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domchurch3
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| Posted: April 22 2008 at 9:05pm | IP Logged
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It's that time of year again when I'm needing to start thinking about my plans for next year. Everything I read sounds like the best way of doing things. I'm getting everything jumbled in my head. I WANT to do EVERYTHING and I know that's not possible. How do you go about planning for the next year to select materials?
Those of you with young ones who like hands-on activities, how do you plan these out?
Those of you who are on top of the liturgical year, how do you plan these things to make sure that the day does not pass you by?
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10 Bright Stars
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| Posted: April 22 2008 at 9:11pm | IP Logged
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Great questions. Can't wait to hear the answers!  I am realizing that I cannot do IT ALL and do it all ...well. So, you have to prioritize. Everything sounds so neat, but just as we can't do everything in a day, we cannot teach everything in a year and balance it with home life. So, what are the BIG things you want to teach? Write them down first. (Probably the basics and religion of course.) Then, what are the cool things you want to teach? Write them down, but limit yourself to just doing a few well, and maybe breaking them up into different "sections" of the year. Focus on neat history things for a portion of the year, and then move on to a more in depth focus on science. You can do both throughout the year, but shift your focus to one at a deeper level. Just my initial thoughts, since this is what I am going to try to do this year.
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Kim married to Bob (22y)
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William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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Mary K
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| Posted: April 22 2008 at 9:53pm | IP Logged
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Hi,
We're doing focus studies. Fall was history, winter was science, spring is geography and summer will be artists and composers. I also took a hint from the local ps schools and have A-E days. On each day we focus on one subject and the unit study. For example, B is math day so we focus on math (books, games, cooking, manipulatives, etc.)and on our geography study. That way, I don't worry about missing a subject each week, and don't go too insane with our busy often out of the house schedule!!
We start each Monday with a different letter, so the schedule can be varied and we don't end up doing field trip day only on Fridays.
God bless,
Mary-NY
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At_His_Feet
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 1:18am | IP Logged
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I could have written your post!
I too, am drawn to many of the curriculums I read about. I have come to the conclusion that reading it all is the problem! After 2 and a bit years I'm learning to not worry that I'm missing something vital. I'm trying to stick to the things that I know work!
For example, I spent about 4-5 months last year planning the perfect curriculum and timetable. I had never been very good at sticking to a timetable because I would always change something, so I wanted to plan ahead and know that it would be just right, and that I would be able to stick to it.
I'm now quite sure that the Lord was having a quiet chuckle at my attempts to control everything, so he threw me a curved ball two weeks into the year to get me to loosen up! (that's my light hearted take on it anyway!) I was forced to abandon my perfect plans! I slashed and burned all the extras as we deal with a family challenge.
I really think that we assume that if we don't cover science or history or latin etc, to a certain level that we have failed our children and our high expections. How much science would a primary school age child cover anyway!? I think we often underestimate how much a child will take in by "just" reading to them and being with them in life as it happens.
So, my advise would be to do the basics well, and add in other subjects where you can.
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Tricia
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Sarah M
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 1:32am | IP Logged
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At_His_Feet wrote:
| I'm now quite sure that the Lord was having a quiet chuckle at my attempts to control everything, |
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Oh my- I'm pretty sure he's having an all-out-laugh at my current attempts to control everything... just had to let you know that your perspective lightened my load today. Thanks. 
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Maryan
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 7:04am | IP Logged
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My feeling is that I aim high and include everything... because I'm bound to drop something. So then I don't feel bad if I end up not following my grandiose plan -- I don't feel bad if I drop History and Geography...
Personally, I plan the liturgical year stuff first. I plan my calendar, our reading, our poetry memorization, etc. around the seasons of the Church. Then I fill in with everything else once that is set.
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Maryan
Mom to 6 boys & 1 girl: JP('01), B ('03), M('05), L('06), Ph ('08), M ('10), James born 5/1/12
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domchurch3
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 7:10pm | IP Logged
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When you say you plan your reading, poetry memorization etc around the Church, does that mean your reading and poetry is religious or that all other subjects like Geography and History are centered around the Faith?
For next year I would like to make sure that our Faith comes first. This year it seemed that we would drop that first before say, Sonlight's Core B read-alouds and I want to prevent that from happening again. It makes sense to plan faith formation first. Even with the homeschool budget I found myself out of money to purchase all the religious faith formation materials, such as Moira's albums because of purchasing a whole core with Sonlight (some of which I ended swapping on paperbackswap or they are books that we only read once so we could have just checked them out).
At His Feet: I can totally relate to your experience. We knew when our babe was a wee one that we would give homeschooling a try. From the time I was up nursing at all hours of the night I read up on all the different homeschool philosophies. I was really STUCK on Well-Trained Mind but as the time drew near that she was actually going to be school-aged I worried that I would not be capable of being her teacher. Long story short, I worried so much and so long over it that I ended up getting burnt out physically, mentally and emotionally the week before we were scheduled to start Sonlight's Core B. In fact, thinking of homeschooling her, something I had been so excited to do for so long, made my stomach turn!  I had to learn and figure out that which was most important and do that. I figured just snuggling and do the Read-Alouds were enough. Eventually, as my mind and strength returned I incorporated other things. So the lessons I learned could be summed up in one short sentence:
In order to LIVE for the Lord you must RELY on the Lord.
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TracyQ
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 7:43pm | IP Logged
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I pray, pray, pray, and then try to stay quiet enough to hear the Holy Spirit's leading.
When I talk too much, I tend not to hear Him, to control it all myself, and then end up extremely frustrated, and put the blame on something other than where it should be..... ME! 
When I stay quiet, and listen, and pray to stay satisfied with what He's led us to use,then I hear Him, I obey, and we end up with a MUCH better year!
We're in our 13th year....I'd say I'm a very slow learner.
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Tracy Q.
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 homeschooling in 15th year in Buffalo, NY
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Erin
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 7:50pm | IP Logged
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At present I am in the midst of preparing for our second term of the year. I am having a serious look at what isn't working, or more importantly our weak areas. Why are they weak, why am I not getting to those subjects that I really want to but aren't.
I'm coming to a couple of conclusions, in some cases it is simply a case of truly lacking the resources, for example I asked myself 'why do I never do art appreciation? Despite a desire to do so' I realised I do not have the correct resource that I needed, so I have just ordered a book to fill that gap.
Our read alouds have not happened for a couple of years  'so why?' The time frame I allocated them to was unrealistic to my energy level, I really won't get to it in the afternoon or at night so we are starting half an hour earlier in the morning so I could move it to morning.
Geography is another weak area, I need to incorporate it more into our history area and just accept my limitations.
Maryan wrote:
| Personally, I plan the liturgical year stuff first. I plan my calendar, our reading, our poetry memorization, etc. around the seasons of the Church. Then I fill in with everything else once that is set. |
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Maryan, I've just moved our Faith time to first thing in the morning but I tend to plan history first and then whatever after, this is food for thought.
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ALmom
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 8:16pm | IP Logged
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I like to have detailed plans so maybe I am not the type that will help you - but yes, you cannot do everything and my detailed plans keep me from derailing our school by trying to do too much and adding on and on as neat stuff comes along. We still change and swap through the year but I know that if we add, something else has to be dropped and I spend less time knee jerking and more time judiciously deciding what can go and what cannot. My plans are intentionally such that it is something each child has looked at and agrees they can do easily in a day - keeps us from becoming workaholics and yet makes sure we do cover essentials.
I like putting one date on the top of each piece of paper (each page is one day of the school). I generally know which days of the year will be "official" school days so this isn't hard and I'm looking at a church calendar when I do this so I don't forget about Easter or something crazy like that. Then with one page per date, I take a calendar and note the feast day. Sometimes, we may only draw attention to the Saint of the day and sometimes we may do more. Sometimes we still forget - but we have a better chance of remembering if the note is right there on the plan - and I usually put a note on the date of the feast and several days before as a reminder to research or gather materials.
Also, if we are studying something in other subjects, I can adjust the approximate sequence so that we are likely to do the neat Guadalupe craft we planned for history approximately when we are preparing for the feast. It also means, I've looked ahead and know when advent and lent start so that I can drop our usual sequence in religion to do our traditional preparations, etc. during these seasons - and give myself enough time in the plans to introduce some things about the seasons. It also means I don't accidently schedule ourselves in holy week or have heavy school or something crazy like that during holy week. It allows us to naturally flow between learning about our faith and living our faith. (Obviously we try to live our faith everyday and we don't ever completely drop learning about our faith, but we focus more directly on one or the other during certain seasons. During the focus on practice, we are reviewing or doing informal learning about the faith while letting previous knowledge jell through trying to apply it a bit more.
As far as academic planning, I simply cannot do a grand job in all disciplines every year with 6 children. We decide on a general science and history sequence - mostly directed by the oldest but taking into account the needs/interests of the younger crowd as well. I look at each child and really reflect on one or two things that are strengths that are such strong interest to them that I can safely let them fly without fear of total neglect and one or two areas of critical need that will roadblock them if they don't tackle this. My teaching time will be focused on the roadblock areas for those children. The other areas, I give more leeway to the children or use some workbooks to cover basics depending on the inclinations of the child and the subject area - (grammar, spelling, math are pretty easy workbook areas; history and science not likely to help us). I also know why each thing is in my plan - ie we are doing numerous whatever to try to jumpstart writing. However, if dc gets sidetracked in science, I can certainly substitute writing assignments through the year based on opportunities or interests that arise - my goal is writing; I don't care what we are writing about. Now, if my goal is being able to discern or infer from a story and show me this ability, we might not drop a novel for a science paper - but we certainly could cut the time by oral discussion and then do something. KWIM.
I do things the way I do because I am notorious at getting sidetracked or forgetting in 5 minutes what it was I wanted to discuss or what our ideas were - and some of my dc are the same. A well spelled out plan frees us immensely to do whatever we need to do - even deviate from the plan. It just keeps us from being perpetually sidetracked and yet not slaves to anyones curriculum - they are our plans after all and we can change them as we see fit!
Another assessment is the overally view. Is there some area that is consistently and always neglected every single year. Science has been our glaring area. My dh and I spent a lot of time pondering why this subject was so hard for me to do - and realized I don't have basic knowledge myself and the children and I always hit a roadblock as soon as we attempted plant id or something because I hadn't a clue how to go about it. I also knew I didn't realistically have time to figure out all the basic science I never learned in order to do neat nature walks and ... but we wanted nature walks. I really looked for a simple way for all of us to gain very, very basic fundamentals simultaneously without tons of research. Montessori 3 - part cards with a bit of advice from some science gurus became the life saver for us and this is the first year ever that any of my elementaries have learned any science. Obviously I had to plan considering my own limits - and I really, really could not do science if it required me to have any "teaching" role and I didn't want to slow my dc down while they waited for me to catch up.
Well dh came in so gotta go. Hope this helps a little. Sorry if it is typically sidetracked and confusing.
Janet
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JennGM
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 9:47pm | IP Logged
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I know I'm not the original poster, but I'm reading with great interest. Such sage advice here.
Are your plans a basic outline and more detailed closer to the date? Or get more detailed after the outline is drawn. I remember when I was teaching 1st grade and although I had loose plans for the year, I didn't plan but a few weeks in advance, so I could adjust at what speed the class was moving. But that was measuring in workbook pages and such. It seems that there would be more of "subject areas" with reading and such to cover than pages in a text or workbook.
Janet, I don't know if I could do one page for each school day. I love that you know yourself so well and have adapted to what works for you. You amaze me. Even in my personal calendar I'm always moving things from day to day, up or back. I would feel like I would have to rewrite everything if I got behind, and that's a lot of pages!
And do most of you plan on the computer or hand written?
Now that Kindergarten is looming, I'm nervous. I'm so afraid of "doing it wrong" which is silly. What if I commit to a plan and then have to change it? What if our schedule/routine doesn't work?
Of course I need to get over it, and need lots of grace!
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Jennifer G. Miller
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ALmom
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 10:16pm | IP Logged
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Jenn:
As far as 1 page - sometimes there may be 1/2 page or 2 and for the really young ones, we still wing it some, it is mostly lists and would never approach a day. I don't plan for K - even 1st is pretty much a general CHC guide with us winging all the extras and bouncing off the olders studies. But for my older elementary, middle schoolers and high schoolers, I'd be totally lost without the Plan and according to their evaluation of things, that is one thing that was the big plus for this year.
Oh, and we are never necessarily on the day with the plan in everything, though the more specific I have become (including the specific things I want to discuss), the closer we are. I am not neat (just legible, barely). I have the resources gathered, organized and everything sequenced - but only hand the children one week at a time. As soon as we discuss the weeks worth of work, we simply scratch and add to the next weeks plans, I don't re-write anything. But I have my roadmap and don't have to re-find where the neat notes were on that novel, and the questions that I wanted dc to look at (knowing the very thing that would address a weakness) and... Page numbers, which shelf, etc. are all in the plan. My children don't stress over changes because these are pretty seamless to them, they don't see more than a week at a time - but if Mr. science whiz races through math, he knows where to go next to get the next idea in a subject.
If things bog down, I have an idea where we can cut and not hurt overall goals. Without my dc plans (which are as much notes to myself about each child and what I wanted to discuss and where their resources are), I just wouldn't remember and would feel overwhelmed and obligated to keep on bogging cause I couldn't remember and was afraid of leaving out something that somehow was critical and I'd forgotten it was. I also have a sense if something I thought my children didn't know turns out to be already understood, we simply cross out stuff. I started out thinking science fan would do 1 science paper every 2 weeks - we simply crossed out some of these, especially when it became obvious that we were ready to move to papers in lit. We added in some more lit reading and less science papers. He does science round the clock so there really isn't anything on my plan for him except - a choice of generic science ideas or resources - ie do an experiment, work with Montessori materials or pursue research on a topic of interest - but he tends to be disorganized like I am so I have on his plan - write out a supply list for your chosen experiment and submit it to mom in enough time for me to find and/or purchase the supplies.
I sound organized - the reality is this is my crutch as it is the only possible way I'd ever even remember what it was we planned to do with a particular child and we'd spend the remainder of the day hunting for whatever it was, if I could only remember it!!! My plans are detailed enough for me to remember what it was I wanted to accomplish and which resources struck us as particularly relevant - and clear enough for my children that they aren't waiting around for me to get my act together.
Janet
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Maryan
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 10:17pm | IP Logged
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Here's what I do when planning... BUT -- I need to mention that I taught a 5 day a week religion class in a Catholic school for nine years, so I've done a lot of planning and activities in this area. So I don't have to use reference books to think of ideas from having done it so long. That makes a HUGE difference in lesson planning. AND my guys are little, so there's not a lot of pressure to do a lot of subjects, just the essentials iykwim.) But here's what I do:
I make my own 33 - 36 week blank lesson plan (by making tables in a Word Processor). I make a row for each subject (like religion, copywork, poetry, etc.). And... I only plan weeks too -- who knows what each day will look like??
I do religion first and the liturgical year first.
I take a liturgical calendar (like the ones that you get from your Parish at new year's) and decide what feasts we're going to do...
