2010 August

One of the keys to starting our homeschool year well is my before school planning. For many years I winged it (not by choice, it was usually due to a new baby or a move, sometimes both) and I always felt unprepared, behind, and my kids missed out on a lot of cool activities because we didn’t have the materials to complete the projects.

For the past few years I have purposed to spend two to four days homeschool planning. My kids are now old enough to babysit themselves and my husband was also able to take all the kids out of the house on the final planning day so I could finish everything before school started.

It is important to begin planning with a plan. That sounds a bit ridiculous, but if you don’t know what you are doing I can assure you, very little will get accomplished during these planning hours. For the homeschooling moms I know, time is limited, so it is important to make the most of your planning sessions.

Here are the things I set out to accomplish during my planning time.

Familiarize Myself With All the Curriculum

There is no way I can read every page of every book for each child before the school year begins, but I do look through everything and make sure I understand how to use the books. Since we have been homeschooling for a while there are a few subjects that I am very familiar with like 1st grade math and the Explode the Code Books. But there are a few, such as Pre-Calculus and Latin, that I need to learn a little more about before we begin.

Make Copies for the Year

I find that making copies during the school year never works well for me. The kids and I will be sitting down at the table, ready to work on school and I realize that they need a page copied out of the back of the teacher’s book, or we need a duplicate of something. I get up to make copies and by the time I change ink in the printer, find paper, and make the copy, my kids have left the table and are busy doing something much more interesting than waiting for mom.

Two classes, Rosetta Stone Spanish and Personal Finance publish all the worksheets on CD’s, so having those printed, hole punched, and ready to go before the first day of school makes a big difference throughout the year.

Finalize Curriculum Choices

There is always one subject in limbo until right before school starts. This year it was Bible. I asked on Facebook and Twitter for suggestions and was overwhelmed by the great responses. I also talked with a few homeschooling friends locally and got their opinion on my high school Bible choices. I spent a few hours looking at books online and going through the ones we already owned. I didn’t make the final decision until about a week ago.

Begin the 2010-2011 Paperwork

I like to have all my paperwork ready before school begins each year. My planning time allows me to set up grade books, hours sheets, attendance forms, book lists, as well as forms for the county and our umbrella program. My favorite site for forms is DonnaYoung.org. I am so thankful I found that site years ago as it has saved me hours and hours of time. Donna Young is a free resource with many downloadable forms. It isn’t just a site for homeschoolers, you can find calendars, chore lists and more on this site.

Create Curriculum Supplements

I have a hard time going strictly by the book, so I usually end up adding to or changing our curriculum. This year I really wanted to do the The Original 21 Rules of This House with all my kids. I thought it would be a perfect way to begin the school year by making sure they all knew what my expectations where for their behavior. The problem with this book is that it is definitely geared toward younger children. I spent some time creating supplemental material for my older children so they could participate in this study without feeling like preschoolers.

Out With the Old in With the New

Since we reuse folders and notebooks, I make sure they are all empty and ready to go for the new school year. Papers are sorted and filed or thrown away, books are packed away for another child, and old crayons, pencils and markers are tossed. My kids usually help with this part of the planning.

Find and Print/ Bookmark Supplemental Curriculum from the Internet

There are so many awesome FREE homeschool resources on the internet. I like to have extra coloring sheets, cutting practice worksheets, and games printed and in the kid’s binders so they have something to work on if I need them to sit quietly for a few minutes. I also bookmark websites that I have approved for them to play on during school hours. For a list of great free websites visit Five J’s homeschool downloads page. This is my go to page when I am looking for good homeschool web content for my kids.

Relax and Remember that School is Fun

Depending on which state you live in and its homeschool requirements, homeschool planning can often feel like a chore. This year I felt like I spent almost as much time on paperwork as I did on the planning! (Not really, but it felt that way) As you look through the books remember, they are a guide not your master! If you wake up to a beautiful day, ditch the books and head out for a nature walk. Take advantage of the homeschool days in your area and go on lots of field trips.

Homeschooling is more than books and paperwork, it is a way of life. Live it.

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I think it is important to establish traditions with your home schooled children. A few traditions we have are school supply shopping and first day of school celebrations.

Every year the kids and I go shopping to pick up some back to homeschool supplies. This usually means notebooks, pencils, and a little something special. This year my younger children picked out some very inexpensive calculators as their special purchase. I was hesitant at first to buy these calculators because I could see them ending up in our junk drawer, but my kids have been playing with them all week. Even my preschooler is adding numbers and having fun while learning!

After the school shopping trip we head out for a special back to school lunch. We talk about the upcoming year, expectations, favorite subjects, and anything else that is on their mind about school. The kids really look forward to this special time.

We also have a first day of school celebration. This year it will actually be a second day of school celebration, but we’re taking the whole family to a baseball game. We like to do something with dad to kick off the school year and this year we were able to get some baseball tickets, so that’s how we’re celebrating.

I also try to get pictures of the kids on the first day of school. It is fun to look back over the years and see how much they have changed. My oldest reminded me this weekend that this is her last year of “official” homeschooling, as next year she will take classes at a community college. Wow. I can’t believe she is almost finished. It seems like just yesterday we were pulling out those green Bob Jones Reading level one books! I know when your kids are little and you’re surrounded by Cheerios and dirty diapers it is hard to believe that time flies, but trust me, it does.

Whether you homeschool or not, creating traditions with your kids is a great way to create memories that last a lifetime. I still remember baking cinnamon rolls and pies with my father every December to take to families in our church. It doesn’t have to be something big or expensive, just something the kids know they can count on happening year after year.