time-saving tips for researching, prepping, or scheduling

[caedmyn]

What are your best time-saving tips for researching curriculum, prepping for the next school year, or scheduling materials?  

 

I don't have much but one thing that's been helpful is to type up a list of subjects at the beginning of the year, widely spaced, and then as the year goes by if I come across a curriculum that I think might work for next year, I'll write it down under the appropriate subject with the appropriate kid's name next to it.  Then when I start thinking about the next year I have some ideas for what to research and am not trying to go through tons of, say, science programs to try to find one to use.

 

I'm going to do the same thing for researching curriculum next year, and when I research something, WRITE DOWN what I find.  Inevitably I end up researching things multiple times because I can't remember what I read about it the first time.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

My best tip:  Six months out from your main planning season, stop visiting this forum entirely.  1 month out, turn your home router off.  

 

:lol:

[happypamama]

Overplan. Make very detailed lists way in advance. Then when Life Happens, because it will, you can fall back on the plans. I say this somewhat facetiously, but it was a huge help to me this past year. When Life Happened, we did drop a few extras, but because I had detailed lists and plans, it was pretty easy for my parents to jump in and handle the schooling for a while.

 

OneNote. Pretty colors. Lots of flexibility. It's amazing.

 

I finished my planning Memorial Day weekend and haven't touched things since. We start in nine days. I'll sit down this week and look at everything to see if my plans still make sense to me.

[caedmyn]

Hapypamama, HOW do you manage planning while doing school? There doesn't seem to be enough time to plan while schooling, plus I like to have everything on hand to finish planning which means I'd need to both plan and purchase in May.

[HomeAgain]

Catalog.

 

When I bring new materials in, I log it in Excel with name, type of material, subject (each main subject has a different tab with categories inside listed), and grade level.  Last column is location, since we don't have room for everything out.  I can go in at any time during the year and pull needed materials without rummaging around in multiple rooms and boxes.

 

I like the highlighter tabs, too.  I can plan a week out with each day being a different color, so on Mondays we turn to the green tabs, Tuesdays the pink, and so on down the line.  No fumbling, and it means I have already looked over the work and prepped whatever was needed over the weekend.

[fralala]

I have found that everything that I don't have a dedicated time slot for takes forever and never gets done to my satisfaction. Maybe this isn't true for everyone, but the biggest thing that has helped me out is just putting Planning on my schedule, and then sticking to the time slots and not getting distracted by that pile of laundry over there...(or this website!)

 

I take about 15-20 minutes each evening (except Friday and Saturdays) to pull things together for the next day and skim over the materials to make sure I'm prepared.

 

I take about 30 minutes on a weekend day to write out a week's worth of lessons in my planners. I only write down my plans 2 weeks in advance, so this will be for one week out, and it's a good time to check and note down all needed materials and supplies, and to put holds on library books needed. (Theoretically, I then get the needed supplies and don't just leave the list next to my laptop and then Amazon Prime them 2 days in advance...but that's a topic of another thread!)

 

Because we are on a 6 weeks on/2 weeks off schedule year-round, I never really have a time when I need to start planning for a new set of curricula for all kids at once. When a child completes a book or we come to the end of a level, usually that's a good time for me to reassess if we are going to buy the next level or start something new. In any case, I can usually do the research for the subject during my 2 week break, using my planned 15-20 minutes a night that I would usually be devoting to next-day-preparation and my 30 minutes on the weekend. I also find myself able to use a lot of curriculum from the shelf o' things I purchased when I first started homeschooling and before I realized one child didn't need three different math curricula, 2 different vocab. programs, and handwriting workbooks in a multitude of styles....so I guess my need to research new stuff is mostly limited to my guinea pig...er, my patient and forbearing oldest child.

[Critterfixer]

Don't overthink things. I'm going to paralyzed by the choices if I have more than two. So early on, narrow things down to two. Then it's one or the other.

 

Don't plan too far out. Life happens. That curriculum that was perfect turns out to have too many bells and whistles and you have to change. There's no sense in plotting out six months to a year when you school on a 10 week quarter. Ten weeks at a time is too much for me. I plan about five and go with that.

 

Schedule a week at a time. I have a rough idea of what I want to do for five weeks. But I won't schedule it until Saturday or Sunday night for the week of school.

