I shared this idea (Sue Patrick's workbox system) with my friends on the Five in a Row board. The thread has caused quite a stir and lots of great discussion. If you are interested in reading about some of the ideas shared there, please take a visit.
I think what I am liking most about this system is that it holds me accountable. I may have good plans, but this helps me to prepare and to accomplish not just the basics but some of the fun things too. I know that I can get easily distracted (and so can my children) if I'm not ready to go with whatever subject or project is at hand. This saves all of us a lot of time which is one reason we are able to get more done.
Also, several of my friends have also blogged about their systems. I think it's always fun to see what others are doing. Check out these blogs to read a little more.
Here's what we have planned for tomorrow. I thought I'd share a little more in-depth, though won't do this often as I couldn't keep up!
For Daniel (age 4) he will be doing the following (double asterisks are with mom):
**FIAR title My Blue Boat (with lessons on the Bible and decorating a cover page for his notebook)
*Mazes with a write on/wipe off pen - he loves doing this (got mine at Target)
**Color and shapes Bingo game
*Get Ready for the Code - 1 page
*Work for Contenders of the Faith - he is working on a memory verse and the ABC badge. He will be putting ABC refrig magnets in order (can also put them in the frig to hear the sounds).
**Little book on the color blue to go with B4FIAR title and color I spy game from homeschoolshare
*Dough ABC letters (Handwriting without tears)- good sensory work for him. I've asked him to make 5 of them
*Color pockets - Pre-made file folder game that he will sort pictures by color and put them in the appropriate pocket
**Animal "what am I" game from homeschool share
*Read ABC ocean animal book
*File folder activity (from Sue on alike v not alike - recognizing lowercase letters)
*Sequencing by shapes activity (preschool activity bag)
For Isaiah (age 7)
*Math
*Reading (we are one lesson away from finishing Reading Made Easy - should finish this week!!!)
*Time with Eliana (15 min) and then 15 minutes of computer. I've put a toy in the box that he can use to play with her to help teach in/out and shapes
*Five in a Row - We are doing Mirette on the High Wire. We'll be covering 2 social studies lessons and adding things to notebooks.
*Read aloud to me from a short reader from Starfall
*Handwriting with Tears - 1 page
*Pattern blocks - I've put a pattern page out and he will build that and then be finished
*Game with Joshua - either Blink or Knights in the Corner
*Skip counting drill (this was Sue's idea and my boys love the write on/wipe off page. It was easy to make and I'm hoping to make more types of this for review)
*Explode the Code
*Knots (badge work for Contenders of the Faith) - Intro lesson to learn about ropes and how to do one type of knot (will eventually cover more)
*Joshua reading a book to Isaiah
For Joshua (age 9)
*Time with Eliana (15 min) and then 15 minutes of computer
*Math
*Spelling
**Five in a Row
*Logic (bought these fun cards with logic problems on them and I give a couple every few days or so)
*Drill
*Reading with a patch (to help improve his vision). I've chosen books on topics we studied last week (ponds and Rev. War as review).
*Game with Isaiah
*Read aloud to Isaiah
*Wordly Wise
*Knots
*Skip counting
For Rebecca (7th grade)
*Pre-Algebra
*Time with Eliana (15 min) and then 15 minutes of computer
*Spelling Power
*Logic cards
*Copywork
*Beyond
*Cooking (She is working through a home ec book and will be making a mid-morning snack)
*Drill
*Herbs (She is working on a badge in this area for our Keepers of the Faith group)
*Game with Christopher (Rummikub)
*Correct math test
*Doll (She is starting a doll from an adorable pattern that my friend Becky shared with me. You can find it here.)
For Christopher (10th grade)
*Notgrass Govt
*Understanding the Times (Worldview)
*Spelling
*Time with Eliana
*Free Rice - This is a website that donates rice for each correct answer you get. We use it for drills/quizzes in a variety of subject areas - math, chemistry, foreign language, ...
*Geometry
*Movies as Literature
*Chemistry
*Game with Rebecca
*Working on teaching Knots to the younger children
*Computer Science course
*Reading (Bruchko)
I don't have a separate pic of his, but you can see it in the last picture below (on the left).
Christopher worked on his knots badge a few years back and made this poster to demonstate the knots. I think it will be a fun starting place for the other boys, not to mention a great visual.
We are currently schooling in our dining room and I have the workboxes along with walls of the room. I tried to take a few photos so you could see what it looked like. It was kind of hard to see, but hopefully this helps some. The shelves are really not that big. Less than 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide and a foot deep. This is a view from the doorway.
This is from standing on one of the chairs so you could see the workboxes better.
This is the other side of the room/table.
Hope this is helpful to someone. :-)
Blessings,
Leslie
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