Here I share about a day in the life of our Australian homeschool family of 5 (soon to be 6). I share about a typical Monday in our house, the flexible routine we follow and my non-negotiables throughout the day.
At present, our children are 6.5, 4.5 and 20 months old and I am 25 weeks pregnant with our fourth. We are in our first year of homeschooling our eldest daughter who is in year 1 and we do a little bit of ‘non structured’ homeschooling with our 4.5 year old, because she is eager to learn!
I’ve learnt to have a flexible routine, because naturally I am routine-driven, but when it comes to little kids, I have to be flexible (am I right?!). It’s been a magical 9 months of homeschooling. I am loving the freedom and simplicity of our days, as well as the quality time that both I and my children get to spend together.
If you’re an Australian and looking to homeschool, then I hope this blog gives you some insight into how you can fit in your child’s school work while remaining flexible and taking the pressure off yourself.
I find that there are many US based homeschooling resources out there, but not enough Australian homeschooling resources. I hope to change that, because I know many families in Australia are wanting to homeschool.
So, without further ado, here is a our (flexible and organic flowing) day in the life of our homeschool family of 5. This day that I recorded was a typical Monday, where we have nothing outside of homeschool scheduled. We normally like to have two home days a week.
Morning
6-6.30am: Wake up / Have breakfast
The kids normally have their favourite (healthy) chocolate cereal, porridge or pancakes for breakfast. Today it was chocolate cereal! I stuck to my breakfast go-to: my protein-rich choc-banana smoothie (shop the protein powder I’m currently loving and is generally safe for pregnancy).
6.45-7am: Get ready for the day
Most mornings, this part of the day is chaos. I feel like I’m chasing my kids around trying to get them to get dressed and brush their teeth (mostly the toddler more than my older girls). So on Mondays when we have nowhere to go, we take it easy and take our time getting ready.
While my kids are getting ready, I will get myself ready and try to shower and get dressed while my youngest is brushing his teeth (which he loves to do on his own). Sometimes when he’s extra clingy, I will get ready while he’s having his breakfast. It depends on the day!
7.30am: I will put a load of washing on while the kids are still getting ready or doing their chores.
7.30-7.40am: Most days, I will ask the girls to make their beds and tidy their room before we start the homeschool day. Today, we skipped that part (just being real!)
7.45-8am: I will have my quiet bible time while the kids play outside (if it’s a nice day). I try and squeeze in my bible time before the kids wake up, but being 25 weeks pregnant means I am getting very interrupted sleep right now and am struggling with early morning wake ups. So I will try and squeeze in my bible reading when the kids are playing/self-occupied.
8-8.45am: We start our homeschool day. We have been starting by memorising a bible verse and colouring the bible verse in (here are the memory verse cards we use). I love these memory verse cards, because they have the verse on one side of the card and a beautiful artwork to match on the other side that the kids colour in.
Then we do some literacy work. On Mondays, I get my eldest daughter to write a recount of the weekend or start with her spelling list. We then revise some sort of poetry, write sentences or work on punctuation. I will link the curriculum we follow below.
While my eldest daughter is doing her literacy, my second daughter will do some tracing or cutting (depending on what she feels like). She’s very self-motivated and will often start something without me asking, and it will either be tracing/writing letters or numbers or doing some cutting and gluing work.
My son will toddle around and play or sit with me. Some days it’s hard to focus on sitting with my eldest daughter and entertaining my son. So on the days where my son is more clingy, I will set up some independent work for my daughter while I am with my son. And then I dedicate time to helping her with her Maths or Science/History work when my son is having his nap.
Grab my free Homeschool Schedule Template here
9-9.30am: I will hang the washing on the line while my two daughters are completing their independent literacy work. My son will often come outside with me and my girls will join me once they are finished.
Then we have our morning tea break. I will make up a lunchbox of morning tea snacks: usually fruit, cheese, crackers and something I’ve baked for them. We love our bento lunchboxes from Stuck On You.
9.30-10am: Maths time! Sometimes we change up the routine and do our Maths outside if the day/lesson calls for it. Today my daughter learnt all about symmetry and it was a hands-on activity, so we went outside for this lesson. It helps when we do our lessons outside so my son can explore the backyard (which he needs lots of time to do!).
10.30am: Break time. Here is when I will do some housework or get lunch prepared, while the kids play.
Afternoon
11.30am: Lunch time. Today I made our favourite and super simple pizza scrolls for lunch. We love this recipe because it’s simple, filling and everyone in the family loves it (which is a huge win!).
12pm: I put my son down for his nap. Sometimes we need to complete some homeschool work like science, history or nature studies. So I will sit down with my daughter to do one of these lessons.
12.20pm: My daughters have their own quiet time or play time while I do some work.
1.30pm: My daughters will finish their quiet time and either watch some tv or play together.
2pm onwards: It’s play time for my kids while I do housework.
4pm: Sometimes we go for a walk or to the park if it’s a warm day.
4.30pm: I start preparing dinner and we do a collective tidy up of the house.
5.30-6pm: Dinner time.
6-7pm: Bed time routine. My daughter will often read to me before bed and then I or my husband will read a book to our girls before bed.
Why flexibility over rigid routine is important
Much of the reason we chose to homeschool was because of the freedom it gives our children to learn at their own pace and with more autonomy. As much as routine is important, having little kids means that sometimes routine goes out the window.
It hasn’t always been easy for me to accept this, especially because I want our children to grow up well educated and competent. But at this stage of their lives, play is crucial. So we implement a lot of play time throughout the day, which means we flow in and out of lessons. And that’s okay!
Having a flexible routine means that our kids know what to expect throughout the day, but there is room for autonomy and freedom to play and just be kids, too!
Our curriculum
When researching which kind of curriculum to choose for our homeschool education, I wanted something that aligned with our Christian faith, incorporated creativity and innovative thinking while leaving room for lots of flexibility. This is why we chose the My Homeschool curriculum.
I promise that I am not being sponsored to write this, but I was really drawn to their curriculum because it values the Charlotte Mason method of education and is nature-inspired. It seems to be aligning well to my children at this stage, because both of my girls are very artsy and creative.
If you are considering homeschooling, then doing your research on a curriculum that aligns with your family values is essential. I know some families who don’t use a curriculum at all, but for me, I personally love following a curriculum. It’s especially important for keeping on track with the Australian curriculum standards, so I highly recommend it.
More on the blog
Delicious eggless choc chunk cookies
10 Engaging Nature Activities for Children ages 4-6
30 Pregnancy Food Ideas for Each Trimester
If you are considering homeschooling, then what are your concerns or hesitations? I’d love to hear and possibly give some guidance!
Leave a Reply