Saturday, March 8, 2008

Our New Schedule

Since having our bad day Monday, I've been trying to follow a new schedule as much as we've been able. Since I know many people struggle with scheduling issues, I thought I would share what we are doing since this week has gone much better. Even though we were unable to completely follow the whole plan, we've gotten more done than usual and have been happier.

What I did was very simple; it would have to be for this mom to have any hope of following it. I created a schedule as if I expected to be home from 9am to 3pm every day. We aren't this year so we've been following it as much as we are able. I broke the day up into very simple blocks of time. I have never before been able to follow any kind of schedule I've attempted. All of them have been much more detailed than this current one.

The first block of time is the before-school time. I made a strong effort to be out of bed by 6:30am. While I didn't make it out that early each morning, I got very close. I used the morning time to shower, get dressed, wipe down the bathroom (Flylady's swish & swipe), make my bed, and try to get a few other chores down. If I had laundry to fold from the day before, I folded some of it. If I had dishes left over from the day before (I haven't mastered getting dishes washed at night yet...we have no dishwasher), I try to wash some of them. If I have clean dishes in the drainer, I put them away. I also start a load of wash. The new rule for the kids is that they must be up by 7:30am. They are usually up by then on their own. They are to have their chores done before 8:30. Their chores consist of making their bed, getting dressed/personal hygiene, and feeding the animals. It can easily be accomplished in about 15-20 minutes. Any leftover time can be used as playtime (no computer/game cube). At 8:30am, we eat breakfast; this is either cereal or toast they get themselves or breakfast I have cooked if I have the time, energy, and desire to do so.

School starts at 9am. We work for an hour.

At 10am, we go outside for half and hour of "recess." We go outside and play. We've been pulling out their scooters, bikes, and balls. I bought the baby a "buggy" that he can sit in while I push it so we can walk/ride in the neighborhood rather than just up and down the street. He loves it and rode 2 miles over 2 recesses yesterday. The kids have loved this part because I'm normally not organized enough to take them outside to play and they can't go in the front yard alone.

At 10:30am, we come back in for another hour of school.

At 11:30, we break for an hour for lunch. We eat together at the table and then the kids are free to play (no computer/game cube) for the rest while I work on dishes and other chores.

At 12:30pm, we work on another hour of school.

At 1:30pm, we have another outside recess.

At 2pm, we finish up school and are done for the day at 3pm. Now they can finally have their computer/game cube time if they want.

This is the schedule we are shooting for. I wasn't prepared for this since I decided on it Monday and started it on Tuesday so we just winged it this week. We also get interrupted on Tuesdays and Thursdays for swimming and gymnastics.

How I fill each block of school time will change as I develop my new plan for curriculum. I'm working on it diligently and hope it will work out well. I've been working hard to be able to put the new plan into action next week as a trial week. I'll let you know how it goes and, if it goes well, I'll share the new plan.

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3 Comments:

Anonymous said...

I like the block idea. Keep us posted on how the week goes. Have a blessed weekend!

Manders said...

This is exactly what I needed from anyone to see how to make it work. I love this idea.

I'll be watching on how well this works.

Thanks JoAnn

Michelle Olsen Sasak said...

Sounds like a great schedule :)