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Okay, so we began LHFHG and CTC yesterday going half-speed (only doing one side each day). Yesterday was really wonderful- everything flowed so smoothly and the kids loved it! However, today was really rough!!! (It was our right side day- the basics, which are of course not as fun and interesting to my dc)

I kept getting interrupted from my other dc while working with one- I can tell I have some re-training to do there! My 10yo dd had a hard time getting back to doing math after several weeks of a break from it, and I made the mistake of expecting her to do it independently for the most part. (we have been using Teaching Textbooks). So she was in tears from frustration and so was I! My 6yo dd was finished with her basics pretty early, so instead of sticking to my plan, we pressed on and started the next day's history, bible verse and craft. (We were doing the history reading while 10dd was trying to do her math, which was a big reason we kept getting interrupted)

My 3yo had a great time playing with the dry pasta on a towel, until it was time to clean up and I had to help him clean up all the little broken bits of pasta from the bottom of the container (which were now on the towel) . It always seems like such a great idea at the time, but turns into such a mess!

Sorry- I'm venting!!! But, I'm questioning my decision to do one side each day to start with this month. Also feeling like I should print out my schedule so each child knows when they can expect my undivided attention. But, how do I do this if I continue to do half each day- the subjects will be different every other day. Should we hold off on some subjects for a while and ease into HOD? Is it just going to take a while to get into the rhythm of HOD?

Thanks for any input or encouragement!

4froggies,

Typically, many moms go half days for the first week or so, just to ease into it and then make any needed adjustments that they can see may be problematic in their schedule. Then, the following week, they'll jump in at full-speed for the exact reasons that you mentioned. I agree that it is very helpful to have a schedule printed out for each child and for yourself so that everyone knows what to expect when.

Since your littles were done early, you can see that they are ready for more (which means they're likely ready for a full day of HOD within a day). With your oldest, it seems like math was the bog-down. So, perhaps math could be done at half-pace for the opening of this year, rather than having to keep the HOD guide at half-speed? Just some thoughts.

I'm a jump in and do it kind of gal, so unless I'm planning to go half-speed in a guide for the whole year, I start everyone at full-speed all at once. I tweak my schedule that first week as needed, and then for the rest of the year we just work the schedule "as is" with no changes, so everyone knows what they're doing all of the time and the schedule pays off.

Blessings,
Carrie