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Homeschool routines are everything when it comes to teaching 10-year-olds. Yet, there are so many unique daily routines out there. I like to think that’s because there is no “one size fits all” routine for everyone.
Written by Cypress King.
I can’t believe my baby boy is already ten years old.
Where in the world did the time go? This rapid speeding time-clock called life is one reason why we choose to homeschool our children.
I wanted more time with them before they are grown and gone.
It wasn’t only a selfish decision though… we felt as though a solid foundation in morals, values, education, and life should be established here in our home.
Age 10 is a year of independence. It’s a year of stubbornness and once again testing those already established boundaries. It’s a beautiful, messy, and sometimes stinky disaster.
Pre-teen years are just preparation for those dreaded teenage years.
A Quick Overview of Jaxson’s Homeschool Daily Routine
- 6:00-8:30: Relaxed Wake Up & Breakfast
- 8:30: Bible Quoting
- 9:30: Interest Driven Science
- 10:00: Math
- 11:00: Music
- 12:40: Quiet Reading & Snack
- 12:00: Family History Lesson
- 12:30: English Language Arts (Reading, Spelling, Writing, and Grammar)
- 2:00: The Extras
Sample Daily Routines (by age!)
Get my cheat sheetsand find your family’s groove.Chore, independent play, meal, nap, bedtime, and MORE routine ideas!
When making his homeschool routine, I had to be sure to:
- listen more intently to his 10 year old’s needs,
- show patience when I know he knows better, and
- re-ground him in some life skill essentials.
My homeschooled 10 year old is not your typical pre-teen boy. He’s not into sports, games, or girls (yet). He doesn’t like the music his friends listen to. He’s truly an old soul.
His favorite things (in order) are reading vintage books, playing chess, and going for walks with his dog.
If you asked him what his one wish be, he would say to be wise and prudent. Yeah… that’s what he said when I asked him. Like I said, “Old soul.”
Although he would rather spend all day reading, we still make sure he still has lots of experiences for social interactions. You see, we want him to be balanced.
He is so proud to be a homeschool kid. So, my job as I see it, is to teach him how to be socially aware and compassionate to other people’s opinions and situations. I love the verse that says- “Do justly, and to love mercy, and towalk humbly (Micah 6:8).
50+ Life Skills (By Age!)
Check off critical household, social, and hygiene skills for your child so they’re prepared (not petrified) of growing up!
Here is what a typical day homeschool day looks like for my 10 year old Jaxson:
Morning-time from his P.O.V.
How Jaxson’s morning goes is totally dependent upon his “want to do” what they day hold. Let me explain…
- By this point in his educational career, he knows that there is work ahead of him for the day. So, sometimes he can be a bit slow to let his feet hit the floor. My husband promises that it’s just the age and he will grow out of it.
- If it’s a morning where he has something to look forward to, he’s up and at it! He’s ready to go! He’s knocking down my door and waking me up.
Most of the time, however, Jaxson views his mornings as time where he can get away with being a bit lazy.
He usually get’s up about 7:30 and reads for a bit (he doesn’t realize that I know he’s awake). Then, it’s off to chores outside where he feeds and takes care of our family’s flock of sheep.
He loves them so much and looks forward to spending some time with them. He calls them each by name and recognizes when their personalities are off. I’m so proud of him for being such a good little shepherd.
You can say that he’s practicing some valuable life skills even from the beginning of his day. Time management, taking care of animals, self-regulating, and healthy rest are big parts of his daily homeschool routine.
Life School At Home
Help prepare your kids for life, one skill at a time. Simple, easy skills every month!
Bible quoting comes first.
Before the academics start, Jaxson knows that quoting for that day is on the schedule. So, after chores and breakfast- it’s time to get our scriptures and quote for that day.
Our family is big into Bible Quizzing. We spend a lot of time and energy memorizing scriptures.
Bible Quizzing is a program where kids memorize God’s word and meet up once a month for competitive quizzes. The kids really enjoy it! It’s a lot of work memorizing. Here are just a few benefits to this program:
- Knowing God’s word
- In depth study habits and routines
- Time management skills
- Teamwork skills
- Reading, vocabulary, and speaking skills
- Life experiences outside of home
Hiding God’s word in their heart is invaluable. One added benefit to Bible Quizzing is the social aspect. Jaxson has best friends from all over the place that all build each other up and strive to memorize the Bible. What could be better than that?
Jaxson is proud that it’s his third year of participating in Bible Quizzing. He has memorized the books Mark, Proverbs, and Galatians so far. He is working on Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians right now.
If you were to ask him what he loved about it, he would tell you that he likes the trips and being able to quote scripture while the pastor is teaching.
So, now onto what his academic day looks like.
Here is what Jaxson’s typical homeschool routine looks like:
Jaxon’s academic day is organized to meet his interest and academic needs. I like to make sure he has some situations where he can choose how much time or the order of subjects.
This gives him some personal buy-in and much needed independence as well.
Science
Science is his favorite subject.
He’s really into anything that has to do with how things work. Understanding the world around him is a vital part of his development and personality needs.
