The 7 step curriculum planner is UNIQUE and WILDLY different than other homeschool planners. Also, look at my homeschool planner page.
The BIGGEST difference between this planner and tons others is that you download each section you need and do not download useless pages.
There are 7 Steps (with tons of options at each step)
I hold your hand through each STEP.
Begin by glancing below at the forms at every step so you know what will be in your homeschool planner.
Building the PERFECT Homeschool Planner
Step 0. (This step may take you to hero.)
Before STEP 1, comes pre-homeschool planning.
Step 1. Choose a Pretty Front/Back Cover
- Sunkissed
- Not So Serious
- Purple Haze
- Blue Serenity
- Navy and Chevron
- Red and Gray
- Orange and Pink
- Bubbles
- Blue and Pink
- Brown and Teal
- Love Makes Our House a Home
- One Mother Teaches More
- Traveler
- Sandra Dodd Quote (Pink)
- Doodle Coloring
- Coral Inklings (Editable)
- Summer Loving
- Melting Bubble Gum
- Point Well Taken
- Orange and Gray
- Teal and Green
- Chevron Blue
- Navy Blue
- Purple and Green
- Zebra and Pink
- Scripture Quotes Cover
- Live, Laugh, Love
- Cicero Quote
- Five in a Row Quote
Download all 32 Free Homeschool Planner Covers, Inside Pages and Title Pages.
How to Get the 32 Pages of Free Planner Covers, Inside Pages, and Back Covers
Grab the free 32 page freebie. It’s a subscriber freebie.
You can get access quickly.
1) Sign up on my list.
2) Grab the freebie now.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!
Please know that I have created planners where I give you a framework of what you need to get started.
Sometimes you don’t want to go through each step and want to start by using the way I organize a planner for you.
Read about how to use the The Best Colorful Undated Dynamic Daily Homeschool Planner.
Also check out the Ultimate Homeschool Planner and you can read about it here on my post Ultimate Homeschool Planner.
Step. 2. Choose Calendars/Appointment Keepers
This is the step where the Two Pages Per Month Calendars are kept. Before you go further, you need to know:
I create 3 DIFFERENT types of calendars each year.
(Tip: You need ALL 3 in your planner.)
- The 2 Pages Per Month Calendars which are perfect for keeping appointments because the boxes are bigger. You’ll want at least one.
- The Planning Calendar for each academic and physical year where you plan your year. You need one.
- The regular calendars which are used for reference. I generally print two or more to put throughout my planner for quick reference.
- Gorgeous two pages month calendars for physical and academic year are kept on this STEP 2.
- Long range planning forms.
- 5 years of Major Holidays Reference.
- Regular calendars for the physical and academics years are also kept on this STEP 2.
- Year at a Glance forms.
- Curriculum Planner for Homeschool Day At a Glance Form
How to Get All the Free Printables on Step 2
It’s a subscriber freebie. Add your email below. If you’re following me, your email is your password. Add it again and grab the freebie now.
1) Sign up on my list.
2) Grab the freebie now.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!
Step 3. Choose Goals/Objectives
- Goals and Objectives form
- Various Scope and Sequence
- School Year Goals
- Orange You Glad Goals Form
- Blue Like You Goals form
- Objectives at a Glance Form
- Quarter Planning Form
How to Get All the Free Printables on Step 3
Finally, how to grab the free pages. It’s a subscriber freebie.
1) Sign up on my list.
2) Grab the freebie now.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!
Step 4. Choose Lesson Planning Pages Right For YOU!
- 180-Page Lesson Planning
- 180-Page Lesson Planning (Editable)
- Editable Homeschool Lesson Planning Pages – Robin’s Egg Color
- Glam It Up Planner
- 180-Page Day and Week Planning
- Editable Homeschool Lesson Planning Pages – Confetti Color
- Editable Homeschool Lesson Planning Pages – Mink Over You
How to Get All the Free Printables on STEP 4.
Finally, how to grab the free lesson planning pages. It’s a subscriber freebie.
1) Sign up on my list.
2) Grab the freebie now.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!
