Organization and Time Management
Mary Sellers
August 14, 2004
Hello, my name is Mary Sellers. Thank you all for coming. Today I will be speaking about Organization and Time Management.
When my husband was in high school, he worked at a restaurant called Bill Miller’s Barbecue. He really disliked working Friday nights as the customer traffic was continual. His fellow workers, almost all high school and college students, would be in a constant frantic state—bussing tables, mopping floors, refilling the baked beans, slicing beef. All but one worker whose name was James. He always seemed to be calm and self-possessed.
One busy Friday night, my husband dashed into the storage room to quickly grab some more supplies. He found James calmly tying his shoe. Baffled, my husband looked at his tranquil colleague and asked, “How can you be so relaxed?” James smiled and answered, “Organization is the key to success.”
Now, far be it from me to question the veracity of one of my husband’s high school workmates, but just because one man says organization is a good idea, I don’t think we should just blithely accept it. The best place to go for truth and instruction in living is the Bible. What does the Bible have to say about organization?
Genesis Chapter 1 tells us how God created the heavens and the earth. We can see that even from the very beginning of creation, there was order. God had a deliberate plan and did not do things in a haphazard fashion.
1 Corinthians 14:40 says, "But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner." In context, this verse is referring to speaking in tongues and prophecy in the church, but here is another example of God wishing things to be done in an organized fashion.
Proverbs speaks of that amazing example of womanhood who has come to be known as the Proverbs thirty-one woman. Verse 27 of chapter 31 tells us, "She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness." To me, this tells me that she organizes her whole household and doesn’t waste her time. In other verses, we find her assigning work to her servant girls, shopping for the best food and bargains, selling her wares, and teaching others. I think we are dealing with a very organized lady!
Of course, there are more verses and examples of organization in the Bible, but I felt that these three were enough proof for us to move on.
There are two main areas where we all need to get organized: time and things. There is an over-riding principle which covers both areas. To be effectively organized, we must simplify and de-clutter both our time and our things. I will not be addressing the issue of organizing our things this afternoon. I strongly encourage you to read Don Aslett’s Clutter’s Last Stand or Not for Packrats Only if you are overwhelmed by an abundance of things.
Why is organizing our time so important? I think this question is best answered through scripture.
Ephesians 5:15-17 tells us "Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is."
The word "time" in verse 16 could also be translated at "opportunity." We have the opportunity to spend our time in serving others, in participating in co-ops and lessons, in staying home, in thousands and thousands of ways. We so easily can miss out on God's blessings and opportunities which are truly beneficial to our families and to others by being disorganized or over-committed with our time.
Now, before you think I have it all together, I just want to share with you a nice illustration that my husband uses when he was teaching Bible studies. He says, "When I am pointing a finger at you, there are 3 fingers pointing back at me." I am notorious for over-committing. As a matter of fact, I feel quite hypocritical standing before you today to discuss organization and time management. This year has been the most disorganized, overcommitted year of homeschooling I’ve ever had. Doesn’t it always seem to turn out that when you are asked to teach a Bible study or some other study involving a character-intensive issue that the very topic you’ve been asked to address is the self-same one with which you begin to struggle? However, I want to let you know that even if you have been the most disorganized, unscheduled, overcommitted person who was ever born, you can change. Next school year doesn’t have to be like this year. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you!
Just like all other homeschool moms, I needed to be organized in three areas of time: school work (teaching time), housework, and personal time. I am going to be sharing some ideas for organizing these areas of your life and suggesting some activities for helping you to do so. However, I don’t want anyone to feel as if they need to do everything I say. Please take the information in this talk and use whatever will benefit you and your family and disregard the rest!
First, I would like for you to think about your own life. How many mornings, afternoons, and evenings are you committed to activities? Be sure to include church, Bible studies, Co-ops, music lessons, and sports! Also, ask yourself, "How often am I in the car?"
Everything on your schedule may be good, but we so often schedule so much "good" that we don't have time for the "best" which is what God would have us to do. How many of us can truly say we are following Psalm 37:7 which instructs us to "Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him?"
This brings me to my first activity. (show Activity One overhead)
Activity One
Make a written list of all your outside commitments. Also, include things you would like to do. Now is the time to put your dreams and goals on paper instead of only listing the everyday. Next, break this list into categories (such as Just for Me, Homeschool Related, Church Activities, etc…). Once you have your lists compiled, ask yourself, "If I could only do one thing on this list, which one would it be?" Once that item is off the list as #1, then ask yourself the question again. Continue this process until you run out of items or can no longer decide on a ranking of items.
