Sunday, September 27, 2009

Doing What Must Be Done

Well, what I really wanted to do today was go through our pictures so I can have them ready to order and so I can write posts on Second Daughter's birthday party (last Sunday), our first field trip (last Monday), our first Nature Study Club (last Friday) or one of the many other topics rolling around in my head.

Instead, I spent my bit of free time revising our schedule and writing my rough lesson plans for October, which needed to be done. (Um, I also took a long nap but that's not really important here.) Here's the new and improved more-likely-to-fit-our-real-life schedule:



I've changed our start time to 9:10 am, to reflect the fact that we always started at 9 anyway. I moved lunch earlier because Second Daughter is much happier all day long if she eats lunch at 11:30 am instead of 12 pm. I moved some reading to after lunch and had to cut some outside time, but it was hard getting out twice in the morning anyway (and I don't think it would be easier with the dog). Let's see...other changes...I cut out the math review on Tuesdays and Thursdays because First Son is doing so well with it (maybe someday I'll post about math...). I moved poetry to Wednesday and history to Friday because we're more likely to miss on Wednesdays and we all like history more than poetry here on the Range. I eliminated our formal Nature Study time on Fridays and hope to explain why in another post. I'm eliminating our video watching on Tuesdays and Thursdays and identifying who gets to choose the video on the other days. I'm hoping this will cut down on some of the squabbling we've had (though Kansas Dad rightly pointed out they'll probably just bicker over something else).

There were some other tweaks, too. We'll give this a try for October and see how it goes.

I'm also adding a memory verse this week. Kansas Dad looked over the recommended list for first graders in Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum: A Guide to Catholic Home Education and picked one for us: "Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." (Psalm 118:105)

I wasn't tired of homeschooling, but having a new schedule adds some excitement back for this week. I'm also looking forward to a new month: a new opening song (Glory and Praise To Our God) and a new composer for our music appreciation, both of which we'll start on Friday.