homeschoolplanner

How a Homeschool Planning Calendar is Superior to a Regular Calendar

June 24, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Once you learn the differences between a homeschool planning calendar and regular calendar there is no going back. When creating my Homeschool Planner, my planning calendar is one of the first things I print.

It’s ready way before my year starts or I print my planner.

What exactly is a planning calendar?

How a Homeschool Planning Calendar is Superior to a Regular Calendar

It is a calendar which communicates the dates you and your children will count as official school days; it’s a visual of which dates you plan to have off during the year.

In addition, your family can see your in-teacher dates, (yes I have them) vacation times, and end of the school year date. Noting winter breaks and summer breaks are equally important.

Additionally, if you live in a state where you have record keeping, you notate reporting periods. If you must report to a proctor, you add report card dates.

Planning Your Year Homeschool

As you can see, it’s VERY different than just a regular calendar. A regular calendar is not for planning, it’s just for reference.

By using a schedule you are getting these benefits:

freedom because you see a plan for how to fit in learning
setting the pace of the year to suit your family
planning for rest periods which suit your family
keeping family time a priority by planning vacations
making time for you the teacher by shading in your workdays
seeing a visual of the year keeps your goals realistic and within reach

From this list, you see that making school fit you and your family is what is important.

Although some feel that planning like this is confining, they miss the point.

It has quite the opposite effect. Freedom comes from controlling what you can and letting go when you can’t.

After all, it’s not the schedule or plan that is a mistake. It’s the part where some think a schedule can’t be changed or moved around.

There is no doubt about it — this quote may be overused and I whole heartedly agree. It’s timeless for a reason.

“If You Fail to Plan, You Are Planning to Fail” — Benjamin Franklin

It’s that simple. There are many reasons that I’ve homeschooled, worked, and been able to run a site/ blog.

The best one is no secret and that is I planned every year.

Everything has a place. Oh, don’t think by any stretch that I maintained everything in stone. I didn’t and still don’t. I have many days where I’m frazzled, but I have way more where I’m fulfilled.

However, I never allowed a planning schedule to make me feel like I was hemmed in.

Tracking Your Homeschool Year

Next, there is another feature on the homeschool schedule which I add and is important. The feature is a part to help you track your days and weeks you homeschool.

Even if you don’t need to record keep, tracking days and weeks is an extremely visual way to track your success.

Hear my heart when I say you can be constantly barraged either by self-doubt or from others if you’re doing enough. That was my initial mindset when I started creating these forms more than 10 years ago.

How to Plan Your Homeschool Year

Little did I know the feature of tracking days and weeks would keep me positive. You don’t worry if you’re doing enough because you see your progress daily and weekly.

So, look exactly at how I planned and use the form every year. I’m using one of my schedules from a previous year.

First, look at how my form is set up. By the way, after I update it each year, I keep the updated version at Step 5a. Choose Unique Forms JUST for You.

Further, here are the flexible ways you can use it:

Because there are 12 months, you can begin and end with the months you want. If you don’t school year-round, no problem. Again, just pick up at the month you’re starting and plan to when you want stop. The point is the form is very flexible.
After the month where you kept track (look at picture below) of the days you homeschooled, note them on the line provided. Add the days as you go along so you have the total at the end.
Use the key at the bottom of the form to use different color highlighters or symbols for dates you want to track.
In addition, highlight holidays you celebrate. Everyone does not celebrate the same holidays, so I don’t include U.S. holidays. The form is there for you to note the important days to your family.

Now, look below at how my hardworking and highly useful no fluff schedule works.

Notice these 5 important points in how to use it.

Use one color to shade or outline the days you plan to school.
Then use another to plan the days you won’t school.
Also circle or add in teacher days for you. I didn’t include any here because I wanted to focus on showing you how to track school days.
Count the days cumulatively. This way you know EXACTLY where you are at in your school year. For example, 180 days is a typical school year. Some schools follow 130 or 160. Knowing how many days you school in a 12-month period is empowering.
Likewise, seeing my flex days or days not planned shows me how much time I have to move around.

Also, if you’ll notice on my form, I took off almost the whole month of April. Here in Texas, it’s plain insane to try to do too much during the hot summer months.

More Homeschooling Year Around Tips

Instead, we enjoy the cooler days of spring and finish up my year in the summer; I still have time in June to flex with.

Don’t homeschool another year without this awesome form.

