Near the end of March one of the moms in our local homeschool group was doing a presentation on Workboxes. Due to a previous commitment, I was unable to attend. However, I was intrigued. So, I did what anyone else with a computer would do – I googled “homeschool workbox” – Lo and behold, there is page upon page of links for them.
The most important thing about the Workbox System is that it is not a curriculum. It is an organizational system. You utilize your curricula (Math-U-See, Sonlight, A Reason For, and Explode the Code – for us) in the system.
First, I went to the site that belongs to the creator of workboxes. Sue Patrick’s Workbox System. Her site gives you a bit of the basic information. I found the video to be the most informative about the system, but really she’d like for you to buy her book to truly understand what the system is all about. (If you have Special Needs kids/ADHD/Aspergers/etc. , I would recommend getting Sue’s book. If not, seeing what others have done will probably be enough for you, if decide to do the system.)
After I looked at her site, I went back to the Google list and checked out the many sites where people had posted how they have used the Workbox System. Seeing what other people had done gave me the freedom to “think outside the box ” so to speak. And I fell in love.
I decided that we would jump on to this Workbox wagon. It has truly revolutionized how we do homeschool! I now have two very excited students instead of two students who just want to get their work done so they can go play. What is so amazing, is that they are doing almost twice the amount of work in the same amount of time.
The basic run-down is that each child has 12 boxes to do every day. Each box contains one subject or item for the child to do. The idea is to order the boxes so that there are always things for the children to look forward to. Have a kid who hates Handwriting? Put a game in the box after Handwriting. Also, because there are always 12 boxes, they know what they have to do to finish the day (i.e – they always know how far away they are from being “done.”)
We don’t really have the space for two carts with boxes, so we use two crates that hold hanging files that are numbered from 1 to 12. I load the folders either in the evening or when the boys are having breakfast.
Here’s what Woody worked on this past Friday:
1. Bible – devotion
2. Math – test
3. Handwriting – final weekly sheet
4. Memory Work – recite poem that he’s been working on all week
5. Sonlight – History read-aloud
6. Grammar – worksheet
7. PE – 25 minutes of soccer in the backyard
8. Phonics – 4 pages in workbook
9. Reading – last chapter of Frog & Toad
10. Spelling – test
11. Sonlight – read-aloud story
12. Drawing – Mark Kistler online freebie video
This is what Tigger worked on:
1. Mom reads his devotion to him
2. USA Puzzle
3. Finish Spanish Homework
4. Listen in on Sonlight
5. Seuss ABC Workbook 4 pages
6. Domino Math
7. Handwriting
8. Phonics – 4 pages
9. PE with Woody
10. Practice with scissors
11. Listen in on Sonlight
12. Math workbook
There are some subjects we do everyday: Math, Handwriting, Phonics, Spelling, etc. In the past, I’ve had tons of cool and fun stuff to do with the boys but it always seemed that we never had the time. Now, we have time! Utilizing workboxes allows us to add things like silly poetry (Jack Prelutsky & Shel Silverstien stuff), some Youtube How-To videos, craft activities, puzzle books, drawing activities, learning games, unit studies, and fun printouts I find online. This system has been a Godsend for me.
If you have used workboxes, I would love to hear about your experience. If you decide to use workboxes after looking into them, I would love to hear your thoughts and be sure to let me know how it goes. 
