We started off our homeschool journey this past June armed with a myriad of textbooks and lesson plans. I knew better. I had read thousands of stories of beginner homeschool families on the internet and no matter how different each was - what they had in common was the total overpurchase of teaching materials that first year. I couldn't help myself though -- I have loved books and crisp clean new notebooks and sharpened pencils since I was a very small girl....
We haven't used it all. I'm an optimist though (not to mention a packrat) and I fully believe that someday we will have need for each and every text and folder. Someday.
Until then we have come up with a different plan.
I was more naive back in June... and I truly believed that I would somehow manage to work in three and a half hours of traditional classroom-style instruction each day while trying to manage the needs, demands, and whims of a three year old, a one year old, three cats, and a dog in a house still in need of repair since Hurricane Katrina. Maybe naive isn't a strong enough word.
When days passed without actually being able to get through a single hour of a lesson without major disruption - I started to panic...
It was then that we tried a more self-guided lesson plan. I would prepare a folder for each of the boys the night before and include a list of reading assignments, workbook pages, handouts, and so on - and they, in turn, would complete the day's work as best they could and ask for help when things got hairy. Of course - things got hairy at the most inconvenient times... And the days were hectic and stressful. That isn't why the plan didn't work however... The REAL problem was making sure the work was ready each night. I found myself up at 2 and 3 in the morning printing out worksheets and reading science textbooks sometimes. And on the busiest of nights -- it would slip my mind altogether. I started to panic again....
I pulled an all-nighter and eventually narrowed down our biggest stumbling block to math. We could always make time for our other subjects -- but when it came to the drudgery of math sheets and drills... and the fact that I often wasn't available at the moment I was needed for answering questions... math was a problem.
I started searching the internet for a good supplemental math program -- maybe some software that could give the boys some basic math practice when I wasn't available. All I really wanted was some sort of back-up plan for those days when things just weren't turning out like an episode of "Little House on the Prairie".
What I found that night was a website and program called "Time4Learning.com" (http://www.time4learning.com).
We have been using Time4Learning for over two months now. In the beginning I did, indeed, use it as only my 'backup plan' for the most hectic days. We have now integrated it into our regular daily schedule.
The math and language arts lessons are engaging and thorough. The boys don't have much trouble staying on task - and it's great to actually hear them giggle through some assignments. I have to admit - sometimes late at night I go through some of the language arts lessons so I can giggle too. We now use the program as our main curriculum for those two subject areas -- and supplement with textbooks and workbooks only when more practice is needed. (Some lessons in the program offer printable worksheets -- which also come in handy.)
The program also offers lessons in science and social studies for their grade levels which we are using to supplement our studies here at home. To be more specific - we use the Time4Learning lessons as a springboard for our own lessons. For instance - George completed a short lesson on the formation of rocks and the rock cycle today on T4L... Now we will use our textbooks and reference materials to study further... Create some notebook pages.. and collect some of our own rocks.
No more fretting about grade level discrepancies and trying to teach two boys at once either -- we have two memberships and two computers... and everybody's happy. Adjusting the level for particular coursework is simple - as simple as the click of a button or a quick email to admin.
(Speaking of email -- I should mention that any time I have contacted customer service I've gotten a quick and useful response.... !!!! Imagine that!!)
T4L is self-teaching... Meaning that, technically, all the boys have to do is log on in the morning and complete the next lesson. However, lesson plans are available for each grade level for those of us who just HAVE to have something to do with the planning process. In our case, I like to print out the lesson plans and set a goal for the completion of certain assignments or chapters by the end of the week... If after reviewing quiz and test scores it seems that more practice is needed in a given area -- then we go back and complete those lessons until they are mastered.
Oh - and did I mention how nice the freedom of using this program is? Because this is a web-based program.. the boys can complete their assignments anywhere and anytime - as long as they have access to a computer and the internet! No more lugging around textbooks and notebooks or guilt-ridden complexes when we want to go visit Mom for the day.
If you're interested in using the program -- either for your entire curriculum or as a supplement -- you'll be happy to know that they also offer a free trial. If you're already convinced - you'll be happy to know that the price is quite affordable.
So the next time I'm lying prostrate on the floor suffering from a broken leg and can't reach the bookshelf - all I have to do is say "Hey boys -- go log in and learn something today... I need to heal." And they will. Do you have any idea how comforting that is? I'll bet you do.
