Thank you so much for this! I was struggling with 4 kids 8 and under and being 8 months pregnant....... This time box schedule is a fantastic idea! I know I can do this!!!
Thank you for this!! It's our second week of homeschooling and we have been inadvertently using the time boxes as I figure out doing homeschool while working from home. I have been telling myself to work on a consistent "schedule" of the children's lessons already (time table) but the flexibility of time boxes is more workable for us :)
I like the time tables for scheduling. I always post this where we work on “school.” We also make the schedule visual with pictures for children who are still learning to read. This works for our family and my kids have gotten pretty independent... even my first grader. And I’ve been sick and my older daughter is able to take over schooling with the younger without a problem.
Wow! That WAS helpful! Especially those sample schedules! We will use the Time Boxes for now, with the length of the lesson included, to keep things from going on too long. I would also be interested in knowing more about how to work with the different time allotments for different ages.
And it's okay even to do mix - We have it so that way the first portion of our morning is like a box and then we have a timer go off that sets into motion a time table and then after that time table is done it goes back to a box schedule for the rest of the day. If it's around my husband's work schedule for the boxes and the table helps me and my oldest stay on track during one of my younger's naps time and then it goes back to box for working around when my younger two are awake. As a little bit different on Sundays than other days because of activities we do out of the house. It's not even a binary. But you do need to ensure that you are actually having structure and are not all loosey- goosey. But be willing to think outside of the box to manage Sandy and provide for the needs of everyone under your roof.
This was a very helpful video! I've always struggled with time management and it has carried over into our homeschool days. I really like the time boxes approach and think that will be very doable for us. Thank you!!
I like timetables but my son is autistic and he becomes so focused on the time he panics and is unable to do the work but he works well and calmly with time boxes knowing what's next but not focusing on the clock.
@@SimplyCharlotteMason thank you for replying! I hope if that ever changes, you'll let us know! I would be so happy to use that resource, but I currently live in Spain.
I do have one question though. What should I do if my child doesn't finish their assignment in the allotted time? Just carry it over to the following day?
I let them mark unfinished work with a sticky note in their binders and then sometimes start a day with Choose & Finish. It is handy when there is always some unfinished work, so that they can also continue with something, after finishing an assignment that the sibling is still working on.
Hi, This is a great question! If your child is working diligently on their lesson and the time for that subject is up, you mark where you are, put it away and come back to it the next time it is scheduled in your homeschool week. If your child is struggling to attend to and focus on a given lesson and you are struggling with what to do when they are dawdling through a lesson, here are some ideas: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/student-mentally-checks/
I was expecting the to offer the time schedule and loop, which is sort of does. Or schedule and blocks, but in CM it is unusual to do blocks. Looping is similar to time blocks, but there's even more flexibility around unexpected things that interrupt your day or week, to the point you end up skipping some work.
Hi Sonia, it was very nice to meet you at the NCHEA Homeschool Conference in Lincoln, NE in early March this year. I'm going to homeschool my 5 year old Kindergartner this fall and I'm new at this. Could you show samples of a Kindergarten Time Tables/Boxes and subjects that I should introduce? Thanks.
We hope that your homeschooling journey is going well! For anyone else who may have this same question, here are some resources for preschool and kindergarten aged children: simplycharlottemason.com/planning/preschool-guide/ simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-homeschool-preschool/
This is so helpful! Trying to teach 1st grade and I have a newborn and it has been so rough. What do you do if they don’t finish their work in that amount of time?
When work is not completed, it is moved to the following day. If a student is not completing work because of dawdling, work is moved to the next day but there should be consequences (that have been established and related to the child) as well.
It varies by grade level. There's a breakdown of lesson lengths for grades 1-9 in this article, based on Charlotte Mason's recommendations: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/three-basic-cm-principles-subject-by-subject-part-2/
I have 2 out of my 5 that are special learners. A 20 min math lesson easily takes 40 minutes and a 10 min reading lesson is close to half an hour. So for just the 2 of them that is already 2 hours for just 2 subjects. I would like some tips on how to fit it in and what to do with the other 4 while I am one on one for so long.
Remember that you will need to treat each child as an individual. If a lesson that takes another child 20 minutes is taking 40 minutes, it's a 40 minute lesson for that child and needs to be shorten. You might set a timer for the 20 minutes and do only as much as can fit into that time. This article gives some ideas for adjusting your lessons to each individual child's needs and skill level: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/working-students-skills/
It takes my ADD daughter like 3 hours to do basic get ready for the day stuff. Funny but not funny. She is unable to follow a checklist. I put one in her room and she still needs me to babysit her at 11 years old. That table shows getting school work done before my kid even wakes up. Haha Very impressive.
