Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

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homeschoolcurriculum

Free 2017-2018 Year Round Homeschool Planning Form (Spring Color)

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Grab this beautiful and free 2017 to 2018 Homeschool Planning Schedule form. The form I'm sharing today is for you to PLAN your school year and track the number of days and weeks you're kids are doing school. I have all 12 months on it, which means you can start on any month that you begin homeschooling and move forward to plan your year. CLICK here to begin building your UNIQUE Free 7 Step Homeschool Planner!

Today, I have the second color choice for the new school year. It is the 2017 to 2018 Year Round Homeschool Planning form and I named this color scheme Spring.

I created this color scheme based on colors I love and hope you love it too.

Remember that I create both academic and planing calendars. Though they may seem similar they are not.

When you take a closer look, you’ll see they each calendar has a different purpose. The form I’m sharing today is for you to PLAN your school year and track the number of days and weeks your kids are doing school.

I have all 12 months on it, which means you can start on any month that you begin homeschooling and move forward to plan your year.

Plain calendars (okay, they are not so plain) are just for noting dates and for your reference. I don’t create them to write appointments on them OR to track your school.

Free Curriculum Planner Pages

Plain calendars are always on Step. 2. Choose Calendars/Appointment Keepers. The 2 page spread appointment keepers are for appointments and have more room for writing.

The form today is to plan your homeschool year with days off, teacher planning days and holidays to take off. It gives you a glimpse of your homeschool year. Plan and track your school year on it.

Because this form is not a calendar but more of a planning tool, I keep it each year at Step 5a. Choose Unique forms JUST for You!

If you need to see how to use it go to that step Step 5a. Choose Unique forms JUST for You! to look at my sample copy.

I hope you like this second choice. I have one more coming and I especially love when I can get it to you early.

This form today is NOT the 2 page spread calendar. You can grab that too. Look at a picture below of a 2 page spread calendar, which gives you room to write appointments and you can get it for only .99 cents. What a deal!

step-2-of-the-7-step-free-homeschool-planner-tinas-dynamic-homeschool-plus

2017 to 2018 Academic Year Glamorous 2 Pages at a Glance @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Download here (Spring Color Option) 2017 to 2018 Year Round Homeschool Planning Form

7 Easy Steps – “Tons of Options & Pretty Color” Begin building your planner

Step 1. Choose a Pretty Front/Back Cover

Step. 2. Choose Calendars/Appointment Keepers

Step 3. Choose Goals/Objectives

Step 4. Choose Lesson Planning Pages Right For You!

Step 5a. Choose Unique forms JUST for You! Not a kazillion other people

Step 5b. Choose MORE Unique Forms JUST for You!

Step 5c. Choose MORE MORE Unique Forms Just for You!

Step 6. Personalize It

Step 7. Bind it! Love it!

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

You’ve Pitched the Homeschool Curriculum – Now What?

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

You've Pitched the Homeschool Curriculum - Now What? What if you make the same costly mistakes? Check out these super helpful tips and reminders.

Falling in and out of love with homeschool curriculum is a rite of passage for us. But after pitching my curriculum, many years  I wished I would have done something differently besides just purchase more homeschool curriculum.

And of course, any solution has to be easy because by the time you hit a road block, another time zapping and energy draining fix just adds unwanted stress.

Look at these 3 things to do and to not do when you’ve pitched the homeschool curriculum.

One// – Do not use that low time of feeling frustrated to make another mistake, like quitting homeschool or worse yet, joining a confining homeschool co-op.

A co-op may be the solution, but until you identify the problem, something else added to what you’re doing can be taxing.

Two// – Do embrace your teaching personality and style.

We can’t deny who we are. And when we try to fit our style of school into another homeschool teacher’s school, our children could be disappointed.

Before I started homeschooling, I read a lot about not just learning styles for my kids, but about my personality, which is my teaching style. Two of the best books that helped me the most to understand my personality, which helped me to pinpoint my aggravation with curriculum are Discover Your Child’s Learning Style and 102 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum.

Though Discover Your Child’s Learning Style was written with understanding your child’s learning style, you can also take the personality test alongside your child. The results are eye-opening because some of the things you may have been doing unintentionally because you learn best in a certain way can actually be irritating your children.

