Three Steps to Find More Time in Your Day
Homeschooling took all day, and you can’t figure out how that happened. Neither can your kids! You need to find more time in your day, but how? Well, follow these three steps, and chances are, you’ll be on your way to ending your day in a more timely way!
Step 1: Identify Where Time Is Lost
Homeschooling should not take all day (at least if you use Heart of Dakota). If it is taking all day, something is off! The good news is the problems can often easily be identified just by paying attention to how the day unfolds. When does the homeschool day really start? How long does breakfast really take? When the kiddos take a break, how long are those breaks – when do they really return to their homeschooling? How long does math really take? When Waylon does his writing lesson, how much of his time is really spent writing, and how much is really spent whining? Baby Nora needs to nap, and 9 AM used to be her go-to time, but now that’s not happening – when does Nora really go to nap now?
Pay attention – I guarantee you will find time sinkholes! I’m not talking about the one-off things, like spilled red Gatorade on the carpet. I’m talking about the every day patterns that go unnoticed. You set your homeschool ‘start time’ at 8 AM, but breakfast routinely takes until 9 AM. You’ve identified a sinkhole! Math takes 8-year-old Maddie more than an hour a day. You’ve identified a sinkhole! You sent Renee and Reece outside for morning “recess” with the plan for them to return to school in 30 minutes. Over an hour later, recess is still going strong… another sinkhole.
You’re not really homeschooling all day. The kids are not really doing school all day. What a relief! Identify where time is lost, and time will be found!
Step 2: Start with the Finish
When do you really want to be done homeschooling? Within reason, that is? 3 PM? 2 PM? 1 PM? After lunch? Well, start with the finish time and backtrack. What do you have to do to accomplish that? When do you realistically need to start? If school should take about 4 hours and you want to be done at 1 PM, breakfast can’t really take an hour, math can’t really take more than an hour, and morning “recess” can’t really take over an hour – or that 1 PM finish will never happen!
Use your identified sinkholes to make adjustments. Finish breakfast by 8:30, so you can start homeschooling. Ditch the lengthy math, and replace it with a better time conscious option for an 8-year-old. Set the timer and call the kiddos in from outdoor “recess” after 30 minutes. Send Waylon to a minute-long timeout in the corner for whining during writing, pray about it together, and get back on track.
Step 3: That’s My Plan and I’m Sticking to It
You know your sinkholes, you know when you want to finish… now it’s time to make a plan. Those of you who are anti-planners, stick with me here! Your plan can be your friend. Put pencil to paper and rough it out. Gary gets up early and so do you. Start with him! 7:30 AM – Teach Gary Bible Study and do dictation. Breakfast at 8 AM, and at 8:30 Gary plays with baby Nora while you teach Waylon writing. 9 AM Waylon plays with baby, and you teach Gary. 9:30 AM baby watches Veggie Tales in her saucer, Waylon’s independent, and you teach Gary. 10 AM Nora goes to nap, Gary’s independent, and you teach Waylon. 11 AM Waylon’s independent, and you teach Gary – etc.
Put your plan to paper, so everyone is on the same page. Do your homeschool in the same order – this consistency saves SO MUCH TIME! For example, Gary does Bible Study, dictation, plays with baby Nora, history/follow-up boxes with you, independent history, independent science, recess with Waylon, etc. Give Gary the plan! He will enjoy checking off his boxes, seeing his homeschool day moving along, knowing when he’s with you / with Nora / with Waylon. He will feel great finishing on time and getting to his free time! So will Waylon. So will you.
Make your plan and stick to it… until life changes… a new stage comes… and sinkholes show up again. Then, identify where time is lost, start with the finish, and make a new plan. Such is the way of homeschooling! I routinely found time in my day with these three simple steps, and you know what? I LOVED my homeschooling! So did my sons. I hope this helps you find more time in your day too! And more importantly, I hope it helps you LOVE your homeschooling!
