One of the difficult things about planning, I find, is that at some point you need to stop and actually execute. There is a moment for thinking about doing and there is a moment for doing. That moment has actually come. After several weeks of planning, the school year has started for us. Today was the first day back into Classical Conversations.
This program is what we have chosen as a core of our homeschooling. I think the program is excellent, offering a good bridge between homeschooling and "real" school. It gives us some of the benefits of school (interaction,a place to discuss ideas, a community of learners, and support for mom) without some of the negatives. This is our second year with this program and it has been a good fit for us. This year we are having to adjust since our group has blossomed- I would say it has tripled in size.
I have been busy planning the flow and rhythm of our days. I don't necessary want to have schedule a with detailed times but I need to have a certain structure because we have some outside commitments that serve as a frame for our days (frame, another word for constrain :-). I also have been working on chore and menu charts. I am trying to avoid as much as possible the sense of not being in control that I so frequently felt last year. I figure that even if we do get of track (and I am sure we will) the schedule and charts, I hope, will give me a point from where to re-start.
Today, after we came back from CC, I sat down at the computer and work on a chore chart, laundry and kitchen schedules. I am hoping that I can avoid the I-didn't-know- what-I-was-supposed-to-be-doing excuses.
Next, I have to finish creating my icalendar schedule that would include our actual school work schedule. Hopefully I would be able to figure out how to post a document file here on this blog for easy, one stop access.
