What are you doing this summer to set yourself up for success next year?

[MSNative]

Each year I start out well but by Nov. my kids, my homeschool room and my homeschool plans tend to become a hot mess. How do you stay on track, on top of all the papers, clutter, etc?

 

My plan so far:

 

1. I've taken all books that we are not actively using this year and put them in a bookcase in the basement. That leaves 2 blank shelves in our homeschool area for my organizationally challenged child to have some extra space.

 

2. I'm using One Note to organize all my links, ideas, etc.

 

3. Kids have cleaned out their desks and backpacks so we start with a clean slate.

 

4. Setting up an "office supply bar" on top of a small bookcase in our homeschool area. It will have a desk organizer for all our supplies (pens, pencils, erasers, rulers, scissors, staplers, pencil sharpener, etc.) No more hunting for those items.

 

5. I'm setting up plastic wall folder holders to put up next to my kids' desks for them to put current work and work to be graded. Thinking about something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-Three-Pocket-Organizer-Plastic-96050ROS/dp/B00006IANO/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1370524273&sr=8-4&keywords=wall+folder+holder

 

Please share your best "get ahead and set yourself up for organizational success" tips.

[bobbeym]

My goals to prepare for next year.

 

Have yearly lesson plans and assignment pages done before we start, with every 6th week dedicated to catching up on work so we don't fall too far behind.

 

Clean off the bookshelf and toss/sell all old materials and papers.

 

Buy vertical file racks and organize everything by subject.

 

Install a shelf above my desk for standard school supplies and extras.

 

Buy novels ahead of time.

 

ETA: Clean out my own desk. It used to be DH's and most of the drawers are still filled with his junk.

[2_girls_mommy]

My plan is mostly curriculum planning. I need to plan our co-op's latin club meetings in advance so that we stay on track in the weeks alloted to get ready for the ELE. The same thing for my latin classes there. I use MP so it is pretty much done for me, but I need to write out the year's plan.

 

I want to write out our science plans for the year at home for dd10 to stay on track.

 

I want to plan a music study.

 

I do need to create a couple of things: A preschool board on a science fair board that can be folded up and put away each day so that I don't take up wall space. It will have a calendar and space for the letter and number that we are working on, plus any content things we are learning about.

 

Plus, I always have the missing pencil, scissor, glue stick situation. We always end up spending too much time looking for and then arguing over where are the pencils and who is using someone else's. I am thinking of giving each child a soup can and duct tape to decorate to hold their own stash and personalize it so that they will be encouraged to return them each day. We shall see. I have tried all kinds of things, and haven't found the solution yet to this time sucking problem of ours.

 

DD10 works a lot in her room at her desk these days, but her school books are all down with the others. I want to clear a spot on her shelves in her room to keep her current books near her workspace to alleviate moving them all over the house.

 

So I have a lot to do, but a full time babysitting job this summer. So I don't know WHEN I am going to do it all. The weekends are for fun w/my kids and church and getting the house cleaned and groceries stocked up for the coming week. The days have a rhythm of their own, with not a lot of down time for me to really break out a big project. In the evenings I am wiped and barely get the day's upkeep done before I crash. I will figure it out though. I always do.

[ILiveInFlipFlops]

:lurk5:

[Hoot]

 

1. The biggest thing I'm doing is lesson planning for the whole year in syllabus form by week number, NOT by date.
   
2. I'm cleaning out all of the books, papers, etc. from last year and only putting what is necessary for this year on our school shelves.
   
3. I moved the "To Be Graded," "Fix & Return," and "To Copy" bins to a more accessible location.
   
4. Scheduling those extra things instead of just assuming I'll remember them when the time comes (which I totally never do).
   
5. Reorganizing the vertical file on top of my desk to be more user-friendly instead of a junk dump.
   
6. Picking and choosing what subjects I want to do "extra" in and what subjects are good enough as is.
   
7. NOT over-planning.
   

 

[prairiewindmomma]

We just started our new school year.

 

 

As I was planning out the school year, I put everyone's books, etc. into their own plastic crate with dividers. This was a good visual "check" to make sure I had everything covered, but I wasn't overplanning. I wrote out plans for the first quarter, and ordered all necessary supplies. (I didn't ever find a rock sample of galena, but I found something similar.) All science supplies were gathered together in a box, and all art supplies were gathered together in another.

 

I checked the stash of school supplies. Everybody has their own plastic box with their personal supplies, but I also keep a stash of pencils, erasers, gluesticks, sticky notes, etc. on a shelf that people can pull from if necessary. I made a list of what I would like to buy when school supplies go on sale in August (noteably, colored pencils--somewhere in my house is the motherhorde of all colored pencils, as we went through at least 8 boxes this past year).

 

I re-did the meal menu. I went to Costco and stocked back up on cleaning supplies and laundry detergent and paper for the copier. (These are the things I tend to run out of that cause emergency trips to the store that derail our day.)

 

I paperbackswapped a ton of books we aren't going to use anymore, and updated my wish list and amazon cart list. I organized the bookshelves and dusted thoroughly. I made a sketch of what we might use next year based on what we already have.

 

I bought a new box of red pens. For whatever reason, my kids take corrections to their work more seriously when I use a red pen rather than a blue pen. Whatever. I have a nice little mason jar filled with them and I finally got a stapler, 3 hole punch and tape dispenser for the community work table down in our schoolroom. I'm tired of people traipsing upstairs to use the stuff in the kitchen drawer.

 

I made a bazillion busy bags for my 4 yo.

 

I designed our school schedule so that everyone takes a turn with the baby in the mornings when I'm needing to focus with my littles. Surprisingly, the half hour where my 7 yo reads to the baby is one of the best times of our day. I'm working with the 4 yo and the 11 yo is able to do his own thing.

