It's that time of year again! Most of my friends are doing their back-to-school shopping, making sure their kids have the wardrobe, the new backpack, and all the necessary supplies for a brand new school year.
Our family has school year-round so there's not quite as much excitement for us in the fall, but it can still be a hectic time of year. The state of Maine requires me to submit a 'letter of intent to homeschool', as well as a licensed teacher's assessment of the previous year's work. I recently finished putting together a portfolio of my son's work to be evaluated - one thing I can cross off a very long to-do list!
Things seem to go most smoothly when I have a very clear and detailed outline of the entire school year before it begins; this also helps prevent wasted money in the form of books and supplies that don't end up getting used. For most subjects I can come up with lesson plans for the entire year, which we then supplement with extra activities, online explorations, trips to the library, and any last-minute additions that inspire us. Good record-keeping not only helps when it's time for our year-end assessment, it will come in handy when homeschooling my younger son - most of the planning will already have been done!
For some awesome free homeschool planner pages, check out this site: http://donnayoung.org/index.htm
You'll find all kinds of organizational and administrative forms and charts, as well as worksheets, blank maps, timeline forms, and even pages to organize your household chores and cookbook. I love this website!
I'm hoping to put as much information about our upcoming school year on this blog as possible, subject by subject, so check back often for new posts!
