It looks like re-vamping schedules, or at least thinking about what works and isn’t working is something homeschooling folks do in February, judging from the Common Room post and The Thinking Mother’s post.
Back when I was only schooling B, and K hadn’t been born, we used
a Pocket Chart Organizer pictured here.
Now, I have taped my morning goals for M and B on the back of the portable white board that I use with both of them for Spelling dictation more or less daily, and also a weekly goal list inside a page protector, so I can write on it with dry erase marker, and use it again next week. B has had such a list for a while for his daily independent work assignments, his page protector is tinged green, he uses it so much. He also celebrates finishing things he doesn’t enjoy by crossing them off vigorously.
I used to feel slightly bad that I changed scheduling methods, as if I weren’t planning my work and working my plan. But plans are tools to serve the goal of teaching the children, and they change as the children do. If a book or method just isn’t working for us, out it goes. (Much as I hate quitting anything). The schedule serves me, not the other way around.
Now, if I say that often enough, will I believe it?
Glad to see I'm not the only one who tries different things and sees things change over time.
Amen to that. I've been thinking about changing our schedule up as well, though the goal for me would be to set time limits on each subject so that we reward those who don't dawdle with a set amount of free time. Right now we're having issues– not so much dawdling during schoolwork, but I want to reward efficient work with Lego time… and then the Lego time takes over. Ideas?