Classroom Management--Home School Style

Touring a bookstore last week, I spied a book no teacher can resist: Basics of Classroom Management. While I didn’t find many tips in a book that focused on strategies for managing large groups of children in an institutional setting, I began thinking, “Are there basic strategies for managing our home learning?” My picks.

Set a basic routine—complete with start and stop times.  Our family seems to get more out of school when we set actual school hours. We make the start time fit our family’s style and priorities Because we have both morning chores and children who tend more toward night owl than early bird, we start at 9:00. I know some families who start earlier--others who have a different start time based on the day. Yet, the families who set a routine seem better focused on schooling.

Just as important—have a stop time. In our early years, Mike would come home at 6:00 to find us still plugging away because “I haven’t finished the list for today.” Seeing the exhaustion in all our faces, he finally put his foot down. Gently. “Honey, the teachers at school have to stop at 3:15, even if they haven’t finished their lists, because the school buses come to take the kids away. Be done at 3:00. It will be OK.”  Sure enough, he was right. While all of life is learning, school seems to work best on fixed hours.

Ensure lap-time equity. While many public school teachers have the dilemma of knowing where to place all the chairs, home schooling parents must strategically plan lap time. Whether it’s mastering reading skills or math strategies, somehow it comes easier in a lap. Each child must have equal access. Though teens probably won’t beg for the spot—ensuring one-on-one time for them to have full attention and close physical proximity seems just as important as for the toddlers.

Reserve time for hands-on activities every day. People remember far more what they do than what they hear about.  When I’m in my “complete the list” mode, I often choose to read the book rather than do the experiment. My classroom management manual encourages me to flip this strategy. In planning classes for this year I need to remember to force myself to do the experiment or make the puppet—even if I must skim the reading. While we may not get every detail, we’ll all remember what we’ve done, and we’ll actually learn more from the lesson.

Added benefit—doing the experiments indelibly teaches children the limits of science. Science is the leading rival for worship in our culture. Experiments read from a book always sound so precise, and they always work. When actually doing them, we learn that the experiments don’t always work. They aren’t as precise as they might seem. A consistent exposure to these lessons enables our children to develop both respect for science and awareness of its limits.

Get outside. Home schooling families are frequently, and sometimes appropriately, accused of being too insulated. It’s an easy pattern to develop. With so much on our plates—school, house, chores, church activities—we can be so focused on just getting done with our foci that we lose track of others. The act of stepping out the front door reminds us we are part of a larger world. A larger world that needs our attention. A larger world that should be the object of all the discipleship we are building into our children. Purpose to get outside. Just gazing on neighbors' doors can cause us to pray for them, greet them in the yard, and ask how they are doing. As country dwellers, just outside our family's doors are farm fields and woods. Stepping outside reminds us of the beauty of God’s creation and our responsibility to tend it well. Classroom management that gets us all beyond the classroom helps us apply what we’re learning to the world that needs our perspectives and care.

Though still relishing a summer break, in the back of my mind I'm already planning next year. With a little focus on managing our classroom, I pray God makes this the best year yet. What strategies work for you?

Tess Worrell writes and speaks to groups regarding issues of family life and living as a Godly woman. She and husband, Mike Worrell, live in Madison, Indiana, where they are in their 14th year of home schooling. She would love to hear your insights. Comment here or email her at tess@YourFamilyMatterstous.com. If you would like Tess to speak to your home school or church group, you can learn more about her speaking at YourFamilyMatterstous.com.