Step 5a. Choose Unique forms JUST for You!
Not a kazillion other people
- Homeschool Year Planning Calendars
- Editable Progress Report Card
- Weekly Tracking
- Monthly Attendance
- Multi-Student Red Line Attendance
- Multi-Student Black Line Attendance
- Curriculum Resource List (Editable)
- Black/White Dots Weekly Planning
- Black/White Squares Weekly Planning
- Brown/Pink/Peach/Blue Dots
- Brown/Pink/Peach/Blue Squares
- Blue/Black/Green Reading Log
- Magenta Reading Log
- Brown Reading Log
- Black/White Reading Log
- Black/White Day at a Glance
- Pink Day at a Glance
- Brown/Pink/Peach/Blue Circles Journal
- Blue/Black/Green Squares Journal
- Purple/Red/Orange Squares Journal
- High School Homeschool Transcript (Editable)
- Course for Graduation and Credit Planning
- Four-Year High School Plan
- Monthly Attendance (Editable)
- Multi-Student Black Line (One Child)
- Multi-Student Green Line Attendance
- Turquoise Mission Statement
- Blue/Black/Green/Orange/Yellow Dots
- Blue/Black/Green/Orange/Yellow Squares
- Purple/Red/Orange/Green/Blue Dots
- Purple/Red/Orange/Green/Blue Squares
- Orange Reading Log
- Pink Reading Log
- Brown Reading Log
- Green Reading Log
- Purple Day at a Glance
- Black/White Squares Journal
- Purple/Red/Orange Circles Journal
- Brown/Pink/Peach/Blue Squares Journal
- Black and White Circles Journal
How to Get All the Free Printables on STEP 5A.
Finally, how to grab the free lesson planning pages. It’s a subscriber freebie.
1) Sign up on my list.
2) Grab the freebie now.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!
Step 5b. Choose MORE Unique Forms JUST for You!
- 3 Student Grading Sheet (Editable)
- 1 Student Grading Sheet (Editable)
- Grade Keeper w/ Subjects (Editable)
- Teacher Schedule (Editable)
- Student Monthly Progress Report
- Multiplication Chart
- Field Trip Tracking Guide
- 3 Student Grading Sheet w/ System (Editable)
- Grade Keeper (Editable)
- Student Schedule (Editable)
- Kindergarten Evaluation
- Preschool Progress Report
- General Weekly Planning
- General Weekly Planning (Editable)
- Multiplication Chart (Color)
- Field Trip Planner
How to Get All the Free Printables on STEP 5B.
Finally, how to grab the free lesson planning pages. It’s a subscriber freebie.
1) Sign up on my list.
2) Grab the freebie now.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!
Step 5c. Choose MORE MORE Unique Forms Just for You!
- Grade Sheet for Hands-on Project
- Homeschooling Multiples Planning
- Memorization Planning
- Digital Books List (Color)
- Community Service Record
- Homeschool Co-op Tracking
- Field Trip Reference Form
- Library Resources
- Digital Books List
- Scope and Sequence Dividers
Step 6. Personalize It
- Top Tabs (Editable)
Step 7. Bind it! Love it!
The Original DIY Step By Step
7 STEP Homeschool Planner
How to Set it up
Get a one of a kind planner by mixing and matching the free pages here on my blog and the products in my store.
Who wants one giant download of pages that are all the same?
Pay or not pay for exactly what you want.
By reading this section below you understand how this homeschool planner is intended to be used and get the most out of it.
A. It is a Daily Planner.
I am not impressed with weekly planners. There is never enough room to write. A weekly overview is good but I just don’t feel weekly planners have enough detail. I have a weekly form that you can ADD to your planner to see a weekly glance but there is more room to “plan” when it is daily.
C. Use it for multiple ages.
Even though I have the undated 180 page lesson planner divided up into 3 sections, it can be used with up to 6 children. Draw a line in between each of the 3 sections and you now have 6 sections. Also, you can divide one section for younger toddlers or preschoolers where less room may be needed. In addition, I have a different form for families that are larger. They have unique needs.
