Time. . .How to Make a Schedule for Your Homeschool Day

Just how to make a schedule for your homeschool day? This is to be a flexible guide that will help us use our time in a way that will bring the most glory to God.

Time. . .it is precious, it goes by way too quickly, and we only have a certain amount of it.  How am I using my time?  Am I using it to glorify God?  {So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. I Corinthians 10:31}

A few months ago, I was quite convicted by the way I use my time. . .especially how much time I spent on the internet. I wouldn’t have said I was “addicted” to Facebook, but I would catch myself sitting down to the computer “just for a minute,” to see what was going on. I also read quite a few helpful blogs. . .some spiritual, some on homemaking, some on photography, some that belong to friends; and I also love Pinterest.  None of these things in themselves are bad, but I was not using them in the best way.

How to Make a Schedule For Your Homeschool Day

About that same time, I watched a web seminar on life balance.  The teacher showed us her daily schedule.  It was amazing!!  I will never be as detailed as she, but I knew it was time for me to make a schedule of my own.  One thing she mentioned that stood out to me was that when we get distracted from what we are working on, it takes about 10 minutes for us to really get back into the task we left unfinished.

For me personally, I know that I would waste precious minutes deciding what I should do next, and if I couldn’t decide fast enough, I would sit down to check FB or something while I thought about it. . .well, I’m sure you know where that usually leads. . .30 minutes later, I’m caught up on everyone else’s life, but still hadn’t decided what I needed to do next with mine!

This has been SUCH a huge help to me over the last weeks!!  There are times I am not able to stick to the schedule, but when I can, it helps me keep my mind on track.  One advantage to all this is that I don’t have to feel guilty about my computer time, because it is in the schedule!!  I have three times a day that I can sit down, and enjoy catching up with the world.

At one point in my struggle, I thought maybe I should cut out FB or some of the blogs I read, but I know it is important for me as a Mom to continue growing and learning from others, and it is wonderful to feel like I can connect to far away friends and family members that I can’t see in person.

Schedule Play Time and Read Aloud Time

I was also careful to schedule in times when I can play or read with the boys.  Maybe this isn’t a struggle for you, but I am such a task-oriented person, that I can forget to slow down and spend fun time with my kids.  Also, I purposely put in time for reading for myself!  No kids books allowed during this time!

At one time, I was months behind on the magazine subscriptions I had been given, and I was having a terrible time reading any books. There are so many books out there that are helpful to me in this stage of life, that I felt it was very important to schedule reading time in.  Plus, I needed a “down time” for me.

How to Make a Schedule for Household Tasks

To help me with the “what chore to tackle next” dilemma, I scheduled each  day to have its own task.  That has been a HUGE time saver for me!  I no longer have to think about which area of the house needs help the most; each area has its own day.

Adding 15 minutes of  deep cleaning and organizing to each day has been a life changer for me.  I will have a difficult time completing spring/fall cleaning for my foreseeable future, but doing a little at a time is SOOO helpful!  It doesn’t seem like much time, but it is amazing what you can accomplish in it!

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Rearranging Your Day

Another resource that has been a huge help in how to make a schedule over the last few years is a book called Shopping for Time by Carolyn Mahaney.  In it, she encourages her readers to start their day early. . .as in around 5 am early.  As I read that, I thought I could NEVER get up before 6:30 or so.  As you can see by the picture below that I took some time ago, my day used to start at 6:30.

Well, when my husband’s job changed a few months ago, he started leaving for work by 5:45.  If I were going to be up to kiss him goodbye, my day needed to start at 5:30. It has been one of the best habits I have ever formed in my life.  My children do not get up until 7:30 or 8; so I have quite a bit of time in the mornings to get my day started off right!  Now, don’t get me wrong, getting up that early is NOT easy; it is a daily struggle; but it is a struggle that is worth it.

Remember to Be Flexible

One thing to remember is to be careful not to make the schedule into THE SCHEDULE!!!!! Too often, we search for another list or formula  to follow, rather than depending on God’s grace to help us do what He calls us to do.  Having the best-laid schedule in the world will not help me in the long run if I depend on my own strength to accomplish the tasks before me, and then become prideful at all that “I” finished that day.

This is not intended to be something that everyone in the house has to follow to the exact second, making everyone within the house completely miserable {no, son, I cannot help you go potty right now; I will in 11 more minutes when my 15 minutes of organizing is done}.  Please don’t do that to your family 🙂

This is to be a flexible how to make a schedule guide that will help us use our time in a way that will bring the most glory to God.

 Now, go make out a schedule, and tell me how it works for you!

  ~ Written by Amy @ JerAmy