What is Looping?
When I first heard a fellow homeschool mom mentioned the term looping, I was incredibly intrigued. What in the world is this looping thing, and how can I fit it into my homeschool world? After reading some articles and doing a little research, I quickly decided that looping was something I just had to try.
The concept is simple.
You set aside a small (or large if you wish) portion of your homeschool day for extra hands on activity or learning time.
As a homeschool mom, I totally understand how incredibly easy it is to feel overwhelmed from setting up a multitude of activities throughout the day, all while homeschooling multiple kids.
You might feel like adding another thing to your homeschool day just isn’t in the cards and I totally get that! Stay with me though! Looping is incredible, you guys!
If You’re Anything Like Me…
You Want Your Kids to Learn All The Things!
However, it can be extremely difficult and somewhat impossible to fit everything we want into a normal homeschool day.
Enter – looping.
Your looping time can literally be anything you want it to be! Looping is meant to be a relaxed time where your kids can pick from multiple, hands on or educational options and just run with it.
This can also double as a wonderful time for mom to unwind or complete a simple task that’s been put off throughout the day.
Not sure your child is old enough for looping just yet? Check out how I incorporate a daily Quiet Time (for younger learners) into our homeschool routine during our afternoon looping.
Our Looping Experience
When I first decided to try looping, I really had to sit down and think about how I could fit this into our schedule. The idea sounded great, but as a working homeschool mom my time was already very limited.
Then it hit me. Every afternoon, my 5 year old daughter still takes a 45 minute quiet time. This would be the perfect time to experiment with a little looping for my 2 older boys. So I just went with it.
I set up some tables, put out a few activities and let them go. They totally loved it!
With that said, my 5 year old daughter immediately felt as though she was missing out on something amazing.
So After Some Much Needed Tweaking…
I Figured Out a Plan That Totally Works for Us.
Every few weeks I sit down with the kids to brainstorm ideas for our upcoming looping sessions and we write out a list.
Then when looping time comes, they all get to participate. My daughter still takes her (now 30 minute) quiet time, followed by a 15-20 minute looping time as a reward.
My older 2 partake in the current kids activities for the full 45 minutes or just use their looping time as a study hall if school work isn’t complete for the day.
It’s so much fun, you guys!
Plus, I have 45 solid minutes every day we loop to get something accomplished on my own. My kids are learning more random facts in the subjects they prefer and they are having a complete blast doing it!
*TIP: If you’re serious about trying this looping concept, your first step is to plan! While random and spontaneous can be fun at times, you will find that looping goes much better when you know what’s coming up!
Making Your Own Plan & Following Through
I encourage you to take some time today to sit down and figure out what looping will look like for your homeschool.
This can be an additional learning time where your children loop through a different subject each day, from foreign languages to extra science experiments. Or it can be something as simple as building Legos and coloring!
The choice really is up to you!
While planning your looping schedule, think about what your children enjoy doing most and the things that will keep them engaged while still learning, but also think about what you need looping to be for you as a mom!
As homeschool moms, we need a little personal time.
Maybe you need a time to refresh and sip on a second (or third) cup of coffee, or perhaps you just need to get dinner started and the laundry in the wash. Whatever the need, assess it and figure out how looping can help get you there!
Looking for more ideas on how to find time for yourself on a daily basis? Check out Simple Self Care for Homeschool Moms and 10 Ways to De-stress After a Long Day for simple ideas!
Once Your Plan is in Place…
Try it Out!
Don’t like how it worked out the first time? That’s OK!
Don’t be afraid to mix it up and try something totally different or new.
Once you’ve found something that works, keep it!
Then, simply follow through and stay consistent.
My kids definitely function better and learn more when we have our daily looping time. With that said, flexibility can be okay too.
While being consistent with our looping schedule is wonderful, being able to let the kids be free and play outside on a nice afternoon instead of sticking to our inside looping schedule can be a welcomed change from time to time! Our looping time has definitely turned into a backyard fort session a handful of times.
Simple Kids Activities For Homeschool Looping Time
- Board games that can be played with siblings or independently.
The OSMO Creative Kit is a wonderful addition to homeschool looping. Kids get to use electronics without being glued to a screen, WIN-WIN!
- Crafting with things like play-dough, clay, beads, or watercolors.
- Marble mazes or other physics type activities kids can build on their own.
- Science studies with library books. Pick an animal, draw it, write 3 facts about it, etc…
- Coloring books or specific drawing activities such as drawing with eyes closed, or pictionary.
- Legos, blocks, or magnetic building toys. Jazz it up by creating challenges for them to build!
- Foreign languages that kids can work on independently, such as workbooks or apps.
- Osmo learning system or other learning apps and devices.
- Workbooks or flash cards that can be done independently to brush up on skills.
- Simple puzzles that can be completed within the time allotted (or leave it up for several looping sessions)
- Simple STEM projects or science experiments
*TIP: Looping can be anything you make it! These are just some of the fun ideas we practice in or own looping time at home! You can also use your looping time as a family time by teaching or working on a formal lesson from a different subject each day.
Looking for other looping ideas & tips? Check out Looping Activities for Your Homeschool Schedule and Top Kindergarten Supplies for Homeschool Looping
Looking to incorporate board games into your looping schedule? Check out Top Kid Board Games for some fun ideas!
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More Homeschool Helps?
Looking for even more? Check out some of these related articles!
- The Morning Basket
- Reading Activities for your Homeschool
- Homeschooling Preschool
- The Kindergarten Spelling Box
- 10 Minute Homeschool Workouts
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