Hi, Thank you for reaching out with your question! Charlotte Mason felt that short lessons were important in teaching our children. Here is a post that goes into more detail. simplycharlottemason.com/blog/6-benefits-of-short-lessons/ If you utilize the principle of short lessons and a Charlotte Mason approach to homeschooling, it is possible to have your lessons finished in a short amount of time. Now if you have younger children, out of the home commitments, interruptions in your day, etc. it will take you longer to finish the plan for the day, however the lessons themselves will still be short. Here are a few posts that go into more detail on what a Charlotte Mason education looks like at different grade levels which also helps shed light on how it's possible to accomplish their work in this short time frame. Preschool: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-homeschool-preschool/ Elementary School: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-elementary-school/ Middle School: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-middle-school/ High School: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-high-school/ simplycharlottemason.com/blog/4-hours-for-high-school/
I am new to homeschooling and I noticed my highschooler pretty independent and doing well. Junior high or FaceTime structure help than the twins second graders need me 100% but we also have a two-year-old. I’m struggling with scheduling and getting through our daily stuff with my second graders because of my two year old. Help me please… What do I need to do or shift to make this more functional?
Have the high schooler watch the 2 year old for 20 to 30 minutes at a time throughout the day. That will give you time to work with twins. Start off with 5 minutes if you need to train high schooler how to work with 2 year old. Each day addd time and more training. They will grow closer from this also. Another benefit.
Thank you so much for this! I was struggling with 4 kids 8 and under and being 8 months pregnant....... This time box schedule is a fantastic idea! I know I can do this!!!
This is so helpful. I wish I had this information 20 years ago when I started homeschooling....but glad I have it now😊
THANK YOU SO MUCH ! My son is 7 and I also take care of my mother at home. The time box schedule is something that I will use going forward.
Thank you for this!! It's our second week of homeschooling and we have been inadvertently using the time boxes as I figure out doing homeschool while working from home.
I have been telling myself to work on a consistent "schedule" of the children's lessons already (time table) but the flexibility of time boxes is more workable for us :)
I like the time tables for scheduling. I always post this where we work on “school.” We also make the schedule visual with pictures for children who are still learning to read. This works for our family and my kids have gotten pretty independent... even my first grader. And I’ve been sick and my older daughter is able to take over schooling with the younger without a problem.
I love the idea of a timetable schedule. Consistency is something we depend on in our homeschool.
Wow! That WAS helpful! Especially those sample schedules! We will use the Time Boxes for now, with the length of the lesson included, to keep things from going on too long. I would also be interested in knowing more about how to work with the different time allotments for different ages.
Thank you! So simple and so so very helpful!! :)
Glad it was helpful!
And it's okay even to do mix - We have it so that way the first portion of our morning is like a box and then we have a timer go off that sets into motion a time table and then after that time table is done it goes back to a box schedule for the rest of the day. If it's around my husband's work schedule for the boxes and the table helps me and my oldest stay on track during one of my younger's naps time and then it goes back to box for working around when my younger two are awake. As a little bit different on Sundays than other days because of activities we do out of the house. It's not even a binary. But you do need to ensure that you are actually having structure and are not all loosey- goosey. But be willing to think outside of the box to manage Sandy and provide for the needs of everyone under your roof.
Your voice is sooooo calming…the music,voice …etc I listen just to have a calming moment in our day🥰
Thank you so much for your help!
You're welcome!
Dear Sonia, you look younger and younger every video. 😊 I appreciate a lot the info you share. Thank you!
This is fantastic! Thank you for the clear description of each method.
You are very welcome!
Seems time boxes will work for me right now. Thanks Ma'am Sonya. God bless.
This was a very helpful video! I've always struggled with time management and it has carried over into our homeschool days. I really like the time boxes approach and think that will be very doable for us. Thank you!!
Loved the time box idea!! Thank you!
I like timetables but my son is autistic and he becomes so focused on the time he panics and is unable to do the work but he works well and calmly with time boxes knowing what's next but not focusing on the clock.
I always look forward to these videos. I have an unrelated question. Do you deliver Our Preschool Life outside of the States?
Our Preschool Life currently ships to USA addresses only.
@@SimplyCharlotteMason thank you for replying! I hope if that ever changes, you'll let us know! I would be so happy to use that resource, but I currently live in Spain.
I do have one question though. What should I do if my child doesn't finish their assignment in the allotted time? Just carry it over to the following day?
