How far out have you planned your schedule?

[Bang!Zoom!]

I'm sitting here doodling as a stress-reliving activity; something about it really works for me. Gave up for a little bit, took a shower, came back, sat down, looked at my pictures...the one that really jumps at me is the future.

 

I think about the craze in the 80's with Franklin Planners and the famous 5 year plan stuff. Which leads me to this question..

 

How far out have you written your educational plans, books, schedule/calendar and goals for your children? Do you just have to reinvent constantly, or do you really stick to what you've designed? How far out have you planned on paper or some other format?

[2_girls_mommy]

Well, with the Well Trained Mind in hand, I don't have to do much long term planning. It is my long term plan. I have stuck with their schedule since 1st grade (so 4 yrs now) and am in the process of planning next year in detail, using WTM. I will at least stick to WTM through middle school (so 4 more years for my older child, 6 more years for my younger child.) Then before high will evaluate those last 4 years. We will stick to Classical ed, but maybe not WTM to a tee at that point. There are many Classical schools around, either B&M or online, or there are community college or vocational school options. We will have to evaulate at that time which direction is best for each child depending on their college plans.

 

So we are fairly planned out, though I don't purchase books for 3 yrs from now or anything. I just pick up WTM each year about this time, to begin seeing what I need to be getting ready for next fall.

[Xilka]

So far, it's come in spurts of preparation craze.

At one point last year I downloaded all of our math and science textbooks for high school (we're in 4th grade).

But then months will go by and I'll just focus on the actual teaching.

Then, when we have a break, or ds isn't needing me as much for his lessons and I have some free time, I'll stick my head back into the BIG PICTURE plans.

As time goes by, and I go through more of those ups and downs in the planning, I feel like I'm building a long-term plan very organically, with no pressure.

I guess I plan ahead to avoid feeling stressed, because then I'm a terrible study partner/teacher for ds.

Edited March 6, 2012 by Xilka

[Tarreymere]

I can make lesson plans out as far as two weeks but if I go further either my kids will be way too far ahead or behind or some major catastrophe will happen to throw us off track.

I can plan books and things a year or more out, though, now that I have a good grasp on their learning style and my teaching style (which was NOT the case until this year). I know what MY goals are for them, but until I figured out who THEY were and how they learned it any time I tried to plan a year or so ahead I ended up changing everything. I think we are in a good groove now, however. Except the five year old might still surprise me.......

[meggie]

Well, I haven't written it out. Not much point in me doing that because I would quickly lose that sheet of paper :tongue_smilie:. So it's all mental. And right now, it's just a "Stay the course!" type of plan for the grammar stage. We'll keep using MUS, FLL, WWE, SOTW, Elemental Science, and BFSU. If we reach a point where something doesn't work, I'll re-evaluate.

 

I have a long term goal of educating them all the way through high school. In order to do that, I need to bring my own stuff up to speed, so I'm working on self-education while they're still young.

 

Oh and I'm trying to figure out HST+ so I can do weekly lesson plans. I would love to schedule out the whole year, but missing one day would just throw me completely for a loop. It would also overwhelm me and I would rebel by sticking my head in the sand and not doing anything. I know I can manage a one week schedule. Right now it's not so hard, I just do the next thing. But I want to get in a habit of scheduling the week.

Edited March 6, 2012 by meggie

[Bang!Zoom!]

I fell asleep in bed with WTM *again* last night....

 

I feel like I want a complete redo on what we are working on, I keep discovering new or better materials (for both of us actually) - and yep, that's exactly where I'm at, floating from small in the now process to BIG picture thinking.

 

My conceptual grasp on the BIG feels really weak and aggravating the heck out of me.

 

We've had trouble lately in the general health field, so major slippage and time is going by, and I'm not seeing that "regular" routine coming back tomorrow just yet...so I"m in that break time you mentioned Xilka.

 

I really don't like being here, it makes me feel like a tourist or something...lol. I want to get back to work, but that's not realistic today. I'm not my best when I don't have progress in detail recorded for the day.

