I tried something new when I scheduled our homeschool weeks this year.  Last year I noticed that by Friday, things around the house were starting to deteriorate, just in time for the weekend. We were doing chores daily but the deep cleaning and straightening were not up to par. So I would either skimp on the academics to make time for catching up around the house, or unenthusiastically make a list to do on Saturday of routine chores vs projects and family activities, our preferred way to spend our only truly free day.  I am a person that hates to start a home project when the daily chores are not done.  I also don't like to go out when things are not caught up around the house.

So this year I scheduled Friday to be a *light* academic day. We do our Bible lesson, and read aloud together.  We do a bit of math and some independent reading and such and we are done! That gives us the rest of the day to clean and organize and prepare for the weekend, and sometimes go to the library or park. Or sit at the computer and blog

My goal is to complete *school* in the morning and then quickly whip the house into shape for the weekend.  That leaves the afternoon to do other things. 

Why did it take 6 years of homeschooling for me to figure this out?

Note: This only works when I actually do it.  Right now I am getting nothing done.