Home School High School - Schedule Examples

In order to show a complete picture of our day, I'm sharing actual screen shots of our daily schedule. As you can see, we use a lot of technology mediums to keep things interesting. I like to take advantage of all the resources that are free and easily available. It really helps to bring lessons to life. It does take a bit of time to research corresponding content, but it is worth it.

Home Schooling High School - 9th Grade

We are well into our school year, ticking off day 100 this week. I thought I would take some time to lay out what home schooling high school looks like for us.

We school Tuesday - Saturday because that is what works best for our schedules.  I work full time, three days in the office and two days at home, (which helps tremendously). My husband works 3 days a week - so between the two of us, there is an adult at home to facilitate school to our 14 year old boy.

I do all the tracking and planning. I seek my sons' input where I can to make sure he has a voice in his education. I approached this year with an overall concept for each subject, and plan out lessons 4 weeks at a time. This allows for adjusting things that aren't working and researching new ideas to keep things interesting and our reluctant student engaged.

English: 

180 Daily Teaching Lessons

These are 10 minute, pain free grammar lessons. Each day is a review of capitalization, punctuation, grammar use, etc. It is simple and straight-forward. 

Reports created for other subjects are duel purpose and count towards English as well. 

I set a goal of reading 10 books of his choice during the school year. So far he has read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Howls Moving Castle, and he is mid-way through Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. He doesn't love reading as much as I would like him to, and I doubt he will complete 10 books, but it's nice to have a number to work towards.

Math: 

Teaching Textbooks Algebra 1

Last year we  used Mathability-Math in the Real World in conjunction with Khan Academy. The workbook was fine, but my son couldn't stay engaged with the lectures offered on Khan.  

So far, Teaching Textbooks has been our most successful option to date. I am normally hovering around during the math lesson to assist in providing further explanation and make sure my son is understanding the concept being taught. 

Science:

Biology 101

This is a DVD lecture course with downloadable PDF coursebook and accreditation booklet. This is a very basic overview of biology. We replaced some of the suggested course work with our own content to provide a broader view and more in depth study of some areas. 

We use  Amazon Prime videos a lot for this course: The Secret Life of Plants, Wild America, Wonders of God's Creation - Human Life, etc.

We have also utilized online resources to dissect a frog, study anatomy, genetics, etc.

History: 

We are focusing on World Geography this year. This has been the most fun to plan. We used this book, assigning correlating art projects using Geography Through Art and other activities based on the country of study. The text covers topics including population, political landscapes, climate, and regions of conflict.

Other resources for World Geography: Try the World, YouTube: A day in the life of...., Instagram hashtags for specific landmarks, regions, and countries, travel podcasts, Foodbycountry.com, and Amazon Prime travel videos. 

Art:

Geography Through Art 

This book utilizes various mediums such as modeling clay, pastels, and water colors. I did give my son a choice in some cases where he could substitute a drawing by making a micro build with Lego or using MineCraft to "build" the assignment. 

Physical Education:

My son is a brown belt in karate and attends class 1-2 nights per week. He snowboards in the winter and we kayak and hike a lot during warmer months. He is also completing a 2 week study on physical health and nutrition.  

In addition to the above, our community church has a "teen night" the first friday of each month. These events normally have about 20 teens in attendance. They eat dinner together and have themed relay races and challenges. My son is also part of the youth group. They have a strong focus on community. He has been able to participate in visiting elderly patients in rehab facilities, serve meals to the homeless, and raise money to support different humanitarian outreaches. 

The best part about home schooling through high school is being able to learn side-by-side with your teen. The hardest part is keeping yourself from comparing your schooling methods to the traditional schools. In the end, I don't want my son to learn just to pass a test. I want him to discover what motivates him and where his passions lie so he can apply that to his adult life. 

The Final Cut - 8th Grade Home School Outline

I don't know about you, but summer has certainly flown by.  The new school year will be here before you know it.  We plan on starting August 17th.  I already have our first week planned and a supply list made. It feels good to have that out of the way.

As I stated in my previous post things were sure to change and they did.

MATH:
We are going to start out with Real World Math and then transition to Khan Academy.  

While I wanted to use The Life of Fred for some of our math, I really didn't want to invest in the books for a supplemental program.  I will keep my eye out for used ones or perhaps borrow them one by one from another home school family. I like how the Fred books keep things interesting and fun, but I don't think they provide enough substance for a complete program, especially for 8th grade.

ENGLISH/GRAMMAR:
I still plan on combining this with other subjects.  I have books picked out that coincide with US History and Science. We'll be utilizing these for reports, vocabulary, spelling, etc. 

SCIENCE
We will be using this book for Nature Study which includes Q&A. Of course we have our bees and meet once a month with our local bee keepers. 

We also have a book of science experiments that includes Q&A as well. That sure makes things easy!  

HISTORY
We are using the documentary: America, The Story of Us  There are study guides provided for each episode on the website.  I have a few other resources that I've printed off the internet to go along with this such as a lap book outline for the Constitution, a week of living like a pioneer which will include no electricity for one day, making your own butter, hand washing clothes, etc.

I will be planning the school year week by week. We will be using composition books (one for each subject) to work in.

The hardest part about planning a school year, is knowing when to stop looking for more resources! There is so much information out there; it's easy to get overloaded with data which actually creates more work in determining which direction to go. My advice, plan an outline of the concepts you want to achieve for the year, then look for resources that meet your needs, obtain them, then...stop!

"The prairies had been his school..he had a natural refinement and delicacy of mind such as is rarely found...His manly face was a perfect mirror of uprightness, simplicity, and kindness of heart; he had, moreover, a keen perception of character and tact that would preserve him from flagrant error in any society." - Francis Parkman

8th Grade Planning

We are half way through our third year of home schooling. We've been using this curriculum.  We initially chose it because it was the same curriculum our son's school was using.  We thought the transition would be easiest for him if we kept the same program. It is a great option for someone that feels overwhelmed with the prospect of planning a curriculum on their own.  It's very organized and easy to follow.

There are some things about the program we don't like.  It doesn't leave a lot of room for creativity. There is a lot of seat work and limited hands on learning. My son has voiced his opinion about it and I am following my intuition.  We are breaking free.  We are going to complete this school year with the program, but are planning on creating our own curriculum next year.

Creating our own curriculum is VERY overwhelming, especially since my son will be in the 8th grade.  The 8th grade!

Some may think it's a bit premature to start planning for next year, but I'm a planner and I am detail oriented.  One can get lost in the sea of options out there.  I want to have plenty of time to research and think through what the school year will look like.

Stanley Schmidt, author of The Life of Fred, says it best:
"The world is not divided up into little water-tight compartments...
One teacher will say, “I teach chemical engineering.”
Another will say, “I teach German.”
Let us give five stars to the teacher that says, “I teach students.”
What a novel idea!—treating students as if they were humans, rather than
receptacles into which they can pour a single distilled subject."

And with this concept of cohesive learning, where all subjects melded together, the following is my plan.  (disclaimer: everything is subject to change)

MATH:
We are going to use The Life of Fred for our math.  I love this program because it is fun, interesting, and engaging.  If your kid hates math, I highly recommend it.  It's math and so much more.
We will use Khan Academy as well.  I like the interactive website and videos for explaining all sorts of math concepts.

ENGLISH/GRAMMAR:
I plan on combining this with other subjects.  A report on deciduous trees can count for both English and Science.  I can pull words from other subjects to use for spelling and vocabulary.  We can use a paragraph from a history novel to diagram and identify parts of speech.

SCIENCE
We are definitely going to incorporate a Nature Study in our studies. My son has specifically requested this.  I have some fun science projects in mind as well.  I plan for this to be mostly hands on learning.  Our bee keeping will also be included.

HISTORY
I'm still debating if we will use an actual curriculum or just free form learning. I was thinking of printing out an American history time line and filling it in with books, documentaries, and movies to correlate with each period.  I think the information will be easier to absorb and will also provide an opportunity to practice note taking.

I plan on note-booking as our documentation. Each subject will have a tab.  All worksheets, notes, reports, etc will be kept as well as any photographs of projects or details regarding field trips.

