Different Scheduling for Different Kids
“What sort of scheduling did you follow when you were homeschooling?” asked my friend, Susan. “My boys drive me crazy arguing about when to do their school work, even though they enjoy it.”
I surprised Susan by telling her that one daughter started her school day by 7:00 a.m. Furthermore, she peppered her day with bike rides and trampoline jumps. The other daughter usually started her work after lunch and then studied for hours, often saving her hardest work for evening hours when she was most alert.
Of course, when these girls were learning to read, I did scheduling based on my own biological clock. But when they reached the stage of independent study at around age ten, it made sense for them to plan their own schedules. After all, homeschooling focuses on mastering skills rather than on how many hours are spent in school!
Schedules Work Best with Clear Goals
To schedule well, the student needs clear goals. The goals are first set by the teaching parent and gradually taken over by the student. Short goals work best for young children. More complex goals come later.
When Jenny was seven, she could handle a plan for one morning at a time. I gave her a simple list of three tasks to complete that day. When she finished, she was free for the day. Knowing what she needed to accomplish motivated her to work hard while allowing her to take breaks as needed. Some tasks go better after a long bike ride!
By the time Jenny was twelve she helped plan a weekly task list, taking into account our yearly goals as well as upcoming special events. We constructed a chart for each week. She checked off the tasks as she finished them. She enjoyed going over the chart with her dad on Friday nights and showing him her work.
By fourteen, Jenny was doing her own annual goal setting each summer. She consulted with her dad and me as she decided what subjects to cover in the coming year and how to accomplish that. She ordered the books and videos she needed, researched what was available at the library and on the Internet, and found mentors among our friends and local college students when her educational desires went beyond my abilities. Then she divided her annual goals into weekly goals and built a chart to keep herself on track. When unexpected opportunities or difficulties arose, as they always do, she used her chart to catch up or adjust goals.
Scheduling Freedom Builds Life Skills
The learned skills of goal setting, planning intermediary steps, and charting progress have been a significant help to Jenny in college.
“I really hit the ground running compared to a lot of the freshmen,” she told me. “I’m using the independent study skills I learned at home to stay ahead of the heavy workload required here. Since I wasn’t waiting around for someone to tell me what to do or how to study, I never got behind.”
Now, those are beautiful words to hear. Based on my experience I encourage homeschoolers to give their students the maximum scheduling freedom they can handle at each stage of their educational development.
Don’t Overschedule
As unschoolers discovered, wonderful things happen during unscheduled time. So, although goals and checklists are great tools, use them in moderation!
by Yvonna Graham, M.Ed.
www.dyslexiakit.net
@GrahamYvonna