Workboxes revisited

A couple weeks before Christmas, I dismantled and stored our shoe racks that hold the boys' work boxes. At Christmas, we focus exclusively on Christmas learning and activities in a more relaxed way. When we started our official schedule again after New Year's, I didn't get around to putting the racks and boxes back up for the first week. I just put Z-Man's work in a folder.

Well! That was an eye-opener. The second week, we went back to the workboxes and got SO much more accomplished! And, since we are a Wii family as of Christmas, the boxes get done in record time in order to take a "Wii break." I quickly realized that this might encourage shoddy workmanship so we made a new rule that work must be done well and all necessary corrections made before we attempt to trounce our little brother in Wii basketball.

One of the best things I've done to make life a little easier for myself was starting a file for the week. Over the weekend, I put whatever paper items we'll be doing in the folder for that day. Then, when I go to fill boxes, most of it is right there for me.

Behind the week file you can see a file for each country we have yet to do.

Some of the things we do are the same every day. Some don't go in work boxes:

• Bible reading and related crafts, stickers, etc.
• Read-Alouds
• Listening to the hymn of the week

And some do go in work boxes:

• math sheets (Saxon)
• one fun math activity
• cursive practice
• language arts worksheets
• listen to the Daily Audio Bible for Kids

Weighing Lego storm troopers

Some things repeat each week. On Mondays, we put a stamp in our passports and color a Dover map of the country of the week.

Each week we try to:

• do a Mark Kistler drawing lesson
• listen to Classics for Kids
• complete a map labeling activity and
• do a map mystery
• copy and memorize a Bible verse
• listen to the Wee Sing song for the country of the week
• make some sort of craft

I'd also like to make sure we play some sort of educational game each week, but that doesn't always happen. Unless you count the Wii. Then we're golden.

The rest of Z-Man's boxes are usually something to do with the country we're currently studying - lapbook components, writing or research projects, youtube videos, etc. Little Man usually does 3 or 4 boxes and participates in our Bible lessons, read-alouds and craft projects.

For more about what goes into the boxes, check this post for elementary kids and this post for pre-schoolers. All I can say is, I'm glad I got them back out!