 

Don't sweat it. Things won't always work out. You'll have to discard stuff you really, really wanted to do. You'll have to spend extra days on things you really didn't think would take that much time. It's all good. Schedule isn't the boss of you. You are the boss of it.

 

Schedule your planning time. I take off a week about every 5-6 weeks to plan the next 5-6 weeks. I specifically dedicate a certain amount of time per day to planning one or more subjects. I don't plan outside of that time. I don't do housekeeping during my planning time. I won't plan during my housekeeping time. I won't even think about school during my writing time. 

 

That's kind of what I do. 

 

[happypamama]

Hapypamama, HOW do you manage planning while doing school? There doesn't seem to be enough time to plan while schooling, plus I like to have everything on hand to finish planning which means I'd need to both plan and purchase in May.

I do start buying early.  I'm always researching and reading in small bits, like while waiting in the dark for my 3yo to fall asleep.  It helps when I just need the next level of something though.  I usually have most of the stuff I want for the upcoming year by about March.  Then it's just putting it on paper, er, in OneNote whenever I have a bit of time, nights or weekends or whatever, with a big push around Memorial Day weekend when I do little else besides get school stuff ready.

 

Then I try to sit down weekly and make specific plans for the week, depending on what else is going on.  I might have listed that I want to do X project for science or history, but I decide as I go when I want to do that project.  I have a list in OneNote of tasks to do every week, including updating portfolios, planning for the following week, etc.

[Rachel]

I use the recommendations in TWTM. I narrow the recommendations to 2-3 choices, read up on those and choose, then I stick to it. I'm really only choosing for my oldest as I then have my younger children do the same thing. If I discovered that something I chose doesn't work for my younger kids, I worry about it at that time.

 

My oldest is only beginning 4th grade so we just do the next thing for the most part. I'm sure as my kids get older my method will change but this works now. You could spend every waking moment checking into everything, but I don't have that kind of time.

[OneStepAtATime]

We didn't start out homeschooling so it was a pretty steep learning curve when we did.  I realized after our second year that I was spending too much time trying to reinvent the wheel and also trying to find the perfect fit for materials.  Things that helped once I got my homeschooling legs:

 

1.  Picking at least one or two spines that are just do the next thing and sticking with them from year to year for those particular subjects.  Of course, it needed to be a decent fit to begin with but having that already taken care of really freed up my time to focus on areas that were trickier.  For instance, CLE Math ended up being a great spine for the kids.  Was it the perfect math program with no problems whatsoever?  Nope.  Nothing is perfect 100% of the time, or at least not in my universe, and especially not with kids that have some learning challenges.  But it really did tick off a lot of boxes for the kids and I, needs that we had, preferences we had, etc.  And its just do the next workbook, order the next set, etc.  The program was a good fit, I could supplement with other sources as needed and we always had CLE to fall back on when things got crazy.  Plus, no heavy planning.  

 

2.  I bought a rolling book cart.  During the school year anything we would need daily, including paper, dictionary, books, workbooks, school supplies, etc. goes on the book cart.  I used magnetic book ends and magazine holders to keep everything organized.  The cart I bought on Amazon.  I put it in my cart and left it there until the price went down to something I could afford.  However, while planning for the school year I keep the TMs and other planning necessities there.  Having the cart is great.  As I am planning and need to look at things I just roll the cart where I plan to be.  When I am done I roll it back into a corner.  Everything is all in one place.  I don't have to keep gathering things off of shelves then putting them away again.

 

3.  I put everything into Homeschool Planet.  My stuff, kids' stuff, etc.  I can see pretty far out where to build in some breaks, some review, etc., and where we have serious gaps that need addressing.  I can glance at the next day/week/month/year with little effort and make adjustments on the fly.

 

4.  If I read about great ideas on here or through other sources or great resources, etc. I keep a spiral notebook for those notes sitting by my computer.  I write it down for later reference.  If it turns out to be good potential option I rip out that notation and put it in my accordion file organized by subject.  I can refer to those notes later as needed.

 

5.  I write out goals for each child overall and for each year.  I then look over what we have used that worked and if we are using it again the next year I plug that in as a resource for fulfilling some of those goals.  

