Time Spent Homeschooling

I may have to take a second job and wonder what kind of time is spent homeschooling? I have RA, which makes me feel bad a lot. I'm worried that I won't have the necessary time to homeschool my granddaughter, and her mother is not much help. Also, I am starting to have difficulty with some of my seventh grade granddaughter's math work! She got all D's and F's last year, except for in gym. The school wanted to evaluate her, but my daughter won't allow them to. My granddaughter is depressed at school because she feels unpopular and mean kids are unfriendly to her. She does not feel depressed at home.

Reply to Time Spent Homeschooling:

How wonderful to be able to homeschool a granddaughter! 7th Grade is not a difficult grade. You already know a lot of it and can quickly brush up on what you may be a little rusty at.

Math would be review for you: division, fractions, multiplication tables, etc. Get a good set of flash cards so that she will learn her multiplication and division facts like the back of her hand. It would also do her well to get the addition and subtraction down. We used to time them using a simple graph to record the child's progress. Make it fun. She may learn to like it! We always started our day out with Math while the brain was still fresh and only worked on it for an hour.

The other subjects followed. I dictated their writing assignments each day also and then had them correct any errors. We enjoyed our DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) time together. I would read a chapter, sometimes two, from Sonlight's historical fiction recommendation. In fact, I miss that now that I only have one left in school.

Before you knew it, lunchtime was here. The afternoon was spent on art, music, science, or just catching up on whatever did not get done in the morning.

As you can see, much of school is really done by the student, not you. There were many times I'd go throw a load of wash in between questions, start supper in the crock pot, etc., etc. I was always somewhere when needed.

There are a few more things to consider when determining how much time you will need to spend helping your student:

Age of Child
The younger your children, the more time will be required. This is a very important time to get the basics down. Ruth Beechick explains it very well in her easy to read books. Take time to read to and with your children daily. Work on their math doing flashcards, etc. The time spent now will pay off years down the road.
I have discovered over the years that my older children eventually became more independent learners. My high school students were pretty much on their own. Of course, I made sure they had all the materials they needed for the school year and would be there to answer any questions that came up. But for the most part they taught themselves.

Personality
Every child is different. Some tackle their "home" work without any persuasion at all. Others buck it coming out of the gate! While others need to have their "hand held" throughout the day thinking they can't do it without you sitting right there. I could go on, but you get the idea. The sky is the limit and at this point there is no way of knowing how much time you may have to spend with your granddaughter.

Teaching Style
There are also a myriad of curricula out there, each with their own time requirements. Some parents like to follow directions to a "T" and keep meticulous records. Others put their own curriculum together tailoring to their child's personality and interests. If you're a hands-on type, you may like to go on field trips. As you can see, every parent is also different.

These are just a few factors that determine how much time is spent homeschooling. All the best to you on your new journey together!