Colored Dots in the Pantry, and Other Things LIke That

 On Household Things --  I am still loosely following Motivated Moms and Flylady, but I found a way to make progress on the house that is even simpler.   It is something like Brandy's Cleaning Loop Schedule.   I simply spend 5 minutes a day in several different areas of my house.   We have a fairly large house built on an open plan and when I add up all the different rooms and areas I come up with somewhere between 15 and 20.   I couldn't visit all of them every day without spending a couple of hours on housekeeping, but I visit the high traffic zones and then usually a couple of other areas.    I just do whatever seems to most need doing in that particular room.  For example, in the bathrooms (the cleaning of which I need to revisit 3 or more times during the week) I can quickly tidy a basket, swish the toilet and wipe the counter.   It's surprising how much better an area can look after those five minutes.  

Something that I am just starting to work through is having a project going in different parts of the house based on Flylady's zones.   For example, last week was the kitchen.    My husband has been mentioning that when the kids put away the groceries in the walk-in pantry, they are out of order -- mostly because my younger two now help with the unloading and they weren't taught, like the older ones, what areas to put things in.

So last week I organized the pantry and used the labeling dots you can buy at the dollar store to mark all the cans by expiration date.    Now we can see at a glance which pantry food items to use first.    This is the kind of thing I sort of enjoy doing but rarely get around to because there are more urgent things to get done.  That's why I like the "ongoing project" idea because it's not time-dependent and I can fit it into little pockets of the day -- like while waiting for the water to boil in a pot, times like that.

You will notice that I haven't mentioned the kids in this description of daily cleaning.   That is because we are in transition (which seems to have been the case for a few years now as kids grow up, move out etc).    Only 2 of my kids are under 18 now.    One of them, Aidan, loves to take on new household responsibilities.   He collects all the trash and recyclables, brings the bins out to the curb, brings them back to the garage, etc.   He does most of the laundry except for putting in the detergent and putting clothes away.      There are quite a few other things he does either assisting me or on his own.   He's retained that preschool trait of wanting to be involved in every project that's happening, but since he is a teenager and quite tall and strong now, he can actually help with the fun things like making coffee and chopping vegetables and building shelves.

Paddy is the other adolescent in the house and as the youngest child of seven and 16 years younger than his oldest brother, he never quite got phased into the chore system the way the others did.   He is also more conceptual and less hands-on than Aidan is.  This summer I am focusing on getting him in the habit of doing more around the house.   He has a few responsibilities but they aren't quite as extensive as those the older kids had at his age, partly because I often end up more or less cleaning as I go so it's harder to plan specific jobs for him to do, and when I do need help, I often call on one of the big kids because they are taller and stronger and know how to do more already.   But very soon they are going to be gone and Paddy needs to have the opportunity to do more.      I say opportunity because even though he probably won't exactly jump for joy when called upon to sweep or unload the dishwasher or troubleshoot the computer or lug laundry baskets, he will probably enjoy having the experience under his belt, because right now his older brothers give him a hard time for being responsible for less than they were at his age (though their memories are sort of biased....)

Of Planners and Habits and Loops

I am intermittently blogging about systems updates this summer, because it's the main focus of my daily life right now.   I've posted on housekeeping routines and on health and fitness habits.

Third Topic:  Homeschooling 

As far as what we are actually doing in the homeschool, we are in a good holding pattern for the summer.  

In my lesson planner I write down enough work for 3 days and then we just try to have the bulk of it done by the end of the week.   That means that there is room for summer projects, for appointments (I am trying to catch up on doctor's appointments and that kind of thing) and for field trips/ life experiences and for the general open time that one associates with summer.  

I guess it's a kind of loop schedule, come to think of it.   As with Brandy's loop schedule for cleaning, some subjects need to be more "high traffic" than others.   Mostly math, since that seems to be the least likely to be done naturally around here, and the children don't seem to progress as fast with math as with some other things.

I am trying to work with Paddy, my 11 year old, on the habit of using a planner.    His planner is basically a set of weekly checklists with the names of the books/ materials which we are using.    I write notes on the checklist about what we actually did so I know if we need to revisit the topic again.  

Aidan's checklist is mental.   I hear him at night sometimes saying, "Tomorrow for school -- we'll do some reading, and I'll write my story, and do the adding game online, and some dot to dots...."    Even though he is cognitively delayed, in many ways he is right on developmental track or even ahead, in his ideas of personal responsibility.   He has his own internal list of duties --many of which he takes on for himself, like collecting the trash around the house and bringing the bin out to the curb, and now bringing it back to the garage again.

Kieron has graduated, so now it is just the two -- Aidan and Paddy -- that I am directing daily.

As always when things are going pretty well with homeschooling logistics, I feel like the spark is gone.  In connection with that phenomenon, I am reading a book called Mini-Habits which had an interesting take on the relation between habits and the emotional feeling of motivation -- basically, he says that the relationship is inverse.  You start off, say, with a highly motivated feeling that inspires you to make changes.   Then you come to a point in about 3-5 weeks where you actually have somewhat established the habits, but your initial inspiration is basically gone.     You are doing better but it doesn't feel like you are.   He points out that habit is automaticity, which by its very definition is rather emotionless.    The whole idea of fluency is that it is second nature, so you no longer notice how wonderful it is that you can drive a car, or diaper a struggling infant, or make a dinner where all the parts are done at the same time, whereas once those things were very difficult.

One of my grown sons told me he feels like he has gotten stupider in the past couple of years.   This is at the same time as he is getting A+s in college and being asked to join honor societies.    I think this is part of the same picture.   A lot of times, as you get further into the nitty gritty of some habit, skill or area of knowledge, you feel like you are doing worse than you were originally, because the learning curve starts leveling off.   You have a more acute sense of your relative lack of skill and knowledge, and less of the naive ignorant kind of enthusiasm that you started with (one notices this in the spiritual life, as well).

This seems to have gotten rather far from the topic of homeschooling systems, but I wanted to remember that whereas once the lack of "spark" as we go about our homeschool day would have scared me into thinking we were being too mechanical, which would have driven me back to the drawing board to reinvent the homeschooling wheel (strange confusion of metaphors there) -- now I have a better sense of how these things operate.   Sure, my homeschool WILL become mechanical if I simply rest on "systems",  rather as my prayer life or my relationship with my family will become too pedestrian if I let them run on autopilot.  But at the same time, the habits are like the underweave or as Charlotte Mason says the "rails" on which the good things run.

So all in all, I think I want to keep the "loop" idea even when summer is over, though I may go about it differently as the seasons change.

Cutting Up and Rebinding Workbooks

Something I hesitated to do for a long time, but finally decided to try, is rebinding my 6th grader's workbooks.  

I really like the Avilian Method of putting worksheets and papers into a binder organized by day.   You can see another take on the binder-assignment method here.

Much as I like the idea in theory, I am not generally successful at handling loose papers.   Even if I have them in a folder, they get reshuffled and I can't find the ones I need when I need them.  

Also most of my kids seem to do better with a stack of books to supplement their checklist -- a physical and visual reminder of what needs to be done.

Rebinding seemed like a good compromise.    From what I understand, you can have it done at an office store, but I wanted to do it at home.   Part of the reason I wanted to rebind is that perfect-bound workbooks are somewhat difficult to write in.    But another reason for rebinding is that I can add, subtract, multiply and divide pages within the workbook.