So, that's my plan to date.  I'm open to ideas and suggestions.

And for those concerned about socializing a home school-er so as not to have a feral child, my son takes karate twice a week, meets with a home school co-op for field trips and outings every Monday, and goes to Sunday school. He's pretty domesticated.

Old Ruins

It's always good to take advantage of a sunny afternoon.  We decided to spend this one exploring Murphy's Farm which is part of Harper's Ferry National Historical Park.

I wonder what it was like to live here.  

The old fencing style along a field is such a pretty sight. I can just imagine a herd of cattle grazing leisurely here and a little girl running with a handful of wildflowers.

Wild Edibles - Part 3

I hope you were encouraged to see what plants were growing in your back yard.  Looking through this new lens of foraged foods is pretty exciting.  

Pictured below, among ALL that poison ivy, are a few leaves of dandelions.  I think most people know they are edible, but in case you forgot, those pretty yellow, flowering weeds in your yard can also be food.  The leaves are best eaten before the plant flowers, but the flowers are also good battered and fried.  I've also used the petals as an addition to zucchini bread and in cookies, just because it's fun to eat flowers.

 This is called Dock.  Plants found closer to water are known to be less bitter.  Steam slightly and use like grape leaves.  It's a great green to wrap foods in for cooking.  It's rich in protein and vitamin A.

 This is a Green Brier - these grow all over our fence and I hate them.  They can be invasive.  However, the very tendril tips look like a pea plant, and guess what? They taste like peas too.  The root-stocks of many species can be used as a gelatin substitute.

 This beautiful flower is from a Black Locust tree.  Oddly, only the flowers are edible on this plant.  They taste and smell like honeysuckle.  It seemed like such a treat to eat one after tasting so many bitter or zingy plants.

 We found Wild Grape Vine.  The leaves are edible. You can boil and eat them or use them for wrapping and cooking foods.  Wild grapes are also edible.

Heading up the hill, Santiago the Turkey still touring with us.

 The last plant on our foraging expedition is Mallow.  I've seen these pretty plants before - perhaps you have to?  You can eat the tiny leaves.  Each plant bears a few pods.  When opened, they reveal the below. These can be eaten just as they are or pickled and used like capers (much safer than the marsh marigold). You can also eat the root of this plant.

We headed to the tee-pee and fire circle to eat a salad of foraged greens mixed with some spring lettuce mix.

We have owned this book for quite a while, but I just looked at it with slight interest.  Taking this class definitely gave me the push and confidence I needed to go exploring on my own.  Knowledge is soon forgotten if not practiced, so I plan on keeping up with this whole learning thing.  

Wild Edibles - Part 2

Continuing on our forage walk, with Santiago the Turkey in tow, we also learned about these plants:

 Toothwort - this plant has a whiteish root-stock that can be used in place of horseradish, just mix with vinegar and a pinch of salt.

 Jewel Weed is great for soothing poison ivy or the sting from nettles.  The stem has a liquid similar to aloe which can be directly applied to the skin.  Not surprisingly, this plant is normally found close to poison ivy - our Creator's way of giving a helping hand.  The leaves of this plant are also edible and nutritious.  Cook them up and add them to quiche for a delicious dinner.

Wild onions - this plant is getting ready to flower so the stem was a bit woody.  On younger plants, you can use the stem just like spring onions or chives.

This is another plant that grows in our yard that I just assumed was a worthless weed.  This is actually field mustard.  Who'd a thought, right?  This plant has a lot of nutritional value: vitamins A, B1, B2, and C. Mix the leaves with other greens to spice up a salad, saute like spinach, or add it when making pesto for a little zing.

This is Sassafras, which our family is very familiar with.  We make home made sarsaparilla, which is the most amazing, refreshing drink.  You can also use the root in teas as well.  The leaves are dried and used to flavor gumbo - which was new information for me.

These plants might be a little less common for your backyard, but we have mustard and sassafras growing on our property.  If you have any overgrown spaces, you may be pleasantly surprised at what you find.

