This is what I wrote to the public school when they wanted a schedule of how many hours a week I would spend on each subject.

The time allotted for schooling in each subject is a subject that goes tothe heart of our home schooling philosophy. I do not see the home school situation as reproducing that of the traditional school. In the traditional classroom a teacher must accommodate the learning styles and needs of at least 20 children. Teacher time per student is restricted. This is not the case in our situation. I have only one child to teach. We also have access to resources that many teachers do not. We have three computers, each equipped with CD-ROMs, a large in-home library (about 1,750 volumes), and 24-hour access to the Internet. We also take advantage of classes at the Smithsonian Institute and the many museums available in the area. So our school has a 1:1 student-teacher ratio and many educational resources. This means that the needs and interests of one particular student can be accommodated.

Jeffery is being educated at home because his learning style is not readily accommodated in the traditional school setting. Jeff is intensely curious. He continually asks questions and prefers getting an answer. There are also some activities that contribute to Jeff's learning that are hard to categorize. If Jeff reads or hears something that attracts his interest, we often conduct research to answer his questions. For example, reading about cell division led to a question. If bacteria divide by mitosis and mitosis results in genetically identical cells, are all bacteria of a single straingenetically identical? If not, why not? This lead to research onmicrobiology and how bacteria exchange DNA. How do I account for this spontaneous research on a predetermined schedule? What would be the point of deferring such learning to a later time slot?

This type of learning does not lend itself well to grouping into time slots. This does not mean that there is not structure nor that time is not allotted to insure that all subjects are covered. It does mean that we do not study a specific subject for a specific length of time at a specific time every day. That is unnecessary and undesirable in our situation. There are some days when a subject is not addressed. In that case, more time is spent on the subject in subsequent days. The goal is not spend X number of hours on a subject, but to gain a certain amount of mastery over the material. If this takes 15 minutes we go on. If it takes three days, we take three days.

Any time allotment given is an estimate. I understand your need to have some idea of the relative emphasis on subjects. However, I ask to you to help me not engage in silly games. If I told you we spend 1 hour and 15 minutes per day on math, this would be true sometimes. However, there are days when it takes three hours (and even more) to finish a math lesson. On really good days, math might take only an hour. Our goal is not to spend 75 minutes on math. It is to do the lesson, understand the material, and answer all of the questions properly. If any answers are incorrect, the problem is reworked until Jeff understands it. Then we go on. Similarly, when writing Jeff may be especially fluent and write for several hours. At other times, he struggles and demanding anything beyond a minimal effort is counter-productive.

Ann Balough, CRM
Washington, DC USA

Jimmy Kilpatrick