E. No ERASING Allowed {please}
One of my biggest pet peeves about lesson planning is the view that because one is using paper/pen we need to erase.
We do not and here is why. Lesson Planning is just as much about journaling after we school as it is planning slightly ahead. Do NOT make the mistake like I did one year and plan the WHOLE year {yep that is right and yes I had TONS of time in it and immediately was behind, but I learned a very, very valuable lesson}.
Life is not planned always and so our homeschool journey cannot be. Life is partly made up of appointments and partly unplanned and just “living”. This lesson planner needs to be utilized the same way. Plan generally, fill in your planner after you school specifically. By saving a part of your schedule each day at the end of your school day just like a public teacher does, you can plan for the “immediate future”. The immediate future is next week, tomorrow or a few days NOT the whole month. In addition, a huge advantage to this method is that you adjust lesson plans quickly, that day if necessary if something is not working which is the whole reason a lot of us homeschool in the beginning.
B. It’s designed to be printed on both sides.
All my forms are lined up so that most can be printed on front or back. There are a few pages like my 2 page calendar spread that do have specifics on which side to print. Do not waste paper.
D. Pages are undated. That’s right no feeling behind.
By having an undated Lesson Plan and you filling in the date, you can skip school on days you need to and pick back up without erasing. Talking about erasing, that brings me to this next point.
F. Coil Bind, {not notebook, not comb binding- there is a difference}.
Because you are not sure what you may want in your planner, a lot of homeschoolers may think that a Notebook style planner would be good because you can add to it.
I do not feel it is and this is why. You will be constantly aggravated by it and tempted to keep adding “perfect forms” {do not exist} because you have not reined yourself in to use a system.
An unorganized person is one who constantly wants to keep adding to a system instead of utilizing one that is close to what they need.
Organization is about sticking to a system not constantly adding more work for yourself.
Come over, come over {can you hear me tenderly calling} to the organized side and breathe easy by using what you selected and learning more about yourself as to what you like or don’t like.
The next planner you make will be even better, just don’t aggravate yourself.
In addition, notebooks are bulky and hard to write in with the 3 rings that seem to get in the way. Notebooks work good for timelines and notebooking where you are constantly adding content. That is NOT what you want to do with this planner.
Advantages of an Undated Homeschool Planner
- Think about about Teachers Manuals, they are NOT dated but are numbered — revolutionary thought, uh? ♥
- The homeschooling family lifestyle is ever changing and one advantage to homeschooling is flexibility.
- With a dated curriculum or homeschool planner, it can make one feel “behind” if you skip a few days of school to care for “life”.
- My undated homeschool planner does not mean unorganized, it is organized. It is NUMBERED. This allows you to “see” where in YOUR school year you are regardless of when you start. No more “skipped” pages or wasted paper because you had to skip one or more days. Too, each page has a place for you to write in the date.
- Also, on pages 45, 90, 136 and 180 I have listed quarters. At page 90 is a notation for 1st semester and end of 2nd semester on 180 to flag “benchmark” days for your easy planning.
- Some homeschooling families begin their school year with the physical year of January to December and not the academic year of August to May. This planner can be used at ANYTIME that suits your family whether you follow an academic year, physical year or any other time of the year.
- You simply stop lesson planning when you need to—-take off a week or two if you are year around schooling—then pick back up with the next page.
WAIT! Don’t start printing before you understand how to print.
This planner is designed to use BOTH sides of the page and LEFT refers to the left side when the planner is laying flat and RIGHT refers to the right side when planner is laying flat.
I know this sounds crazy, but it makes more sense when you start printing as you are just giving the 180 page download.
The LEFT side or ODD Pages are moved over on the page to the left more to allow for coil binding in the middle.
Likewise with the pages that are for the RIGHT side or the EVEN pages are moved over to the right more to allow for coil binding in the middle.
Print the EVEN pages first.
This ASSUMES that your printer prints from the largest quantity (or Page 180) and then back to the small quantity or (Page 1).
It was easier for me to simply print EVENS first then ODDS instead of doing double sided printing since my printer has that capability.
