What does yours look like? How often do you deviate from it?

I wish we could keep a schedule. It seems impossible for our family!

For example, it's past 10:30 and I haven't started lessons yet. I normally would like to start by 9.

I really need a system here.

This is our "loose" school schedule (meaning I try to keep it) :-)

I actually try to start at 8am so I have wiggle room for the times that a subject runs over.

8:30 - 9:00  Bible (this could be bible reading, practicing verses, learning hymns required for their music class, etc)

9:00 - 9:30  Math

9:30 - 10:00   Spelling & Grammar

10:00 - 10:30  P.E.

10:30 - 11:00  Snack Time/Break

11: 00 - 11:45  History or Science (alternate days)

11:45 - 12:30 Reading/Literature

12:30 - 1:00 Lunch

1:00 - 1:30 Art or Music (alternate days)

I like having Art at the end of the day because my kids LOVE it and it is an incentive for them to push through the subjects they don't like. Plus if a project takes longer than expected, they can have the extra time and still get things cleaned up before dinner. Also P.E. before snack/break works well because they are sweaty & hungry and need a few minutes to relax before jumping back into the books.

They also take classes outside the house 1 day per week (computer and fitness).

It's very busy and the challenge for me is being prepared. For example if I don't have snacks and lunch planned a day ahead, it turns to chaos trying to throw something together. The biggest thing is being organized (which I am not!) I have friends that have all the prep work done for all the lessons for that week and the meals planned, etc and their life is so much easier. The ones I know have husbands that take the kids out for the afternoon once a week so they can do this. My husband works 2 jobs so I don't have that luxury. (*sigh*)

Hope that helps.

We have a school schedule, because my son is very structured and operates better when he knows what is coming up.  I guess I do too.  We start school Monday and last we went over our "school rules".  Like Pirates of the Caribbean our code is more like guidelines anyway :)

9am - start school.  You will be at school with teeth and hair brushed, dressed, and breakfast eaten.

We have a daily schedule and my son has his own lesson planner.  I've found that if I don't have a schedule I'll just push subjects to the back burner and then we get way behind. 

I really need to get into a schedule pretty quickly. DH leaves for Iraq in several months, and I am on my own doing everything. There is no family nearby to help, so I think a schedule will help me fit it all in. Sigh. I'm a terrible scheduler.

We are in our 4th year of homeschooling and I still haven't found out what works best for us yet!.   I tried a schedule in 1st grade and he chafed at that, and I found that I got distracted too much as well.  I had everything planned out and by the end of the school year, it was just too much work.  Last year, I had no schedule and found that I would just give him a list of things that we needed to do during the day, and he got to choose what order we did them him....gave him some measure of control over his learning....I like that, but in the end I did hardly any preplanning, (but with most subjects it wasn't much of an issue).  We tended to start later and later each day.... :( 

This year, I am going back to the schedule idea again and pre-planning.  I want to be able to spend more time and few days for science and history.  We are getting in to Chemistery and I think it will take us longer.  I am thinking of having him help me plan the weekly schedule too.  

Well, we'll see how it goes....

I have a checklist for each and I lightly keep track of what we've done.  But my list has no start or stop time, we start when we can and we finish when we want.  ;-)  I school year round so I have extra time to get everything I want accomplished. 

If you visit the Highland Heights and Donna Young websites listed here http://www.hwtk.net/generalinformation.html , you'll find some blank scheduling forms.  Homeschoolclassifieds.com and homeschoolblogger.com also offer free printables for scheduling.  There are other sites as well, but those are the ones I can remember.

Tonya, I looked up the sites you mentioned, but can't find the schedule forms you're talking about.

Sorry, it was Highland Heritage, here's the direct link to the planning forms:

http://highland.hitcho.com.au/teacherforms.htm

Here are some other planner sites:

http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/gettingorganized/allplanners.php

http://www.donnayoung.org/forms/planners/index.htm

http://www.homeschooltracker.com/download_basic.aspx

http://www.homeschoolclassifieds.com/planner/form.asp

http://members.aol.com/usteach/forms.html

Thank you!

Tonya, those were very helpful lists, thank you!