I took one look at the homeschool workbox system started by Sue Patrick and ran the other way. No way, no how could that work for me. Not with the size of family I have, and not with the size of school room (ahem, dining room) I have! It would take a million zillion shoe boxes, and I would be a raving lunatic living in a home full of plastic before it was all said and done.
What I failed to see was the adaptability of the system…even for a large family or a family living in a small home. It took seeing others do it to realize that it really could work…it would just required a lot of tweaking!
I gave you a taste of the system in my post on how we homeschool preschool and kindergarten and I gave you a better explanation in the Homeschool Classroom post, but today I’d like to give you a full-blown peek into the charts and folders that make up our modified homeschool workbox system.
Homeschool Workboxes Alternative Step-by-Step Tutorial
1. Each school-age child has a crate with a nametag stuck to it. I let each of my children choose pictures to go along with their nametag. I then laminated the tags using contact paper and put velcro dots on the crate and on the nametag to get them to stick to each other.
2. Each crate contains that child’s school things. This includes a pencil box (with their name taped to it that holds pencils, crayons, markers, scissors, glue stick, etc), notebooks, text books that are specific to them (no corporate work- goes in the crate…that is all kept on a bookshelf), and their assignment folder.
Related post: Organizing the Large Family Homeschool
3. Each folder is labeled on the outside with laminated velcro tabs that represent their responsibilities for the day. Here’s where I’ll explain beyond what I have in other posts…
As you can see, my son’s folder has places for other tabs that used to be there or will be there in the future. He no longer has Grammar, so that tab is gone and will eventually be replaced by Writing. He has an AM Chores and a Chores tab (we found a PM Chores tab to be unnecessary, but all the children have a PM Chores list that you’ll see in a bit).
Related post: Simple Morning Chores for Children
4. Inside each folder are the needed assignment sheets. First off, notice how UN-fancy my assignment sheets are!?! I used to have nice(r) assignment sheets that I used for my record-keeping as well, but my body hasn’t fully caught up with my brain, so for now a blank sheet with mama’s handwritten instructions works just dandy!
Related post: DIY Markable Assignment Cards
My non-readers do not have assignment sheets. My readers have assignment sheets for their independent subjects that change consistently. For instance, on the left is Blake’s Math. I really should just get rid of this sheet because he is doing Teaching Textbooks on his own and does not need me to assign it to him (in fact, the sheet just says, “Keep doing TT”). However, his Reading and his Science change daily and are guided by me. I keep track of the corporate assignments (besides Reading) in my School Binder.
Related posts: Teaching Textbooks Review & Teaching Textbooks 3.0 Review
5. When an assignment/tab is completed, the child moves it to their What I Did Today Chart. (As you can see they each have their Morning Chores and Evening Chores listed on either side of their charts. The charts are just cardstock with velcro dots stuck on them.
Related post: Simple Evening Routine for Children
6. When all their tabs for the day are gone, they move their folder to the COMPLETED box with any worksheets or papers slipped inside the folder. From there, I can check their work, replace the tabs, and put the folder back in their crate.
Thus concludes my modified workbox system that works quite well for a larger than average family or a homeschool family living in a small space. I have found this system to be easy to manage on auto-pilot. It really has been a lifesaver to our homeschool!
If you are looking for a more traditional approach to workboxes, check out the tutorial at Confessions of a Homeschooler.
gin says
love it! i, too, am overwhelmed by the workboxes and pretty tight on space (although i only have 2 kiddos currently schooling). we have the exact same crates!! i like how you have your crates arranged with supplies and such 🙂 thanks for sharing!!
.-= gin´s last blog ..warning: whining about to commence =-.
Sandpiper says
I like how you’ve modified the system! I might have to give something like this a try for next year.
.-= Sandpiper´s last blog .. =-.
Angela @ Homegrown Mom says
So creative! I love how you’ve adapted this.
Thanks for linking up to Wednesday Workbox Day!
.-= Angela @ Homegrown Mom´s last blog ..The Sandwich of My Dreams =-.
Alana of Intentional Womanhood says
Wonderful! I love the Workbox System idea and the “normal” way would work just fine for now, as we only have one child (for now). We’ve recently surrendered our family planning to the Lord and are actually getting excited about raising a large family (if that’s what God chooses to give us). I was wondering how the Workbox idea would translate to larger families. My favorite part is the separate “completed” bin to make checking work easier.
Love your blog!
monique says
The best thing about the workbox system we use is when everything that is needed for a subject is in the box. this is a huge time/stress saver! I use boxes from Wal-Mart that close. For older children I use “magazine holders”.
hth
Monique
Dyan says
Amy, Do you still use this system? I am considering it, but our kids have so little independent work. Really, the only things they do independently are some of their math, handwriting, and grammar (for my 4th grader). The rest we do together. Next year, we are using My Father’s World for all, which has very little individual work. I need to get organized though, because there is a lot of wasted time while waiting fir Mom to help or teach. We will have 4 school aged, and 1 preschooler, and a toddler next year. I am such a disirganized person! I am thankful for your blog.
Amy says
I am not using the Workbox system anymore…more explanation coming tomorrow. 🙂
Elizabeth Ashe says
This system looks interesting and I think it might help me with all my boys.
I’m going to look into it some more, and tweak it a bit.
Thanks for sharing.
Love your site!
monique says
This has been very helpful to us! And 6 of our 10 are boys.
Theresa says
THANK YOU! I kept seeing workboxes and thinking they were too much work for me but liked the idea! This will work for me – I only have 2 kids but I don’t have hours for prep!
Tara says
I gearing up for a school year with 3rd grade, 1st grade, preschool, a 2.5 yo and expecting half way through the year. This looks like I might be able to tweak it for our family. I would be curious to know of any changes you have made in the last couple of years since you have posted this or if it is still working for your family.
Amy says
Hi Tara! We do not use this system anymore because we have changed our approach to homeschooling a bit with less items that work in the individual folders. I have a post coming out soon on what we are using, but I’ll give you a quick rundown. 😉 I now have separated the boxes by subject rather than child. I have folders in each box for loose papers, the children’s notebooks, and any books we are using or will soon be using in the boxes. We also use Scholaric.com to track our lessons. However, at the time of this post, this method worked very well! 🙂
Tara says
Thanks! School needs to look a little different for us this year I know, but I am just not sure what it needs to look like! 🙂
Jenny says
Hi! I was introduced to your blog just last week and I am really enjoying it and getting a lot of ideas. Where do you get your picture icons?
Nicole says
I love this. I can see this possibly working next year when i have a first grader a kindergardner and 2 little girls instead of just kindergarden. Do you have any tips on modifying this for little ones (not my little girls i mean k ans 1st
Amy says
I’d look through the link at the bottom that goes to the Heart of Wisdom website. She has lots you can look through to see what might be the best fit. 🙂