A Day In The Life of the Collins Family!

Say hello to the Collins Family:

What state do you live in?
We live in beautiful East Tennessee. We live in a wonderful area with lakes and parks and even a fort! We're also within driving distance of two great Aquariums, a zoo, and, best of all, the Great Smoky Mountains. All of this nature gives us ample opportunity to explore the out of doors which is something we love to do.

How long have you homeschooled?
We are now in our 7th year of homeschooling and I have to say, time really does go by quickly!

How many children do you have? What are their ages?
We are blessed to have 3 wonderful children. Miranda is 11 and in 6th grade; Levi will be 9 on the 21st of this month and is in 3rd grade and Maya just turned 7 and is a 1st grader.

Do you have any special needs children?
Not really as most would classify a special needs child, but, Levi does have a form of childhood epilepsy. His E.E.G.'s have shown that he has almost constant seizure activity on his brain but his medication does control the actual seizures quite well. Because of this, Levi has problems sometimes with short term memory. I have personalized his curriculum and the method I use to school him and he is truly thriving! I have seen so much progress, especially in this school year.

What is a typical schedule for you?
First, I always get up before the children. I can't say enough about how much that helps me to function in the mornings! I try to be up between 7-7:30. During this time I:
1. Get dressed.
2. Have breakfast.
3. Read my Bible and work on my Sunday School lesson.
4. Check e-mail and work on my blog if I have a post to put up.
The children begin getting up around 8:30 and I prepare a quick breakfast for them then we get chores done before school begins at 9:30. We school from 9:30-2:00 then the children have free time for handicrafts, music, extra arts and crafts projects, puzzles, legos, etc. They stay pretty busy.
We eat dinner early, around 4:00-4:30 because we often have things scheduled in the evening. Our children are active and athletic, so they often have practices or games in the evenings. Also, we have church services on Wednesday night, including our Master Clubs program.

How do you handle teaching older kids with toddlers underfoot?

Well, I no longer have toddlers but when I did, I would try to have activities for them to do that would hold their attention for at least a few minutes at a time. I bought boxes with lids and stored different things in there for them to play with during school time. We made math "counters" out of washed milk lids that we would stick stickers onto; I would add in colored craft sticks, wooden blocks, craft foam, and when they were old enough, safety scissors. By changing out the supplies in the box every other day or so, it kept them entertained for a while.

Do you plan to homeschool through high school? Why or why not?
Absolutely! As long as God blesses us to do it, I can not imagine investing all of this time and energy in the early and middle school years then sending them off to high school somewhere. I truly believe that I will be able to give them an excellent education throughout their school years and I admire those who have already had that honor.

What curriculum do you use and why?
I always put together my own curriculum plan because I want to give each one of my children a specialized and unique education. My three children have different learning modalities and styles and what works for one child does not necessarily work for the other two. This does not always make things simple for me but I want to feel like I am giving each of them a uniquely suited education for their needs.

One of my all time favorite curriculums is Mystery of History. Miranda and I began volume 1 when she started fourth grade and it took us a year and a half to complete it. We did a lot of the activities and dug pretty deeply in the suggested readings. We're now making pretty quick progress through Volume 2 and I am going to begin Volume 1 with my other two children in January. So, I will be in two different history cycles at one time but that does not bother me.
We are also beginning a chemistry unit in January and I will be using God's Design for Chemistry as my spine. I have read that book cover to cover and it is excellent!! It is very important to me that my history and science "spines" be God honoring and I am very happy with these choices.

Other curriculum that we use include: A Beka Math 6, 3, and 2; Prima Latina and Latina Christiana 1; Galloping the Globe; Learning Language Arts through Literature-we're currently using the Tan and the Red; we've also used the Orange and the Purple. I've used Beautiful Feet Early American History with all of my children and highly recommend that curriculum. I am going to begin Primary Language Lessons with Levi in January.

Are you involved with a homeschool group? Why or why not?
Yes. I am a member of Roane County Home Education Association (RCHEA). Homeschooling is thriving in our county and I am very glad to be a part of it.

Tell us about your typical day.
We begin our school day at 9:30. This is considered late by some standards but I like to get things tidied up in the house so I can be more relaxed when I'm teaching.
Levi will sometimes begin at 9:00 which is great because he needs more one on one time than the girls.

We all congregate in the schoolroom and work on Bible, copywork, language arts, and math before lunch. After lunch we tackle history, geography,Latin, science, music, and art. We cover a lot of subjects but for my children this really keeps the day fresh. We keep the lessons fairly short, Charlotte Mason style, and are typically finished by 2:00. My children love to have hands-on-learning and will often continue something they have started earlier in the day. I will then have a cup of tea or coffee and do dinner prep. I use my crock-pot often and I can't begin to stress how much that helps me get dinner on the table in a timely manner! After any activities for the evening, we have baths and Bible time as a family. Currently we're using Keys for Kids. In the past we've used Character Building for Families (we went through that book twice) and it was great.

Collins Family Blog: Living Water Christian Academy