How do you do it?

schedule breaks for your self then, join that hs group NOW or sign them up during the week for park district stuff, or stuff at your church, or scouts, or 4 -h or dance or swim or playgroup learning co-op

find the 30 minutes breaks

and understand that if you have sibling rivalry/ behavior issues that your family has not dealt with because they are seperated all day from school, you will have to resolve this first before you can really move into the homeschooling routine in fall.
starting homeschooling can be like putting a magnifying glass on your parenting, got to fix the parent/child stuff before taking on the role of fulltime teacher this also applies to parenting relationships, if your marriage or s/o partnership is not on a solid footing, homeschooling can be more difficult then it needs to be, make sure you have similiar expectations for each other in the roles you are taking on & set your goals.
understand that if he is not home much & is not going to be involved in picking books, finding resources, teaching etc.. his day will still be altered and changed
your lifestyle change will still include him and maybe this will be a time he will want to get into it, you never know, my dh is really hands on now- but not in a controling way- he has changed as we have been homeschooling over the years

I think the two main reasons parents decide not to hs or go back to ps are - lack of confidence in their children learning & because of these parenting/behavior issues and by putting kids back into ps all day they can avoid dealing with them.
I completely understand your fears, but I think homeschooling can be the best choice for kids & parents as long as the parents understand and expect the possible bumps in the road at the beginning. I would be very clear with the kids and my husband about what I expect, and try to be flexible and give it time(the whole year) to fall into a comfy routine.
How do you handle the summers at home with them?

Good luck to you as you start this journey!!!!

I handle summers with them just fine. We get out a lot and are very relaxed during the summer. I think that I am worried that they won't be learning enough if I have the same mentality that I do in the summer. I am not comfortable with unschooling, but at the same time I don't want 'school at home' either. I think that somewhere in the middle is right for me. I guess I am trying to find the middle ground between how relaxed we are in the summer and making sure that we have enough of a schedule so that I know that they are adequatly learning. Without it driving me nuts!

Hi!

I had similar worries when we started homeschooling, so I understand! You do need to schedule time for yourself, but also realize that the kids will occupy themselves at times (this may happen after the first few months, once they are better able to regulate their own time), and you will be able to find breaks for yourself during the day - even with the kids home.

I second the idea of joining a homeschool group, or going to park days this summer. Once you've made more connections with other homeschoolers, you'll be able to trade childcare, or your kids will have playdates at other people's homes, and you will find time to yourself then. And don't forget about homeschooling workshops/sports/extracurricular activities.

As far as worrying about whether or not they will be learning enough - I also had the same worries about unschooling, and we started out, as you are planning, having some structure, and doing a little bit of the "basics" a few days a week. One of the suggestions made to me was to record the activities the children do all day, think about the questions they ask, and the types of discussions we have daily, and see if you can put it into "educational" terms. This may help you see the learning that occurrs in everything the kids do. Doing this helped me to relax, and realize that whether we choose to be structured or not, or use curriculum or not, they are learning like crazy!

For example: My son (9) is currently into constructing a catapult with his dad. This is his own idea, and he has been working on it for hours everyday for the past 5 days. In order to do this project, we researched catapult building (computer skills, research skills), we learned the history of the catapult (history, language arts), we surveyed the materials we have on hand which could be used to build a catapult (organization skills, resourcefulness). Then dad took over, and the two of them have spent 3 days engineering the catapult, and building the catapult (physics, math, engineering). It's huge! But when they gave it a trial run last night, it only flung my son's shoe 2 feet. So, time to tweak the design (Real engineering, more physics, perseverance, etc.).

My daughter (7) has been intent on choreographing a dance, adding to it and changing elements daily. I won't go into all the "subjects" this is covering - but you get the idea .

Enjoy!

Laura

I think you are going to be just fine!!!! I would get rid of the calendar and pretend it is summer all year around

I think that we all worry before we start, especially if we started in ps and are making the jump to hs. And yes everybody says that you can put them back if it doesn't work out, but you're thinking then I will look like a failure and what if dc is very far behind. It will be very difficult on them to return. These were at least all things that ran through my head. But it has now been a year and I don't worry any more (at least not about that). We are definately on this road for the long haul.

When you start having your kids around all the time -your focus changes. It truely is not as difficult as having them the four hours after school. I have no idea why that is true. There is a better ebb and flow, at least in my experience. As for breaks, work them in: plan quiet reading time, go to the children's section of the library where you can be together but apart, get them involved in other activities (Scouts, 4H, etc.). Dh are always helpful, but sometimes they want a break after all day at work too. They may not have had the kids all day, but they have been under different stress and may need a break for a bit too, but certainly can be called into service. Plan a night out for yourself once in a while - take up a hobby.

The new flow of your life is undescribable. It was funny. I was at a meeting last night where everyone was bemoaning the stress of the end of the school year and how busy / crazy everything was. Someone looked at me to commisserate. "Don't look at me," I said. "I am in a different world. Life is good and we are calm."