Ren's Ramblings & Writings

Contemplations on things tangible and intangible

Thursday, June 26, 2014

revising summer chore duties, creating a teen summer schedule, and teen project planning

Trying to get my kids off their duffs for the summer is proving challenging... even getting household stuff done when there is no daily routine is a pain... so, the plan is to revise the house chores plan, create a general daily schedule for the summer (kind of like an Army training schedule), and choosing projects for the summer from a list. Here are the chore lists first:
























 





 

 The following is a list of project ideas for the summer-the boys must choose at least 5, and they must include exercise and at least 1-2 ongoing projects or projects that need planning and research. This list is not exhaustive-it's just a list of items I found online from other kids to give my boys inspiration to come up with a summer plan-to do things besides sitting on their duffs playing video games~
 
o   MANDATORY: Personal Fitness plan for at least 3 days per week
o   write a novel or short story
o   Write in a journal. Write down words that you like, poems, song lyrics, what happened during an event, anything you want!  Write in it everyday.
o   Create blog and write in it 3 times per week
o   Read a book series.
o   Take online classes
o   Go to the water park
o   Watch meteor shower (August 12, 10:30pm)
o   Try something I've never done before
o   Learn sign language
o   Do yoga each morning
o   Break a world record
o   Create an experiment
o   Write a song
o   Create a life playlist or bucket list
o   Build and fly a kite
o   Be vegetarian for a week
o   Plan a menu
o   Record everything I eat in a journal
o   Solve a rubix cube
o   Practice algebra problems (help dad with math!)
o   Run a mile in 10 minutes (train each week)
o   Go running early in the morning
o   Go an entire day without technology (or maybe even a week, or summer)
o   Do something that scary
o   Make a scavenger hunt
o   Make a time capsule
o   Invent something new
o   Complete 1,000-piece puzzle
o   Cook a full meal
o   Read 5 books
o   Interview someone you don’t know and learn their life story. Write it up and give it to them.
o   Make pizza from scratch
o   Learn as many words or phrases you can in a foreign language
o   Research 5 colleges
o   Collect your family’s history
o   Stand up for something you believe in
o   Create, direct, and produce a mini film
o   Write a letter and send it, snail-mail style
o   Eat 5 things you haven’t eaten before
o   Plan out a road trip (every aspect: location, route, finances, logistics, etc)
o   Bake a cake from scratch
o   Watch a black-and-white classic movie
o   Play classic board games (like Monopoly or Chinese Checkers) on a rainy day
o   Make a giant chocolate chip cookie
o   Create a new recipe that can be passed down for generations
o   Find an astronomy pattern in the sky (like the zodiac signs in the stars via telescope)
o   Draw a chalk masterpiece on your sidewalk or driveway or in a playground
o   Send a message in a bottle
o   Put your deepest worry into a balloon and let it go
o   Dedicate a day to someone important in your life
o   Create a YouTube channel
o   Drawing masterpiece
o   Explore real life heroes
o   Learn about yourself thru your zodiac sign
o   Learn to read hieroglyphics


 
 

I am also having my boys create a daily routine schedule-with flexibility to allow for impromptu things, but they need to have some sort of routine for the summer-here's an example of what they're creating for themselves:

idea for the oldest:

7:00am -eat and take medicines, feed the dog & give fresh water
8:00am to 9:00am - Wake up, shower, etc
9:00am to 10:00am - Go for a walk
10:00am to 11:00am - check email, Facebook, chat with friends
11:00am to 11:30am - do required daily reading (a real book, digital or hard copy-but a real book)
11:30am to 12:00pm - Scrape up something for lunch
12:00pm to 2:00pm - work on personal project #1
2:00pm to 3:00pm - check email, Facebook, chat with friends
3:00pm to 5:30pm - hang out with friends
5:30pm to 6:30pm - feed dog, Dinner
6:30pm to 7:00pm - personal fitness plan
7:00pm to 11:00pm - take evening meds, Watch TV,  hang out with friends, Browse the internet, work on my story, personal project #2.
11:00pm to 12:00am - Hang out in my room
12:00am to 8:00am - Attempt to Sleep.


10pm weekday Curfew
12pm bed time over the summer