Homeschool Schedule and Planner Layout

The last two years I made a planner using Publisher and had it printed at Staples. It was a lot of work and expensive to print. This year I wanted to keep things simple and decided to use a spiral bound notebook instead. This notebook has been the best planner out of all the years I've homeschooled!

I printed our weekly schedule in color and taped it inside the cover of my notebook. Then I use color coordinating ink pens and colored pencils to match the printed schedule. It's colorful and yet simple at the same time.

I don't use a planner to schedule out what needs to be done, I use it to keep up with what we've completed. In the morning, I check what is scheduled for the day and transfer that to our current date.  I write the date and then in green ink (our together subjects) I go down the page adding the subjects, skipping every two lines. First skipped line is my son's and his is written in blue, the second is my daughter's and she is in pink. To draw the eye more (or maybe just to please it) I "highlight" the words with the same colored pencil. As we move through our day I add what we've done and if needed, I have room in the margins to write notes.

                       

Just in case you were wondering, we love our new schedule! The time slots are all designated the same. A together subject, followed by a round robin of my son requiring assistance and my daughter working independently, till after the next together subject where that switches up. Then my son works independently while I help my daughter. It's basically the same all week long with just a few variations in some of our subjects. The kids like knowing what's next. 

Our attendance record is hole punched and in a three ring binder along with "printed" lesson plan schedules. We call it the "Mom Binder" and it is divided by subject; Records, Bible, Language Arts, Math, History, Geography, Science and Nature Study. Since my planner is three hole punched I could clip it into my binder but I haven't found it necessary yet.

So there you have it, an easy peasy and inexpensive way to keep up with your days!

Homeschool and Housekeeping Help

I'm not the worst housekeeper but I'm probably pretty close. Before I had kids life was different, the house was always clean and tidy. Well, a husband, two kids, and a few dogs later life isn't as "tidy."

I have found that if I have a plan in place it helps battle the procrastination and back burner battle. If something isn't urgent or deemed a priority for me I have no issue with putting it on the back burner where it will eventually simmer down to a burnt pot if I'm not careful.

Or there are seasons when I'm just completely overwhelmed and don't even know where to start. I tried Fly Lady for a while, which is a wonderful organizational tool, but I got overwhelmed between trying to "Fly" and trying to homeschool.

Finally, I settled on using a little chart that reminds me to do daily, weekly, and monthly chores. When I follow this guide I actually feel pretty good about the house because I know I'm focusing on those "back burners" at least once every five weeks.

I think it would be neat to have this printed up into a little note pad for ease of use. I could check the chores off as I finish them and once the sheet is done, rip it off and start fresh the very next day!  Oh, that would greatly appease my task oriented character!

Finding Our Groove

Our first year of homeschooling thus far has been quite the journey. We've gone from doing a blend of everything, to mostly AmblesideOnline. We've changed our handwriting program, our math curriculum (a couple of times), and few other things over these past months.

We took our time through Term 1, taking a lot of time off during the holidays. We won't do that again. All the time off really threw us off and we had a hard time getting back into the routine of school. So, from now on we will school 12 weeks with a week off between terms. When the holidays roll around we will take a week off for Thanksgiving and Christmas but that's it. Because our school day is a short 4 hours and the kids view it more as fun than work, they don't require "time off" to destress.

Although, we've been schooling long enough to place us well into term 2, our switch to following AO more closely has led to the decision of starting Term 2 next week. I sat down and figured out our schedule all the way through 2017 to ensure we would have the right amount of days our state requires. What a job!

I've found that I like for the children to complete a few of their subjects on the computer. It frees me up and yet I don't feel guilty because I know they are learning in a style that suits them best.

For example, my first grader is working through Explode the Code online for his phonics program. I was so nervous about teaching him to read but not anymore! We do add supplement readers to the program like Bob Books and Abeka's readers (which are good, leveled phonics readers). His love for reading is growing and that is the most important thing! I didn't want it to feel like a chore to him.

We have been using XtraMath.org for drilling math facts but I knew my 4th grader needed more than drills. We went ahead and took the plunge and purchased Teaching Textbooks Math after she used the online sample and fell in love with the program. We will continue to use XtraMath as a supplement but not as a sole curriculum.

My first grader is very frustrated with XtraMath. He becomes rather discombobulated when he doesn't type the answer correctly or in time. I lengthened the time allowed on their site but he has stated he would rather just do worksheets. I don't want him to hate math so I need to find a more gentle approach for him. For now we will incorporate his math facts into his daily copywork. Maybe seeing them correctly written will plant a memory seed for him. Plus, he writes one word, perfectly. He did a great job and was very proud of himself!

Another thing that kept falling to the wayside was his free reads. Because he isn't reading independently yet, I have to read those to him and I ended up putting them off. Now, I've finally found a way that he won't miss out on those great books. LibriVox! We had an old phone that can still access WiFi so I downloaded the LibriVox app to it and bought a pair of Dollar Tree headphones. He is so proud that he can listen to his books without anyone's help now.

I've found that allowing the kids to stay up 30 minutes past their bedtime was great encouragement for free reading. They have definitely devoured some books during that half hour!

So that's it about the kids journey so far! They've done really well. As for me? Well, I've definitely experienced a number of epiphanies along the way too. I'm learning to have faith that God will fill in those gaps that are undoubtedly there in the children's education. I've learned its not the end of the world if all my boxes don't get checked off. I've learned there is much to be gained from having friends who are walking the same road and from those who have actually been there.

Homeschooling is a journey, not a destination.

First Day

Today was our first day and it went great!! I have discovered I picked a few read alouds that might be to much of a challenge but I can easily adjust that. I will drop Adam & His Kin and try to locate a copy of Boy of the Pyramids instead. I've also decided I'm going to stick strictly with SCM Genesis through Deuteronomy & Ancient Egypt for our Bible study.

After using GreenLeaf's Old Testament study today I felt we needed a bit more substance. I first believed GreenLeaf's questions would be a great addition but they really are to far above my children's heads.

I'm excited for tomorrow. We are starting AO's Island Story , 50 Famous Tales, and Burgess Animal Stories.

I hung our schedules on my bulletin board so I can stay on track. I also noticed my daughter likes to check it out quite frequently to see whats next.

We are waiting on Math U See for my son. So today we reviewed addition facts and different ways to make numbers 10 and 6. I ordered the Language Lessons by Emma Serl for both kids but started daughter out on Intermediate (free on google books) today. She liked it but is excited to use the book.

We are putting off piano until next week. I'm not really prepared for it anyway.

My husband made a comment about putting way to much work into my schedules but I really need them. I added the chores to help me keep up throughout the week. I must say I really felt productive checking those chores off my list.

So there you have it, our day in post!