And the curriculum you chose may or may not be based on the way you need to teach.

For example, I know that one of my strengths is organization, but it can easily go from organizing to onerous if I don’t rein in my personality.

On the one hand, many homeschoolers told me that I would never use a homeschool room, I did. And I used it for a long time.

On the other hand, because I know I have a tendency to be more severe than I like to be, I started doing lapbooks and unit studies with my boys because I didn’t want to make learning comfortable for me.

This may sound opposite of what I’m telling you, but in the beginning I found unit studies that were laid out so that it would fit my personality style of being organized and routine-oriented.

Gradually, as I gained more experience, I created my own unit studies. This was the balance to my personality that wanted to be demanding. I gave my planning, organized itchy self an important task to do like planning my children’s education.

The point is you can’t abandon your personality. And your dynamic personality should come through with any curriculum you choose to bring into your homeschool.

List three things you like and don’t like about the curriculum you pitched and then do the same for your children. As you take the learning style test in the book, a picture will emerge.

I would love to know what you found out if you do the personality test in Discover Your Child’s Learning Style .

Relax Without Regret

Three// – Do rest, step back and relax.

Relaxing is not something a lot of homeschoolers do well. Dare I say we probably downright stink at it? I admit, I do too. Stepping back helps you to look at the bigger picture.

Being a can’t see the forest for the trees person, I have to always pull up and back away from my school when everything seems like a hurdle.

Another reason we don’t have the art of relaxing down is because like me, you also probably have many ideas or projects that you want to accomplish. That comes from a love of learning and teaching.

Some homeschoolers feel they need a certain type of curriculum for guidance, but a curriculum could be sucking the breath of creativity out of your day.

I know, I have heard people say they are not creative, but that’s just not true.

There are many ways to be creative, whether it’s art, history, science, crafts, cooking or the art of conversation.

Instead of purchasing another homeschool curriculum so quickly, take time to rest, discover your strengths and not jump into another stressful situation. You don’t know, you might not need to buy anymore homeschool curriculum.

What has been your experience?

Also, I have a whole lot to say about how to choose homeschool curriculum. Look at these other tips:

45 Ways to Define Homeschool Curriculum – Is Your Definition Holding You Back, Mixing It Up: How to Combine Homeschool Approaches (Without Losing Your Mind) and 10 Signs. Know When to Walk Away from “Perfect” Curriculum.

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

Linking up @ these awesome places:

3 Reasons to NOT Avoid the Homeschool Middle Ground

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3 Reasons to NOT Avoid the Homeschool Middle Ground @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Fighting mini battles while we homeschool becomes part of our homeschool lifestyle. And it’s true that for many issues involving education, homeschoolers don’t wade in lukewarm waters nor take the middle of the ground approach. Being firmly decisive is key to surviving the harsh amount of negativity that is thrown our way.

Standing Firm on Homeschool Middle Ground

However, many things in homeschooling are more successful when you can step back and straddle the middle road. Sometimes taking an all or nothing approach can be counter productive, even extreme at times.

Look at these 3 reasons to NOT avoid the homeschool middle ground.

ONE/  When you do a unit study with multiple ages of children.

You can set your homeschool day up for failure when you use a learning resource that is too high above your oldest child’s head or one that is too young below it.

It’s a common mistake; choosing a unit study resource that is the grade level of your oldest child.

The secret to individualizing a delightful unit study topic is to  choose the middle grade between the ages of your children.

Seasoned homeschool veterans know that it’s easier to scale down activities for younger grades. Use the example of a plant unit study.

Younger students can color, label and dissect a plant. Older students or high school students can use the same unit study, but expand the activities on it to a high school level.

For example, older students can include plant history, learn about the local plants in your area and even spend some time in an apprenticeship learning from local professionals about herbs or plants. Ideas to use for an older student spring from the middle of the grade resource that you are currently using.

Not all ideas are so easy to round up for an older learner, but they are more useful than a resource used for your youngest learner.

TWO/ When you mix and match homeschool curriculum.

It’s easy to use the same curriculum provider with all of your children. Why would you do that though?