 

What an icky feeling.

[WTMCassandra]

I basically followed WTM until it was time for high school, and then I decided I needed a rough 4-yr outline. I flesh it out each spring for the next year (I'm almost due for another round). It helps me stay on track because there's sooooo much I want to do that I would otherwise overwhelm the student and each one would end up with a stupid amount of credits but never actually graduate.

[Pamela H in Texas]

TWTM helps a lot. I pretty much have it work out, except maybe logic, Latin and Spanish, until high school for my littles. Obviously, there is a chance things will change, but we'll start the history cycle the year my kids are in 2nd, 1st and Kindy. That goes for the art, reading, science, etc also. SWB has pretty much given us grammar through elementary and writing through middle school. I feel pretty comfy with all that. I know what I like math wise AND we use several programs anyway, so that is pretty good. I'm comfy. And confident :)

[angela in ohio]

We have goals for when they are "done" here. Those don't change.

 

Then I have about a 3-4 year plan, so that I can study ahead and start researching/collecting materials. That is added to, but not really changed much, either.

 

Then I have a plan for the current year and for next year. The plan for next year is a work in progress and will change many times up until the point that is sticks in late Spring.

 

The plan for the current year doesn't change much. When they were younger, it might change sometimes. At this point, I know what to expect, and I can plan very accurately, though.

 

In the non-academic arena, activities, schedules, etc. are planned out tentatively for the remainder of the school year, season, etc. Every few weeks, dh and I sit down with some yummy food and plan it all up, figuring out who is doing what when and how we will do it all.

[elegantlion]

Ex-Franklin planner groupie here. I started writing out long term educational plans in about 6th grade. I have tons of written options for high school. It's sounds goofy but I relax by extrapolating out the final years of his education (he has no clue I do this). It actually has helped me relax knowing there a million (or close) options for how to do high school.

[regentrude]

I do not schedule or lesson plan.

I have a curriculum outline for each semester, describing the materials I want to use, literature to study, audio lectures to listen to etc. That's it. No minute schedule. We simply resume where we left of the time before.

I have the specific materials listed for the current school year.

For future school years, I know which subjects we will study, and what to use as our main resource. A detailed list is made towards the end of the preceding school year/over the summer.

[Sandy in Indy]

Well, ds in in 5th grade, and I can pretty much tell you what we'll be doing through high school. I may make a few curriculum adjustments but not very many. DS is #3 through the homeschooling venue for me.

[Crimson Wife]

I have a general plan for my oldest that covers the current year + the next 3 years. So right now it has 4th-7th. Sometime this summer I will update it to include 8th grade. I haven't bothered doing one for DS yet, and probably won't until 3rd grade.

[PeacefulChaos]

Like a year?

I started school in July. Around September or so, I sat down with the WTM in hand and made a list of subjects and such for next year for each kid. Nothing super planned out, just a list of basics. I started looking at what we wanted to do for Science (since I knew I wanted to change that), and wrote down things that we might change and what would stay the same.

In December I sat down and made my 2012-2013 homeschool budget. I went through the list again and decided what we would go with for the subjects we weren't sure about before.

In February we got our tax refund :D and I put the money in our homeschool account. I started buying things, some used on here and some from RR. I haven't bought some of the art materials yet (need to clear out some space first), and I haven't bought math for either of the boys yet - they are both switching programs, and it's a little early to do the placement tests. I'll just order all those things together, probably in like May/June (we finish school June 1).

So at this point, most everything is ordered. When I got it, I went through it all and made rough outlines of what we're doing. I don't have dates mapped out yet, but a basic plan of order/days per week/etc. Probably in a couple weeks I'll sit down and begin making the detailed syllabus for each subject (that is just for my own personal knowledge). Then I'll start making the daily schedule. I'll have the whole year printed out before we start school again in July.

I don't want to get too far ahead of myself. So I try to take it a year at a time, and FORCE myself not to jump too far ahead!! :)

[Mrs Mungo]

Well, with the Well Trained Mind in hand, I don't have to do much long term planning. It is my long term plan.

 

:iagree: This is pretty much me. Short-term, I plan a month at a time.

[fraidycat]

This morning I wrote our "schedule" for today's lessons.

 

Tonight or tomorrow morning I will plan for tomorrow's lessons. We're basically only doing 3 Rs right now, with a phys. ed. and science thrown in once in awhile.

 

I have a vague plan as far as curriculum choices for other subjects. I've bought the curriculums, but haven't planned exactly when I will implement them, yet. DS is just K - so phonics/reading instruction, math, and handwriting along with speech therapy, and I'm still getting a feel for exactly where DD is in the 3Rs and getting a good footing under us before I add more. I *hope* to go full steam ahead by August for their "1st" and "5th" grade years.

 

I need to read through all of the curricula choices I've made to get "the lay of the land", so to speak then figure out exactly how our days will work for us. Right now I do a block of direct instruction with each child because neither really has anything for independent work except for handwriting, which I supervise - then I can plan actual day to day lesson plans further out.

[MrsBear]

For school stuff I have a general outline through high school done, but not the minor details.

 

For travel we have some things out until 2020 right now and have the months we'd like to target those trips. Some are educational, some are just for fun and relaxing, and some are for business.

 

Some financial things I have planned out, like our retirement savings, paying the house off, etc. and the date I'd like DH to consider retirement.

[higginszoo]

I've got a general idea of what we're doing next school year (probably starting in July for us). I'm starting to look at what materials I have, what I'll need to flesh it out, and I'll probably put together a topical list of materials. I hope to have a general plan finalized by April/May.

 

Every week or two, I break it down into more specific assignments. If I go any further out, all of that effort is for naught, because either they went a lot faster than I thought, or something came up -- either they hit a stumbling block or real life got in the way. I used to do whole years' assignments, but it was usually wasted effort on my part.

[Plucky]

I know where we want to be by the end of the school year. I pretty much know what we will be using in September, and I will be planning summer lite schoolwork as we get to the end of May. I actually create a lesson plan weekly.

[LMD]

I do have a big picture plan, it keeps in mind the big picture! I don't want to get to 7th or 9th and suddenly realise, oh crap - how to I fit in the rest? :D

 

Actual material *this curriculum* plans are a couple of years ahead - so I can research, mull over, buy when there's good deals (2nd hand) - I know others don't like to do this, but I'm ok with it.

 

Lesson plans, I plan a terms worth at a time. I am run off my feet during school weeks (can't you tell? ;) I need to get off the computer!) and have no time to do extra planning. I can tweak and move and shuffle my plans, but not plan! It also keeps us focussed and on task for the term, and is really nice to see a chunk of stuff 'done'!

[ErinE]

I use the WTM for my overall long term organization plan. As we finish up a curriculum, I open it up and read the relevant grade again and again and again.... For choosing a particular publisher, I have a worksheet organized by year and subject with curriculum to investigate, but I only add something when I hear enough about it that it's worth updating the document.

 

We do the next thing so I don't spend a lot of time making a weekly schedule. I've been wrong too many times in the past when estimating progress.

[MomatHWTK]

I'm pretty good through tomorrow morning, then it gets a little hazy. ;)

[linders]

Sort of, kind of dreaming? Maybe 3-5 years. Re

alistically? Still working on tomorrow.:001_smile:

Edited March 7, 2012 by linders

[Gisel_le]

I am a planner. I am a planner because I am a worrier. lol

 

I have DC ages 2-13. I have their entire schedule planned out, minus interest led electives and math for 11 and 12th grades. I have plan A and plan B, which would be outsourcing certain classes to CC.

 

I have put all this info in a binder, so that if I die my DH should not have too much trouble figuring out what he needs to get each year. I also have different plans for my typical kids and my special needs kids.

 

I should add that my plans are negotiable. After WWS came out, I changed our reading and writing plans for grades 5-8.

 

Now off to read other responses to see if I am the only one this pathetic. :lol: