Unlike with public schools, the best part of home schooling is that it is free from any fixed annual schedules or yearly structures. There is no set pattern to follow. Parents are free to plan the yearly structure in any way they feel convenient within a reasonable limit. The goals should be realistic and everything should be done in a flexible manner to achieve them within the planned structure. Keeping to the norm of home schooling, the structure should be guided by the individual needs of the kids, not by any external compulsions.
The key to making a convenient structure is to schedule the school year according to the needs and temperament of the kids. It should have enough scope for both curricular and extracurricular activities, as well as periodical evaluations. The structure should be planned in such a way that it won’t cause any burnout for the parents and the kids. However, a set pattern should be followed for beginners to get them used to the routine.
As for holidays, the parents can choose any time of the month or year for it. The public school holidays are different from the home schooling environment because the kids at home learn through informal methods that involve activities which are part of their every day life.
Hence, autumn or summer vacations are irrelevant for the home schooling kids, but if the parents so wish this pattern could be followed. The kids can mingle with school kids at the summer camps or in other activities. However, the kids may find difficulty to fall back to the routine after the long breaks. The best thing is to allow them short breaks in between, and some reasonable long breaks during the off-season. Short breaks will save them from boredom and also they can visit places of interests. Vacation during the off-season is best to save money and avoid over-crowded places.
Finally, the structure of the classes should be guided by the method home schooling, teaching and learning style, vacation plans, work and play schedules and so on. These have to be planned well in advance in consultation with other family members. The success of home schooling depends on a lot of planning and preparations, and if these are made well in advance the going will be quite smooth without much hiccups. A successful yearly structure depends on viable planning and its timely implementation.
Posted on May 5th, 2008 by admin
Filed under: Child Care, Learning, Toddler, school
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