(show Church Activities overhead) I made this list several years ago. The items at the top were things I was currently doing. The items at the bottom were dreams I had. I am pleased to say that in a month, the teens from our church will be performing Romeo and Juliet, and I am currently the first to third grade Sunday school teacher. However, I am no longer managing the newsletter, working in Awana, or serving on the Ladies Fellowship Committee.
Besides allowing you to see the many, many commitments you have, it will also allow you to set some priorities, especially if you feel you are overcommitted. Take the top one or two items on each list, whether they are current activities or dreams and goals you have, and set these items as top priorities.
You might have to cut the good to accommodate the best. Sometimes this process can be painful. You might need to say “no” to things you have been doing for years but no longer have joy in them or feel that the Lord is leading you to participate in them. We sometimes get a distorted view of ourselves and think, “If I don’t do this job, no one else will” or “No one else could do this as well as I do.” One thing I am learning is that no one is really indispensable outside her own home. The only place your ministry is 100% needed and vital is in your own home caring for your children and husband. And, the great thing is, that is exactly what God has called us to do! For those of us who like to appear as “Superwomen,” eliminating many outside commitments and activities from our lives can be humbling. Take your concerns and decisions to the Lord, and He will give you wisdom if you ask.
In this process, you might decide that you want to cut an activity, but you find out that your husband or your children feel that different activities should be eliminated. I encourage you to discuss your list with your husband first and with your children. This problem was one I encountered just recently.
(show overhead of Homeschool Activites) Here a list I compiled recently. As I mentioned earlier, this homeschool year has been more than a little crazy. My husband and I decided that next year, something’s got to go! We decided it would be Art and Music, a co-op at our church (and I bet you can’t guess what the children learn there!). We wanted to replace it with Solid Foundations, a science and writing co-op. When my children heard of the decision, they were more than a little upset. My husband called a family meeting where the plan could be discussed. The children stated their views and gave compelling reasons why they would prefer not to eliminate Art and Music and would rather do science and writing at home. My husband weighed their opinions, discussed it with me, and decided that we would stick with Art and Music. Do I wish we could participate in the science co-op as well? You bet! However, I must keep in mind that I (and the children) can’t do everything that is offered. We have to make wise use of the 24 hours each day that God has given us, and you and your family get to decide how you will do this!
Once you have some priorities set for outside commitments, the next area to examine is the time spent in your own home. Titus 2:4-5 tell us that older women should "encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored."
Now, thinking of your life at home, what are your big time wasters? Do you spend a lot of time on the phone or internet? Maybe you like to read during the day or watch craft shows? Perhaps you spend you days doing housework that would be best left undone or should be done by the children? If you really can't think of anything which wastes your time, just ask your husband with a humble and teachable attitude. Asking our husbands is a great thing to do in other situations, by the way. We are so quick to go to girlfriends and whine and complain, but we seldom ask our husbands for their wise input. Chances are good that he will point out some of your weaknesses, which is painful, so you need to have a truly humble spirit!
A second excellent way to see how you are spending your day is our second activity.
Activity Two
Keep a log of how you spend you day. Break it down into 15 minute to 30 minute intervals.
This activity may sound difficult, but it is pretty straightforward. Just take a notebook with a pen beside it and leave it on the kitchen counter. Whenever you first make it into the kitchen, write down what time you got up and what you have already done such as getting dressed, feeding the baby, and starting a load of laundry. As the day goes by, whenever you are in the kitchen, just jot down the time and what you’ve been doing. Not only will this log of your day help you to see where your day goes, it really makes a great keepsake for you later. I've done this before for fun, and I love to look back and see how I spent my days when my kids were younger. I am amazed at the number of times I swept Cheerios off the kitchen floor each day.
Both activities 1 and 2 should help you with organizing and prioritizing your personal time. Once you feel you have your own life in order, you can move on to helping the children and you organize your day with a schedule.
The best book I have found on scheduling is Managers of Their Homes by Steven and Terri Maxwell. Some reasons why I like this book are that the methods were field tested by larger families with many young children, and the book includes their comments and schedules. It also is very easy to follow, and if you buy the book, they will mail you a schedule-making kit tailor-made to your own family. I am sure many fine vendors at the convention offer this book for sale. However, if you would like to purchase it directly from the Maxwells, you can go to their website, www.titus2.com, which also contains lots of wonderful articles and information on homeschooling, parenting, and scheduling. I'm not going to tell you all of the Maxwell’s steps and ideas, because I think it wouldn't be fair, plus, they present the information so much more thoroughly. If you are serious about scheduling, I highly recommend that you get their book for the support and the step-by-step instructions!
