The kids are back in school, and more are returning on Tuesday. We’re the Tuesday batch, with two precious days of summer vacation to go. Of course, we will not be heading to school per se. Our school is at home and at a local part time alternate program that is based on play and your child’s interests.
However, this does not mean that homeschoolers have no back to school flurry of activity. If you use curriculum, there is curriculum to ponder and buy and read. There are math manipulatives to stock up on and craft supplies to buy. Classes begin in September too, if you’re involved in extracurricular activities. Yes, September is a beginning of sorts, and it’s hard to keep my head on straight. How can you ensure that your head remains securely fastened during this whirlwind of fall activity?
Plan during early summer. I’ve been planning our fall for a while now. In the middle of July, I was creating a schedule of fall activities, asking about extracurricular activities, and planning, planning, planning. Now I simply need to print out our plans, and we’re done. No pulling a homeschooling all-nighter. I also ordered curriculum and manipulative materials early and this allowed me to find good prices or order off places like Ebay.
Make a home schooling space. I have a large closet, two shelves of which are dedicated to supplies that we will use this year. Of course, many of the supplies may simply become part of the house, but I want some of them to be special surprises. Some of the materials are curriculum books as well.
Keep a boilerplate list. This is a good way to eliminate mental clutter. In addition to creating a monthly, weekly and daily schedule, you’ll have interests and unit ideas that come up over the year. You don’t need to do all of them at once. Create a list of ideas for future projects and keep it somewhere where you can review it upon occasion.
How do you stay organized during the homeschooling year?
Image courtesy of jepethe at Stock Exchange.