Encouragement for today: I have been homeschooling since my oldest son was just five years old. I’m going into my 19th year at this. There have been days along the way when life just got in the way and we would tread water for a bit. I especially remember when my mom was battling cancer, although it took us months to figure that out. I was a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom taking care of two extra toddlers, my own three boys, and often my nephew so my sister could be with my mom (she’s a nurse).
You know what we did on those days? The bare minimum. And I mean the bare minimum. We often would go for long walks (I had a double stroller and we lived out in the middle of the boonies with little traffic). We would go on nature scavenger hunts along the way. I would read books to them or they would read quietly. We’d watch an educational video. We’d listen to an audio book. We might do some math or writing. But really, the goal at the end of the day was to do just one thing that I could count for school.
Children are naturally curious. Don’t you remember the incessant “why” questions your toddler asked? They often still do that, but in other ways. This is the perfect time for your child to really explore things they are interested in. Let them dive deep into a subject they want to learn about.
What about learning life skills? Baking/cooking. Car repair. Landscaping. Garden planning. Taxes. All those things most schools don’t teach. You may find you have time to do that now unless you’re trying to juggle working at home along with school for your kids.
And if you are juggling a lot of responsibilities at home right now, let me end with this. Relationships are more important than any math worksheet ever. Use this time to build relationships. Educating your kids at this moment shouldn’t be your highest priority. It honestly should not be. Making sure your relationships are rock solid? Now that is the highest priority you should have.
This will be my last official lesson plan. It seems most public schools now have things in place. I will, however, continue to post daily encouragement along with free sites you can use and other ways to supplement education right now. Feel free to drop me a comment if you are looking for something specific and I will do my best to help you find a source.
You know what we did on those days? The bare minimum. And I mean the bare minimum. We often would go for long walks (I had a double stroller and we lived out in the middle of the boonies with little traffic). We would go on nature scavenger hunts along the way. I would read books to them or they would read quietly. We’d watch an educational video. We’d listen to an audio book. We might do some math or writing. But really, the goal at the end of the day was to do just one thing that I could count for school.
Children are naturally curious. Don’t you remember the incessant “why” questions your toddler asked? They often still do that, but in other ways. This is the perfect time for your child to really explore things they are interested in. Let them dive deep into a subject they want to learn about.
What about learning life skills? Baking/cooking. Car repair. Landscaping. Garden planning. Taxes. All those things most schools don’t teach. You may find you have time to do that now unless you’re trying to juggle working at home along with school for your kids.
And if you are juggling a lot of responsibilities at home right now, let me end with this. Relationships are more important than any math worksheet ever. Use this time to build relationships. Educating your kids at this moment shouldn’t be your highest priority. It honestly should not be. Making sure your relationships are rock solid? Now that is the highest priority you should have.
This will be my last official lesson plan. It seems most public schools now have things in place. I will, however, continue to post daily encouragement along with free sites you can use and other ways to supplement education right now. Feel free to drop me a comment if you are looking for something specific and I will do my best to help you find a source.
Together School
Homeschoolers of Maine is celebrating Spirit Week COVID-19 style this week!
Today is: Pajama Day – because this is the best part of homeschooling. So true!
Read Aloud:
Continue reading 1-2 chapters (or more) of the book you choose on Monday. See Monday’s post for a list of suggestions.
Bible (and Art):
Read Psalm 5. Read aloud. Choose one of these coloring pages to color.
VeggieTales story of Esther (because VeggieTales!)
PE: Spend time outside. Take a walk. Challenge your sibling to a race. You can also do the workout from Monday at Renovation CrossFit Kids on Instagram.
Art: McHarper Manor is offering live art classes each day. This is their video from yesterday.
Create a card for either a hospital employee or someone in a nursing home. Let them know you are thinking about them! Mail.
Music: If your child plays an instrument, make sure to have them practice for 20-30 minutes each day. IF they are in the choir, have them sing a song or two. Every other week or so, have them put on a concert for you at home.
Here is part two of the learning how to sight sing video I posted yesterday.
Today is: Pajama Day – because this is the best part of homeschooling. So true!
Read Aloud:
Continue reading 1-2 chapters (or more) of the book you choose on Monday. See Monday’s post for a list of suggestions.
Bible (and Art):
Read Psalm 5. Read aloud. Choose one of these coloring pages to color.
VeggieTales story of Esther (because VeggieTales!)
PE: Spend time outside. Take a walk. Challenge your sibling to a race. You can also do the workout from Monday at Renovation CrossFit Kids on Instagram.
Art: McHarper Manor is offering live art classes each day. This is their video from yesterday.
