A Day In The Life Of Our Homeschool

First, let me say that one day in our homeschool will probably not look like the next day in our homeschool. That's one of the main reasons I homeschool in the first place - For FLEXIBILITY! So, I probably need to do an entire week in the life of our homeschool to get a full picture. But, for now, let's just start with a Monday - Today!

Today, my alarm was set for 5:40. If my day is going to go smoothly with homeschooling, I have discovered that this born-to-be-a-night-owl mama has had to readjust her circadian rhythm a bit. If I don't wake up before the household is awake, the whole day is shot.

McDonald's became my work station after dropping off girls

I use this time to write, which is partially what I do for money. I also use this time as quiet time alone with just me, a cup of coffee, and the Bible. It's a nice peaceful time for me. I have come to really enjoy and look forward to this part of the day - That is, when I actually get up as scheduled. Back to the flexibility part - Some days I sleep in, and on those days I usually regret that decision that sounded so good when my head was nestled in that soft pillow.

The girls usually start waking up around 9:00ish. At least, that's when their alarm goes off. My oldest will start the day with a shower and the two have breakfast before diving into their book work. My son is a late-nighter and does not wake up at 9. He is also my unschooler, so his structured lessons are kept to a minimum as he learns best when left to explore his own interests. I've beat myself up over the unschooling idea for years and finally am becoming more comfortable with it when it comes to my son. I do not think it would work as well with my girls, because they like the work book style of learning. My son, however, truly learns best when there is a logical reason behind what he is learning. So, interest-driven education put an end to 4-hour fights about why he had to learn math concepts.  Now, he conducts calculus-level equations without prompting. He also has never ceased to score well on standardized tests. So, it appears the unschooling is a success with him. But, we will let him sleep for now while the girls begin their day.

Pics and Video from productions of Lifelight:

Most days, we stay home, but my Mondays are basically me and yo-yo driving, shuttling children back and forth.

So, it's Monday. This means - It's LIFELIGHT day! Yay! The girls absolutely love Lifelight Youth Theatres. It's not a co-op. I fail miserably at enjoying co-ops. No, this is a youth theatre group for homeschoolers. We pay tuition, and they participate. My youngest has to be there at 11:15 for ballet, but I drop off both girls at that time and my oldest catches up with friends as she waits for group voice lessons to begin. She and her younger sister both take voice. I'm hoping to get private lessons for my oldest next year, but that is a leap of faith in the expense category. When group voice class is done, it's time for drama. This year, Lifelight is putting on the broadway musical Mary Poppins. The girls had to audition for parts and were awarded the parts of a penguin (my youngest... That's what she really wanted to be) and as a Starlighter (it's a part only in the Broadway version, not in the Disney movie verson) and a Supercal Letter Teen (also a part only in the Broadway version). This theatre production company is so professional. The plays are like attending a professional performance. They are amazing but not without a lot of time and effort spent on Mondays.

I return home to my son who is in the process of finishing up coding the scouting program for his robotics team competition. They are in what is known as build season for the spring competition, and that means they meet every week night and all day Saturdays. Tuesday wraps up this year's build season, so tonight he goes to robotics from 6:30 to 9:30. He has been going on this full schedule since the beginning of January, and his competition is in early March. He is also working on what is called Mods. He has created his own Mods for a Sonic game and has spent time on the forums walking others through how to generate them. Another project he is working on with another homeschooling friend is a game they hope to release, and he is also cooberating on a GitHub project he began that is an effort to help younger children how to code.

I drop him off, and now I am home for the night. My husband will pick up my son to bring him home since my hubby teaches guitar lessons basically just around the corner from my son's robotics.

My day began with me finally getting out of bed after 6:30ish and has come to a homeschooling close with my dropping off my son at robotics at 6:30 p.m. A 12-hour day with concentrated homeschooling hours of about just slightly more than 8 hours total. The rest of that time is spent waking, eating, writing, and driving.