However, if you are not interested in purchasing the book or if you just can't afford any more books this year, I will give you "Mary's version" of the schedule making process.
The first thing to do is activity #3!
Activity Three
Make a list of what you expect that you should be able to get done in a day, including eating meals and sleeping. Beside each item, write a realistic time limit to get each item done. Add up the times. If the total time is more than 24 hours, you know you need to change your expectations! Now, do the same activity for each of your children, keeping in mind how long they usually take to get things done.
There are a few things to keep in mind when you are estimating times. Realistic time estimation is one of my weak spots. Just ask my husband! If estimating times is an area of weakness for you, ask your husband or a good friend for help. Also, when you keep your log of how you spent your day, you can also see how long it really takes you and your children to get things done. If you have piano lessons in your schedule, be sure to add the putting-on-coat-and-gathering-piano-book time to your schedule, as well as the time it takes to drive there and back. Figuring in all the “extra” time that an activity will take can help us to see that maybe it is a bigger commitment than you thought it was. Also, make sure that you include the time it actually takes your children to get something done. Just because you think math should be done in 30 minutes, if your child consistently gets math done in 45 minutes, make sure you factor this time in as well.
The most surprising result of my completing this activity was I discovered that I was expecting way too much out of my kids. I could see that I wanted them to get 8 hours of work done before lunch time! Once I realized my unrealistic expectations and eliminated some schooling activities from the list, we made a Daily Checklist for each of my kids. This took pressure off me and also placed responsibility on them. Now, I did not have to think every day about exactly what we should do. The kids knew and were expected to do it!
(show Nathan’s overhead) Here is my son’s fifth grade checklist. Every week, I print out the checklists and tape them to a wall in the kitchen. As the children finish an activity, they cross it off of the list. I can tell at a glance what has and has not been done in the day. If during the course of the school year, I want to change a chore or add or delete an activity, I can just go to my computer and make the changes. I have also included two boxes at the top of the checklist, one for the date and one for the number of days of school. At the end of the week, these checklists can just be pulled off the wall, three-hole punched, and put in the portfolio for your log of days.
Now, what if you have a pre-reader? Well, you can still use a checklist. (show Michael schedule overhead) Here is the checklist I used for my son when he was in kindergarten. I scanned in some pictures and found clip art to represent various tasks. The writing on the checklist was more for my benefit so I could remember what he had to do each day.
(show Libby schedule overhead) This checklist is just another variation of how you can style your checklists. If you have a son or daughter who enjoys working on the computer, designing the daily checklists can be a fun project.
Now, whenever I have spoken about this topic before, the number one question I was asked is “How do you make those checklists?” There is a set of instructions in your handout which explains how to make a checklist in Microsoft Word. I don’t know how to make a checklist in any other program, but Word is fairly common, so most of you should have it on your computers. If you are really stuck, you could send me an email, although I am certainly no computer genius, and I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to help you.
While I found that the checklists were great, I was troubled that I was not interacting with the children the way I thought I should. When I wanted to have Bible time or read to them, it always seemed as if they were in the middle of something else. I hated to interrupt them, and they disliked the interruption. So, we also added a schedule.
(Show overhead of schedule) This schedule is made on the computer the same way the daily checklist was made, except I have names and times added. Plus, I printed it in color. When you set your schedule, make sure you use a pencil! I found many times that I thought I had the perfect schedule only to find that I had forgotten math for one of the children or had two scheduled for piano practice at the same time!
I have 2 schedules, actually, a full-day and a half-day. (show half day overhead) You know as well as I do that not every day is always free to complete a full day of school. So, why not plan for that from the start? It seems like so many days are “ruined” by the urgent things of life—from ear infections to field trips. If you have a plan for the days you know you will only be available half the day, then you can be sure you will get in a full-enough day of school. Make sure you schedule the more “vital” parts of school for your half-day schedule.
The idea of a half-day schedule brings up another important part of scheduling, grouping your distractions!
What I mean by this phrase is you know there are certain things that will pull you away from home: music lessons, library visits, doctor appointments, homeschool co-ops, and so on. The best way to avoid having a chaotic week is to make these distractions fall on the same day. A few years ago, we had piano lessons Thursday afternoon. We did no formal school, like seatwork, at all on Thursday. Instead, we went to the library in the morning, invited other homeschool friends to come over in the afternoon for a science co-op, and had piano lessons. I would also schedule routine dentist and doctor appointments for this day as well.
Think about this principle in your life. How could grouping your distractions help you?
Now, how can you set up your own schedule?
