Keeping records...

[TwoToSchool]

I admit, Pinterest is a guilty pleasure of mine;) I have seen quite a few 'pins' of file cabinets with adorably decorated folders for HSing records. I love them! Here's the problem....I'm not quite sure what I need to keep records of. My kids will be first time home schoolers come fall and I want to be sure I'm recording everything I may need, but what is exactly is that? Thanks:)

[Garga]

What state?

[Mallory]

Well, I don't keep anything. (Okay I probably have thier past year or two test records around here somewhere....)

 

I wouldn't for any of the states I've lived in or would most likely move too, so I don't worry about it too much ;)

[nov05mama]

It really depends on where you live as far as what you HAVE to keep. Providing you are in a non-reporting state, then the answer would be 'whatever you WANT to keep' :)

[TwoToSchool]

It really depends on where you live as far as what you HAVE to keep. Providing you are in a non-reporting state, then the answer would be 'whatever you WANT to keep' :)

 

Thanks everyone for your input. We're in WI and 'no' there aren't any test or reporting requirements, aside from simply notifying the district or our intent to homeschool:)

[smillard00]

When we lived in WI, I had one tiny file folder with our yearly form to the state in it. :D

 

But what kinds of things do you think might be helpful to have from year to year? If I spend a lot of time planning out our curriculum for the year or a plan for a course, I keep that in a file so I don't have to reinvent the wheel. You might like to keep a writing sample or two from each year because it would be fun to look back on it to see progress. You'll probably find some helpful resources online and you might want to print some of those to file away. If you give your children any placement tests or standardized tests, you could keep those in a file. I think you'll find that schooling can generate a lot of paperwork and it's hard to know what to keep. I err on the side of caution and purge every time we move--which has been often lately! :tongue_smilie: Hopefully we're staying put for a while now, though.

[janainaz]

I live in AZ, and we don't have any testing or anyone to report to. We only have to sign an affidavit on our intent to homeschool.

 

I keep everything. I file everything in notebooks by subject until we complete a year of school and then move the contents to a Bankers box and store it. I just feel more at ease having a clear record of all our work. There is no question that we are doing school. I probably don't need to keep everything from earlier years, but I just can't get rid of it.

[chepyl]

I bought Edu-Track. In my state, I don't have to report anything, but lots of places give kids free stuff for A's on report cards and for high school I will have to create a transcript. I need to start now with record keeping to build the habit. If I kept nothing and then had to start when we hit HS I would be a mess, plus we will likely do Algebra before 9th grade, so I need those records.

 

A woman at the local convention this year spoke on record keeping and she advocated doing what I am doing for the same reason. You don't want to get to the point of college apps and not have your records in order.

 

With Edu-Track you can download lesson plans for a lot of the big curriculum companies! That saves a lot of time. It has a place to create a reading list, record vaccinations, list awards (even the ones you create - "Reading X books in a year" or anything you feel worthy of an award! You can print certificates and diplomas, graph paper, writing tablet paper, and much much more! It was cheap too!

 

I mention it a lot...but that is just because I truly LOVE this program!!!

[GoVanGogh]

I am in a non-regulated state, but I keep very detailed records. Why? In case I am ever incapacitated or unable to homeschool, I want whoever may step in to fill my void to know where we are academically and what my plans were. I know I am thinking worse-case scenario, but I know someone who had a brain tumor and basically woke up one day 'gone,' as if he had had a massive stroke. His immediate family had a very difficult time figuring out his organizational system. To me, keeping detailed homeschool records is no different than keeping good home/financial records.

That said - I just use a three ring binder. Nothing fancy or pretty.

[Mommy2BeautifulGirls]

We are fortunate enough to be in a state where we have absolutely no requirements. I don't even have to sign anything or tell anyone. :D

 

However, this year I am going to be keeping portfolios for each of the girls, just so that we have something to show Daddy regarding our progress and something to look back on someday. I also want to be prepared, "just in case."

 

I found this info regarding keeping a portfolio for the state of Oklahoma, and am using it for ideas. I would like to take pictures of artwork, projects, and extracurricular activities. I will also keep tests and good examples of daily work from each trimester, showing our progress from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.

 

I have created a binder for each girl where I will keep an attendance sheet I printed from Donna Young, a list of books read, copies of report cards, a course of study, and divided sections for each subject. In addition, I will still use our normal history and science binders, so will probably not include those subjects into this binder, unless I take pictures of projects.

 

Also, with Homeschool Skedtrack, I can print off a report that lists our daily assignments. I plan to do this at the end of each trimester so that I can throw that into the binder as well. I cannot seem to keep up with any sort of preplanned schedule, so I just put our assignments in once they are completed.