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Year-Round Homeschool
Q: Lately I’ve been hearing
about “year-round” home school. What exactly
does that entail, and what are the pro’s and con’s
of it?
A: "Year-round" home school is an example of
an optional scheduling flexibility available to home school
parents and students. It involves a patterned rotational
year-round schedule.
For example, I have known home schoolers whose year-round
pattern was 3 months of school followed by 1 month off as
contrasted with the more traditional pattern of 9 months
of school followed by 3 months off. One advantage to this
type of year-round schedule is that you have a nice break
from school after every 3 months rather than having to wait
9 months for the break. This can be helpful when a new baby
arrives, and mom is tired. It also might be helpful during
family crisis situations when extra free time is needed
such as when a family has to move or a loved one dies.
One disadvantage to the 3 separate monthly breaks is that
each is shorter than the combined 3 month break. Sometimes
it is nice to have the entire summer of the traditional
pattern to allow parents and students to "recharge"
for the next school year.
I have also known homeschoolers who school for three weeks
and then take one week off each month. Those who operate
with this type of schedule will tell you that one of the
advantages is that there is little time needed for reviewing,
which is typical at the beginning of the 9-month school
year. Students don’t need to spend 4 or 5 weeks reviewing
last year’s material, because they have kept the information
“fresh” in their his minds by continuing in
the learning mode throughout the year.
Whatever patterned school schedule a family chooses, the
major benefit to home schoolers is having the flexibility
to plan each school year according to the needs of the family.
And the nice thing is, if you try one of the year-round
options, and discover it just doesn’t work for you
and your family, you can always switch back to the traditional
9-month school year. It’s a win-win situation.
If you have a homeschooling question and
would like to “Ask The Veterans”, please put
it in writing to Board@OmahaHEN.org
or to: HEN Newsletter, 2610 Morrie Dr., Bellevue, NE 68147.
We will forward your question along to our veteran moms
who will respond for publishing in a future newsletter.
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