consider the Annual Plan First, then Break Down Monthly and Weekly Goals
Annual Schedule Considerations-
How many days are required?
What days will you teach?
When will you start and end the school year?
What holidays and breaks will you have?
Daily Family Schedule Considerations-
What times/ activities need to be included? (Therapies, Sports)
What times of day are best for the kids to learn?
Do you have kiddos that require extra attention certain times of the day?
Do you have more flexibility with help on certain days?
Phase 3- Pencil in a Visual Schedule.... Emphasis on the Pencil.
Using the plan created above, you can now create your daily and weekly schedules.
Coming from an easily distractable mom with ADHD, with little ones who are also easily distractable, a visual schedule is needed to keep us on task. However, this is a fluid tool.
We also have different visual schedules for myself and my son. He prefers the daily and hourly Minecraft themed schedule above. I prefer a chunk style schedule below.
You may also like the Chunk Schedule, where specific times are not assigned. This promotes more flexibility. I use one similar to the one posted here.
Specific Accommodations We Included:
Frequent Movement Breaks-
I learned quickly that my son could only stay on task for 30 minutes to an hour, depending on the subject. This being said, including frequent breaks is essential. Research has shown that short physical and mindfulness breaks support attention, reading comprehension, and overall academic success (Muller, et. al., 2021).
Time of Day-
Mornings are the best time to teach new information for my son, so I spend time before work to review the day's lessons with my son, and remind him of what he needs to focus on for the day. Grammar, writing, and spelling are areas he likes the least, so generally the day's lessons from me consist of these.
Less Preferred Activities = More Direct Mom Instruction
My son loathes writing, and is still developing executive function skills. For this, I make sure to include daily fun activities to help him. I also plan these lessons around times that I can devote my undivided attention.
We incorporate brain breaks frequently, to help make the learning blocks more productive and effective. Research has shown that students have a higher on-task behavior rates, when instruction is limited to 10-30 minute blocks of time (Godwin, et. al., 2016).
Independent Learning
For certain topics, like science and history, my son is capable to completing tasks fairly independently. Additionally, it's homeschool. Determining how a unit or area is mastered is flexible. Including games, experiments, nature studies, and field trips make things much more fun to learn and easier to retain.
Below is a picture of what our typical Monday through Friday schedules look like.
References
Godwin, K., Almeda, M.V., Seltman, H., Kai, S., Skerbetz, M.D., Baker, R. S., & Fisher, A. V. (2016). Off-task behavior in elementary school children. Learning and Instruction, Vol. 44, p 128-143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2016.04.003
Muller, C., Otto, B., Sawitzki, V., Kanagalingam, P., Scheren, J., & Lindberg, S. (2021). Short breaks at school: effects of a physical activity and a mindfulness intervention on children's attention reading comprehension, and self-esteem. Trends in Neuroscience and Education. Vol. 25, 100160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2021.100160
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