I let them mark unfinished work with a sticky note in their binders and then sometimes start a day with Choose & Finish. It is handy when there is always some unfinished work, so that they can also continue with something, after finishing an assignment that the sibling is still working on.
Hi, This is a great question! If your child is working diligently on their lesson and the time for that subject is up, you mark where you are, put it away and come back to it the next time it is scheduled in your homeschool week.
If your child is struggling to attend to and focus on a given lesson and you are struggling with what to do when they are dawdling through a lesson, here are some ideas:
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/student-mentally-checks/
I was expecting the to offer the time schedule and loop, which is sort of does. Or schedule and blocks, but in CM it is unusual to do blocks. Looping is similar to time blocks, but there's even more flexibility around unexpected things that interrupt your day or week, to the point you end up skipping some work.
This was very helpful, thank you
Hi Sonia, it was very nice to meet you at the NCHEA Homeschool Conference in Lincoln, NE in early March this year. I'm going to homeschool my 5 year old Kindergartner this fall and I'm new at this. Could you show samples of a Kindergarten Time Tables/Boxes and subjects that I should introduce? Thanks.
We hope that your homeschooling journey is going well! For anyone else who may have this same question, here are some resources for preschool and kindergarten aged children:
simplycharlottemason.com/planning/preschool-guide/
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-homeschool-preschool/
This is so helpful! Trying to teach 1st grade and I have a newborn and it has been so rough. What do you do if they don’t finish their work in that amount of time?
When work is not completed, it is moved to the following day. If a student is not completing work because of dawdling, work is moved to the next day but there should be consequences (that have been established and related to the child) as well.
Do you have a list of recommended lengths of time to spend on each subject at different ages? Is that included in the book?
It varies by grade level. There's a breakdown of lesson lengths for grades 1-9 in this article, based on Charlotte Mason's recommendations: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/three-basic-cm-principles-subject-by-subject-part-2/
Thank you, Sonya. This is very helpful. Can you please tell me the app you used to create these charts?
The charts were made in a spreadsheet app, such as Excel or Google Sheets.
Thank you for this! 😍
I do number 2 but different things on it
thank you
I have 2 out of my 5 that are special learners. A 20 min math lesson easily takes 40 minutes and a 10 min reading lesson is close to half an hour. So for just the 2 of them that is already 2 hours for just 2 subjects. I would like some tips on how to fit it in and what to do with the other 4 while I am one on one for so long.
Remember that you will need to treat each child as an individual. If a lesson that takes another child 20 minutes is taking 40 minutes, it's a 40 minute lesson for that child and needs to be shorten. You might set a timer for the 20 minutes and do only as much as can fit into that time. This article gives some ideas for adjusting your lessons to each individual child's needs and skill level: simplycharlottemason.com/blog/working-students-skills/
It takes my ADD daughter like 3 hours to do basic get ready for the day stuff. Funny but not funny. She is unable to follow a checklist. I put one in her room and she still needs me to babysit her at 11 years old. That table shows getting school work done before my kid even wakes up. Haha Very impressive.
Perhaps, make the Time table and literally walk through it with her. It may take a few months but she’ll get it.
Not sure how you could possibly teach a day’s work in that little time. My kids work six hours per day and we still don’t get it all done.
Hi, Thank you for reaching out with your question! Charlotte Mason felt that short lessons were important in teaching our children. Here is a post that goes into more detail.
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/6-benefits-of-short-lessons/
If you utilize the principle of short lessons and a Charlotte Mason approach to homeschooling, it is possible to have your lessons finished in a short amount of time. Now if you have younger children, out of the home commitments, interruptions in your day, etc. it will take you longer to finish the plan for the day, however the lessons themselves will still be short. Here are a few posts that go into more detail on what a Charlotte Mason education looks like at different grade levels which also helps shed light on how it's possible to accomplish their work in this short time frame.
Preschool:
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-homeschool-preschool/
Elementary School:
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-elementary-school/
Middle School:
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-middle-school/
High School:
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/charlotte-mason-high-school/
simplycharlottemason.com/blog/4-hours-for-high-school/
I am new to homeschooling and I noticed my highschooler pretty independent and doing well. Junior high or FaceTime structure help than the twins second graders need me 100% but we also have a two-year-old. I’m struggling with scheduling and getting through our daily stuff with my second graders because of my two year old. Help me please… What do I need to do or shift to make this more functional?
Have the high schooler watch the 2 year old for 20 to 30 minutes at a time throughout the day. That will give you time to work with twins. Start off with 5 minutes if you need to train high schooler how to work with 2 year old. Each day addd time and more training. They will grow closer from this also. Another benefit.