Category: Homeschooling

4 things that have made life more streamlined, more meaningful, more fun, and more delightful lately

I have renewed my commitment to waking up early, so today, I got up with Nate at 5 am, and after my prayer and Bible reading time, I’m writing! Life in the Heckman household has been hard the last week with both boys getting sick back to back, and as it is, there are so many bad things happening in the world. So, I wanted to do a little post to help share some things currently making more streamlined, meaningful, fun, and delightful as of late.

More delightful- This movie

I love a movie I can enjoy with Nate and then immediately text my mother-in-law, “You gotta watch this movie!” This is one of those kinds of movies. Thanks to my friend Tory for the suggestion! Side note- I love having a friend who has the exact same taste in movies and series as me. Anytime we like a movie or show, we text each other. It’s one of the small, quiet glimmers of having a girl friend who shares something in common with you. Speaking of friendship…

More meaningful- This podcast

This podcast episode delves deep into the benefits of friendship, the different kinds of friendships, and most importantly, ways to be a better friend and deepen your friendships. I don’t typically like podcasts where just one person is talking to the audience, but Arthur Brooks is the exception. As a Harvard professor, he does his podcasts like a lecture, being very science-based, well-researched, and organized. You can tell his podcasts are outlined, and he’s not just talking in stream of consciousness. He gets straight to the point and speaks quickly and persuasively. I love all his work.

More fun- This activity

How cute is this idea! My kids are constantly giving me tiny little flowers that I never know what to do with, and this is the perfect whimsical solution!

More streamlined- This chore/schoolwork system

Ok first, God is so good because unbeknownst to me, I married someone who is constantly improving my life on his own initiative.

Remember my sad chore chart?

I had to erase things and rewrite things every night because not every chore or schoolwork item happened everyday. Well, Nate is a genius. He wrote every possible option in wet erase marker (harder to remove) and then in dry erase marker (easier to remove) I just have to outline in red or blue (on the left side) so the boys know it’s something that needs to be done that day. Then they just fill in the square when they’ve completed it. If the item isn’t framed in red or blue, it’s not something that needs to be done that day.

I guess the point is to marry someone who makes your life infinitely easier, not harder! 😂🥰Love this meme-

So true!!

So what’s making your week better? I’d love to know!

A day in the life of two homeschool kids ages 7 and 10

We use the back of this magnetic chore chart

I’m sharing a typical day of homeschooling on the four weekdays we do not go to a parent partnership program (like a co-op but it’s a publicly funded school for homeschool families, and parents are (typically) not the teachers).

I’m sharing because I would have loved to get a peek into this world before I got into it, and I’m also sharing because even now, 5 years into it, I’m still curious what other people do. If you’re in the mood to share, I’d love to know what you do in the comments!

The day starts with the boys waking up without an alarm. One of the joys of this lifestyle is that I always am happy knowing they get their full sleep! They get dressed and they are off and running. They can choose between school work or chores all day, and they mark it on the responsibility board (above) when they have finished.

Meal times

Spaghetti time when they were little!

We don’t have set meal times. I wait for them to tell me they are hungry. I want them to honor their hunger and fullness signals. We only eat snacky food when friends come over.

Break times

We only have one 20 minute break at 10am.

Somewhere in the day, we see friends for a play date for about 2 hours. If it’s a nice day, we meet at a park. If it’s rainy, we meet at our house or theirs. On a rare occasion we may go to a museum, roller skate, ice skate, or go to a fun indoor play area. We adjust our chores and school work around our daily play date.

How chores work

Noah was born on an odd date, and Luke was born on an even date. If it’s an odd date, Noah has chores, if it’s an even date, Luke has chores.

Some things are for both boys every day-

  • Brush teeth 
  • Make bed 
  • Spend 15 min outside 

Some things are for both boys some of the days-

  • Bathing
  • Putting clothes away

The rest of the chores are only for the person whose “day” it is (odd or even)

  • Brush Scout’s (our dog) teeth 
  • Vacuum/ sweep floors 
  • Put dishes away 
  • Clean room
  • Pick up Scout’s (our dog) poop 

This is the schoolwork for both boys every weekday we are at home (4 weekdays a week)

Noah– Grade 4

  • Read 10 pages to me of any book
  • Write 5 sentences (whatever he wants or I help him choose a prompt)
  • Do 3 rooms math online (We love Beast Academy)
  • Work on any Canvas assignments (this is parent partnership program homework)
  • One lesson typing on typing.com

Luke – Grade 2

  • Work on any Canvas assignments (this is parent partnership program homework)
  • Read 7 pages (We love “All about Reading”)
  • Do 5 pages of the math workbook (Beast Academy)
  • Write one page about anything

The one day we are at the Parent Partnership Program my boys take these classes this year –

Screen time

Virtual reality at the mall with a buddy!

The boys get two hours a day of screen time, which can only be used after all their chores and school work are done. I gave them each these awesome timers, so they can keep track of their time. We used to use Alexa, but she was not always reliable, and everyone got tired of hearing people yell at her constantly.

Bedtime

Bedtime is very strictly 8 or 9pmish because we are all morning birds! Hubby and I take turns putting them down. That involves them brushing their teeth and flossing, me brushing their teeth again, reading a Bible story and praying (they repeat my prayer) and cuddles and massages.

Well that’s it! This doesn’t include anything I’m doing all day. 🤣 If you homeschool, I’d love to get a glimpse into your day! Thanks for reading!