***For those who are teaching older children or dawdling children, or who are stunned by how long school is taking--this post isn't for you.***
Depending on the age of the child you are teaching, you might be surprised by how little time school takes. Especially if you sent your children to school for a year or two, and then you finish your homeschool subjects in an hour or two--you might wonder is that really it?
You may have seen the article by a public school teacher about how the actual instruction on any given day equals about 51 minutes. See here.
So if you are only getting to about an hour a day--that's approximately all that the public schools are doing, too. And a Sonlight education is, as we hear over and over, far more robust.
But however long Sonlight is taking, if you feel you and your children have a little more attention or energy to dedicate to learning--what then?
Add More Subjects
This is, perhaps, too obvious. But if you have a little more time, you can pursue other subjects. (See the bottom of this post for all links.)
For example, you can add art. I have used Sonlight's ARTistic Pursuits books (and so appreciate the quality, price, and convenience of the Sonlight art supplies). Both my children and I enjoy them, reading the art history, talking through the fine art examples, and doing some (not all) of the projects.
You could add music. Sonlight offers some piano resources, like Piano Wizard and Bastien. Or you might prefer the online piano tutorial, Hoffman Academy. Children gain huge benefits, from starting music early.
You could add foreign language, whether Rosetta Stone or some other program.
You could do cooking lessons. Even boiling noodles and making no-bake cookies require a little skill in the kitchen. I got married before YouTube was a thing, and took a class to learn how to efficiently chop onions and cook a whole chicken. These days, you can learn almost anything you need online, and then teach your children.
You could add as much enrichment as you like. At our house, this tends to be things like the Classical Kids Collection, and listening (over and over) to Adventures in Odyssey.
We do audio books, chess, board games. There are some incredible options out there.
If you have more time in your day than you have subjects . . . add more subjects!
Warmly,
Amy Lykosh
John and Sarita's oldest daughter
Second-generation Sonlighter
Homeschooling mom to five
P.S. Here are the links from this post:
Artistic Pursuits
Piano Wizard
Bastien
Rosetta Stone
Classical Kids Collection