Create a card for either a hospital employee or someone in a nursing home. Let them know you are thinking about them! Mail.
Music: If your child plays an instrument, make sure to have them practice for 20-30 minutes each day. IF they are in the choir, have them sing a song or two. Every other week or so, have them put on a concert for you at home.
Here is part two of the learning how to sight sing video I posted yesterday.
Elementary
Math: Continue working on math facts.
Drill sheets to print. (Do no more than 20-25 problems.)
List of free math games on Teachers Pay Teachers. Pick a different one to play today:
Language Arts: Continue working on reading for the younger “learning-to-read” group. You can use these books if you don’t have any easy readers at home.
Have older kids who can read continue reading their book of choice.
Have them work on their handwriting.
Have them work on a grammar worksheet.
Have them write a story and illustrate it. They can draw a picture and then write a story about it or tell someone else the story to write for them. Here are 55 story prompts to use.
Science: Do Lesson 4 from Science in the Beginning at this link.
Make sure to do the experiment and the lesson review at the end.
Social Studies: Let’s continue learning about presidents. Today we’ll learn about the fourth President, James Madison. Watch this video to learn more.
Here’s another Liberty Kids video that ties into the history we’ve been learning
Print out a coloring page to work on while you watch the video.
Drill sheets to print. (Do no more than 20-25 problems.)
List of free math games on Teachers Pay Teachers. Pick a different one to play today:
Language Arts: Continue working on reading for the younger “learning-to-read” group. You can use these books if you don’t have any easy readers at home.
Have older kids who can read continue reading their book of choice.
Have them work on their handwriting.
Have them work on a grammar worksheet.
Have them write a story and illustrate it. They can draw a picture and then write a story about it or tell someone else the story to write for them. Here are 55 story prompts to use.
Science: Do Lesson 4 from Science in the Beginning at this link.
Make sure to do the experiment and the lesson review at the end.
Social Studies: Let’s continue learning about presidents. Today we’ll learn about the fourth President, James Madison. Watch this video to learn more.
Here’s another Liberty Kids video that ties into the history we’ve been learning
Print out a coloring page to work on while you watch the video.
Middle School
Math: Continue working on learning math facts.
Drill sheets to print. (Do no more than 20-25 problems.)
List of free math games on Teachers Pay Teachers. Pick another one to play today.
Language Arts: Choose 2-4 worksheets from this site to complete (answers included):
Continue using your writing notebook. Pick one prompt from here and write a one page story using it.
Pick a book (either from the read aloud section or from this list.) Read for at least 30 minutes. Go tell someone else about what you read today.
Science: Do Lesson 4 from Science in the Beginning.
Make sure to do the experiment and the lesson review at the end – do either the “older or oldest” student lesson review.
Social Studies: Watch Crash Course US History with John Green:
Episode 7
Episode 8
Write a short summary of each video in a notebook.
Drill sheets to print. (Do no more than 20-25 problems.)
List of free math games on Teachers Pay Teachers. Pick another one to play today.
Language Arts: Choose 2-4 worksheets from this site to complete (answers included):
Continue using your writing notebook. Pick one prompt from here and write a one page story using it.
Pick a book (either from the read aloud section or from this list.) Read for at least 30 minutes. Go tell someone else about what you read today.
Science: Do Lesson 4 from Science in the Beginning.
Make sure to do the experiment and the lesson review at the end – do either the “older or oldest” student lesson review.
Social Studies: Watch Crash Course US History with John Green:
Episode 7
Episode 8
Write a short summary of each video in a notebook.
High School
Math: Continue working on math facts Use this website to find those areas. Print 1-2 to work on today. Another option would be use Khan Academy.
Language Arts: Today is the day you should finish your book and your quiz.
Choose 1-2 worksheets from this website to work on grammar.
Use your writing notebook. Pick one prompt and write a one page story using it.
Science: Continue to work through the History of Science course on YouTube.
Use your science notebook and write a summary of what you have learned. Spend 20-30 minutes on this today.
Social Studies: Continue to work through this course on European History with this Crash Course playlist. Write a summary of what you learn in a “history” notebook.
Language Arts: Today is the day you should finish your book and your quiz.
Choose 1-2 worksheets from this website to work on grammar.
Use your writing notebook. Pick one prompt and write a one page story using it.
Science: Continue to work through the History of Science course on YouTube.
Use your science notebook and write a summary of what you have learned. Spend 20-30 minutes on this today.
Social Studies: Continue to work through this course on European History with this Crash Course playlist. Write a summary of what you learn in a “history” notebook.
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