 If I use an editable format for binding -- either comb-binding (which is what I have already) or pro-click type spiral binding -- then I don't have to plan ahead what I *might* want in the book.   I can just add things or take things away as I go.   For example, I added an assignment checklist to my son's Christian Studies book.

It was hard to rip up books, even workbooks.   Not mechanically hard, since I love messing around with paper, and can hardly think of a more fun way to spend a quiet Friday afternoon than with my comb-binding machine and some cardstock and labels.   Hard in the same way that I have trouble marking up books even though this is what you are supposed to do.   Viscerally hard, as in "you are ruining this book".  But it has worked out well.     After all, workbooks are supposed to be marked up and some of them even come with detachable pages.  

 Apparently, though I don't know quite what I think of this, you aren't supposed to reuse or sell a consumable except in certain circumstances -- hmph, that set of laws is probably rarely regarded to the letter, though personally, purely by happenstance, I don't remember breaking even the more stringent rules stated in the article.      OK, I can think of a couple of cases where I had the child write in a notebook and then reused the blank workbook with a different child.     But usually only when the workbook was out of print so I knew I probably wouldn't be able to acquire another copy.

This may be a good reason to buy PDFs of workbooks when possible, because the rights usually extend to whole-family use.    Or textbooks, which can legally be reused through several people and resold.   Or, of course, living books, but if you are reading this blog you probably use a lot of real books in your homeschool for many other reasons besides copyright laws.


A couple more articles on rebinding workbooks:

• To Proclick or not to Proclick
• How to Increase the Shelf Life of Your Homeschool Curriculum
• My Binding Machine

You can see some of my homemade planners and planning form over on my homeschool log site.  

Of Health Habits and Food and Fitness in Mid-Life

I am blogging about systems updates in different areas of my life.    Summer seems like a good time to do that, especially since that's one of the major things on my mind and in my daily life right now.   The first topic was Housekeeping Routines.

Second Topic:    Weight Loss and Maintenance

So, in spite of sporadic attempts to lose a few pounds from time to time, I have managed to gain almost 35 pounds in just about 4 years.    That's an average of close to ten pounds per year, though the graph wouldn't be nearly that smooth (see starting clause about sporadic attempts to go the other way).   I guess I should be glad it isn't more than that.  But exceeding my former all-time maximum non-pregnancy weight by 5 pounds this May was a wake-up call, and kind of scary.    I decided that I really needed to put the whole food & fitness  issue on the front burner for a while and pick up some lastingly better habits that will hopefully last to menopause and beyond.

It helps that my husband, too, wants to lose a few pounds and increase his fitness level.   So we have made a daily habit of walking to the post office -- it's only 2.5 miles for the round trip, but since we live in the mountains,  it's more like a cross-country hike than a stroll, with plenty of up and down hills and granite upcrops on the trail that will trip you if you don't pick up your feet (I didn't and they did, the other day, so that's how I know).

Since it's summer and I have a little more time (we school year round now, but the summer is lighter and more review/consolidation oriented) I usually try to add in some other kind of exercise several days a week besides or instead of the post office walk.   X Box Kinect has been a pretty good supplement.   There are a few fitness programs you can use -- my husband uses Nike + Kinect Fitness.   I have tried it but the regular program is kind of hard for me (here you may visualize T Rex push-up fail).    I like Fitness Evolved 2012.    There aren't compulsory push-ups in that.   We have a stationary bike that I use sometimes when reading or watching something, though it kind of hurts my knees if I use it for more than a few minutes.  

My friend Chari has managed to lose and keep off a significant amount of weight during the past couple of years mostly just by being somewhat careful with portions and (the key, I think) exercising vigorously -- walking 4 miles most days and taking a fitness class here and there when she gets the chance.    That's my primary goal, to become stronger and more fit, so the take-away point for me was that I have to put exercise high enough on my priority list so that I get to it almost every day.     Having my husband on board helps a lot with that.

I think I mentioned it, the last time I talked about weight back in January:  my favorite place for weight loss inspiration and sensible strategies is bearing blog.   She is Catholic and takes a cognitive behavioral or engineering approach.     Though the details are different, the general approach is the one that works best for me, and so I've been reading through her archives for about the third time since I found them a few years ago.  

Back then, in January, I said I was going to try Whole30 plus No-S, but that was too loose a strategy for me.  It might work for a maintenance tune-up, but not for real progress on the scale.   I resent it, but to make real changes in ANY area, I have to (1) research (2) plan my own customized strategy with specific strategies and contingency plans and mini-goals  (3) keep a journal and record book.    In other words, I have to focus.... put the whole thing on the front burner, go through a whole small-scale conversion process, basically obsess a little.    And journaling, record-keeping, researching and planning are my tried and true ways of putting things on the front burner.  

After all the hours of all that, I ended up with... basically something like I started with.  In other words, I am eating modified low-carb,  maximizing vegetables and minimizing other things, putting my mealtime servings on a small plate, avoiding junk foods, except on special occasions, and staying away from trigger food and behaviors.    So pretty much exactly as I described in January, except that I had to do all the other stuff to internalize it and make it mine and actually carry it out.  Sigh.   This is the same thing that happens to me with homeschooling and organizing and housecleaning and my devotional life and almost everything.      I am not sure if this is a temperamental thing, where melancholic-phlegmatics who are short on energy and internal motivation have to summon it up by doing all these incubation rituals, OR if it's just basic slacking.     But either way, right now it is the only way I can carry out a long term purpose.

On the bright side, once I pull together that kind of energy and focus, I can generally do what I set out to do.   I have lost about 9 pounds so far, which at least brings me down to my ordinary heavy-side weight.    And I feel way more fit (though that's partly just summer -- easier to be active and resolute when it's not snowing and dark all the time).

So that's the systems update for health and fitness.  

Of Household Task LIsts and Comb Bound Books

Since what is mostly on my mind this summer is updating my organization in preparation for the next school year, that is what I think I will write about in the next few posts.

First Topic:  Household Management System

The core of the effort is from two sources (because one is never enough, right?):  Motivated Moms and Flylady.    Here's another one that looks attractive -- and FREE! -- but I haven't road-tested it yet.

Motivated Moms costs about 8 dollars for a daily or weekly housecleaning schedule which takes you through a calendar year.   I buy a new version every four or five years.     This year, I bought the week-on- a -page version.   Last time, I tried the daily planner version, but it was too much to print out, and I did not use the appointment calendar (I keep my appointment calendar on Google Calendar because it is so easy to modify).

Flylady is free, though you can buy a book and various other accessories.   One big problem for me is that the basic system is online and I don't do well with paperless management systems, but I just found out that Flylady has integrated her lists with the Cozi Calendar, and Cozi lists are printable.  

Here's a picture of the household books.  I used scrapbooking paper and clear acrylic for the front covers.   I like the way they turned out.  I am trying to get used to keeping things in comb-bound books because they are so easy to customize and for me, easier to access than 3-hole punch binders.    I would really like a Pro-Click -- and this is why-- but I can't justify it yet when my decade-old comb-binder is still working just fine.

Motivated Moms -- Week on a Page

Just having Flylady and Motivated Moms lists in a comb-bound homemade booklet is not enough.  I have to write them out on a task list, preferably one I can carry around in my pocket.    So I have set aside a few minutes on the weekend to do this.   I made a simple planner something like the teacher's planners you can buy and I plan out the household tasks right after I plan out the kids' lessons for the week.

My household planner 

I have some other plans for household organization, but I wanted to get the cleaning schedule set first.    Until next time!

