How We Structure Our Early Childhood Homeschool Day
We’ve officially completed three weeks of homeschooling, and it’s safe to say that we’ve got a pretty good rhythm going. Today I’m sharing an overview of what our day looks like. I imagine this changing by the end of the school year and I’m already making continuous notes on what I’d like to add on or remove. But, for a beginner homeschooler I think we have a good thing going! Our approach to early childhood homeschooling is play-based and Charlotte Mason and Montessori inspired.
Note that none of these links are affiliate… I don’t have that much reach (yet). Simply sharing some seriously good resources!
Wake to 9:30am
Joel wakes up with the kids to get teeth brushed and clothes changed. The girls eat breakfast and get right into playing or drawing. At the same time, I’m getting myself ready, feeding the baby, or feeding myself breakfast.
9:30am - Circle Time
For us, circle time consists of:
Today’s date & weather: saving up for one of those wooden perpetual calendars, but right now I used a laminated calendar where I can fill in the dates with a whiteboard marker.
Poem of the Day: read from Sing a Song of Seasons: A Nature Poem for Each Day of the Year
Hymn of the month: taken from Ambleside Online’s list of hymns
Memory verse of the week: so far these have been Ephesians 4:32, Ephesians 6:1, and Philippians 4:13
Phonics practice: we go through the alphabet to cement the sounds for my 5 year old and to introduce them to my 2 year old. The baby gets some entertainment out of it! We use these flashcards from Toddlerscanread.
Habit of the week: every week, we each have a habit we focus on - yes, including me. We earn stickers for good effort and accomplishment. For example, our 5 year old has been working on remaining seated for each meal. Our 2 year old has been working on picking up her basket toys at the end of play. And I have been doing core exercises daily to heal my diastis recti (IYKYK).
10:00am - Snack & Play Break
During this time I like to play folk nursery rhymes (aka Raffi) or classical music which we might discuss later in the week. A system I have in place is a dish bin (we use this one from Ikea), where the kids place their dishes in the bin at the end of each meal. Gets them in the habit of clearing their tables and makes it easier for me since it’s all in one place! Finally, I use this time to set up the next block.
10:30am - Reading & Writing / Prepared activity
For our 5 year old, we practice advanced phonics and sight words (also by toddlerscanread). I purchased a set of plastic letters on FBMP and a small whiteboard from Dollarama to support my teaching and her learning. Afterwards, she works on printing, which is typically one to two letters at a time (we use this workbook).
The 2 year old gets a prepared activity. Sometimes this is matching letters, counting pom poms or wooden people, threading a pipe cleaner through cardstock, peeling and placing stickers, etc. Truthfully, she doesn’t always have the full capacity to complete some of these activities, but I offer it and then leave her to play!
11:00am - Special Activity
Each day is different, but usually rotates between art study (this month it’s Monet, where they view a painting and then draw/colour/paint their interpretation), ballet (I’m trained in RAD and passed exams up to Advanced I), numeracy, or coding (for the 5 year old). I am also introducing things like how to tell time and will be incorporating basic map reading (based on the 5 year old’s recent interest!).
11:30am - Play
The girls play while I prepare lunch - and sometimes they help me.
12:00pm - Lunch & a story
Typically a Magic Treehouse story on their Yoto player or the Tales of Peter Rabbit on spotify. I also use this time to do a mid-day tidy. And, I ensure that I get a break too (sitting down, reading a book or knitting).
I’d say that about ends the “formal” homeschool day. The rest of the afternoon is spent playing in their room for quiet time, playing in general, or out and about (library, parks, forest, the zoo, etc.).
3:00pm - Tea Time
If we’re home, we have tea time. I’ll read aloud Aesop’s Fables and The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. Candles are lit, and a cup of tea and snack are enjoyed.
And that’s a pretty full day! After that, the girls play or have some TV time while I get dinner together. Dinner is at 5pm followed by a family-based evening and the bedtime routine.
I’ve found great joy and increased capacity during these weeks. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m simply no longer pregnant or if I’ve really just grown that much - but I am feeling entirely capable and equipped (and growing!) to homeschool. Where I’d like to see my capacity expand is in maintaining the house. I do a pretty good job feeding bellies and keeping our highest traffic areas tidy, but I’d really love to upkeep the rest of the house on a schedule. We’ll leave that for another time! Hope this is insightful and helpful!
