Day 5 of #Write28 Days Challenge
What constitutes a good homeschool day for you? And what are the criteria you use to measure judge if a house is well managed or not? Are those expectations realistic or do you need to manage your expectations according to the season you are in?
We Are Different
As homeschoolers, we are home a lot more than public schoolers with a whole lot of enrichment classes.
You know where I am going with this, right?
Our homes as homeschoolers will be comparatively messier. And if you or your children love art and craft, it will be worse.
A public-schooled child is at school for at least 6 to 8 hours every day. Even with co-op meetups, playdates and outings taking us out of the home, most of us do not spend that kind of time out of the house on a daily basis.
This means our home is used a lot more. And the mess created is also more.
A Home Not A Showroom
Our homes are not showrooms. They are well lived-in homes where people not only live in it but also study in it, play in it, eat in it… 24/7.
So let us all manage our expectations when we discuss juggling homeschooling with housework.
Stop Comparing
Also, don’t compare your home with your mother’s, mother-in-law’s, sister’s or BFF’s. Even if they homeschooled or are homeschooling, your situation and season are different from theirs. Always bear that in mind as you look around.
And definitely do not measure yourself against the pictures you see on social media, be it Instagram or Pinterest. Those are curated photos.
Manage Your Expectations, Set Minimum Viable Standards
As I asked at the start of this post: what in your opinion is a house well managed? What does it mean to have a good homeschool day?
Our tolerance for mess is personal. What my 10-year-old considers clean and organised is not what I consider clean and organised, leading to tears of frustration. Even what my husband considers neat and organised is also different from what I consider neat and organised.
Therefore, decide together what your minimum viable standards are for this season of your lives for housework and for homeschooling.
Let me share with you my minimum viable standards.
Minimum Viable Homeschooling Standards
Primary School
At this level, I only expect English, Maths, Chinese and Science to be done daily. Everything else is a bonus.
If I have the time and energy, we will explore other subjects. Usually, they explore their areas of interest on their own. Otherwise, they just spend their huge amount of free time playing.
I plan out what is required of each child in their individual homeschool planner. Whatever I have scheduled out must be completed and graded daily. If I should miss a day of grading, I will clear it the next day.
A good homeschool day is when all scheduled work is done and graded, and all corrections done by mid-afternoon.
Although now that I have only one Primary Level child, I aim to do all this before lunch.
Related Post: Our Homeschool Schedule
Secondary School
Once they clear PSLE, I move them to video streaming lessons by Abeka. Abeka has its own schedule. They are required to complete the day’s lessons daily and if there are tests and quizzes, taken when specified.
I will check their progress every two to three days. Because what is not inspected will not be done.
A homeschool win here is if all required tests and quizzes are taken and essays submitted.
Minimum Viable Housework Standards
Daily vacuuming and weekly toilet washing is a MUST with nine people in the house. But the dusting of tables and windows can be put on hold. Cleaning of windows too.
With nine people in the house, two loads of laundry needs to be done daily and ironing at least once a week.
As for meals, there is no 三餐一趟 (3 dishes + 1 soup) offered in my house. Meals are simple stir-fries or cooked in crockpot or oven.
If anyone wants to do elaborate meals, they are welcomed to do it but no one expects me to do so.
What is your minimum viable standard?
Manage Your Expectations, Keep Things Simple
Managing our expectations may realistically mean lowering them A LOT. If you have many little ones and only one of you, you have to be realistic on what can be accomplished each day.
Lowering your expectations, however, does not mean living in chaos.
Decide what is the minimum viable standard your husband and you can live with and stick to that. In time to come, you can adjust your standards accordingly. But for now, keep things simple.
Tomorrow, we will talk about Basic Rules for everyone. See you!
Related Links
Homeschool Planning
It’s Pure Hard Work
2 Comments on Manage Your Expectations
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I have complete respect and admiration for those moms who are homeschool moms and teachers! I can’t look back in my past of raising three children and see me as one of them! My youngest daughter is a teacher; working part time again now that all three of her children are in school. Part time as a pre-school teacher; and part time as a “self-employed” music teacher. And FULL time as a mom and all the other “hats” she wears! No matter what our life’s work, we have to make our choices of clean house or CLEAN house!! I admire you! Thanks for your views on this subject! Stopping by for Write 28 Days in February! Oh, make that 29 Days!!!
Wow! Your daughter is a HERO! That’s a lot of hats to wear! Thanks for dropping by!