Catch Up on Academic Deficits in 10 Minutes a Day

Summer break is here!

This year our homeschooling fizzled out with a sigh. We did NOT end the year super well, and we did not finish all our books. Ugh. It’s not how I wanted to end things, but after an intense couple of years including a move to our horse ranch, we were ALL just done and ready for a break!

Whether your kids go to public school, private school, or home school, some years are just not the best! Families everywhere experience interruptions like frequent viruses, chronic illness, unemployment, struggles with extended family, a teacher that is not a good fit, distracting classmates, and more. For us homeschoolers, we’ve had years that didn’t go well because of too many commitments outside the home, a distracting baby or toddler, and moving to a new house.

I want to let you know that even if last year was a downright disaster, and whether your kids go to public school or you homeschool, there is HOPE. Lots of hope! We’ve had multiple bad years of homeschooling over the years and my oldest two sons have had no trouble getting into college with scholarships! One bad year or even two is not going to permanently ruin anyone’s education.

Also, the skills your child wasn’t able to master last year (for whatever reason) will now be EASIER because your child is older. If your child failed to grasp addition with carrying last year, you can teach it to her in far less time this year.

This post was originally published in August 2021 and updated in June 2026.

So, I want to show you an easy way that you can make significant educational progress with your child at home in only 10 minutes a day.

I was first introduced to this concept when our family tried Classical Conversations in the fall of 2019. Attending the community days did not ultimately work out for us because of our complex schedule, but I was amazed at how much we learned through the memory work. If you’re not familiar with Classical Conversations, it’s a classical homeschooling method that relies on memorization during the elementary years (like all classical education). Each week, we were memorizing math facts, grammar, history facts, timeline dates, and more. It was amazing how much the kids could memorize with just a small amount of work each day. And it was amazing how much the content they memorized enriched their lives. They started noticing references to the people and places we had memorized in history and asked questions about them. Their knowledge of geography exploded by studying the weekly map assignments just a few days a week.

Our experience showed me how easily we could shore up weak spots in our education through focused practice time.

So how do I implement the 10 Minutes a Day plan?

1. First, make a list of 3-4 areas that your child needs to work on.

Even if it feels like the past year (or two) was a complete loss, choose not to be overwhelmed. Truly! For one thing, the amount of loss can probably be overcome much more easily than what it feels like. And for another thing, you must start where your child is and work forward. Dwelling on how bad things are makes it more difficult to proceed forward. Focus on progress, not deficits!

There are SO many things you can accomplish in 10 minutes a day! Here are some suggestions for kids in the elementary grades (ages 6 -10):

• Memorize addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division facts. The Math-U-See website has a free online drill program and a free worksheet tool! Note that the levels for the worksheets start at first grade. Alpha = first grade, and so on. I’m sure there are lots of other online tools, but this is what we use.
• Skip Counting by 2′, 5’s, etc.
• Measure with a ruler. Start with the closest inch, and work up to quarter and eighth of an inch, depending on age. Or use metric. Or both!
• Learn sight words.
• Learn to tie shoes.
• Improve handwriting. Or learn cursive! Neat handwriting really pays off. It stinks when you make mistakes reading your own handwriting, haha. (We’ve had that happen!)
• Learn to identify nouns, verbs, adjectives, and pronouns. Use books you already have. Pick a sentence and identify the parts of speech.
• Read out loud, with expression.
• Improve reading comprehension. Have your child read out loud, and then ask them questions. If you want more structure, we really like the Reading Detective series by The Critical Thinking Co. This might take 15 minutes, depending on your child’s reading speed. The books feature short excerpts with comprehension questions. The questions require kids to back up their answer from the text! Great for 3rd grade through middle school.
• Improve writing skills. Get a spiral notebook, and have your child write about the best thing they did that day, describe a favorite person, etc.
• Learn to tell time.
• Learn to count money.
• Memorizing the US states and capitals. Also identify them on the map.
• Learn new vocabulary words. You might want to try the Wordly Wise series for word lists and definitions. There are activities in these books, but just discussing the words at the dinner table is fabulous!
• Become an expert on any subject. Spend 10 minutes reading about an area of interest – rock collecting, photography, US presidents past and present, classic cars, computer programming, etc.
• Learn to count musical rhythms. Or improve sight reading in general for an instrument. 10 minutes of daily sight reading yields great benefits!

Goals for middle schoolers can include any of the elementary skills, or I would also add:

• Watch the news daily and discuss. We like World Watch News because it’s geared toward students. I’d recommend it for ages 8 and up.
• Practice calculating sale prices with a percentage off the sticker price. Percents are not taught again in high school! Now is the time to get solid on this.
• Catch up on any area of math – Math Mammoth is fantastic for this!! You can download a single topic pack for geometry, fractions, decimals, and various pre-algebra concepts. Click on “Worktexts by Topic” under the products tab.
• Plan a weekly meal plan and grocery list. Then go shopping for the groceries and help prepare meals.
• Read a historical biography.
• Learn how to think logically – The Fallacy Detective is a great book for middle schoolers!
• Write a paragraph with a solid thesis statement and 3-4 sentences as support.

2. Then choose 1 skill, or possibly 2, to start with.

You can’t conquer everything at once, but you can start. For older kids, it would definitely be possible to pick two areas to address and do a 20 or even 30 minute practice time. For younger kids, I would stick to one. But it’s up to you!

3. Choose a time that works for you, and then jump in! If your kids are at home, first thing in the morning or right after lunch is a great time for practice. If your kids are in a camp or day program while you work, then right after dinner may be a good time.

After a week, you’ll have spent 50 minutes practicing a skill, and you will already be seeing some results!

Here are some helpful resources for learning at home!

Be sure to check out our Printable Writing Prompt Cards for 3rd – 5th grade (ages 8 – 10)

If you’re exploring homeschooling, here’s a post on How to Get Started Homeschooling.