 

6.  I then look over what we have used that didn't work and ask myself, with brutal honesty, why.  Did I just not put in the effort?  Did the kids hate the material?  Was it confusing?  Too time consuming?  Too expensive to keep using?  If it is something I like but it didn't work anyway, I try to delve in and determine if it is just a poor fit for our family and should be chunked or if it would work well with some tweaking.  If we need to toss it, I try to find something that is NOT like that program since it didn't end up meeting our needs.

 

7.  I try to always have resources available, already printed out and ready to go, in clearly labeled manila envelopes or three ring binders (for each kid) that can be pulled out at a moment's notice that will actually be useful for reinforcing a concept or skill but in a format that the kids won't need me for, just in case one of THOSE days happens and I have to deal with an emergency.

 

8.  I committed to accepting that there are exponentially more resources out there than we will ever need and constantly seeking and planning and changing actually wastes more time than it helps.  I try hard to focus on only one or two things that might need tweaking/changing/enhancing each year instead of trying to start from scratch with research for each subject, no matter how shiny and new and amazing something sounds.  (I tend to get obsessive about the planning and the researching and end up taking up way more time than I should).

  

Edited July 23, 2017 by OneStepAtATime

[PeterPan]

Pinterest and amazon wishlists.  Everything I find I put in one of those two, and I label them by grade and gender. So I have 3rd grade for boys, 2nd grade for boys, etc. 

 

I already have enough paper in my life, mercy. Download a Pin button to your browser so you can pin directly from your browser. It's easy and fast.

 

Any brainstorming I do, I keep all in one notebook as an EF strategy.

[domestic_engineer]

2.  I bought a rolling book cart.  During the school year anything we would need daily, including paper, dictionary, books, workbooks, school supplies, etc. goes on the book cart.  I used magnetic book ends and magazine holders to keep everything organized.  The cart I bought on Amazon.  

 

Do you have a link to which one you bought?  I assume you are satisfied with the one you got?

[OneStepAtATime]

Do you have a link to which one you bought?  I assume you are satisfied with the one you got?

https://www.amazon.com/Sandusky-SL327-09-Welded-Shelves-Capacity/dp/B01BLESOL0/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500841189&sr=8-1-fkmr1&keywords=rolling+sandusky+book+cart

 

They come in several different colors and different widths.  Prices fluctuate.  Sometimes they are really discounted and sometimes not and it depends on the color, too.  Some go on sale more often than others.  

 

I LOVE ours.  It came in a box, I pulled it out and all I had to do was pop on the rolling wheels.  Immediately ready to go.  The cart is really rugged and the wheels are tough and roll well.  They also lock so you can keep the cart from rolling when needed.  Paint color has held up well with constant daily use.  I have zero complaints.  :)

[lllll]

nm 

 

Edited July 25, 2017 by tentwelve

[YodaGirl]

I research early, buy everything by March, and start pacing it out.  By May, I should have a good idea of what needs to be done when.  I write out the entire year *in pencil* by early summer.  I print off everything I need by June.  As we go through the year, I check things off when they're accomplished.  Our school year technically starts August 1st, but we've already done a slow start.  I have things checked off through August 4th.

 

I wouldn't say it's time-saving, though, since it seems  to take forever.    :lol:   It is helpful during the school year because I'm not having to plan throughout the year.  I try to do the same for Cub Scouts & Girl Scouts.  Going into this year, the only thing that I'll really have to plan during the year will be my co-op class.  I've only planned the first 4 weeks so far.  I'm switching to a different class, so I want to see how things go before getting too far into planning.

 

When I'm researching, I keep a memo document on my phone.  I also write things down in the back of my planner.

[EKT]

https://www.amazon.com/Sandusky-SL327-09-Welded-Shelves-Capacity/dp/B01BLESOL0/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500841189&sr=8-1-fkmr1&keywords=rolling+sandusky+book+cart

 

They come in several different colors and different widths.  Prices fluctuate.  Sometimes they are really discounted and sometimes not and it depends on the color, too.  Some go on sale more often than others.  

 

I LOVE ours.  It came in a box, I pulled it out and all I had to do was pop on the rolling wheels.  Immediately ready to go.  The cart is really rugged and the wheels are tough and roll well.  They also lock so you can keep the cart from rolling when needed.  Paint color has held up well with constant daily use.  I have zero complaints.   :)

 

Wow that is a beautiful book cart! Thanks for the link; filing that away for the future!

[Vida Winter]

:lurk5: