Why do you need structure? What is structure? How do you create structure?

Structure is like a skeleton that you flesh out, then dress, and then you can do things with it. Without a skeleton, you would have a pile of flesh and clothing and it would not be useful.

The school day must have some form of structure. That can be very rigid or flexible, it depends on you and your personal style and needs, and those of your students. Structure includes the room setup and schedule of the day. Your rules and expectations are part of the structure. The curriculum is also part of it. These are the layers you put together to create a fully fleshed out school environment and day.

SCHEDULE
There are many examples of classroom schedules online. Your schedule should include start and end times, lunch and snacks, recesses, and then the times that you will have centers, circle time, or direct instruction. You will want to jot down the ideas for these blocks and what times they happen, being prepared to rearrange these if they aren’t working. It’s good to alternate quieter activities with more active things, so your students are not bored or wound up too much. With young children, your most rigorous topics like literacy and math, should occur earlier in the day, preferably before lunch. After lunch, schedule recess, then science, social studies, art, music, and so on. Young kids become tired by lunch and they are not as willing to do the tougher topics after that. You do not have to do both science and social studies every day. It is okay to alternate days or even do one each day for one week and the other for the next. It depends on how you like to do things. A weekly intensive can be beneficial for solidifying concepts and doing projects, but alternate days is good if the content is boring or difficult. Post the schedule and review it each morning. Putting a clothespin or clip on it allows the students to move along the schedule through the day, keeping track of what time it is and when they do which activity. It is one way for them to learn the concepts of time.

ROOM LAYOUT for Early Childhood Learning, Pre-K Through Third Grade…
BUSINESS AREA: Once you have a schedule, you can use it to lay out the room. Have a corner where there’s a board of some sort for posting your Schedule, Expectations, Weather, Calendar, Jobs, or whatever else you need to structure your days. In that area, you will have an area rug for seating and reviewing the elements on the wall here. This is generally called “Morning Meeting” or “Circle Time” and is on the schedule to start the day. Teachers Pay Teachers has excellent sets of this type of resource, or they can be made using Word or purchased online.
TABLES: You will need at least one table for activities. Students can write at the table or with a clipboard on the floor.
BOOKSHELVES: Used to store materials, books, and can be used to divide the room into different use areas.
LIBRARY: A collection of books and perhaps comfortable seating. Seating can be as simple as beanbag chairs, area rugs, or a child-sized chair or sofa. Books should be changed regularly and reflect the interest of the children plus what is being covered in the lessons.
CONSTRUCTION AREA: An area for blocks, LEGO, and so on. This should be on the floor, although LEGO and other construction materials and tools can be used on a table.
BULLETIN BOARD: For displaying art and writing.
WHITE BOARD: For displaying art, writing, posters, and for both students and teacher to write during the day.
DRAMATIC PLAY AREA: This can be a corner with a few things for fun learning.

EXPECTATIONS: You need some basic rules and they should be posted. There are examples of this online, and there are products available that you can use. This is very personal and can take many forms. Generally, keep your rules to about 3-5, so as to not be overwhelming. I used only 3, because I found that everything could fit within one of those rules. 1) Be Kind to Yourself; 2) Be Kind to Others; 3) Be Kind to Property (or Your World). Print up your rules, calling them, “Expectations,” and review them daily during your Morning Meeting and whenever there is an infraction.
SOCIAL CONTRACTS: In addition to the basic rules, you can do a social contract and have everyone sign it and post it for daily review and reference. This should be in the language of the children and use their ideas. Do this over a few days and explore how everyone wants to be treated. This should also contain the consequences for violations, what that should look like and how it should be done.
DISCIPLINE: This is part of your structure. How will you ensure your children are engaged, respectful of you and others, staying on task, taking care of their classroom and materials, and in general, behaving as they should? You will have your Expectations and maybe a Social Contract, but discipline involves using these tools consistently. There are many good parenting books and there is advice online, and if you are in a support group, they will have ideas that work for them. It’s no shame to ask for help or seek new ways of doing things. In fact, it is quite courageous to admit when you need help and then to seek it.
“How do I get my kid to listen to me?” I heard this from every parent who failed at homeschooling or struggled with it.
How do teachers get kids, all kinds of kids, to listen to them and comply? It’s a science and an art, and we figure it out. A big part is to have those expectations and review daily, even many times a day, and to have consequences for not complying. The consequences cannot be fun and they must be consistent. Skip it or make light of it, and your child will lose respect and then not want to listen to you. Good discipline is the bedrock foundation for homeschooling. Without it, school’s out and will not be effective.

CURRICULUM: This is also part of the structure. Whether you use a commercially produced product or create your own, you need a program of instruction that teaches what your child will need to learn. Research the products, the standards, and get samples if possible. Some people create their own curricula quite successfully. Some combine two or more brands to get what they want. Others strictly use one brand with fidelity. There is no wrong or right answer, it will depend upon you, your children, and what you are most comfortable doing. The fact that you are tailoring your child’s education to their needs and strengths, will help to ensure that whatever you choose, it will be best for your child.