Getting Things Done During Lent

Still here!  I am on a homeschool planning roll, plus my husband and I have both been going through old papers.  He bought a shredder and has been shredding various unnecessary statements from the past 2 decades, while I have been filing all my collected reference material using the GTD system.

My husband has piled up three or four huge garbage bags full of shredded material.  I've only come up with about a kitchen bag full of old papers I don't need anymore.   But that's because I already go through my files once a year and weed them down.  (I usually do this in the summer).

 What's new is the details of the GTD filing system, which I will share below.

I. 

Getting Things Done recommends a simple alphabetical system for filing materials for reference.   You CAN file by topic, which is what I was doing before, but Allen warns that you may end up not remembering how you fixed up your topics -- which tends to be what happens to me.

He does say that if you have some very compartmentalized areas of your life and reference stacks to match, you may want to keep materials devoted to one area in a particular drawer or box or whatever.

What I did is reserve a set-aside box for all the materials associated with my parents' estate.    The rest of my reference materials are pretty much straight alphabetical.   I haven't finished the effort.  I have about 4 boxes worth (using milk crates because they are stackable and sturdy). 

I think I will end up separating homeschool reference materials from home materials, but otherwise keeping the flat alphabetical system going.

II

Another thing recommended by Getting Things Done for reference materials is to have a stack of file folders and file everything that is separate as separate, with a separate title and a separate folder.    Even if it is only a single piece of paper. 

This is something I wasn't doing.  I think I was trying to save on file folders.   So I would have several loosely-associated  sets of paper stuffed in one folder, making it more mental effort to retrieve it.   Getting Things Done wants you to save your mental energy for creativity and learning, not use it trying to puzzle through your system.   

III

The most important part of filing reference material vs piling up what Allen calls "stuff" is that the action items are separated out from the reference material.  

Now when you have a lot of homeschool material, some of the reference files are potentially actionable.  For example, I have quite a lot on the Middle Ages, which we studied last year.  We will not cycle through again for 3 years.    But in the meanwhile, it is all there, and categorized.     David Allen said that reference material and "project support material" are basically very similar.  And dormant projects, like my Middle Ages lists, are even more like reference material, so it doesn't bother me to have it in reference boxes.

IV.  

"Action items" are PRESENT actions.... things that should be getting done now.... or soon, within a specified amount of time.

It has been a huge boost to my morale -- and my ability to get through my work --  to have this separation of action items from reference items. 

You may remember our book study of Counsels of Perfection for Christian Mothers.    One bit of the book that has haunted me for years is the following: 

"Ask any Christian mother who accomplishes an astonishing amount of work, yet never has an air of depression, ask her, I say, the secret of her activity.    She will tell you that she works methodically, because she is guided by a rule."

 Though David Allen does not refer to spiritual things -- he specifically says that he is focusing on the method, on how to get things done, not on the bigger picture of why and what you want to do -- the method has spiritual implications, at least for me, because I tend to have a fall-down between resolution (or intention) and action.  And this is the exact area that Getting Things Done focuses on.    So for me, incorporating it into the practical aspect of my Rule of Life has made a giant difference.

V.

GTD is not GIAD (Getting It All Done)

Mystie Winckler, who has written the book on GTD for Homemakers, wrote about this, and it has been one of my ongoing thoughts during this time of Lent and trying to work out my systems. 

Allen brings it out in his book, too.  He is writing for people who have too much on their plates -- many, many "incomings" from several different areas of life.  And if that isn't the life of a homeschooling mom of several, I don't know what is.     His system doesn't promise that you will suddenly have an uncomplicated life.    He doesn't expect you to sort out all the incomings into formal priority categories (which adds another step and often has stumped me in the past -- what does priority mean in everyday terms?)

Mystie writes:

I finally realized awhile ago that it was the desire to have life running on autopilot that was at the root of much of my “get it all done” frustrations. Running smoothly on autopilot is what is never going to happen. Keeping your bases covered, each in their turn, not stressing over those that have to wait for awhile, can happen.

This is true of me, too.    What I've noticed in applying GTD principles is not that I suddenly can do everything that comes at me during a day.   It's that I can shift gears between all the things that unexpectedly crop up that need to be dealt with -- like my teenager suddenly communicating to me that he has an ongoing foot infection -- and things that are on my calendar -- like the fact that one of my grown sons is home on spring break, so that I needed to get his room nice in preparation, and stock up on some of the things he likes.  

It also allows for things that are ongoing -- like homeschooling and cleaning.  They have to be done every day, and they are never going to "be done".

It also allows me to trust my intuition on what is more important right at the given moment.    Allen mentions this, that usually we have a basic instinct on what the "next thing" is -- it's just that when we have a lot of mental clutter, that instinct gets blocked. 

The infected foot is important enough to interrupt the normal homeschooling schedule to run to the doctor (but I can have a Plan B ready so at least some of it gets done anyway).    The grown son's room prep is important, but if I start the week before, I can work at it in little 10-minute bursts every day or so. 

This post took longer than 15 minutes, but it's Sunday, so I get to break my normal Lenten habits! : ).

Habits for March 2014

Remember last month I said I was going to make resolutions monthly instead of yearly?  This gives me a chance to revisit last month's resolutions and figure out what I am doing OK on and what still needs work.



Habits that are going pretty well:

• Walking with Kevin daily.   We don't walk every day, or always for 2.5 miles, but it is a solid habit.   And it's nice. 
• Chaplet of Divine Mercy at 3 pm.   I usually still forget at 3, but I've gotten into a habit of working at it whenever I have a few minutes of in-between time, like driving in the car.  
• Quick-cleaning sprints.  I divided my daily times into "hours" and I tried to attach a focus to each hour.     But some of these hours don't take a real 60 minute hour, like, say, preparing breakfast and tidying the kitchen.  So whatever time is left over, I spend on working through my chore list.
• Working on Lesson Planning daily.   This was something that just needed to be legitimized in order to find a place in the day.   I really like planning.   Now I just need to work on implementing plans ;-).
• Making a learning environment for the children.   Having that reminder really helped me be more intentional in looking for library books, bringing out things put away, and helping them with their projects.

The other habits are in disrepair at the moment.    I started paying less attention to Flylady when I started doing more lesson planning.   Those things seem to occupy the same space in my brain.  My Whole30/No S habits got a bit battered while we went on vacation and then got sick.  Let's call it a whole series of "S" days, S for special and S for sick.  

March brings Lent.    I always spend Lent pruning whatever branches are growing too luxuriously, and simplifying my eating , spending and time-spending patterns.   I choose a couple of specifics -- this year I decided to cut out alcohol for Lent.   

I usually try to do some extra spiritual reading. 
This time I am thinking of rereading I Believe in Love. 

But the main thing I want to focus on as a theme is focusing on the half-full element of the glass rather than the half-empty part.  I have spent the past few years concentrating too much on what I haven't done, what didn't happen.   It is my default way of thinking, and I realize it has become a bad habit because it doesn't really help me do any better.     I noticed that when I pay attention to what IS working at least partially and then try to figure out what the next step is from there, I make more progress.    Or at least, my brief trials with the concept have been hopeful enough so that I think Lent is a good occasion to work on it some more.

Habits for February 2014

I liked Chari's New Year's Resolutions post.  
I didn't make any New Year's resolutions this year either, because I got sort of swamped during Christmas and then I was trying to carve out time to just relax a bit before life started again, and I did not want to think about the shape of 2014 yet.

But Chari's post made me think -- and I think I am going to try making monthly resolutions this year.    That way I can revisit regularly during the year and make modifications as I go.   I can hardly ever keep long-term resolutions, but I liked my trial run with Whole30 and I like those 31 Days to....type things you find everywhere, and a month seems like a good time period to get a solid start on a new habit. 

Also, I already (try) to plan lessons by the month, and plan out the liturgical year once a month, so maybe having a monthly time frame for resolutions will anchor it all together.

I'm trying to keep the listed resolutions simple, practical and doable.    One important aspect of that for me is pinning them to a time in the day or week.  

So here are my February goals/plans/habits right now:

Say a daily Chaplet of Divine Mercy especially for the sick and dying.    I started this when my mom was sick, but have gotten out of the habit recently.    And I happen to be aware of a lot of sick people recently so that will give me a chance to hold them in prayer.     Try to do this at 3 pm or right after we finish school for the day. 

Reset/Reform our chore system.   It has floundered since my older group of kids left the house.   I just have trouble figuring out a way to get the chores divided between a high school senior, a 14 year old with a limp (who however loves to help and does more than his share around the house right now) and a distractible 11 year old.   I may have to pray about this.   household tasks twice a week, and dinnertime cleanup daily

Go back to using Flylady -- I'm borrowing from Chari here. 
I come back to Flylady when life has changed and my old systems are not working as well. 
Specifically,  I've been trying to follow some version of the weekly zone missions. 
5 days a week, at daily cleaning time (see below)

Keep walking with Kevin daily.   We walk to the post office and back, about 2.5 miles of hiking in a mountainous forest trail.    This is great -- we spend time together, get outside in our national forest, and get exercise.   Daily -- usually at 11 am. 

Try to do quick-cleaning sprints for 15 minutes at least twice a day.
Related to this:  Clean as I Go, and vacuum for 5-10 minutes every late afternoon (my house needs it, but I procrastinate until it looks terrible).    In the morning while starting breakfast, and in the late afternoon while starting dinner prep. 

Work on lesson planning in the late afternoon before I read or rest. 
Because otherwise, it doesn't get done.
Related to this, tweak our schedule which has gotten a bit shabby during the Christmas break.
At 3 pm or after school is done for the day

Make it easier for my kids to learn.  By strewing, and rotating books and other things on the shelves, and helping them go to the next level in things they do on their own.    For this purpose, browse through some  shelves and cupboards at least once a month, preferably twice.   

Continue to follow my low-carb version of No-S.     I feel so much more energetic when I do.     Huge difference.   At mealtime, with a break on Sunday. 

I Am Moving My New Year's Day to February This Year

 

 

       You know all of those plans and resolutions that you think about as the old year is coming to a close and the next year looms ahead????

 

 

 

       Well, just like most people, I had been having those thoughts:  as soon as all that Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday business is passed and the college students return to school.......the rest of us can get our life back under control........right?  Right.

 

 

          Sounded like a good idea......till I came down with that nasty influenza on January 4th .......H1N1.....I am pretty sure........because though I was not tested....I was a poster child for the symptoms.  Ugh.  I was knocked out for four days, sleeping about 22 hours each 24.  During that time, in some of my more lucid moments, I realized that I had to let go of my plans for improving my life in the first month of the year.  Recalling the one other time that I had the flu.......it was one week on the couch 100% and a second week with mostly 50% couch-time. And then more weeks of recovery for my asthmatic lungs.  I knew I would not have the energy or stamina to make any fresh starts in the month of January, a month that also would have dental trauma included.  As of exactly three weeks from the day I came down with the flu, I finally feel about 75%. 

 

 

      So while I lay ill, I made a resolution to start my own new year resolutions in February.

 

 

My resolutions are.......

 

• To spend at least an hour a day homeschooling my youngest on the days I am off from work; at least half an hour on the days when I am off, but do not feel well.....which sometimes happens as I recover from one or two 14 hour shifts.  I was going to set up a "Morning Basket" style, and (now that I have heard the term) "Loop Scheduling".....something I used to do with our morning basket way back when my olders were littles.........it has a name now!  :)  I had put together this "plan" for him last August.....but barely touched on it.....this will be my resource for my basket.

• To regain my momentum with my mostly daily walking.....no less than four miles on my days off from work.

• To attend at least two classes at the gym per week.

• To utilize my typical eating patterns for those times when I am trying to get fit.  Still trying to get rid of the Hawaii weight gain from last summer.....after I had lost some weight.

• To improve my prayer life with some daily reading for meditation---at least 3-4 times per week.

• To try to do Flylady's Zones this year. In addition to the Morning and Evening Routines (that I get to most of the time) I have been on and off with Flylady since she started her email list and had less than 100 people on it.  So, yeah.....waaaay back when. I went off of her email list because I had things well under control after a year or so......but I have come back just for the inspiration....and since I have barely any control over stuff .....now I have lost so many of my chore-doers in the last year.  I really need to reorganize our plans.  The people who still live in my house are so dang busy......that it is hard for everyone to keep up.   I am great at organizing.  Lousy at maintaining a schedule.  Thankfully, my clutter is not too bad....it is just the day-to-day up-keep I mostly need to take care of.....oh, and a bunch of paper clutter. And computers to declutter.  And......and....and......okay.  There is some clutter, in some of the rooms, but it is not hoard-like.  ;)

• Figure to how to get my charting done at work in a timely manner so I have less overtime.  Our computer system is horrid.  Just simply horrid.  It has ruined our lives at work.  Nobody is happy anymore......there is so much grumbling.  I am a naturally cheerful person and this job is much too challenging and stressful for me to remain my cheerful self.  Ugh.  So, I am trying to figure out some methods for making the days less awful related to charting.  I have some ideas.  Please pray for them to work........sigh.

      Not sure if I am missing any...........I got spiritual life, health and fitness, home organization, work and homeschooling covered.  I try to stay simple and basic each year.  Less chance of failure that way.  I will add anything if it comes to mind later.


     I just had an interesting realization:  here I am, turning fifty years old in April.....making the same New year's resolutions as usual........and yet, I am not needing to turn to any new tricks......I am just planning to regroup and do what has worked for me in the past.  I am so excited to realize I do not need to teach an old dog any new tricks.  :)

Happy New Year Blessings,

                                       Chari


 

Planning for my 2012 5th Grader: Theme...Must.Read.Aloud

Nope.  That is NOT a typo........I mean for it to say 2012 in that title...because I wrote it last summer.........but I might as well adapt it for 2013-14.........since most of it was a bust. :/


The post below was originally written in late August 2012.  I was planning my youngest's school year 2012-13......and these were the plans which arose.......

I never did post these.  I still had more fine tuning to do.......and then I just never got back to do that.  But, I did get all of the resources into their respective baskets.....so we trodded (did you know that is not really a word????  trotted, then) ahead.  I am posting these here today.......because I have another blog post to publish......and it will make more sense and be more useful if these plans go public. (....though after fine-tuning this post and adding the purple italics may cause me to change the focus of the other post......)

In parenthesis, and in this color, are the up-to-date comments about how the year went in each subject.....and how I expect to utilize them for this upcoming school year.

