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I have a few practical questions. In your Ten Things Before Age Ten article, you lay out a routine for how the day might go. But did you have any kind of lesson plan for the week or the year? Did you set any goals? Second question — when creating a timeline we obviously start with creation, but how far BC is that? And how do I really get started? I have my long paper for it, but how far apart on the paper do I make marks and how many years between the marks? I’ve never done a timeline on a big scale like this so I just need a bit of help to get me going. Thanks! Amy Estes
Yes, I would make goals — general goals. I would have ideas in my head about what I wanted to study or what I wanted to read. Generally, for me, I figured out what I wanted to study or read, and then the kids studied along with me. I would make general goals or plans, but if something new came up, I wouldn’t hesitate to change my plans.
Here might be some examples:
I hear that a famous violin player will be performing at the city library. That calls for dropping everything and attending the performance.
The city decides to pave our street. Be sure we’ll be watching at the curb every day instead of doing any pre-planned activities.
Having a garden will often interrupt plans — you will tend to the fruits and vegetables as needed.
Academic plans should give way to Daddy’s schedule. You’ll want to spend time with him whenever possible.
Concerning the timeline, I follow the chronology of James Ussher’s The Annals of the World
You can pattern your own paper timeline after this one.
Oh thank you so much! So very helpful! I think we are on the right track then. I loved your comment about paving the street because that’s exactly what we did this summer! We watched them scrape off and re-pave the street outside our housing addition. We were disappointed a week or so later to return home and find that they had painted the lines while we were gone. 🙁 We also got to watch plumbers dig up and replace part of our sewer line a week ago (very expensive field trip).