Each child is as unique as each homeschool family or should be.

Take the middle ground, avoid the extreme by choosing just one homeschool curriculum and use pieces and parts of a boxed curriculum, unit study and another curriculum to create a study that is unique for each child.

If you’re using just one type of curriculum, then one or more of your children may not be benefiting from it as much as another child. Mixing and matching homeschool curriculum will ensure a better fit for all of your children.

THREE/ When you begin homeschooling high school.

I did it too when I started homeschooling high school and that is to right away in 9th grade take a sock it to him attitude when planning.

High school is not about controlling your teen through his high school years, but it’s about working alongside each other. It is a give and take.

You give because your teen is a different person than you and your husband and he has goals and inspirations now that he too wants to meet. But it’s a take also because you don’t want to give up all your goals or plans for your teen’s future and some things will be must-haves in high school.

What I’m saying is that you choose the middle ground in high school when you help a teen keep balanced in all subjects until he decides his goals.

Some adults don’t even know what they won’t do, so don’t put a lot of pressure on a teen. Take the middle road by keeping subjects balanced until a mommy track, college track or job track is decided.

Also, grab some other tips from my other articles Homeschool Confession – My Homeschool Mistakes, Go Ahead and Make a Mistake: Homeschool Without Fear and Homeschooling – Beginnings are Usually Scary, Endings are Usually Sad, but It’s What’s In the Middle that Counts!.

Don’t give up the fight in touting the decisive ways we need to take a stand when it comes to homeschooling, but just know that the middle ground can not only be productive, but necessary many times in your journey.

What else do you take the middle ground on while homeschooling?

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

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45 Ways to Define Homeschool Curriculum – Is Your Definition Holding You Back?

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today, I am sharing 45 ways to define homeschool curriculum. Also, look at my page The Best Homeschool Curriculum by Grade Level for more tips.

The word curriculum has Latin roots and it means to “run a course.”

Instead of taking time to expand your definition of homeschool curriculum, it’s easy to run out and buy the first textbook that smells good (okay, I did that). Can you relate?

45 Ways to Define Homeschool Curriculum - Is Your Definition Holding You Back?

Not only am I hoping that it will help you to expand your definition of how to use your experiences in everyday life to teach your children, but I hope you will see how many of these things that you can easily and without much money put your hands-on.

Don’t get me wrong.

You have to have curriculum and it’s paid for somehow.

Whether you spend hours poring over free curriculum or you pay with your hard earned money, homeschool curriculum has a cost!

Looking beyond the cost of homeschool curriculum, I put this list together because I want you to focus more on the content or quality of your instruction.

Many one-room schoolhouses of the past had very little in the way of formal curriculum. Also, they had shorter school days.

What they did have was a strong work ethic and took time to build not only character, but teach kids life skills that would take them into adulthood.

Too, more than ever, we are booming with an abundance of techie devices and online learning, but have they really raised literacy levels?

Don’t let the overwhelming amount of curriculum that we have today, which tout high rigorous standards replace everyday experiences in our life.

Teaching our children how to think can’t be replaced by online learning.

So look at these 45 ways to define homeschool curriculum.

  1. View videos.
  2. Study art prints.
  3. Watch a documentary.
  4. Listen to CDs. Yes, they are still around and sometimes have the best lessons about a subject.
  5. Watch movies.

True ‘Classic’ Homeschool Curriculum

  1. Your life examples.
  2. Your life experiences.
  3. The life examples of others.
  4. The life experiences of others.
  5. Analyze primary resources.
  1. Play board games to learn about math, science, history and language arts.
  2. View online and print magazines.
  3. Use educational apps.
  4. Oral interviews with professionals, experts in specialty fields and persons with first-hand knowledge of current or old events. Think of an interview with a grandmother or grandfather or neighbor.
  5. Animal care.

Grab My Book on How to Homeschool

Homeschooling 31 Day Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers is a real eye-opener on homeschooling. It will alleviate a lot of the anxieties about getting started homeschooling.

Reading each chapter’s highlights will give you encouragement, knowledge, guidance, and peace of mind to homeschool with confidence. The best part is that you’ll be educating the person who loves your kids the most in this world--YOU! Armed with the knowledge to make better choices in curriculum will empower you to continue the path of home education. Unlike many books based on one family’s experience, Homeschooling 31 Day Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers is also based on Tina’s many years of mentoring hundreds and hundreds of new homeschoolers at live workshops.When you don’t know where to begin Homeschooling 31 Day Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers equips you to successfully homeschool your children.

  1. Gardening.
  2. Manipulatives.
  3. Learn about olld toys.
  4. Read any book like history, biographies or cook books.
  5. Your specific written plans about any topic.
  1. Watch and learn from reenactments.
  2. Memorization.
  3. Podcasts.
  4. Visit museums and attend museum classes.
  5. Listen and study music from the past and present.
  1. Learn and study musical instruments.
  2. Analyze old photos and new photos.
  3. Study a timeline.
  4. Review old and new advertisements.
  5. Attend plays.

How to Begin Homeschooling With Minimal Curriculum

  1. Attend a musical or ballet.
  2. Read old newspapers. (or review Old Wills and Deeds at the Courthouse. So cool.)
  3. Take nature walks and a trip to the beach.
  4. Nature collections.
  5. Learning about sculptures or statues.
  1. Old cemeteries not only showcase a period in history, but provide details about people from a certain time.
  2. Specialty workshops or group classes like cooking classes, CPR classes and babysitting classes.
  3. Read old documents in a courthouse. Did you know that most of the documents are free to the public? Read an old Will or an old Deed to learn about what people owned and how they lived their lives.
  4. Visit significant battle sites.
45 Ways to Define Homeschool Curriculum. Is it possible that you could be overlooking one or two of these possibilities. Grab them at Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus
  1. Visit first homes of Presidents.
  2. View historic buildings or homes in the old downtown part of your city.
  3. Visit an antique shop to learn about things used in agriculture and everyday life from times past.
  4. Visit an aquarium.
  5. Free online old school books.

More Homeschool Curriculum Tips

What else do you include as homeschool curriculum? Look at some of my other tips below.

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

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Homeschool Art (Why Video Based Teaching Rocks)

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Homeschool Art (Why Video Based Teaching Rocks) @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

I was given this product free from Atelier Homeschool Art and I was compensated for my time. However, paid for my time does not mean paid off.  ALL opinions are my own and for sure I will always tell you what is on my mind. When I do accept a product it’s because I’m giddy to tell you about it. Read my full disclosure here. Now on to the fun stuff!

Teaching art has always been a struggle for me, let alone teaching a teen. And I’m not against Tiny learning art from a book, but when you can have a professional art teacher come into your home at your convenience, I just couldn’t say no to trying Atelier Homeschool Art.

We received Atelier Online – Level 7 (ages 10-15). It is designed for ages 10-15, Level 7 and it is a full year of visual art instruction. Students will build and develop a foundation of skills by learning and working through the essential elements and principles of art including: line, color, space, shape, form, texture, pattern, balance and emphasis. Level 7 also includes art-history, media exploration, creative self-expression, cultural appreciation, right-brain drawing techniques, and much more.

It’s hard for me to call this a review because we just had so much fun and will continue with it into the summer. When you get a minute, look at my other posts Homeschool Art (Art Lessons From Home)  and Video Based Homeschool Art (No Teaching Involved) so you can see more pictures.

Each lesson varies in time from ten minutes up to twenty eight minutes and we tried to cram in as many as we could before I had to tell you about it today.

Look at the lessons we did and the concepts being taught.

  • Positive and Negative Designs: Space and Composition
  • People Contours: Contour,Drawing, Line
  • Tropical Birds: Color
  • Op Art: Art History and Technique
  • Greek Olympics and Art: Art History
  • Egyptian Art:Artist Appreciation and Cultural Appreciation

3 Advantages to Video-Based Art Lessons

ONE| The gem of this product is that it is video-based and that means more to me this year than it did before.

Now that I am down to homeschooling one kid, I have had to learn to teach in different ways.

Not only are the lessons video-based, but they are created so that they can be done completely independent. Each video lesson has 3 or 4 parts, which are materials, the lesson/s, students working and examples of student artwork.

In case your student gets lost in all the words or prefers to watch a video like Tiny does, then he simply makes a list of all the materials he needs for the upcoming lesson, does the lesson and can even see examples of student artwork to see the outcome.

I can’t say enough about that part of the art lessons for us.

It has been hard to impress on Tiny to let go of the product and enjoy the process. When he gets to see samples of student works, it made him feel comfortable with his creativity.

When you have a kid that expects perfection in everything he does, no matter how much you tout the fact that you want him to ‘let go’, I admit I was skeptical about him looking at other student’s work.

You know I am a big advocate of models when it comes to teaching subjects like writing or even math but I learned a lesson by Tiny seeing models or student artwork even when doing art lessons.

I had always thought of only the negative effects of comparing his work to others and not the model or ideas he could use from them. The examples of student artwork gave Tiny a concrete way of measuring his work to see that he was right on target.

Instead of stifling his creativity, looking ahead at student samples of artwork ignited it. Allowing himself to ‘let go’, Tiny was able to gauge his own progress, but add his own flair to each art piece.

TWO| For me, the teacher in me was so happy that this curriculum was organized and detailed.

Everything needed to do the art lesson is contained right there in the lesson.

For example, the student hand outs are included as downloads along with the lesson plan. In addition, there is a parents manual, a supply list, helpful tips about art elements and principles and a glossary of terms.

Everything the non-loving art teacher (me) needs to feel empowered. After a few lessons, I could easily turn the lesson over to Tiny.

THREE| Did I mention that I could watch the lessons on my laptop while Tiny did them on his iPad?

Whether you live overseas like I did, travel or are limited on room, you’ll love the fact that the lessons are completely mobile.

Too, I had a problem the first time I downloaded the product, so I emailed them. The customer service was super fast in getting back to me and helping me to find what was not working.

Homeschool Art (No Teaching Involved)

Though we really lapped up these art lessons we did have a rocky start when Tiny noticed right away the classroom setting. Tiny has never been to public or private school and at first didn’t connect with the classroom setting.

He has taken other homeschool classes where the ages were mixed and obviously feels more comfortable in that setting.

However, because he has never been exposed to a classroom setting, I know that whether he takes a workshop for his career or college, he will need to be familiar with a classroom setting.

That part wasn’t a deal breaker for us but I had to let him go slower in the beginning as he got use to it.

However, if you have a kid coming from a public or private school setting, he may not even blink an eye at that setting.

Also, I want you to know that this is a pricey curriculum or so it seems at first glance. The cost for this level is 140.00, but it is for a family subscription and it is for 3 years.

If you have three kids like me then you would divide that cost of 140.00 by three, which is about $47.00 for the year. Then there are twenty lessons. Twenty lessons divided by 47.00 is about $2.35 for each child for each lesson.

Comparing curriculum is sometimes not easy to do, but comparing actual costs should be.

Looking at the actual cost per child, this curriculum is a super deal for all the lessons, downloads and tips.

I think your kids will love doing art this way and I think you’ll love turning the teaching reins over to somebody else.

Pssst! No one has to know if you do the lessons right alongside your kids because it is a family subscription.

Look at these other facts that you don’t want to miss.

updated products facts at a glance

Product Name: Atelier Online – Level 7 (ages 10-15) Levels 1 through 8 are available, which are from ages 4 to 16.
Website: Atelier Homeschool Art
Try it for Free: Click here for free sample lessons.
About the product: All Atelier art lessons are presented on video, and reinforced by lesson plans. Not only are the videos a rich source of creative ideas and inspiration, it also clarifies the objectives, materials, techniques and procedures of each lesson. Abundant instructional coverage, as well as that of students in a virtual art class performing the lesson and displaying their finished artwork, consistently produces exceptional student results and learning, regardless of the art background of the parent-teacher.
Formats: This program is not only available online, but the same materials can be purchased in dvd format too.
Type of product: Online video-based.
Art Supply Kits: We had many of these art materials, but did have to purchase some of them. If you’re like me and want things easily laid out, then you may like the Atelier Art Supply Kit which includes approximately 80% of the supplies needed for a complete level.
Price: 140.00 for each grade level.

 Hugs and love ya,

Signature T