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     I love my little man.  He is only ten now (eleven now) .....but I know my time with him is going to go fast.  According to my predictions, I only have eight more years left to homeschool him......which sadly translates to only eight years of homeschooling for my home-education career.  Unless, he decides he only needs three years of high school........in which case that number gets reduced to a brief seven years. As I recently posted on Facebook:  Hear that sound?  It is the sound of my heart breaking.  So sad that there is an actual end in sight........(....and if he follows in his older brother's footsteps and attends the Independent Study Program at the local high school to play sports......I only have three years left.  Hopefully, he will stay home for his schooling......)

     But, it is not yet here.  And I need to make the next 7-8 years good for him.  Last year really did feel like a bust.  Oh, we got some math done.....but not as much as he was capable of.  We learned a lot about WWI and WWII.......but not as far as we should have got.  We never reached the Korean or Vietnam Wars.  The art study was brief.  He finally read his first chapter book.....but the fluency still has not clicked.  And, there were not enough read-alouds.  Thanks to his sister adding him to an IEW writing workshop she was leading, we found that he is a prolific and capable writer, in spite of his slow fluency in the reading department.  He probably has a gift of putting pen to paper.  I suppose if I add in to this list his sports accomplishments last year (we call that education, of course)....he improved and excelled in basketball, learned excellent team leadership skills with soccer, and had an amazing year pitching in his baseball league and the All-Stars.



     As I go through the school resources left out and about on the shelves on the boys' rooms for last year's Great School Plan, I will use this space to write my thoughts related to planning for this boy for this new school year. That starts, like, next week, right?  Supposedly.  ;)

     I am also trying to keep in mind that one of the reasons last year was a bit of a bust was because I was working more hours in order to make up for the decrease in income after my husband was laid off.  Since I will definitely be working at least the same amount of hours this year, I must find a way to plan for him to work independently on the days when I cannot be there or when I feel ill.

Keep in mind that most of this is done in a Charlotte Mason style.......or in a strewing kind of unschooly way.......whatever that means.  :)  This is just a guide.  It gives me a place to start.....but most rabbit trails are followed.  The resources are rich enough to give him a well-rounded year.....even if we only do about half of it.  Of course, all of it is literature-based.  Because that is my style. :)



Religion:

A major goal is to give him the resources to complete his First Holy Communion Notebook or scrapbook.  I made a comprehensive plan for him, but never followed through and now his FHC is many years past.  But........he loves scrapbooking, and now that he is older, he will be more independent doing it. So that part will make it easier for me to leave him to his own devices........

I plan to give him the lessons I had planned to go with it......with lots of picture books.  He will grow closer to his faith and create memories and connections while doing a hands-on project......something he thrives on.  I am excited about this.  It will also include using the New Catholic Picture Bible as well.  Nice thing about this project?  It is already gathered in one box with all of the supplies......and the lesson plans.  Please pray this finally works out. (Pleeeeease pray!) He will be too old for it, eventually. 

I might have him read through the appropriate book of Living My Religion series........but we should have enough if the above works out.

(August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST. 

For this next year, I will try yet again.  I looked at the Living My Religion series and picked out Book 6 for him.  He will need to be preparing for his Confirmation and it looks like a good fit for that. I will also use the booklet Preparation for Confirmation According to the Baltimore Catechism because it is what our priest would like him to have memorized for the sacrament. I think that putting the Notebook together will help him to spiritually prepare for confirmation.  I may have to call it a Confirmation Notebook now. :) )


History:

     When I viewed my stack of wonderful picture books on the Revolutionary War time period, I realized that I had never read them to Malachy. In looking back at his homeschooling, I came to see that this kid has had two seasons of ancient history and two seasons of medieval history and two seasons of WWI & WWII.  Yikes.  That is what happens when we follow the high schoolers in their history.

     So, I am going to start with the French and Indian War....and go to the Revolutionary War.....along with anything in between and around.......and that will probably be all we get to.....if we have the same experience my other kids did......loving this time period so much and enjoying all of the rich resources that we could never stop.  :) Know anyone else who has spent a year on the French and Indian War?  Three years on the Revolutionary War period??  Yeah, we really did.  Those are some of my kids favorite years of homeschooling.

I am still trying to decide if there is going to be a spine.....maybe a Genevieve Foster book....or perhaps Father Furlong's sweet little text.

     For the French and Indian War, I am definitely going to use Albert Marrin's book, Struggle for a Continent:  The French and Indian Wars.  This was the first book of his that we had ever read.  And we loved it.  All of us have read several other of his history books.....and we are never disappointed.  He takes his historical research and turns them into great stories, pleasing both this mom and her kids.

     I will also have him listen to the audio version of Madeleine Takes Command, another family favorite read aloud.

     In addition to me reading most of his history aloud to him, I will have him read simple biographies of Americans of those time.......starting with Dan Morgan: Boy of the Wilderness, I think........and also see what American Saints of that time I can throw in as well.  I am thinking Father Marquette, Father Jogues, St. Kateri......

I have a nice "My State Book"......I could have him work on that independently with some books on California so he can have some easy practice doing research.  Not sure yet about this......might be too much.

(August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST........I tried the Foster Book...but it sort of made me crazy....too little info and too many pieces of little info.  We only read about 25 pages of Marrin book. History is a hard subject for a full-time working mama who wants it literature-based for someone who cannot read a lot on his own.  This issue is the inspiration for that other post I am working on.  I need some ideas and help.......

Oh!  Another partial-success was that I realized I could give him his American history through Great Courses Lectures.  I then just wrote little quizzes for him from the info in the booklet.  I would have liked to have had more discussion with him.....but he has a good memory, so I am sure he got something out of them. So, that could be an option for this school year.......


As for this next year, I am not sure what to do.  I could just continue down the path I set above.......And now I think he is old enough to do the My State Book research on his own......I was tempted by my excellent library on Lewis and Clark history.....maybe I should just pick out a few BIG historical things that occurred and give a big focus on those, rather than an huge overview?  I hope to get his Book of Centuries updated and ready for him to use independently.)

Geography:

He loves this kind of stuff......so I should try to find something that he can do that is somewhat independent.  I will probably do something similar to what Simply Charlotte Mason recommends....  We did it a bit this last year (oh!  another pro for last year!) and it went well when we did it.  I will begin with Canada and the United States so it goes with his history.

I will read this book to him:  Maps:  Getting From Here to There by Harvey Weiss.

We had started the Holling C. Holling geography unit a couple of years ago, starting with Paddle-to-the-sea.....the Beautiful Feet Unit.  I might delve into that, too.......I have some of their beautiful maps to use.

(August 2, 2013 comment:  mostly BUST........we did do the Simply CM geography drill for a few weeks....and I utilized another workbook as well, that was mildly successful. 

 For this year, I should just plan to do the same.........)

Maths:

He will move forward to finish up all of the Math-U-See books he has left:  A few lessons of Delta, and then Epsilon and Zeta.  We might not finish all of them.....but it will be our aim. I think he might get to meet with my older kids' math tutor once in a while for some inspiration.  He likes her. 
I hope it will keep him on track more this year.

Since he will finish with the MUS books before he will probably be ready for Jacob's Algebra, after talking with my math tutor friend, I have decided to just have him work through the MUS pre-algebra book...to keep him in practice.....but that is for next year...and I am concentrating on this year......

I found a copy of G is for Googol:  A Math Alphabet Book by David M. Schwartz.....so I will read through that slowly.....over a few weeks or months.

And any other math literature that comes along....like our favorites such as Sir Cumference and the Knights of the Round Table......and the others in that series.

