End of Two Week Schedule Experiment

If my son grows up to be a scientist he will have lots of experience in dealing with experiment variables. :sneer: Our two week, weekly schedule trial is over. Week one went exceptionally well. We didn't get everything done, but after a long school hiatus I wasn't truly surprised.

I've been slightly panicked about being behind, but after review of our schedule I realized we truly had only missed three weeks of regular school. I also had already planned to take off two weeks during the move, so technically we are only one week behind. Whew! I feel better.

Week two of our experiment did not go so well. The fact a giant snow storm blew through and cancelled every public school in a fifty miles radius for three days had nothing to do with our faltering. However, it eased the pain of a less than stellar week.

Monday started off good. I should have known that was a bad sign. By Monday afternoon I felt horrible. Crawl back in bed, horrible. Z finished his dad by doing independent work. Tuesday same thing, again after he spent an hour helping dad clear snow. I wrote him a list and crawled back into bed.

Wednesday and Thursday were a little better, but after school I crawled back into bed.

On Friday Z and I discussed our schedule. His observation was that it left him too much to do on Friday. Duh! Yes, the most intelligent reaction, but duh! We discussed which of these items he could have done on his own (gasp - did the world just fall out of space!?!) We talked about initiative and self-discipline. For a child with a very rich vocabulary I only received a vague acknowledgment that he understood those two words.

I have repeatedly told this child I will NOT be attending college with him, so he should learn some skills of his own. I know, it's a process. He's actually improving each and every week. We couldn't blame the snow this week. We could blame my being sick a little, we could blame his inexperience a little.

I've decided that next week we will continue the experiment. I'm toying with the idea of doing a Language (Latin, English, & Japanese) & history week rotated with a science, math, & logic week. We'll either get way ahead or it will crash and burn.

In reality, I've been pleased with Z's progress in spite of our chaotic winter. He's reading at a higher level, his reading speed has improved. He is reading in multiple subjects now with minimal complaining.

He typed two of his assignments this week. We discussed formatting of typed works and he made the corrections easily.

This week has definitely been about hibernation mode. My hair has been a mess. His is starting to curl at the ends. He's never had curly hair before. This morning he rolled out of bed and I told him we looked like we've been at survivor camp all week. He still gives me hugs every morning, first thing after plodding downstairs.

So much growth this year, in school and out. Each day is another step on our journey, I'm glad we're experiencing it together.