How long is a normal home school day? What is a typical home school day like?

Question

Plz tell me about it cause next year will be my first year doing it? Any tips/advice? Pro's? Cons? Just tell me all about it since it is my first year doing it and I am excited and a little nervous!!

Answer 1

It depends on you. You have to remember that home schooling is very flexable. I'm home schooled. Sometimes I finish my work in three hours and sometimes it takes me all day. Don't be nervous. It's not a hard transition. I spent my freshmen and half of my sophomore year at a large private school. I left during christmas break and started home schooling in January. It takes a little while to get used to staying on a steady work schedule since you don't really have a teacher saying "And don't forget class, your papers are due tomorrow!!" You have to keep track of it on your own. I recommend doing everything in order. Don't skip the hard stuff and save it for later. Just push through it and get it all done. It feels a lot better and goes a lot smoother. Also, You should set up a chart or agenda and plan out when you want to be done with certain subjects. It will keep you on track and keep you from getting behind. Check off everything you've completed on your chart (or whatever you use) It wil give you a good visual on where you are with your school work. As far as distractions go... BE CAREFUL!! It's sooo easy to get off track. Set up a space that's just for doing your work. (I school at my mom's office. There's nothing to do there except school). Once you have a space that allows you to stay focused it's easier to actually do all of the work. Another thing that helps me get my work done is music. I always have ear phones in when I'm doing work. It blocks out all the noise around me and keeps me focused. Don't worry. You'll figure out a schedule and ways to stay focused in no time. :]

Good Luck!!

Answer 2

I am excited and happy for you!   My son started homeschool in the 8th grade and it has been good for the whole family.

Again, I'll say what others have already told you...there is no typical day because each family, each student is different.

Tips and advice:   Be free to let your homeschool experience evolve to be what you want and need.   That's the reason many experienced homeschoolers give the advice not to spend big dollars on boxed curriculum until after you have experimented with what works best for you.     It is more difficult  to back up and regroup if you have invested $$$ into a program.

Answer 3

well i do charter school which is kinda like homeschooling but better. i have tried homeschooling and it was terrible! but then i decided to try out charter school and i love it!

It is just like homeschool, but once or twice a week you go to a campus and you have a teacher that you meet with and you just turn in your work and get more work. but it just keeps you better in line with school. i highly recommend it!!!

Answer 4

My homeschool day just counting time spent on school work was usually 1-2 hours when I was younger and maxed out around 4 hours when I was older.  However, if you count all the activities I was in, my day was often longer than a public schooler's day!  My brother and I were involved in so many activities that around 7th grade mom announced that Friday's were to be catch up days, as in, no activities because we needed a break, needed to clean the house, and she was getting sick of running us around.  Friday's then turned into lets-have-friends-over-because-we-have-n... days!  Unless you really take your time with the actual school work part, you will finish your work mush more quickly than when you were at school so plan to get in involved in things that interest you.  No two homeschooler's day's are alike.  That is why homeschooling is so cool.

EDIT: Confused, why don't you tell her what your homescool day is like.  Mybe then we could all help you figure out why you do not enjoy your day.  I'm not gonna lie, I am torn between annoyance and feeling sorry for you.

Answer 5

There is no typical homeschool day.

People, if they've been to school, tend to start out by thinking they ought to be doing the same things as kids in school are doing and they ought to recreate the typical schoolday at home; they tend to gradually relax as time goes on though.

Take us, for example: we are unschoolers (a.k.a. natural learners or auto-didacts). We don't have any 'school days', typical or otherwise.

For me, today's 'home-schooling' has consisted of helping my dad and our manager to castrate some of the bull calves.

I'm also doing my p.p.l.** as a pretty big part of my home education (**private pilot's licence).

Confused/Rev Evil/St max/whatever you're calling yourself today -- I don't 'get' how you can blame homeschooling for your lack of a social life?!?

I'm 15, home-educated and live a four hour drive from our closest neighbour and a 16 hour drive from town. If I can have an active and busy social life, I don't see why you shouldn't be able to, if that is what you *really* want (unless, of course, home-ed is just a convenient excuse for other issues).

Maybe if, rather than just whinging and crying about it, you could explain exactly what it is about being home-educated that stops you from having that social life you say you want so much, I could help you to come up with some solutions.

(being an authentic, government-defined, government-recognised

'isolated child' myself!!)

Answer 6

There is no such thing. Everyone does different things. I expect if you google "homeschool blogs" you'll come up with some examples. People don't even agree on what schoolwork is. Some people think it is the time when you sit down with a text book, some people think it is any time you are awake. There is going to be a difference between someone who uses a boxed curriculum and someone who unschools.

Answer 7

It should be at least 3 hours a day. I went by the public school hours, which was 9-3 in my area. You can go longer if you want. I even worked on weekends when I was interested in something, and I graduated early because of it!