(August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST.......he could, but wasn't motivated to move fast without some prodding.  I finally gave in to try Teaching Textbooks 6........that worked well for about 6 weeks in the spring till we went out of town....and he has not touched it since. I never did read anything math lit. 

For this year, I will resume with the Teaching Textbooks 6.....since he is so independent with it.....and he likes it well enough.  Our Educational Facilitator with our charter school was thinking of having a Math Workshop with some kids his age, working with "real life" math.  She is a Math Major.  I sure hope she follows through with that idea.  I just sent her a text.....to remind and  encourage her.)

Science:

     I am a little unsure about what I want to do.......

    I took a look at some of those Creation Science books by Apologia.....but they did not feel right for right now.  Maybe next year......

     I think I am too tired and busy to create unit studies........like in the old days.....

     So....at this moment, I think I will take a look at doing the Beautiful Feet's A History of Science.  Not sure I will have enough time to do all of the read aloud required......but I might give it a try.

     Nature study is simply a given in this family.  Hopefully the smoke that has choked up all of the month of August will finally pass away so we can get back to the  out of doors.  We have been housebound for entirely too long.

      I hope to set him up with a nature sketchbook.......he loves to draw......and perhaps when I am unable to be with him, he can reproduce those drawings for me.

Take a look at.......
Zingy Science
Khan Academy

(August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST........mostly.  Finally in the spring, I began reading the Beautiful Feet books to him.....which he enjoyed.  And here it is, August 2013 now.....and it is smoky yet  again. It has been so long since we have had a summer without smoke......that I cannot even remember when that last summer was......maybe 2007?  While I never inspired him to use a Nature Notebook or draw from nature, he certainly got lots of quality time in nature.  That is one area I can usually keep alive around here. ;)

The other way that I was able to salvage some science was to have him go one day a week to my friend's home to do organized chemistry with her daughter.  That was definitely NOT a bust!

I looked at the Khan Academy......and I cannot figure out how I am supposed to utilize it.  Anyone have any advice???

For this year, my friend has agreed to take him again this year.  I think I will continue with the Beautiful Feet science as best I can.......and keep on hanging out in Nature, of course.  And I have like 20 science experiment kits that someone ought to be using..... :/ )

Language Arts:

Reading: 

This kid will be such a lover of literature.....if I can just get him fluent.  He had all of those early reading signs at age four.......and yet still has not fallen in love with reading at age ten (eleven).  It makes no sense.  So, this year, I want to read to him like crazy.....and keep him reading something......till he takes off.  He will, right????

I might make a shelf for him of easy chapter books.

Encyclopedia Brown.....have him read these aloud to me.......till he just wants to dive in on his own.

I need to try to remember to offer him some of the sports stories written by Matt Christopher.  I had a few already....and just picked up three more for free at the library.

(August 2, 2013 comment:  mostly BUST.....he is still not picking up books on his own.......but his fluency has improved, thanks be to God!  I did read aloud to him......just not enough.  We never tried the Encyclopedia brown books......I still might. I did get him to read a few Gary Paulsen books....but I really want him to get lost in books....sheesh.  Oh!  I was able to get a Kindle for him to use.......just to see if that would help.  Not much.

For this year, just keep on reading.....I will have him read aloud to me as I can remember.......and to keep him reading something, always.)

Literature:

     I am going to start the year with Amazons and Swallows by Arthur Ransome.....one of those great classics I missed as a child.  My oldest did not care for it....but two of  my others loved them. Thanks to the generosity of a friend (Hi, there, Helen!), I have the entire series.  I am hoping that we do fall in love with them.......that series should keep us busy the whole year.  This will be only the second time I have read a book just with him as an audience.  I realized this summer that I have to do that now.......I do not have all of the kids available at the same time for our family reads anymore......maybe because they went and grew up on me???  :(

      I will have one family read aloud.....with the three youngest kids (10, 15, 17).  We started The Hobbit this summer.  My two youngest have never heard it read aloud nor have they read it. I want them to have the family-read-aloud memory of  Tolkien's books. And the oldest of the youngest, the 17 year old, says she wants to sit in as well.  We all want to be ready for the movie that is coming out in December......and now I see it will be three whole movies!  How cool is that!?  They cannot leave much out with three movies!

     I will continue to expose him to Shakespeare through the two books: 

            

(August 2, 2013 comment:  This was not a total BUST........we are over halfway through both books, a year later.......sigh.  As for the movie........I am quite angry with them for messing so much of it up. Grrrrrr.  We ended up with an amazing and unexpected World-Class Shakespeare experience last spring.  There will hopefully be more plays for us to see through the end of October.

For this year, the two books mentioned will be our read-alouds. And we will squeeze some Shakespeare stories in there.  We must!)

Writing: 

     This is pretty easy to plan.  IEW, or Institute for Excellence in Writing, is our preferred method of teaching writing.......the one homeschool program I have tweaked the least for our use.  The best part:  my oldest daughter is a very fine writing teacher and will continue to teach Malachy in one of her writing workshops.  I am so blessed. Bonus:  she teaches lots of poetry and grammar and lots of other LA stuff, as well.

(August 2, 2013 comment:  NOT a BUST at all.  Anne was wonderful and Malachy progressed so very well.  I just went through his writings from last year......a very prolific little writer.  And he thrived on the poetry she shared.

For this year, we will continue with the same plan.  My daughter will be able to continue teaching at least one more year......while she works on her graduate degree and teaching certification. More poetry and continue to work through the Continuation Program B.  Did I mention that I was blessed???? So is Malachy.  :) )

Picture Books:  Willa and I are creating a challenge for this......

(August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST?  We were consistent for a few months........we meant to be stay consistent.  Maybe we need a sign on our bathroom mirrors to remind us? :)

For this year.......Willa and I will have to discuss this possibility.)

Latin:

Phooey!  I had forgotten that I was going to start him in the Latina Primera? this year......but Vicki over at Creating With Wisdom reminded me.....

(August 2, 2013 comment:  partial BUST.  We did get through five lessons.  It was easy for him.

For this year, we should review and get going.  I can give him lessons and he can use the workbook the rest of the week.)


Art:

      Malachy has natural artistic talent.  I always try to keep him exposed to all art stuffs, just in case he makes it a permanent part of his life in some way. Not sure where it will go...but I want him to have a chance to practice all of the skills.......he is generally good at drawing, creating, crafts, painting........etc.

     Having been a lover of art from way back when I was young, I have collected many resources for all-things-art-related.  I just need to decide what to use for him...and then follow through.  For once.

His artsy sister has recently returned home from her year away in Austria....so while she is studying art at the local Junior College, I am hoping there will be some trickle-down teaching from her, to him.

I have an old set of six videos from Calvert School, Discovering Art. I will probably use this until they are done.  I like that they model skills and share art history as well in an ongoing story.....even if they are a bit goofy and over-acted.  The information is sound.

I also have a book I want to read through with him called:  How to Be an Artist:  the Fun of Drawing.......it is just a quick self-published book that I came across.  I like how it seems to give the perspective of what an artist sees when he or she looks at things.

I will provide a blank sketch diary and just assign him to use it on those days when I am not home...in any way he wants.  Some of my kids would be intimidated or put off by this....but not Malachy.  Or his artsy sister.  :)

I just came across my copy of Storybook Art:  Hands-on Art For Children in the Styles of 100 Great Picture Book Illustrators by MaryAnn F. Kohl & Jean Potter.  I may combine this with our Picture Book Challenge. 


