Whether you’re just getting started with your homeschool year or in the middle of it, preparation is key. Of course, preparing for they year is important – what curricula are you going to use? What field trips would you like to take? Will you take any breaks? Although all of this is important (very important) sometimes we forget the day-to-day tasks.
When you have young children, time is something that can make or break your day. Young children have short attention spans, so if you still have to print or copy worksheets, laminate, look for supplies, etc. you’re losing that attention very quickly! Believe me, I know! What starts as excitement quickly escalates to boredom, which results in “I don’t want to do it.”
Although it’s possible to reign them back in with something interesting and fun, I have found it’s much easier to make sure I have everything ready for each day. This means more than just knowing what lessons we’ll do that day, but also means knowing what I need to print or copy and what supplies we will be using for the day. I get it all ready the night before, so we’re ready to go!
My personal list includes:
- Printing and/or Copying worksheets needed for the day
- Making sure we have sharpened pencils
- Laminating any needed sheets
- Checking for any additional materials needed and making sure they’re nearby
- Make sure all books, workbooks, etc. we need are easily accessible
- Make sure all log-in information is saved or available for websites
The additional materials vary from crayons, glue, art supplies, to science supplies, and other random objects for various hands-on curricula. When I was first starting out, it was all this “extra stuff” I didn’t have ready. What made it worse, is sometimes I didn’t even have what I needed! Yeah, embarrassing, but I learned!
I also learned it’s a great idea to keep things organized using whatever method you prefer. I use checklists and tables in Evernote, but I also love the various planners from Schoolhouse Teachers because they can be printed out if you are the “like to have physical paper” type or type within the PDF (available for much of the planners).
It has been crazy lately (seriously, I didn’t have internet for over a week, which is crazy!), but I plan to share the form I made as well, so check back because I will attach it to this post! Also, if you would like to see how I set up the information in Evernote, I would be happy to make a public sheet you can copy! Just let me know!
