Loop schedule for Morning Time

It isn't called Morning Time or Basket Time here.  It is called Lounge Learning.  :)

There are so many things I want to fit into our LL time but I can't sit down for more than forty minutes before I want to fall asleep.  I have been learning about looping instead of block scheduling and think that I should give it a go for both our big subjects and our lounge time.

Here is the cycle for Lounge Learning.

Geography will cover things like our states, capital cities and major landmarks.  Then we will move onto continents, main countries and well known landmarks around the world.  The others are fairly self-explanatory.

The core things I do every time only take about 20 minutes leaving 20 minutes for one or more of these in rotation.  Good time length for me and my sleepy brain.

Best wishes
Jen

Homeschool Goals Brain Dump

It won't be pretty.  This is just a list I made one day when inspiration hit after reading a home school book.

Before school is done I want my boys to:
- know a good range of word roots that are common in English and Science
- know where countries are and what basic history they have... language, culture and politics and current language, culture and politics
- understand the basics of political outlooks e.g. socialism, communism, democracy, dictatorships, etc
- be able to observe their world, to be able to focus on the details when necessary and to be able to discern the beauty and the patterns of life
- be curios and to ask questions, to know who to ask, how to discern which sources are trustworthy
- appreciate nature
- by physically capable of using their bodies for fun e.g. rock climbing, tall trees, swimming, cycling, obstacle courses, trampolining
- recognise art and music that culturally significant
- be able to communicate effectively with the written and spoken word
-appreciate art by learning calligraphy, basic free hand drawing - perspective and lighting, and basic drafting
- be prepared for a technology-based world e.g. internet safety, online manners, typing skills, word processing, databases, spreadsheets
- have read or listened to some of the great books
- be able to prepare at least 5 different nutritious dinners, 2 desserts and a variety of lunches and breakfasts
- be able to the clean the centres of yuk in a home - kitchen, bathroom and laundry
- be able to wash clothes and take care of them well
- be able to create a budget and manage expenses within the income they have

Sometimes just letting it all flow out brings out up thoughts I had never consciously considered before.  This is a list I will be coming back to again.

Best wishes
Jen in Qld

I have been reading around the web about GTD's philosophy of task management. Misty has a whole series here on how to implement GTD for homeschoolers. I don't think she mentions it but I quite like an idea I came across of using a trigger list in my weekly review time so that I can make the next week better.

Here is mine.

Trigger List for Weekly Review

Week in Review

Household

1.     Which area of the house was looked after well this week?  Who did the work mostly?  Why did that work?  Can someone else help?

2.     Which area of house needs urgent attention?  What 15 minute job there would help it most?  Who can do it?  When?

3.     Which are of the house needs attention as a second priority?  What 15 minute job there would help it most?  Who can do it?  When?

4.     Which area of house was missed this week?  Does it keep getting missed?  Why?  Who can do the work?  What needs to happen first?  When will that happen?  What needs to happen before that?  Who will do that?  When?

5.     What routines worked this week?  What parts of the routines fell apart?  Why?  Does anything need to happen to make the routine work better?  Who is going to do it?  When?

Homeschool

1.     What subjects were most consistently done?  Why was this subject a success?  What helped them to go well?  Remember to repeat the actions associated with this success.

2.     What subject/s was missed this week?  Does it keep getting missed?  Why?  What needs to happen first?  When is it going to be done?  By who?

Events

1.     Were we prepared for planned events?  What worked?  What was missed?  What can we do so that we are better prepared next time?

Next Week

Events coming up -

What needs to happen before?  Who needs to do it?  When are they going to do it?  

Best wishes

Jen