Hailstones and Halibut Bones for sure.  Ah.  turns out I will not have to do this one myself.....my oldest daughter Anne, who is teaching his IEW Writing Workshop, wants to do this for his class......off the hook!  This is good...but I am a bit sad........I was looking forward to sharing it with him.  This book needs its own post.  Perhaps I can wait till Anne teaches with it and create the post then.  I love this book and I want all to enjoy it as well.  Excellent poetry and art possibilities!


 (August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST.  Yep. Like all of it.  I did create a Pinterest board for online art lessons and loaded it with watercolor lessons so that he and I could work together.  We got as far as watching a lesson late one night....inspired. Of course he did do art on his own.  Oh!  We did get to take him to an awesome Art Walk in the town south on his 11th birthday.  Very cool.  Loads of fun.

For this year, I would like try to accomplish the above, plus watercolor lessons together, local Art Walks when we can make it......at least one in Ashland, Oregon......and some artist studies.  I have TONS of art and art history resources.  I really need to tap into those for this kid.  My four older kids got lots of artist study.......I want him to get the chance. )


Cooking:

     He has a great interest in food preparation.  Thinks he might want to be a chef someday.......so, I think I will encourage him to choose one recipe a week to try.  I wonder if he will do mostly desserts.  He is quite partial to making pies.  :)

(August 2, 2013 comment:  This was only NOT a BUST.....because he loves to cook.  He made at least five or more different kinds of pies........and some of them up to five different times. Of course, I never did tell him to try something once a week......maybe I will this year.

Once a week may be too much between all his sports, etc.......and I want him to find cooking relaxing and enjoyable.......so I will aim for 1-4 times a month, at his preference.  I think he cooks more in the fall and winter anyway.......)

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      Not sure what subjects will get covered, but I have made arrangements that once a week he will go to my friend's home to "do school" with her daughter who is about 18 months younger.  They are good playmates and she could use a peer for some schooly stuff, like doing science labs.

((August 2, 2013 comment:  NOT a BUST.  But only because I was not responsible for it.  Sigh.  Like I said above, under science, they did chemistry lessons and experiments.

For this year, we will repeat this......)


Using this platform, of blogging, as I sit here and plan, has been so helpful in exciting me about the new school year.  Finally some positive school spirit.  :)

(August 2, 2013 comment:  TOTAL BUST......I was only excited for a moment.  But rereading this post and reevaluating the ideas...is almost inspiring.  And it is only the fourth day in August!!! Yay, me!)


I have told my boy that based on our current crazy and hectic schedule, that he will need to be flexible enough to do schooly stuff whenever I call him to it:  day or not, weekday or weeknight.

(Definitely will need to do that again.....but better this year.)

WOW.  This is quite a project.  Hope I can get at least half of it done!  So, I am now off to get started!

(August 2, 2013 comment:  BUST.  Yep.  TOTAL.  I doubt we even got 25% of it done.)

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And so, all of that above, not in purple italics, was written about this time last year.  I guess I will probably just keep the same general plan because it was a pretty good one in the first place.  ;)  Definitely ambitious.

I am wondering if it will help if I put his subjects in their own bins instead just one for all subjects......to help me not feel so overwhelmed.

Wow, I am actually going to post my plans for the school year.......before it even starts.  Haha.....only because I had written my plans last year, but never posted.


Smoky Summer Blessings,

                                           Chari

Edited to Add, on August 23rd, 2013:  Really?  I forgot Music!  We have weekly piano lessons with a Classically-trained teacher........he is our sixth homeschool student to take lessons.......and she thinks he may well be our most musical.  It is his 5th or 6th year.....I can't remember. We also need composer studies......

Keyboarding.  He needs it.  Especially with all of the writing he does for his writing workshop.

All About Workboxes

In June of 2009, I wrote a blog post about WORKBOXES.

Willa was thinking that it would be a good idea to repost it now......in case anyone could use the inspiration as they plan for the next homeschool year. I bet I could use it, too! :)

At this moment in time........I am just going to post it below, as is.....because I do not have the time to check every link......and there are a lot of them.

If you follow a link....and it is dead......could you please let us know in the comments?

The article is as follows..........

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Monday, June 22, 2009

Welcome to Workboxes!

I cannot stop thinking about.....

homeschool workboxes

........I cannot stop thinking about the possibilities. I am simply giddy about a "new" approach in homeschooling, for the first time in a loooong time........I can't wait to get started......but I have been simply too crazy busy to start!

I think my life is still too busy to start, but I have been looking around my home, seeing what I could use or tweak to work, without much investment. I have been perusing the storage bin aisles at the stores and have hit the dollar store, too. I need to make this inexpensive. I simply must.

I really need to get this written up in one place, so I can share it with all of my friends. I know so many who would find this a very useful idea. And, as this is NOW the prime time for homeschool planning for the next year.......I need to be in a hurry!

I particularly think my friends Frances, Maria, Willa could make good use of this idea......for various reasons. I think Shawna & Stacey would like it, too!

I first heard about this idea on Brigid's blog. I remember thinking how clever it sounded........and the usual thought: "I wish I had known about this when my kids were younger." I always forget that I still have a couple of young kids. :)

Then it was brought up on the 4 Real homeschool message boards in March. I skimmed the first messages and treated it like everything else new: I" do not have time to look into anything new......besides, nothing really feels new anymore, after all of my years of homeschooling."

Then, in May, the same thread got going again, ladies wondering how those using the workbox system were doing after a few weeks.

Comments were consistently coming up, there and in other places on the Internet:

WE GET MORE DONE IN A DAY THAN WE EVER HAVE BEFORE.

WE ARE USING SO MANY HOMESCHOOL ITEMS THAT HAD JUST BEEN LYING AROUND THE HOUSE, UNUSED.

THE KIDS ARE EXCITED TO DO SCHOOL.

WE HAVE MORE FREE TIME.

Well, of course those concepts caught my eye!

I want that for ME!

I want that for MY homeschool!

At first, I thought, hmmm, Malachy (7yrs) could really go for this......he loves doing stuff........any stuff.........and he loves being creative and this would give him a chance to do that more often.

Then, I thought how well Garrett would do with more structure (we always need more structure here!).

And I thought about the days when I am at work or just unavailable.......which I hope will be less once we move Anne & Matthew out. The workboxes would be just the thing to give them for those days.

Eventually my thoughts turned to my two high schoolers........

Sarah, 10th grade, could probably benefit from a more specific plan each day. I think she would accomplish more.

And Maddelyn, soon to be 9th grade, who thrives on structure and prefers to have most decisions made for her, would probably do well with this idea......once she gets over the balking....she does not like change. Wonder where she gets that from.... :)

So, I have spent much time in researching the WORKBOXES IDEA.

I have found a yahoo groupwhich is good for early questions and inspiration.

I have found many blog posts about this topic.

One mom made a great list about WHY WORKBOXES? I like it!

But before we go explore the 'net, let me tell you where this all got started......

There was a woman named Susan Patrick who had an autistic son, and she did a lot of research about educating him and eventually developed this idea for her son. You can find her website here and read her story here.