Wild Edibles - Part 1

I recently discovered the North American Bushcraft School.  This is an amazing local organization dedicated to keeping ancestral knowledge alive.  The farm is situated on 130 remote acres, it was beautiful country.  I signed us up for a class in foraging and headed over to get some hands on experience from a few experts.

 We were greeted by Santiago the Turkey - a farm pet that followed us around the entire time just like a dog would.  He was quite friendly.  It was a hoot to have him walking along with us.

 Our first foraged find was Purslane - a woodland succulent.  It can be eaten raw and is a great addition to salads.

 These heart shaped leaves (not to be mistaken with clover) - is Wood Sorrel.  It gets small, yellow flowers.  It tastes a bit sour and has a very nice lemon flavor.  This was one of my favorites.  It can be eaten raw. They are also good to steep for 10 min in hot water, add a bit of honey, then chill for a refreshing drink.  This plant is rich in vitamin C.

 These silly plants which are all over my back yard (and were always considered a weed in my book) happen to be Plantains.  The rounded leaf is a Common Plantain and the slender one is called Seaside Plantain.  When young, they can be picked to eat in salads or steamed/boiled and served with butter.  As they grow, the leaves become tough and stringy, but they are still useful.  They are used to make spit poultices (chew them up and spit them out) to be used on bug bites for instant relief.

This fuzzy leaf is called Mullein.  We discussed the benefits of having this around to use in place of toilet paper if ever stranded, but it also has other benefits as well.  These are great to dry and use in teas, specifically for chest colds as it is an expectorant.  You can also steep them in hot water to make a steam vapor for inhaling to eliminate a chest cold.

I bet if you run out to your backyard, you can find at least 1 of these plants.

*They did note the importance of teaching your kids, specifically little ones, that you should always ask an adult before picking and eating any plant - just to be sure.  Also, you should never gather plants directly beside a roadway due to weed spraying and car pollution.

This is a fun activity to do with your family.  You can literally make a salad from backyard or a quick neighborhood stroll.

Gym Class: Snowboarding

One of the advantages of home schooling is that my husband can take our son snowboarding during a weekday, when the slopes aren't as crowded.  My son has been snowboarding for about 4 years now and he really enjoys it. I'm glad we finally got some real snow this year!

Science Project: Vegetables and Plant Growth

Science projects are always a hit around here.  Actually any project that involves "getting involved" rather than writing or studying about it ranks #1.  We are currently learning about One-celled organisms, lower and higher plants, and photosynthesis.  We will be conversing about bacterium, fermentation, and spores for the next three weeks.  This is the part of homeschooling we love.

(Turnips with their greens couldn't be found so we had to forego that veggie.  Also, we did in fact plant a beet, not beer!)

The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley:  The six-acres of gardens that surround the Glen Burnie House are both impressive and intimate. Designed by MSV benefactor Julian Wood Glass Jr. and his partner at the time,R. Lee Taylor, the creation of these formal gardens began in 1956 and evolved over the latter half of the twentieth century. Today the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley maintains this living collection in a manner that is considerate of the garden creators’ vision for the landscape.

Amazing Nature

These boletes are just a crazy mushroom.  They look like a normal mushroom, but as soon as they are touched or cut they turn blue.  watch it here if you don't believe me

I just love nature! It's pretty incredible.

And then finding the wings of a butterfly.  The body was eaten by bugs.  I love the silvery blue on the wings.
Papilio glaucus, Tiger Swallowtail 

Brick Fair 2013

This was our first year attending the Brick Fair.  I am really glad we went.  It was totally worth it.  We can't wait to go again next year.  My son really wants to be an exhibitor, but you must be 13.  I told him he has two years to plan ahead.

The details and creations were mind blowing.  We took a ton of pictures.  Some of my favorites are below.

Old Time Camera - they had a whole Civil War section of Lego reenactment scenes.  It was really cool.

Lego box of chocolates - Genius!

Too cute!

I really like the grill.

This was also super creative.  Lego bugs displayed behind glass with their scientific names.

Who doesn't love swans?

Cute toast boy

Totoro

Village - see the fish drying in the sun?

And this cute Ice Cream Man.