After wondering if I had done something horribly wrong, I started thinking back to my childhood, and what I did in public school. At the beginning of each school year, we had a few weeks of review. It was because we had spent all summer slowly forgetting some of the things that we had learned, or stuffing it in the back of our minds so we could learn how to do cat's cradle, play four square, or some other random tidbit. We had to be re-taught or reminded of the things we had forgotten.
With all of this in mind, and the challenge of re-teaching the things that my kids had forgotten while teaching all of the new things as well, my husband and I made a desicion.
We are going to do year-round schooling. No Summer vacation, no Spring break, no extra days off for holidays. 5 hour days, 5 days a week, 52 weeks a year. The only days the kids will have off of school are the days that Daddy has off of work and days they are sick.
This will benefit in other ways as well... We will well outdo the state requirements for how many hours a year a child has to be taught when not in public school. I will have no worries about rearranging my schedule at the beginning of the school year. And, I will not have to explain why they stop learning at a certain point, then start again a few months later.
I know it will be a struggle once they reach the age where they realize that other kids get long bits of time off of school, but by that age, they should be able to understand that it is more beneficial for them to have it this way. And with the fact that we can rearrange our daily schedules to fit in any extra activities, they still won't miss out on having fun with their friends.
I love having so many options in the way that my kids are taught. I can't thank my husband enough for letting me know years ago that he would like for our kids to be homeschooled. The extra quality time and one-on-one time with the teacher make all of the extra work and time spent well worth it.
2 comments:
Wow! That's a big step! I have some friends that do that too! I'll pray for you, Becca! And thanks for the comment on my blog! I love your blog, too!
I homeschool year around and do not have scheduled long breaks...however, life happens. In helping aging and ill family members we have taken breaks up to two months at a time over the past three years. December is always crazy with our 4-H, church, and other holiday activities so I usually either go light with the schedule or take the entire month off of the formal stuff.
Many curricula have a built in review in the first part of a new level that I can either skip if I feel is not needed or use for review if I feel it would be of benefit. That takes three to six weeks off the yearly plan so you can slow the pace a bit and still be ahead.
When you homeschool year around, you still need breaks, one week here and there works best for us, usually not planned ahead, just in the flow of life. I prefer homeschooling in the coldest part of the winter and hottest of the summer, but autumn and spring days are more difficult and the best times of year for field trips!
Also, the summer months, I try to lighten up on the lesson plan or do more of a unit study so that my daughter has more time to play with the children in the neighborhood who are are of school.
Just some thoughts....
I hope it works out well for your family.
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