Samuel and I have had another little chat about school and I mentioned the various ideas presented here. He was surprised that I had shared my frustrations with other moms and his eyes opened wide when I mentioned that Carrie and Julie also commented.
He loved the idea of school for 30 minutes followed by a 30 minute computer break within a 4 day school week, completing both pages of the guide. We will begin next Monday after all the relatives leave from spending their vacation with us. I will surely let you know how it works out!!
Tansy, Carrie and Julie, thank you for taking the time to share with me and give advice. Now I am off to ask new questions!
Dorla
He is such a cutie. I am glad he's excited about a new routine, and though it may take a bit for him to get used to it, I think it will be a good change of pace for him. Who knew computer was the thing? I have this happen all of the time with my dc - the thing I thought was really bugging my dc wasn't what I thought it was, and then some other random thing I had no idea was incredibly important to them was the struggle. Just today my older ds was so upset because I'd moved some afternoon things around - I thought this would be a good thing - you know, change it up a little after Christmas. But, he apparently lives for outdoor time for a long period of time in the mid-afternoon with just my middle ds. 
Of course, he didn't say this. He just had a very long face and was complaining about the whole afternoon in general. I just about laid down the law and said the new routine was sticking until we finally pin-pointed the problem. I thought, THAT'S what your upset about? Well, why didn't you say that right away?!? We can do that very easily. I guess he probably didn't know exactly what it was or how to put it into words either. Anyway, you are such a good mom to sit down and really talk this through with your little guy. This is a good reminder to me to try to always do this with my dc when a problem arises as well. Thanks for getting back to us!