She wrote a book called:

Sue Patrick's Workbox System A User's Guide

Many people have started using the system without reading the book. I was planning to do that, too, but I have seen so many moms say that while it could be done without reading the book, they were so glad to have read it. I would assume with any special needs children in the family, it would be even more important to read the book. I am sure if you do it without the book, it would work just fine. I have decided to order the book as I rarely have anything I need to buy for school anymore......so I can justify this small purchase. I will share it with my friends, too. You know who you are. In fact, I just ordered it Sunday night from Amazon, along with some other good stuff. I want to have it here in time before I go to Willa's house next week. I hope it gets here. (It didn't...only part of the order arrived.....:( )

The basic premise is to have 12 boxes for each kid, and place in each box, each school day, what they need to do, from the first to the last. When they finish one box, they go to the next numbered box.

Now, that is a very basic description. But, then...this is a pretty basic idea. Checking out the links below will give you a much better overview.........since I have not actually done this. In the past we have done similar workings.....but this is more fine-tuned.

And, keep in mind: KEEP IT SIMPLE! That is always a good rule for homeschooling moms to follow! So, while you explore this idea, do not give it up right away.......study it more and spend time thinking about the possibilities.......asking God if this is a good fit for you. I can't help but think it is a good fit for so many I know!

In the meantime, I have discovered a bookshelf in the schoolroom that can be put into the boys' room for this project. And, I have purchased some bins I have used in the past.........for $1 each at the dollar store. Now, I just need to clean out the spot in the boys' room for it....and figure out where to put the stuff on those shelves. I have posted to Freecycle, looking for bookshelves. So far, no nibbles....

......since I wrote that...my friend Patty just happened to have some metal shelves I can use to replace the ones in the schoolroom. Thanks, Patty!

Well, since I started this post, someone has written an online article about workboxes.....and there are lots of links and a few photos. I think I will give you a link to it, so you can look around. Before you start clicking on the links on that page...I have highlighted the useful ones below........

Also, while Willa and I were looking for the above article, she found another good blog post with lots of links. I have also highlighted the good ones below.......

Here is a great idea for using cereal boxes for holders...great photos. I will be considering this idea because I WANT magazine holders, but cannot find any less than $5 anywhere...and some were as a high as $14

Leslie, who also has six kids (aged 2.5-15yrs) has a nice post on workboxes, with good details of what's in them. Her blog is so lovely, that I added it to my google reader. :)



A good example of one mom who tweaked the system to work for her family, using three different methods of storage.


Oh, wow! I love how this looks here! Now I see I CAN use only what I have around and have it still look good visually and make sense. I needed this visual permission. Check this out if you do not want to get a bunch of new stuff or spend money. It works! Plus, you will all chuckle at her first photo. :)


Same mom has an excellent suggestion for the "art-handicapped" mom...ideas for art in the workboxes.


Here is Candace's blog and how she is doing the system.



Tina has a wonderful testimonial to offer after the end of her first week......She also has two posts about their Do-It Door...which someone may find helpful. It is a clever idea. Post one and post two. Especially helpful to those with young elementary kids.



This mom did it exactly as recommended in the book. In fact, you can find all of her posts about the workbox system here, which includes her first few days. Be sure to read from the bottom up. A nice look into someone's home and first week using the system.


Here you can find a lovely blog and description of using with a 2nd, 1st and preschooler. She has great photos of her system. This specific post here covers what to do with the "together" activities. I like her idea.



I like Lynn's little chat about the attitude to take when approaching this system, when you cannot or will not do it exactly as the book states. She also has another approach on the numbering.



Laura has seven kids and six boxes and no room to do the full system. You can see the alternative she is using here. She is using plastic bags...and her children loved the test run so much, they want to do it for the summer! :)


This post is useful to think about what to put into the boxes: the "must haves" the "want to haves" and the "fun" extra stuff.


I like the use of these ice cube trays.......check them out for another way to organize your workboxes. She let me know that you can find them at the Dollar store, Wal-mart, Freds...where she paid 1.50 for each.

Several posts of this small family's experience....a 5yo and a 3yo. Cute kids!

The mom above interviewed her kids' reaction to workboxes.

This mom wrote a "day-in-the-life" post for the days of her 8yo and 6 yo. You get to look in each drawer.

I really like this blog. It is sweet & classy....and she has an alternative way to use the idea, when you have a family that would require 96 boxes!!!! And, based on the little bit of research I am doing, and I could be mistaken, but Leslie may have been the one who got the whole workbox discussion going online. If you scroll down her homeschool posts, you can find some are about the workboxes...and photos of her girls using the boxes.

Another nice blog by Kendra......again, start at the bottom and read each post above. These are all of her workbox posts. She has a nice sense of humor. The one at the bottom reviews the original book a bit. I have a feeling she is describing what MY reaction will be when I get a chance to read it.

A nice post.

Heather has a collection of posts...the most telling ones are at the bottom of the page. Start there and then read each post above the last. She has many photos of her kids actually doing the work. I like how she described the workboxes: "A LIVING CHECKLIST" I believe this verbalizes what I LOVE about this idea: it "livingness!" Is that a real word??? :) Spellcheck says: no way!

Cute number idea for numbering the boxes! She will even make them for YOU....for ten bucks!


List of ideas at homeschoolshare.com for putting in the boxes....expect this list to grow! I had already printed out the animal classification page for Malachy before I found this link. Our little collection of animals will go to good use!



WHAT'S IN THE BOX? The description: Suggestions, Ideas & Discussions regarding the workbox system. Could be a nice one to follow.......I think I will add it to my Google reader.



THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX has lots of info....and the other parts of her blog are inspiring for the preschooling moms.



Good stuff for tots!


Want a resource for LOTS of worksheets? Try worksheetsworks.com! I have not used lots of worksheets in the past...but Malachy loves them...and this website looks like good filler. Oh, I found alphabetizing, maps, fractions, clocks, money, calendars, states & capitals, California puzzles, and lots more!



So, what are the kids saying about the workboxes? Find out here!



A message board about sharing workboxes, by Homeschool Share. By the way......this is a good place to find ideas for filling your workboxes. Explore if you have not been here before.



Other ways to apply the workbox idea:


How about vacation boxes? Clever!


There are lots of blog posts on workboxes for preschoolers. Since I sadly do not have any preschoolers, anymore, I mostly ignored those resources. The yahoo group above has quite a few including their preschoolers, so it is a good resource.

And, as last thought on these workboxes............

Something to think about (a dead link.......eventually took me to this link, which is interesting, but not related to workboxes, that I can see....) ......I like this quote Heather wrote: "Nearly every homeschooling board is humming with thoughts and questions related to this approach, which is, in essence, a structure for outlining a school day with minimal distractions. Is there more to it? Of course. But at its very heart, the Workbox System is about optimal organization. And, as we all know, organization is one of the major themes in homeschooling." Read more for an interesting take......she writes well...I like her vocabulary and way with words.

*++++++++++++++++++***++++++++++++++++*

So, that's it. I tried to use it.......I set it up very nicely, but never really started it. I just was too tired, busy and distracted to do the follow-up. I may try to set it up again for my 10 year old because I will need to be away from him several days a week. Either way, it has been a very useful place to stash all of the homeschool stuff we are currently using. It sort of looks like this:

.....some of the time. These are not the first boxes I bought.......but these bins are more useful for us most of the time.

God bless,

Chari

PS I cannot believe I am blogging at a mall! The teens and young adults need to shop.....we need to wait over two more hours to go pick up my oldest at the airport who is returning from a visit to her best friend's home in Virginia. We are so delighted to have her return to us! We have missed her!........too bad that after we pick her up at 10:45pm......we will still have a 1.5 hour drive home. Ugh.