Last pointer: If you don’t all ready know which way your paper feeds into the printer, try a few sample pages before you print ALL the ODDS.
Tip: Be sure you notice how your paper is stacked in the tray BEFORE you pull it out so you will know what your printer is doing.
Is it numbering from largest quantity or page 180 to page 2? Then you need to follow my directions. If not, test a few pages first.
For my printer, since page 180 is out first, I have to re-stack the whole pile that comes out with page 179 on top instead of page 2 so that when it is printed it is numbered correctly.
Printing tip from one follower:
When you have your nice stack of sheets numbered from 2 to 180 do everything the same BUT click the box next to “REVERSE PAGES”. Then load your stack as it was printed (properly positioned so it prints on the back like we mentioned). It will pull page 1 on the back of page 2 and so on all the way to the end without you have having to hand restack. Just that simple and click.”
Let’s Start Building YOUR ALMOST Perfect Planner.
Soooo happy I found your page. I was homeschooling for the first time last year. But because my husband was against it. I didn’t quite work like I would have wanted. Still feel in my heart that is the best thing for my family. Praying so God can change my husbands heart. At the beginning everything was going quite well. I got sick in the second semester (anxiety disorder cause by my thyroid disorder). Hope I can resume my homeschooling journey at least for next year. I want to be prepare. Kids are begging to be homeschooled again. Let’s see what happens. You are an inspiration. Thanks
OH Giselle, my heart goes out to you. Don’t be so hard on yourself and for goodness sakes get help when you need it.
It’s okay. Things never work out like we think they will but doesn’t mean we can’ keep trying.
Eventually you will find the rhythm for your family.
I hope your husband can get on board too.
Let me know how it goes!! Glad to have you here!!
I have my planner all ready to be bound! The lady at the office store is having trouble though. 🙁 She says the sheet protectors are too slippery and won’t stay in place to get the binding on. Do you have any suggestions or ideas I can pass on to them to make it all come together? Thanks!
Hi Tammy,
I apologize for the “lateness” of my comment but somehow this email got lost in my inbox and I just now saw it. Did you get this resolved? Between you and me, that is a “new” person or one who doesn’t want to work with it. In layman’s terms, it’s a bit of griping..lol
It takes a while to do it. She is just venting. That is her job to do because they have the binding machine. Too, on your part, you can look for page protectors that have a bit of matte finish too.
Hope that helps.
Hello,
I have really enjoyed making my binders the past two years. We had been following a structured curriculum, and so filling them out was pretty easy.
I had downloaded your Unit Study pages when they were free, and this year (now that we will be schooling multiples instead of just one, and to help get the kids even more interested) I’d like to do Unit Studies. I was looking through your posts on how to plan a unit study, thank you for all your examples!! I am wondering, however, how to put the pages into my binder? I don’t know how long each unit will take, and am assuming, reading your posts, that unit studies should be taken in stride. Following the lead of the whole family interest they could be long, short and mixed between the two. How do these pages get added into the planner? Is there a better way if I purchased the unit study pages?
Thank you for all your curriculum planner pages and words of wisdom. Your family is inspiring!
Sincerely,
-Rachel
Hi Rachel,
Sorry it is taken me so long to respond, but I get swamped at this time of the year. The updated Unit Study Planner that I have binds the same my curriculum planner does and that is with coil binding.
I do explain about how many unit studies you can accomplish in one year but the lesson planning pages are separate from tracking how many unit studies to plan. They are separate sections in the unit study planner.
For example, just because I plan one year in my binder doesn’t mean I will use it that year. I might save it for next year. So the Unit Study Planner is part planner and part tracker.
I just encourage you to print off how many lesson planning pages you need for your year. Focus on that instead of worrying how many pages you will use for the actual planning.
For example, decide if you school year round or follow a traditional public school schedule. Think about it this way if you do a unit study a month for a 9 month school year that is at least 9 sets in your planner. More than likely your children will want to move ahead on some unit studies. So having a few more helps. I find that 12-14 sets work good for me.
Some of it is trial and error while you get the rhythm of how your family wants to learn too.
I hope that helps some.