Week 9 is here and we have Aurie Good from Our Good Life sharing about Her Steps to Planning this year.
August is typically my least favorite month. We always go on vacation in the middle of the month, and when we return it seems that we've lost the end of summer and are trying to play catch up with September and all that comes with jumping back into routine. This year, I decided that I was going to get my planning done in May.
Hah. May turned into June, and then July.....and you can see where this is going, right? It's August and I still didn't have anything concrete planned. Before my Type A persona kicked in and I started hyperventilating like I do every year, I took a breathe and followed these simple steps:
1. I'm planning 4 weeks in advance. I'm not planning 6 months in advance. I always do, and when I don't meet my lofty goals I feel like a failure. Not this year!
2. I'm setting aside dedicated planning time every Saturday afternoon. We are usually home on Saturday afternoons, so instead of panicking Sunday evening because I don't have anything prepared, I've already blocked out 20 minutes on our Google calendar for planning purposes - and I'm treating it like a doctor appointment so I don't skip it!
3. I'm keeping it simple all the way around. I have pinterest boards filled with beautiful crafts, but I can't do them. I don't have the time or the money to go out and purchase more craft materials - especially when we have a huge stash here. We will have craft time each week (my girls will rebel if we don't!) but they will be simple and fun - and probably not pin-worthy......and I'm okay with that.
4. I'm going old school. We just stocked up on notebooks, pencils, crayons, and dry erase markers. I've downloaded a few lap-booking materials from CurrClick and I'm good to go. No flashy stuff for us this year - I still have a shelf filled with *must have* stuff from last year!
5. I've decided that less is more. We are going to be hitting the basics and combining subjects when we can. We are using dry erase boards for spelling and reusing our old chalk easel for math practice. I've removed all those pretty homeschool room pictures I had pinned and am being thankful that I can homeschool my kids right where we are!
6. I'm writing in pen. I've got field trips already planned and penned in, instead of forgetting or trying to go last minute. I've got play dates scheduled, trips to the library and LEGO club for Sophie.
Now everything is right in front of me, and there is NO excuse for me to miss it. {I hope!} Right now I'm actually excited for the year to begin - and I still have THREE weeks before we start!
Aurie Good is a pastor's wife and a stay at home mom who home-schools on the go - since her family is always on the go. The Goods are licensed to foster medically fragile infants and children and have enjoyed loving the children who have been placed in their home. Currently they are foster parents to an adorable 1 year old boy who they are hoping to adopt. Aurie blogs at Our Good Life, where she shares their foster story (as much as she can) and strives to encourage all moms that they are not alone in this crazy insane work of motherhood. You can also find her on Twitter and Instagram sharing snippets of life with little ones.
In This Series:
Week 1: Who Plans Homeschool?
Week 2: Planning an Eclectic Homeschool School Year Type A Style
Week 3: Planned Unshooling . . . Why?
Week 4: Meal Planning Made Easy
Week 5: Managing Your Home When You Have an Irregular Schedule
Week 6: Block Scheduling in Your Homeschool
August is typically my least favorite month. We always go on vacation in the middle of the month, and when we return it seems that we've lost the end of summer and are trying to play catch up with September and all that comes with jumping back into routine. This year, I decided that I was going to get my planning done in May.
Hah. May turned into June, and then July.....and you can see where this is going, right? It's August and I still didn't have anything concrete planned. Before my Type A persona kicked in and I started hyperventilating like I do every year, I took a breathe and followed these simple steps:
2. I'm setting aside dedicated planning time every Saturday afternoon. We are usually home on Saturday afternoons, so instead of panicking Sunday evening because I don't have anything prepared, I've already blocked out 20 minutes on our Google calendar for planning purposes - and I'm treating it like a doctor appointment so I don't skip it!
3. I'm keeping it simple all the way around. I have pinterest boards filled with beautiful crafts, but I can't do them. I don't have the time or the money to go out and purchase more craft materials - especially when we have a huge stash here. We will have craft time each week (my girls will rebel if we don't!) but they will be simple and fun - and probably not pin-worthy......and I'm okay with that.
4. I'm going old school. We just stocked up on notebooks, pencils, crayons, and dry erase markers. I've downloaded a few lap-booking materials from CurrClick and I'm good to go. No flashy stuff for us this year - I still have a shelf filled with *must have* stuff from last year!
5. I've decided that less is more. We are going to be hitting the basics and combining subjects when we can. We are using dry erase boards for spelling and reusing our old chalk easel for math practice. I've removed all those pretty homeschool room pictures I had pinned and am being thankful that I can homeschool my kids right where we are!
6. I'm writing in pen. I've got field trips already planned and penned in, instead of forgetting or trying to go last minute. I've got play dates scheduled, trips to the library and LEGO club for Sophie.
Now everything is right in front of me, and there is NO excuse for me to miss it. {I hope!} Right now I'm actually excited for the year to begin - and I still have THREE weeks before we start!
What planning tips would you share?
Aurie Good is a pastor's wife and a stay at home mom who home-schools on the go - since her family is always on the go. The Goods are licensed to foster medically fragile infants and children and have enjoyed loving the children who have been placed in their home. Currently they are foster parents to an adorable 1 year old boy who they are hoping to adopt. Aurie blogs at Our Good Life, where she shares their foster story (as much as she can) and strives to encourage all moms that they are not alone in this crazy insane work of motherhood. You can also find her on Twitter and Instagram sharing snippets of life with little ones.In This Series:
Week 1: Who Plans Homeschool?
Week 2: Planning an Eclectic Homeschool School Year Type A Style
Week 3: Planned Unshooling . . . Why?
Week 4: Meal Planning Made Easy
Week 5: Managing Your Home When You Have an Irregular Schedule
Week 6: Block Scheduling in Your Homeschool
Week 7: Creating Your Own Unit Study
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