So in September, I know I want to focus on BVM's birthday, Our Lady of Sorrows, Triumph of the Cross, and the Archangels (I may do more but they are for sure).
In Advent, I only do Advent readings and activities... and math. That's it.
For the last two weeks of Lent, I only do Holy Week readings, activities (and a little bit of math).
Anyway, in my homemade lesson planner, I fill in those feasts first. Then I include any Catholic Mosaic type books in the Read-aloud slot, any Moira Farrell presentations, or craft that I want to do with them. I pick copywork from the readings. Certain prayers or catechism lessons - such as learning about angels, I place in at those times. Their narrations (or any narrating type activity) usually reflect these.
There are certain songs that go to certain feast days. That becomes our music lesson. There are beautiful paintings as well (such as today's Raphael's St. George and the Dragon). So I'll fill those in too.
As I said, I skipped formal Geography and History, but as we studied the saints, we would use a globe and a timeline, etc. We're doing to try to start RC History next year and I haven't sat down to figure out how that will match up yet. It may just be it's own thing. That's okay too!
On ordinary days with no particular saint or activity, I filled in our Aesop's fables, Fairy Tales, or Tall Tales, etc. Filled in Math, etc.
Our days start with Prayer, Faith, Scripture, Saints (not all may be in one day!) and then move to other subjects from there.
That's my jumbled gist of how I plan. It's worked the last two years for us.
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Maryan
Mom to 6 boys & 1 girl: JP('01), B ('03), M('05), L('06), Ph ('08), M ('10), James born 5/1/12
A Lee in the Woudes
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Maryan
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 10:25pm | IP Logged
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JennGM wrote:
| Are your plans a basic outline and more detailed closer to the date? Or get more detailed after the outline is drawn. I remember when I was teaching 1st grade and although I had loose plans for the year, I didn't plan but a few weeks in advance, so I could adjust at what speed the class was moving. But that was measuring in workbook pages and such. It seems that there would be more of "subject areas" with reading and such to cover than pages in a text or workbook. |
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It took me forever to write my way of planning that there have been several posts in between.
Anway... mine are basic outlines and just listing stories, etc. NO SPECIFICS. I plan out 33-36 weeks in outline form and then each Sunday work on specifics. Even then it's not very specific either. Essentially: "Read Saint George and the Dragon" Next day "Narrate." But in that is implied discussion, etc. I don't need to write questions down - we're reading it together....
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Maryan
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A Lee in the Woudes
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Mackfam
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 10:36pm | IP Logged
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I too am moving to a weekly plan with liturgical year setting the tone for the week. Like Janet, I'll have resources with page numbers, artwork, music, literature with page numbers and notes arranged on the weekly overview plan - then during the year I'll move to more specifics during the week. I think. I so want to emulate Janet's specific plans that are laid out at the beginning of the year - I'm just not sure I'll be able to do that. But, it would have helped me out so much this past year when we were just trying to survive and hit the basics.
I also hope to generate some sort of planner in Word or Excel that will be able to include multiple children on a one week spread that will accomodate or provide space for narrations, copywork, poetry, nature walks, etc. Still thinking on that one.
This has been a helpful thread. Thank you everyone! 
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Jen Mackintosh
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domchurch3
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| Posted: April 23 2008 at 10:41pm | IP Logged
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Thank You for your generous responses so far! Mary K, can you explain A-E days for me?
ALmom - Do you write the dates and feast days on the seperate pieces of paper during your planning season and write all of them for the year or do you do this daily?
How many of you have goals written down that you use as a compass. That's what were going to be doing during our planning time.
And yes I agree that prayer is essential. I know that basically by trying to do without it for awhile. Not intentionally, He just got put on the backburner for awhile while I cooked up a steaming hot plate of guilt sprinkled with TOO much anxiety. Lord, You are my Savior! Help me to rely on Your Strength!
And please keep those ideas coming. I'm writing them down.
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ALmom
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| Posted: April 24 2008 at 12:16am | IP Logged
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I have one day on each page for each child. I never put more than 1 days worth of work on a page and this page has the date on it along with a sequencing number (essential for child who tends to gather my plans in heaps and be all over the place date wise and generally has no natural tendency to order. I have taught him to mark a date beside things he does from ahead in the plans). I number them from 1 - # days required for our school year or # days we want to teach. Then I date them. I do this all in the summer but really just having the sequence is good. (The dates do alert me to things like - no do not start a new major novel study here, you'll be taking a week or more break right through the middle of it - better to do the light reading and pick up the heavier stuff after break kind of stuff. For those of you with a better sense of time, dates would probably not be absolutely essential - but even if we aren't there, I can pull a date to check what tomorrows feast plan was and decide whether we want to do it on the feast or postpone it with the lesson). I can look ahead a week without having to be able to think coherantly, really! I am not a natural planner so I just cannot do what Maryann does, though I wish I could. My children would probably have fewer glassy eyed moments but I've come to accept who I am and my limitations and my children don't have the time to wait till I overcome them all.
I date my plans cause that is the only way I don't forget Holy Week or .... Really I am that bad. I doubt most of you are as bad as I am so you probably wouldn't need near my detail. I just have gotten old and distracted and every year it gets worse, so this is sort of like the always finding a right turn for elderly drivers. Dating them ahead of time keeps me anchored and really it isn't a big deal to me. If we need to take 2 days to do something, we simply add that date to the page and redate the weeks work. So I revise once per week but write everything out in the summer. I'm scratching on my plans as I go. Yes, my administrator sees them but she is a homeschooling mom too. The state only sees a little form with the days in attendance marked. I take a few minutes each quarter to flip through my record and check off the days on the attendance record (that way what the state sees is nice and neat). My children learn to read my chicken scratch. I print it all out in ink by hand - but mostly because I am computer handicapped and it is faster for me to write it than to put it on the computer. My oldest retypes my study guides as part of her study routine cause she has to spend a little time deciphering - but I can always tell her at a glance so it works.
I don't want to put all my children on the same planner cause I cannot keep up with stuff and cannot teach more than one at a time anyways. If it is a feast/liturgical celebration I want to do with everyone, I've learned to record it on more than 1 lesson plan with a note to my child to get your siblings and mom and... - and make sure it is on one of the younger children's (particularly the learning to read child as I obviously work with them daily even if it is short).
The way I clue myself as to which plans to grab - each child has a color notebook - those 3 ring binders that have a colored but clear plastic outer covering. I don't keep a record book for each child. They have a notebook with this colored cover and they tuck their weeks worth of plans just inside the plastic sheet. My notebook for them matches their color and my whole years plans are tucked inside the plastic on the outside of my notebook. Inside, I tuck (or I pile on top of the notebook) any answer keys, teacher's guides or other major references I use for the child on a regular basis. When the child meets with me to review work (at least once a week is ideal but there is always a child that slips under the radar longer than I would like), I go over work, note problem areas or any areas needing more of my direct attention or more practice. We discuss things - including how things are going, if they are learning, etc. Things are revised from here. As I talk to the child, I do some scratching on my plans for the following week and copy any items that didn't get done that I still think are important. Things completed are checked off on the sheet and filed inside the 3 ring binder. When we need to show attendance proof, etc., these are the notebooks recording our school days. If there is substantial work - ie it would take too much time to copy it over, I simply make a note date x is checked in blue ink, date y is in red ink and both dates are on top. Then we scratch and rewrite appropriate dates for the week, as I hand over the new weeks work. Sometimes, we really note that there are some things that have turned into busy work and I am convinced the child is not benefitting. We scratch that out. Around this time, I kind of glance at where we are and decide what are the few things I want to wrap up for the year and what things we can drop and what things get pushed till next year. I really am surprised but we are not really having to drop a lot, nor are we dragging out the school year. A bunch of my children have actually picked up steam (and this is definitely a first for us for this time of year) now to see if they can finish early. 
I do use some time on the weekend to brainstorm problem areas with dh. We adjust or put together something as a supplement or pull out some sort of hands on activity for problem areas at that time from what we have cluttering our shelves. Generally I have a good idea of challenge areas for children in the summer as we are finishing up the previous year and we do carefully plan how to help the child over the hump in these areas. My plans are extremely detailed in problem areas, more like loose guides in areas of strength. The child has a lot more freedom to be creative in their area of passion as I know it won't be ignored.
The unanimous report from my children is to keep the plans coming. They love them. Of course what really came out is that before this, all my ideas would jell throughout the year and the kids would feel like I was constantly changing expectations on them. Now instead of just reading x, y and z; I had added in few more books and papers, wanted more specific things than they'd thought in terms of timelines or notebook pages or ... Now they know where to go. I like that they have plenty of time to read and pursue their own interests. I also have children that would forget portions of oral instructions but can keep up with written communication. We just communicate more thourougly in our house in writing. Not everyone would need to be as doctrinaire as I am about my plans. A lot of my planning is copying bits and pieces from various sources of lessons - but I'm grouping it and putting it all in one place. It is how my mind works - the ideas come as I'm purusing materials over the summer - but if I don't write it down and organize it right then, I'll simply have some vague memory of something I wanted to do, but cannot seem to remember. Then, by the time we're in the school year, I simply don't have time to do major planning of any sort and generally barely have time to go over work, read aloud, do minimal cleaning, dinner prep, have a minute or two to talk to spouse and children and then stay up late to post on here and then drop exhausted into bed to begin again in the early AM hours. When we plan using all the other plans, I'm adding in our own twist here and there - especially the history books and other books we have or want to read on a time period and making sure I know and remember that this book is on the plans at the approximate point that it would make sense to read them - ie this is the time period.
I really, really have a difficult time with memory and this is my way of dealing with it. I don't know if my memory things are exhaustion, old age, thyroid or other health issues or what - but until there is some clue this helps me get through and us all stay sane. It has been a huge stress relief for me and gives me time and energy to do the important things.
The real key is that you plan to the level of detail that you and your children need - no need to do more and bog down and don't do less or it won't really help.
Janet
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TracyQ
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Joined: Feb 07 2005
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| Posted: April 24 2008 at 8:02am | IP Logged
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Wow! Such specifics of lesson planning, and such a blessing to be able to gain so much wisdom from you guys! I just printed much of it out in order to read it at Homeschool Ensemble in a few minutes. Thanks! 
__________________
Blessings and Peace,
Tracy Q.
wife of Marty for 20 years, mom of 3 wonderful children (1 homeschool graduate, 1 12th grader, and a 9th grader),
homeschooling in 15th year in Buffalo, NY
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saintanneshs
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| Posted: April 25 2008 at 6:11pm | IP Logged
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Hi everyone!
I've been reading this thread with much interest and tho I usually don't post much (a very slow computer has reduced me to a mostly read-only status), I just felt so compelled to respond here. I think that changing my lesson plan format has been one of the best decisions I've ever made as a homeschooling mom. Sounds really simple, I know, but I really believe that it has made all the difference for us. I will preface all of this by saying that my oldest is only 8 and a half, and I've only been homeschooling since his preschool years. I know I have much, much more to learn about writing lesson plans for multiple ages. I also know that what I do now works for me with our 5 little ones, but may not work in a few years. I only post to try to be helpful to those moms who are feeling as overwhelmed as I was in trying to keep up with a day-to-day lesson plan approach.
Since I taught kindergarten and 1st grade, I was taught to write lesson plans in a day-to-day format. As a homeschooling mom with lots of littles, setting specific times to begin things was the first thing to go from my efforts at lesson planning. I dropped that years ago.
The next thing to go was planning separately for each child. With several boys 18 months apart, I took a tip from the moms here and began small-group teaching, allowing the younger children to benefit from exposure to the plans generated for their older siblings.
Two years ago I dropped trying to plan for every subject every day, and learned to fit in the basics, our faith, and one of something extra.
Then I dropped year-long curriculum planning. We never knew just what God had planned for us each season, and I was getting tired of not being able to keep up with what looked like the "perfect year" for us on paper.  It took me at least three years to give that up...I'm a slow, and STUBBORN learner!
In the past school year I gave up the very last thing I was clinging to: a day-to day lesson plan format. I think it was the last big thing to have to undo. And I undid it out of sheer necessity. I needed to preserve my sanity and I figured that if I couldn't undo my need to check off little boxes each day, then I needed to either lessen the number of boxes or find another way to arrange them. We just weren't keeping up with what I'd set out for us to do each day.
So I tried to lessen the number of boxes first, and still keep the day-to-day list. No matter how short I tried to make the lessons (in true CM-style), there were still things undone at the end of each day, which turned into things that had to be moved to the next day and so on, and so on... You'd think that with kids so little in age, I'd plan just a little and we'd be able to get it done. But between a first-grader, a kindergartener, a preschooler, a toddler, and a baby, and the farm, it just wasn't happening. This pattern repeated itself so often that I wondered at one point in the winter/spring if I should even bother writing a lesson plan at all! So we tried winging it. But I'm not good at winging it, especially without workbooks, and we don't use those very much. I felt even more discouraged and lost without a "plan." So out went that idea.
And then... out of desperation, I decided to try to rearrange the boxes. I decided to ditch the day-to-day and try something completely different. I began writing a MONTHLY lesson plan. I've done it all year and it has been the most freeing thing! I've created a format on Word and now I just plug what I need during the last week of each month.
So for each month I have lessons/activities planned for our subjects (with special emphasis on certain selected subjects, as mentioned above by Kim ). This provides my much-needed focus & goals, some documentation of what we've been doing all year, and helps me establish a pattern of consistency. In essence, it does all the things my day-to-day plan used to do, only without the daily headaches.
Under the topics of Language, Math, Religion, and so on, I list what I'd like for us to cover for the month. Like Janet, I like detailed plans ('cause I just can't remember anything that isn't written down anymore!! )This includes the plans for those subjects not taught in a group (like Language & Math, which I teach in pairs) and the plans for everything group-taught as well. And we do lots of hands-on learning, so I need those details written down. Once I've typed in everything I'd like to do for the month, I update the titles in my book baskets to fit our focus. Whatever we didn't get to last month is obvious, so I just cut & paste it into the next month's plans.
I aim for our school day "pegs" and check off whatever we do, but no longer feel the pressure to fit "this much" into each day. No more marathon days. The children are really given time to become intimately acquainted with our subject material, which is what CM is all about, right?! And they're really learning, I mean REALLY learning. No more rushing through this lesson to get to that one... God is teaching me how to be happy with what we HAVE done and to be present in the here and now. And I spend a lot less time feeling defeated by little rows of unchecked boxes!
__________________
Kristine
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Mary K
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| Posted: April 25 2008 at 9:05pm | IP Logged
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Hi,
Sorry I've taken so long to respond about A-E days.
Basically, every day has a focus on one major subject and on our current unit. A-religion (I do try to incorporate into everyday life, but sometimes it's too hectic, this ensures that we do something at least once/week). B-math, C-language arts (doesn't include reading aloud/silently, that's done daily), D-projects related to unit study, E-field trip days (this hasn't happened lately, due to winter and my pregnancy). I'm feeling better, so we'll be getting in some park days.
Hope this helps.
God bless,
Mary-NY
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4Real Forums : Planning and Ordering our Days
Topic: Seeking Advice on Lesson Planning