When you start to plan out your schedule, it is best to begin at the beginning. I have always been a strong advocate that one of the blessings of being a homeschool family is the flexibility in when to begin the school day. When the children were younger, we would let them sleep until they woke on their own (usually around 8:00), we would have breakfast, chores, and such until 9:30 or 10:00 when the school day would start in earnest. However, now that the children are getting into the older grades, and I have more children to educate, I have been under conviction that if you want to “get it all done,” you have to get out of bed!
I am not going to tell you what the “right” time to get up and get going is, as I know that any time before 7:45 is a struggle for me. So, discuss this issue with your husband and review the amount of time you listed it would take for you to get school finished. Then, you will know how many hours you will need.
One caveat, however, if you have always been a sleep-in family, a schedule will not magically transform you into a “rise with the roosters” family. You can create a schedule which says that everyone will rise at 6:00 am and have devotions, but if rising early isn’t a commitment for you and your family, you are setting yourself up for failure. It is better to set a livable schedule and stick to it than to create a dream schedule and never do it!
Also, think about what you never seem to get done, but really want to do. I found that I was not getting our Bible time, a character building study, done at all. Nor was I taking the time to read aloud to the older children, or even to the little guys. I scheduled these subjects at my peak interaction time with the kids. I have learned from several years of being a mom that by about 2:00, I am ready for a break and don't really want to do anything major with the homeschooling. In the morning, I am fresh, and I am interested in doing things with the children.
Consider scheduling buffer time, especially in the morning. Some days you might find you oversleep or that everyone is running slowly because they have colds or it just might be “one of those days.” One year, we scheduled chores from 8:00 to 9:00, which allowed us some extra time if we were running behind. I scheduled an hour for Bible Time and snack. These things didn’t have to last that long, so by 10:00, we could catch up on all the time that we lost.
Another important thing to think about when you make a schedule is what your husband thinks is important for you to get done during the day. You should make his suggestions priority #1 for your school, even if you don't necessarily agree with what he thinks. These children and this homeschool are ultimately his responsibility, so be respectful and honor your husband and his wishes. Also, if he asks that you do a specific chore or errand for him in the day, try to make it your top priority. We get so busy homeschooling and serving our children that many times we forget to love and serve our dear husbands.
Several years ago during a homeschool meeting, another homeschool mom and I were admiring a new baby. The other mother commented that it must be difficult it must be to homeschool with babies and toddlers. I agreed with her that I just didn’t know how moms with little ones did it. I then went home and realized that I had a second grader, first grader, preschooler, toddler, and a baby! I guess I must just have been sleep-deprived that evening!
When you are setting up your educational dream schedule, it is often easy to forget the needs of the little guys—the babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. We have to keep in mind that spending time with these small ones is just as important as getting the math and spelling done for the older children. How can you do it all? Well, you can’t! Relax! But you can do the best you can. Sit back and think about your young ones. When are they at their neediest? Is it first thing in the morning? Right before or after lunch? Make sure that you leave room for them in your schedule at the time when they will most need you. Sometimes all it takes is a 20 minute cuddle on the couch, a stack of Tom and Pippo books, or a game of Memory to remind your little guys that you love them and that they are important as well.
I am sure that many of you have heard of the suggestion of having an older child play with a younger child while you are working with another older child. Sometimes this idea works. For me, I found that the “playmate sibling” wandered off and left the younger one alone. Or, both of them came to me and played right at my feet or argued or did any number of things which interrupted the quality homeschool time I was supposed to be getting with the third child. I found that if I made spending time with the little ones a priority, they were much more content to play by themselves or to sit peacefully at the table and color or play with play dough while I school the other children.
What do you do when you have children in 5th, 3rd, and 1st, all with different math books, language books, science books, history books, and health books? How can you possibly find enough time in the day to sit down with each child and teach him his own, individual lesson? If this situation is where you find yourself, consider trying to change your approach so that two or more children can benefit from the same teaching time. For example, in language, you could teach nouns to the 3rd and 5th graders at the same time, and then have them complete their workbook pages in the age-appropriate workbooks. This approach might require that you complete the workbooks in a different order so that topics are covered at the same time. Another approach to cutting your teaching time workload is to put children of similar grades in the same books. My 7th grader and 6th grader do all the same work. My 2nd grader and 3rd grader do the same science and math, although their spelling and reading are done individually. A third approach is to teach some subjects to all grade levels at the same time. We study history using this method. Right now, we are covering the Romans. I don’t use a textbook for history, but instead read aloud from historical fiction and history narratives both purchased and from the library. Our read aloud time often will begin with a children’s picture book or two which relates to our topic. I then move to the factual information, and close our reading time with a chapter from a book of historical fiction. During this time, the children must listen attentively, but may draw or color, work with clay, or build with Legos or blocks. When it comes time for assessment, my 7th grader might write a 1,000 word essay on places in Rome while my 2nd grader might write a paragraph. Sometimes they will make up quizzes for each other.