I love watching him get giddy over learning what causes lightening or why animals behave a certain way. He ALWAYS takes his science experiments and investigations to the next level. I have learned that for him, more time is given to science because it’s needed. If the assignment was to write a report, he will also make a flip chart and draw/label diagrams. If it was to give a short speech, he will want to make a video to accompany. It’s a little extra… he’s always been this way.
He loves that we start the day with science. It get’s his brain going on academics and set’s the pace for a successful day.
Math
Although he claims to “not enjoy math,” he tries his best to keep a positive outlook on his situation. After all, he knows it’s going to have to get done either way.
His brother really pushes him to excel in math even though it isn’t his favorite. He’s not going to let his younger brother out smart him. So… he work’s hard to figure it out.
Plus, knowing that it’s still early on in the day helps Jaxson. He can get it over with and won’t have to deal with it again until tomorrow.
His grandad told it to him this way, “If you know you have to eat a frog today, eat it first thing so you won’t spend all day fretting about it.”
Music and Quiet Reading Time
These two items happen right in the middle of Jaxon’s daily homeschool routine.
Not at the same time, obviously. Whoever finished math first goes into their quiet reading spot (and have snack too). This basically means that Jaxson usually has music after math.
Sometimes I switch it up depending on the day. In fact, sometimes we play music together. Jaxson will switch between bass and drums. His brother will play some piano and guitar. We like to mix it up.
Most of the time, however, Jaxson plays music after math. His music practice/lessons include:
- Piano (chords, classical music, and note-reading)
- Bass guitar (Yousician,
- Drums (Ministry Central), and
- Saxophone
By the time he’s done with all that…. he’s soooo ready for a quiet spot and his book. It’s literally his favorite part of the day.
We never, ever, under any circ*mstances skip quiet reading time.
For Jaxson, it’s his mental detox and release time. He is able to decompress and re-charge for the rest of the day.
Quiet reading time started when he was just a toddler. I needed him to be still so I could cook lunch in peace. So, I stacked all kinds of books on the floor and he sat and flipped through the pictures. He went from there to reading some of the words. I remember one day cooking and listening to him read the stories to himself. It was precious.
Now, he’s into some great boy’s book series and of course, his vintage book series collections.
Although quiet reading time does take up valuable time during the “academic school day,” I do not feel like it is wasted. For Jaxson, learning to love reading was an important part of his educational career. I think it makes all the difference.
To Homeschool Or Not… Choose What’s Best For Your Family
This workbook was created for you to go through 10 main areas and brainstorm, pray, and figure out if this homeschooling thing would work for your family.
Learn More
History
It’s a pretty easy transition from Reading into History. This moment has become a pivotal moment in Jaxson’s homeschool routine. It’s the moment between morning and afternoon schedules.
This year he is studying early American History. He especially enjoys the story aspect of learning. He’s often interrupting whatever I have going on to tell me some odd-ball fact about someone I may have learned about in 4th grade.
It’s easy for him to go down “rabbit holes” when it comes to certain topics. He comes up with the best questions. I honestly wish we could spend all day on them…
He typically spends about half an hour on History each day.
English Language Arts
Honestly, ELA has always been a breeze for Jaxson. I’m going to have to find ways to challenge him in the future. His daily ELA lessons consists of reading, writing, spelling, and grammar.
I allow him to decide which order he wants to complete his assignments in each topic. Making that simple decision seems to make the lessons go faster for him.
He came to me the other day with a confession to make… he had read through all of his school readers for the year. I was very upset because we were supposed to take them slow and read them together. I’m not even sure when he had time to read them all… he just said that I hadn’t taken him to the library for new books and he had to read something.
So, we will read them again but you see what I’m dealing with here.
He really does take pride in making sure that everything is done so he can have his extras and free time. Now, If I can just get him to keep the floor under his desk tidy.
Read These While You’re At It
A Rock Solid 7-Year-Old Homeschool RoutineStress-Free After School Routines Your Kids Will LoveThe Kindergarten Morning Routines Little Ones Can Do On Their Own!The No-Nagging Morning Routine For School (With Printables!)
When there is time, there’s the “extras.”
I am that homeschool mom. You know the one I’m talking about? The one that will over-plan everything and expect it all to get done.
It took me a while to chill out.
Jaxson really helped me with this. He would hang in there for the roller coaster of events and obligations, but then get to point where he was just done. So… I stopped and tried to listen to his needs. He’s not one to “go, go, go” all day. It’s just not healthy for him.
So, I took all the things I wanted him to do and made them available for him. You know, where there’s extra time.
If everything is done in a timely manner and there’s extra time left in the school day, Jaxson can choose from typing class, coding/programming, Spanish, and creative writing (Story Jumper).
He loves that this is his decision to make. It’s according to his interest so he is bought in. His interest changes from day-to-day, which I am totally fine with. He needs to experience different things to find out what he loves and thrives in.
Sample Daily Routines (by age!)
Get my cheat sheetsand find your family’s groove.Chore, independent play, meal, nap, bedtime, and MORE routine ideas!
Bonus: My ten year old loves listening to Adventures in Odyssey while he eats his lunch. It’s a Christian based kids radio program that teaches life skills through exciting stores. His dad actually listened to AIO when he was young boy. His family traveled as evangelists and they played the cassette tapes in their van. Well, we don’t have cassette anymore but this website has all the old recordings (and new stories too).