If you are in a charter or state school, they will give you weekly assignments. You basically just do what’s on that list, it doesn’t matter what order…as long as you finish them within the week.

If you are going independent (no state involvement), make sure to get a lawyer through the Home School Legal Defense Association. Keep a calendar of the days/hours you do school work. If you go independent through high school, get on your state’s education board website and find out the graduation requirements and follow them.

Make sure you learn how to write reports! It’s essential if you’re going to college later on.

Make sure you sign up for social activities…drama class, sports teams, etc. Even if you’re very shy, do it! This will also help you in college.

Try to find friends that are home schooled and do your homework together. It's fun doing science projects, field trips, home ec. assignments when you have a buddy.

Otherwise, just have fun with it!

P.S.

Alpha Omega is wonderful...I definitely reccomend it! Just know that you don't have to do every book there is for the grade you're in. Like I said above, check your state requirements.

Answer 8

There is no "typical" home school day...it varies by family, and even by student.  For my son, it can vary by day, just depending on what we have scheduled for that day.  

Here was his day today:

Wake up around 9

-Get breakfast, shower, get dressed, etc.

-Bible with me at 10-10:30

-Independent work from 10:30-1 (watch a science telecourse for 30 minutes that corresponds to what he's learning, read a novel for 30 minutes, journal a page, do his handwriting and English, exercise, read his history assignment for the day)

-Lunch

-2-2:45 - hang out with his dad before dad went to work

-3-5:30 - We worked together timelining George Washington's life as part of a history project, worked through his next algebra lesson, put together a hydroponic garden contraption and planted seeds for a science project, and worked on a science paper

-5:30-6:15 - made and ate dinner

-6:30-9 - he had Scouts, started learning to flyfish and caught 4 nice ones, from what I heard :)

-9:30 - came home, got ready for bed, is currently listening to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea on audiobook while going to sleep

Tomorrow, he's planning to be up by 7, work on his independent work till 10/10:30, do some research for a Scout badge before lunch, and after lunch we'll work on "together" work till about 2 or 3.  After that, he has some projects he wants to work on and a computer game he wants to beat :)

Homeschooling can offer whatever type of schedule you want and need.  As long as you keep up with your work and motivate yourself to do well, you can keep whatever schedule works best for you (as long as your parents ok it).  Honestly, when you get to college and the work world, you'll need to be able to set your own schedule.  You won't have a teacher setting everything for you - now's a good time to learn to do that.  Homeschooling offers you that chance :)

Answer 9

Answers are going to vary here.  There are a few basic factors influencing the length of time it takes to home school each day.  These include the program being used, the home school philosphy of the parent and the amount of children being taught, as well as the handwriting ability, age and academic aptitude of each child.  A kindergarten child using a unit study program, for example, may  take as little as 1 1/2 hours three days a week to complete all his grade objectives for that year. Could you tell us the program you will be using and the age of your child?

Edit:

Go to www.hslda.org to check out your state laws, if you family has not done that yet.  Some states require a strict number of hours per school year, which will need to be divided into daily work.  Some states give only a general guideline.  

Alpha Omega has several different programs, from unit studies to DVD programs to accredited studies which require written or phone interaction with a teacher to check-the-block worktexts.  I will take a leap and assume that you must be referring to the llatter, known as Life Packs.  In that case, if your handwriting is failry quick, you might be able to finish school before lunch or shortly after it on most days.  I do hope that helps.

Answer 10

All I can say, is....

I'm sorry you have to do it....

=/

Edit: What My day is like?

Well, I usually wak up around 9am.

Shower, eat, Ect.

Do school from around 10, till whenever I'm done, usually I take a break in between then, and usually finish around 4, then I usually read, or sleep, and sometimes go to the gym.

Eat dinner, read, maybe watch some of Frasier, read some more, and sleep.

And start all over again....

Answer 11

Alpha Omega is AWESOME!!! I am also going into 8th grade! Anyway! I loce homeschooling and alpha omega! Our work is from about 9 :00 - 2:00 So I work much less then the average kid BUT I get more done!

Answer 12

Like the first person said, it varies a lot depending on the person learning and the person/people teaching.  My wife home schools our 5 children and for each of them it is very different.  She has a set "lesson" that they need to do each day and once they are done, thatÊ»s it.  Some days it takes them 2 hrs to do it all and some days it takes 6 hrs.  It depends on what they are learning that day and how the child feels about that subject.

And our days differ, some days there is actual work like out of a work book or text book.  Some days are spent watching educational shows or DVDs and then writing essays.  And then there are some days they do science experiments or go on field trips.

Answer 13

There is no such thing as a typical home school day.  Every home educating family is different, and laws vary in every country, state or province.

Some jurisdictions require you to "study" a specific number of hours per day, while others have no restrictions whatsoever.  Some families are very strict and follow a formal "school" day, while others unschool and have no set format at all.  It entirely depends upon what you and your parents have decided is the best course of action for you.