One important thing to keep in mind is that your schedule is a tool, just like any other tool. If you don’t use your can opener for a few days, do you worry? Do you think you must be a failure of a parent and a homeschooler because that can opener has lain untouched in the drawer? Of course not! But, when you need the can opener, you use it, and it benefits you greatly. Think of your schedule in the same way. A schedule is a tool for you to use to help your home run in a more efficient and orderly way. It is easy for some people to become legalistic about schedules, both moms and their children. Don’t allow yourself or others to become legalistic about a schedule.
One thing that always bothered me about our lovely schedules was that there never seemed to be a good way to get everything in that I wanted to. What about science experiments, all those good educational games like Rummy Roots and Mad Dash, and fun things like cooking? I thought of two solutions which I’ve tried.
One is what we cleverly call “Second Page” as it is the second page of the daily checklist. (show overhead) Here is where I list all those not-every-day things which would be nice to get done. Another solution which was a lot of fun was called “Pick Three.” I typed up 150 pieces of paper with different activities on them. They ranged from geography questions to science videos, to make a bag of microwave popcorn. I had many of some cards (10 cards for Science Questions) and fewer of others (2 of write and illustrate a story). The child who was the Household Helper (and I’ll explain that in a minute) got to choose three of these cards after lunch. Then, from 3:30 to whenever, the children got to do these activities. Great excitement accompanied the Pick 3. Plus, since I chose activities that didn’t require my direct participation, I was free to spend time with the little one or work on other things.
Speaking of those other things…what about chores? There is no getting away from it. If you homeschool, you are usually at home. If you are usually at home, your house will get really messy, really fast. I love the quote from Nancy Wilson in her book, The Fruit of her Hands, “Someone asked me how I kept my house so clean all the time. I thought about it and said, ‘I work really hard at it all the time.’” I didn’t use that quote to discourage you, but simply to let you know that there are no “magic formulas” for a spotless house. It just takes constant effort. And who better to engage in that constant effort than those little mess-makers themselves? Some of the ideas I will be sharing may work for your family, and some might not. There is an ebb and flow to our lives depending on the ages of our children and our life situations. Something that worked wonderfully when the children were in elementary school might actually be a detriment to your high school homeschooler’s life.
As you may have noticed when I posted our schedule and daily checklists, we type in specific chores on our daily schedule. I have gone back and forth between two ideas for chore scheduling. We have given a child the same chore every day for several months to the whole school year. I think this allows the child to really take mastery of the chore and not fuss about not knowing what to do. Plus, if the laundry isn’t carried to the hamper or the bathroom is dirty, you’ll know exactly who to blame! The other idea is to rotate the chores so that the child doesn’t get burnt out doing the same thing. I found that this second idea has been better for my older children while the first idea worked best for the younger ones in the family.
When assigning chores, take into account your child’s aptitudes. For example, my oldest son is a good list-follower. He is my bathroom cleaning man. My daughter is thorough when she wants, but is fairly pokey, “Trying to hurry her is like trying to push a rope,” as one friend says. I make sure that I don’t give her too much and give her chores where she can shine. As these chores are part of their checklists, the children are responsible to make sure that they are done. A chore checked off and not completed or poorly done results in redoing the chore and doing a few more chores besides. You think I would only have had to assign this punishment once or twice, but I have one child who has that punishment at least twice a week if not more!
For multi-step chores, I have written out every step I expect to have completed. The children know what is expected of them, and I know exactly what I should check when I inspect their work. (show overhead) This checklist, our downstairs bathroom checklist, is slid into a page protector and is kept in the bathroom. Another friend of mine writes her explanation on an index card, punches a hole in it, strings a rope through the card, and hangs the chore card around her child’s neck like a big necklace. It’s not likely you will forget to do your chore when you have a fluorescent orange index card tied with a shoelace hanging around your neck!
We also have what has become a wonderful thing at our house, the Household Helper. (show overhead) The Household Helper is pretty much mom’s slave for the day. We have a chart of 10 things required of the Household Helper, but balanced it with 10 blessings. This child gets to pray at dinner, stay up late, and kick people out of his favorite chair. This child also has to set and clear the table, sweep floors, dump trash, put dishes away, and more! The kids really have focused more on the blessings than the work, surprisingly, and have looked forward to being Household Helper. Our lists of responsibilities and blessings have changed over the years, and I am sure your family would have different needs and rewards than mine.
Does anyone have any questions about making a schedule and organizing your time?