Go grab the Planning Schedule for the CURRENT School Year. Option 3

What do you think? Can you use this form?

Look at these other planning topics:

Also check out my Planner page on my Amazon Shop for gorgeous accessory options.
3 Beautiful and Free Homeschool Planner Covers
How to Choose the Perfect Homeschool Planner for Multiple Students
31 Popular and Free Homeschool Planner Printables
Homeschool Weekly Planner vs Homeschool Daily Planner: Which Is Really Better?
A Unique Flexible and Beautiful Preschool Homeschool Planner
How to Create A Homeschool Lesson Plan in 7 Easy Steps

How to Create A Homeschool Lesson Plan in 7 Easy Steps

June 23, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Learning how to create a homeschool lesson plan goes hand in hand with choosing a homeschool planner. Besides, how to plan homeschool lessons gives you a strong edge over other homeschoolers who may not take time to learn.

Too, homeschooling means customizing the learning experience.

Learning how to create lesson plan can mean the difference between whining or winning for your kids.

So, whether you create multiple individualized lesson plans or you create only one you’ll be glad you have this skill set.

How to Create A Homeschool Lesson Plan in 7 Easy Steps

Additionally, how to make homeschool lesson plans can become drudgery. I want you to avoid that while teaching you how to quickly create a lesson plan.

7 Easy Steps to Create a Homeschool Lesson Plan

Look at this example below; I’m using this book we love Air is Not Oxygen.

I’m using it as an example because although it has less pages than other curriculum, it’s full of hands-on ideas.

I want to show you how to incorporate them into your lesson planning.

Study each step as I have thoughts and questions which you need to ask yourself.

It is an easy way to learn the beginnings of lesson planning.

Take a look at these 7 easy steps in how to create a homeschool lesson plan.

Step 1. Determine the total days in your school year or the time period you’ll be using the curriculum.

Note: Typical days in a school year are 180. I will use that number too.

This first step is important because it aligns with your scheduled year.

Even if you use laid out curriculum, it may only have 130 or 160 lesson plans or days.

If you’re adding the resource you’re lesson planning for as a supplement, you’ll want to be finished the same time as the rest of your curriculum.

Then, one last more heads up and that is to don’t forget your local law. If they determine the number of days you homeschool, that is your starting point here in Step 1.

Step 2. Decide how to divide the resource.

Step 2 is deciding how to divide your resource.

I find dividing by chapters is one way. And dividing it by pages is even easier. My book has 124 pages. I’m using the pages since it will give me the time I need each day.

So, one question you need to ask yourself here is how many days does the curriculum cover.

Because we had not really done a lot of science the year before I used Air is Not Oxygen, I knew we wanted to do something each day.

Additionally, I know the lessons would not be long.

Step 3. Weed out chapters/content that you don’t want to cover.

In this next step, this shows the true strength of an individualized lesson plan.

Take time to weed out content which your children already know or have covered.

Also, I look at my resource closely to be sure the minimal amount of review is included.

This way, I can cover exactly what interests my children or cover what is my goal.

Step 4. Determine the content that you will cover, skim, reduce, or take longer on.

Now that you’ve deleted lessons, reviews, or test that you don’t want to include you have a different total number.

However, this may not your final number of lessons. Why? Because like my resource I’m using, it has 2 bonus hands-on activity for every concept I was introducing.

Time to include both activities needs to be added. Right away I can tell that at least 2 days per page is the pace I needed.

This gives us time to do a quick oral lesson and include both hands-on activities or choose one. But the pace is exactly what my children needed that year.

Step 5. Do simple math. Divide, multiple, and regroup to get your final number of lessons.

Finally, here at Step 5 you need to do your first simple division to give you an idea of your pace.

For instance, my resource has 124 pages. And I know I want at least two days per lesson.

I can plan several ways. First, I can double the pages in my resource so my pages doubled are 248.

Remember, I said I was following a 180 day. Right away, I can see that 2 days per 1 lesson won’t work.

So my solution at this point is to start with my plan of 2 days per 1 lesson even though I know my year will run out before my lessons – maybe.

Why? Because I know some lessons we may skip although I couldn’t find any right now. I just won’t know that until I jump in.

Moreover, some lessons we may do 2 for 1 day. It will probably even out through the year.

You may ask, “Why Do the Math?” Because math doesn’t lie. And it’s not fluff meaning you get a realistic view of what you can actually cover.

So, even if it’s easy to figure out how many pages you need to cover, still go through this process. Making mental picture of this process in your mind keeps it cemented there the whole year.

Step 6. Ask: Do You Want to Include Special Projects or Testing?

Next, this is the step where you want to include additional days for special projects.

Too, testing may be required in your state. You need to plan in extra days for those tests.

Step 7. Glance over the material to determine which parts can be covered orally.

In conclusion, keep in mind many lesson plans can be covered orally. They don’t all have to be reduced to writing.

This is a good way to cover material when your child needs to work on recall. Also, if your children are working on recall, oral lessons are fantastic.

Look at these other homeschool planner products that I know you’ll love!

What do you think, does this give you a great start to making an easy lesson plan?

Look at these other homeschool planner posts:

A Unique Flexible and Beautiful Preschool Homeschool Planner

June 22, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

This unique flexible and beautiful preschool homeschool planner is the perfect homeschool planner to use for early learners. While creating this 47-page early learner planner I included flexible planning pages.

Forms like 21 thematic planning pages, a year at a glance page, and 12 months of planning your theme are a few included.

Adding in an editable lesson planning template and 4 colorful attendance sheets helps you to easily meet record keeping guidelines if necessary.

Early Learner Homeschool Planner

In addition, while I focused on creating this planner for preschool age, I know the early learning stage spans quite a few years.

So, the BEST part of this planner is that it can take you from the preschool years to first grade because of the flexible planning pages included.

Too, if all your kids are first grade and under, this is the almost perfect planner for you.

A Unique Flexible and Beautiful Preschool Homeschool Planner

In addition, creating this beautiful and useful planner, I also guide you how to plan.

Guiding you how to plan is very important to me; I want you to have less stress while knowing you’re creating a strong foundation.

Using my over 20+ years of experience, I know what is helpful and what is not for the early years.

Planning for the Early Years

First, look at what I included as being foundational in a planner for your little learners.

2 beautiful and colorful covers
an inside editable title page to personalize your planner
a pre-homeschool year planning page because planning begins before your year does
a form for adding books for your budding reader
an undated year at a glance two page spread for adding in important concepts
12 months January to December for you to add your themes for each week of the month
1 two page spread editable lesson planning template.
21 themed pages to plan thematic unit studies
1 editable page for themes to add your own ideas
4 different color editable attendance records if record keeping is necessary

Next, look at 3 tips in how best to use this very flexible planner.

The thematic pages can be used for any grade from preschool to first grade. While I planned many themes, I never had time to teach all I planned. Keeping your themes all in one planner allows you to use them again for kindergarten and first grade.
Also, the 12 months of planning theme pages are not editable for a reason. At any age and especially the early years, learning is based on interests. Loosely planning or having a framework is how you want to plan. You need a direction. However, most of my planning occurred spontaneously when my children showed interest in topics. I don’t want to encourage the mindset some homeschoolers have thinking your whole year has to be planned all in detail. It should not be. You homeschool to move at your child’s pace not a standard.
If you have a kindergartener or first grade, then use the editable lesson planning template. Otherwise, the thematic pages are just what you need for teaching preschool. This is how you use your planner all the way to first grade or with multiple children if they’re all first grade and under.

Thematic Planning Pages

Equally important to me as I mentioned earlier is helping you plan your preschool years — the right way

There is much hype in the educational world about pushing children earlier and earlier to learn formally.

I do not hail to that mindset because I’ve seen the harm of pushing a child too early to learn.

It normally backfires because an educator is going against the natural development of a child.

Children learn best through play learning. If you choose to include worksheets use them minimally.

Why? Because children learn best through hands-on using their senses and imagination. You are not wasting your time or theirs when you let a child lead in what they want to play learn.

To encourage you to follow your child’s natural love for learning, the following 21 themed pages are included in the preschool planner so you can plan your themes.

Also, where possible if I have a unit study or activity here, I linked the topic to one of mine to get you started.

Farm
Zoo
Frogs
Rainforest
Butterflies
Pond Life
Flowers
Dinosaurs
Fairy Tales
Space
Earth

Eric Carle
Winter Animals
Fruits & Vegetables
Bugs and Insects
Ocean
Fall
About Me
Weather
Castles & Dragons
Rocks

By giving you a suggestion for your topic, I want to encourage you to become an excellent home educator.

Year-Round Planner

Another feature is that you can use it for year-round homeschooling.

From the beginning, do not think like public-school meaning that learning only takes place on a public school schedule. Do not be stressed thinking homeschool preschool should start in August on your child’s fourth birthday.

Learning takes place gradually and that is why my planner is titled Early Learner Homeschool Planner. Your child learns 24/7 and 365 days.

All my forms encourage using a 12-month cycle to track your early learner’s progress.

Look at my other forms here that you can add to this planner for preschoolers to first grade.

This super helpful reading aloud form helps you track how much your children are REALLY learning by the time you spend reading to them.
If you’re in a state which requires record keeping even with little learner, this Daily Tracking Homeschool Core & Elective Subjects Form will help you meet record keeping guidelines.
Finally, grab these free and fun Homeschool Colorful Reading Journal to Motivate Kids.

Furthermore, a planner is as good as the bling.

Okay, well it may not be a necessary part of your planner, but it sure makes the day better to add glam.

For example, I love this cute wire name paper clip for holding my place in the planner.

Preschool Lesson Planner to First Grade Planner

Finally, learning how to use your planner for your children from the preschool years to first grade is important. They are the foundational years; plan with hands-on ideas, getting outside to learn through nature, and by games.

Reading aloud is the single best things you can do for your early learner.

Grab this gorgeous planner to help you plan for the first-time little learners!

TOS

Important: READ THIS FIRST.
Before you email me asking where your download link is or tell me that it is not working, read this to ensure that you get your pretties timely and that you don’t pay for something and not get it.

• All my products are digital. You will not receive a physical product for anything in my store. A digital physical year calendar does not mean a physical product or calendar

.• Downloads are INSTANT. When you pay, you will receive an email with a download link INSTANTLY. Depending on your internet connection, the email could be just 30 seconds or so, or a bit longer. The point is it will be soon, not a week later, etc.

• The email with the download link will go to the email you used for paypal. If you used your husband’s paypal, your downloads will go to that email. Please check that email and your spam before emailing me telling me you can’t find it.
• Please put my email tina @ tinasdynamichomeschoolplus dot com (of course substitute the right symbol for dot) in your address/contact list so that your product does not go to spam.

MY GUARANTEE: To treat you like I want to be treated which means I know at times technical problems may cause glitches, so I will do everything possible to make your experience here pleasant. If you have problems getting your download OR have a question email me my web based email: tinahomeschools at gmail dot com.

Beautiful and Flexible Early Learner Homeschool Planner
$7.25 Add to cart

Homeschool Weekly Planner vs Homeschool Daily Planner: Which Is Really Better?

June 21, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Whether a homeschool weekly planner or a homeschool daily planner is best for you depends on your circumstances. Building a perfect homeschool planner doesn’t have to take a lot of time either.

Today, I’m sharing the pros and cons of choosing a homeschool weekly planner vs a homeschool daily planner. They both have slight advantages and things you’ll want to consider. I’m pointing out these subtle differences and sharing which layout I prefer.

Besides, whether you choose a weekly or daily planner you’ve already set yourself up for success.

You set yourself up for success because you’re managing your time from the start more efficiently.

And managing your time with any planner is better than just leaving priorities to chance or a whim.

3 Benefits of Using a Homeschool Paper Planner

Homeschool Weekly Planner vs Homeschool Daily Planner: Which Is Really Better?

Take a look at 3 more benefits of using a homeschool paper planner.

1. Handwriting engages the hand brain connection.

As educators, we know the benefits of the hand and brain connection for our children.

However, the positive effects of helping us to recall is no less for us as parents.

2. Your creativity is boosted.

Then, when I write down my lesson plans or jot ideas, I’ve found that my thoughts linger.

Creativity flows because handwriting takes longer. I’ve heard it said that handwriting can be calming; I’ve found this true for me too.

And if you love the crafty creative side of a planner like adding stickers, pictures and other decorative items, your planner rocks.

3. As I write, my focus is sharper and does not become distracted by flashing lights on an app or device.

In other words, my paper homeschool planner becomes a unique tool which reflects my overflowing thoughts and unique writing style.

As you can see, whichever choice you make, your homeschool printable planner becomes a hard-working tool.

Pros of a Weekly Homeschool Planner

Let’s jump into some of the advantages of the weekly homeschool planner.

One of the best things about a weekly planner is that you get a bird’s eye-view of your week.

Look at my Editable Weekly General Planning Page and 3 reasons why you may want to use it.

This form can be used in many ways:

For example, you don’t need a lot of room to write when you have younger kids. You just need a framework to follow your child’s interest
In addition, when teens are doing more of their own planning, you need a framework for them. Most teens want full control over their schedule. A weekly glance page keeps you on the same page with your teen because you jot down clear guidelines. But the best part is that a teen can choose any way to accomplish his goals and won’t feel hemmed in.
If you’re a big picture first person, then you may want to use the weekly planner.

Additionally, use a weekly planner if you want a thinner planner.

If you’re planning generally and don’t need detailed lists or lesson plans, you may find the weekly planner is perfect for you.

In my experience I find that families who only have one child do not want a lot of room to write. So, a weekly planner may be the perfect fit their family.

Cons of a Homeschool Weekly Planner

Next, one of the biggest cons for me of a weekly planner page is that there is not much room to write.

Although being streamlined appeals to me on some level, the lack of room to write is a huge turn off for me.

Especially when you have multiple children, it’s hard to jot down exactly what my objective is for each day.

And because my planner becomes an expression of my thoughts and goals for my kids, room to write lesson plans, my musings, and ideas for future studies are important to me.

Pros of a Homeschool Daily Planner

Next, look at the advantages of a daily homeschool planner.

The advantage I love the most and the reason I use a daily planner over a weekly planner is that there is a lot of room to write.

Below, look at one of my many editable lesson planning pages. This one is from my Colorful Undated Dynamic Daily Homeschool Planner.

Because each day is a two-page spread and I have many editable boxes, your daily lesson planning pages can be formatted to suit your planning style. Especially if you have a large family, this option may be better for you.

I have some families who use one side of the page for half their children and the other side for the other half. This way they can see what all their kids are doing each day.

Another way to use this type of page is more of a traditionally way. Use the left-hand side of the page for student’s names and fill in the subjects covered from left to right.

Compared to the weekly planner, daily planners have specific pages for specific tasks.

For instance, look at these various and specific pages to pair in your homeschool daily planner. These are just a sampling of the over 400 pages I have here on my site Tina’s Dynamic Homeschool Plus.

Cons of a Daily Homeschool Planner

Finally, look at the cons of a daily homeschool planner.

One of the biggest drawbacks can be a large planner. If you print front and back which is what I suggest on my 7 Step DIY Homeschool Planner this greatly reduces the size of your final planner.

One more drawback for you may be that you don’t need as much detail as the pages provide. If that is the case, a homeschool weekly planner may be a better fit.

Don’t fret if you choose the wrong type of planner in the beginning. Switching and finding your perfect set up is part of the homeschooling journey.

Look at these other homeschool planner products that I know you’ll love!

Tell me, which type of planner do you prefer — a weekly or daily homeschool planner?

For more ideas on homeschool planners, look at these posts:

31 Popular and Free Homeschool Planner Printables

June 20, 2022 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

If you’re looking for free homeschool planner printables or a complete homeschool planner, you’re sure to find one here.

A DIY planner consists of many sections like a front cover, back cover, lesson planning pages, attendance forms, evaluation forms, grading forms, calendars, and schedules.

However, what makes your planner unique are the various printables you use.

31 Popular and Free Homeschool Planner Printables

Forms which are not only beautiful but easy to use helps to keep your day organized.

So, look at the sections below for a hardworking planner.

front and back covers
inside pages
numerous lesson planning pages
attendances pages
evaluation pages
grading scales
high school forms
teacher and student schedules
field trip forms and

MANY more forms to make it perfect.

Why Coil Bind Makes the BEST Binder

Also, because I believe your planner is best when homemade, you need to know why coil bind works best.

One of the best reasons to use coil is that your planner lays flat.

When writing you want the planner to be as flat as possible.

I see some pictures with notebooks and while I love notebooks, they don’t even make it in my top choices.

Why? There are three huge reasons I don’t like or use notebooks.

First, the O rings get in the way of writing.
Second, the planner cannot bend back. That is important if you print only a semester planner and want to use part of the paper for a pad to write on.
Third is that a notebook binder encourages you to keep organizing.

Organizing is about accepting a system and making it work. It’s not about constant change through the year and never using your planner. Adding or deleting pages adds to the stress. Using what you’ve created and making it work albeit not perfect is how organized people roll.

In addition, coil uses very little space on the margin for the coil to go through.

Did I mention how many different colors coils come in?

Some colors are beautiful, but most office supplies business will have basic white or transparent which are always my top choices.