Homeschooling advice?
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Anonymous
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I think I want to try homeschooling for my daughter. Shes smart, has a good work ethic when she enjoys what she is doing and her favorite subjects are science, art and reading.
I looked at Moving Beyond The Page which seems perfect....however she didn't seem interested. My other issue is that Moving Beyond the page only adds up to 3 hours. I could also buy her some STEM related toys....but they all cost so much! I work full time also..... I need some advice on- If I should do homeschooling If I should try a homeschooling program (and if so which one) Any STEM toys that would also teach her? |
Anonymous
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3 hour of school is probably enough homeschooling for any ES grade.
-former homeschooled kid |
Anonymous
I don't know....shes 8, an introvert, and I don't think there would be enough to keep her busy until I get off of work or her sister gets back from school. |
Anonymous
| OP: How much time is really enough for homeschooling? |
Anonymous
Look into a homeschool tutorial services near you. They aren’t all religious. We were new to homeschool this year and could not have done it without the tutors. Our child goes 2 days a week to the in person service, and the other three days, I just read the script and follow the lessons that the tutors created for me. It’s a super close knit community and I had lots of veteran parents help me get organized. It’s been a fabulous experience so far |
Anonymous
One benefit of homeschooling is that it doesn't take a full day! My son is in 4th. We've homeschooled every year. In addition to basic subjects (math, language arts, social studies, art, etc.), he also takes only martial arts and music classes as well as the occasional series on Outschool. Also - you should not need to keep her entertained or occupied all day. If she's reading on her own, get her some awesome books and set her up with some projects. Also good is what unschoolers call strewing; it works well in our house. And, of course, free time is good time - get bored, get creative, etc. |
Anonymous
How old is she? |
Anonymous
As a homeschooling parent, I think it is hard to put a time amount, because I think the lines between what is "school" and what is "family life" are pretty blurry, especially now that we're home. There are things that my kids did as extracurriculars when they went to school (instrument lessons, ballet class, sports) that they now do at home during school hours. There are also things that we did before homeschooling, like reading aloud, or helping a parent cook, or building lego robots, that we do more now because we have more time. And there are things that my kids might have been assigned to do at school, like reading novels, or creating art, or playing basketball, that they choose to do so I don't assign them. Having said all that, during the hours that my kids used to go to school or after care, my 8 year year old typically does the following things that I assign each day 60 minutes of math every week day 30 minutes of writing every week day (spelling, handwriting, grammar/mechanics, composition) 60 minutes of listening to history and literature read aloud, some of it during lunch. (Her siblings who don't choose to read for fun, the way she does, also have reading assigned here) 30 minutes of piano practice She also has some kind of outside class (virtual right now) every week day. She takes 1 piano lesson, 2 ballet classes and 2 Spanish lessons each week. (Her siblings take different classes, depending on their interests) And some but not all days an adult plans something fun like an art project or a cooking project. On Saturdays she spends a few hours with her siblings doing science with Dad. The rest of the day is hers to structure. I don't allow screens until after dinner, unless it's something educational (e.g. one of her siblings likes an app that teaches coding), but she has lots of choices. She chooses to read a lot, to write little stories, to create art, and to play pretend. Her siblings make other choices. Some of what they choose seems more like school, such as reading or coding, and some of it seems less like school like chasing each other with nerf guns or decorating the driveway with sidewalk chalk. |
Anonymous
| look up Well Trained Mind. They have a book outlining a classical education philosophy and a curriculum for every age. |
Anonymous
| No advice but I wish I could quit my job and homeschool. DL is a joke! Lots of useless busy work on adaptive programs, little in the way of live instruction, a schedule of 30 minute blocks, way too much screen time and lots of assignments (2-3 plus the lessons on the computer programs Due every week). It’s ridiculous and given the amount of time we spend supervising and providing technical support for what the school claims a first grader should be doing independently I may as well homeschool. DS and I are both burnt out and frustrated at the end of each day. This is a lose lose for everyone except maybe the teachers who are not teaching. |
Anonymous
If you have an adult at home, you can absolutely homeschool a first time, probably in less time than you're supporting DL. |
Anonymous
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You don't say how old she is, but I have been told about 3 hours is right for a 9 year old.
Thatsaid, I tihnk it's a weird system to figure out what the minimum is and go from there. Also, you might find advice in the Homeschooling forum. |
Anonymous
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I'm homeschooling a 7 and 10 year old for the first time and we spend about 3-4hours a day on lessons. From everything that that I've read and researched this seems to be what is suggested. Now that we are a month into homeschooling I can say that I feel like it's absolutely appropriate. My kids have about 2 hours before lunch, an afternoon break to do activities they choose (I encourage them to be outdoors) and then another 1-2 hours after. The day goes by very quickly and I feel like they do learn so much in that short amount of time.
As for stem toys... this is not a toy I do highly recommend mysteryscience.com for your science minded child. We purchased the annual subscription and it gives us access to all of the amazing online lessons and activities. It is so engaging and age appropriate. My kids love it and so easy for me in terms of prep and planning because I don't have to do anything. |
Anonymous
| Three hours is plenty. |
Anonymous
| I don’t know how the PP a few posters up gets her kid to do piano 30 mins a day..... lol. My 8yo does a 30 min lesson once a week and then practices about 5 mins a day . I tell her she had to play each song she’s learning, usually 2, three times each. This worked better than setting a time. Having said that, we spend approx 2 hours a day on homeschool. We do music, Spanish, gymnastics and math outside the home. All are once a week except math which is twice a week. No screens between 9-2 so we have been outside a lot. She can also do puzzles, LEGO , play doh etc which probably counts twds something. |