 

I trained my 11 yo to make a greater variety of lunches. If I'm caught up with the 7 yo during his math time, the 11 yo can start making lunch for everyone instead of having lunch pushed back for everyone.

 

I seriously sat and thought about "our" issues and where things got derailed for a good month of evenings watching Longmire episodes and eating icecream. ;) .

[swellmomma]

I am cleaning and purging and reorganizing mostly. Gears are changing due to goals the teens have set so a lot that is on the shelves for them won't be needed, so I can tuck it away for next in line or sell it but it won't be in my way taunting me. Because gears are changing for the olders I think my year next year will go much better over all, because nearly all of dd13's work will be online, and a 1/4 of ds14's will be. Which means I can really devote time to the youngers, they often get short end of the stick which makes the year go rough. Also going to try doing freezer meals over the summer to have a stash of them ready for when extracurrics kick in. As well we as a family decided to cut back on some extracurrics and add in less intensive ones, so they still have lots going on but with less travel and $ being shelled out (compared to this past year with 2 in competitve dance). Biggest obstacle next year will be that I am going to be working again and that will take some extra planning on my part, but I found as challenging as it is, we are more productive when I am working because I am already in the active mode vs the one I have been in this year.

[Mom22ns]

I do a few things each summer that make our school year better.

 

1. Take some time off! Yep, I take a couple of weeks where I don't talk, think, plan or do anything referencing school. Downtime is important for recharging.

 

2. READ. I read a lot in the summer and get through much of what they'll read or options I am considering having them read the following year.

 

3. Buy curriculum. I have everything but science lab supplies now. Getting it all in the house so I have the summer to go through it helps.

 

4. Lesson planning. I plan all of the first semester and some things I plan for the whole year. Last year was the first year I planned that much and this year was the easiest ever! Yes, I have to modify and shuffle, but it really helps to have it all there to work from.

 

5. Clean out and organize. We do this every year too. Clean out all the old stuff, make portfolios, throw away what we don't want to keep. Then look at our school room and organizational system. What do we need to improve. Last year I moved some furniture, and changed where the kids books were stored. This year, I think I'm happy with the big stuff, but I want to help them better organize their papers, tests and things so they will be more prepared for doing this in college (my oldest will begin dual enrollment in Aug :w00t:)

[twoxcell]

I like to use the summer to clean and organize the whole house including our school stuff. We are having a garage sale this weekend, hoping to make some money and get rid of a bunch of stuff. I also have a box of stuff ready for a local home school book sale. Other than that I plan to relax a bit, have fun with the kids, and do some home improvements. If I get to it I may read a few of the history/science books that my ds will be reading independently next year. Usually in August I restock school supplies and print out any papers we will need for the school year.

[Kelly1730]

I did not feel organized this year. We got everything done but I always felt "behind" somehow. I intend to use this summer to organize the house, the meals, the schedule and the lesson plans. Ah, I feel better already:)

[MotherOfBoys]

I'm organizing our curriculum by week to pace myself. When I finish my first 6 weeks (which will be all in one binder) then we will take a week off. Then pick up the second 6 weeks binder. I have a habit of saying "just a few more pages!" and my son is looking at me like "mom you said that yesterday, I need a break"

[YARNacademy]

~ I'm planning 12wks at a time (a whole trimester), instead of 6. Six weeks goes by FAST!

 

~I'm selling/donating or otherwise getting rid of any leftover notebooks, projects or curriculum so it's not laying around taking up the space I need. This includes coloring books. Why do we have an ENTIRE shelf of coloring books? They don't even get used!

 

~Clearing out DS's bookshelf. He doesn't read his picture books and early readers much anymore. It's time to keep the old favorites and pass on the rest.

 

~I'm already letting everyone know not to call me before 1pm. Why does everyone think that just because I'm home, it must mean I'm not doing anything? No phone calls before lunch this year.

 

~I started a spreadsheet to keep my favorite links, logins, and passwords. This was a huge issue last year.

[MSNative]

Slight spin off - if you are organizing or reorganizing:

 

1. What worked for you last year and why?

 

2. What didn't and why?

 

For us:

 

1. Ummmm, I know something worked. :) I guess having different bags for the two different co-ops we're in.

 

2. The inbox - I know there is a way to make this work, but it just became a dumping ground. I like Contessa's idea about having to grade, to fix and return and to copy files. Would love to hear other ideas.

[Alte Veste Academy]

I will do my lesson planning for the whole year (very detailed for the first 6 weeks and at least a basic outline for the following weeks). I have been pre-reading everything and taking very specific notes for things I want to include or integrate across subjects. Must put in spreadsheet form with attractive colors...

 

Prep all supplies in advance (especially for science). Argh.

 

I am gearing DS10 up for more independence by creating detailed daily/weekly work checklists for him.

 

I'm going to do AoPS Algebra. I am frightened. :lol:

 

Buy supplies for the kids to prettify their notebooks. (This is my favorite! :D)

 

Watch TWSS and TTC again.

 

Cull, clean, and organize the house.

 

Cull and tidy up my recipe and housekeeping binders. Put together master family calendar for the year.

 

Mainly, I am sleeping, working out, and eating like a saint because, for better or worse, I'm learning that everything here hinges on my physical and emotional fitness.

 

What has worked before? Planning as much as possible (even though tweaking is inevitable and flexing is necessary), pre-reading, completing a lot of the curricula myself, organizing every aspect of our routine that can be organized (auto-pilot is a good thing here for everything but thinking :tongue_smilie:).

 

What has not worked in the past (not last year, which was pretty good actually)? Failing to plan. Not challenging the kids enough. Doing too little school (yes, seriously).

[TraceyS/FL]

Planning a big planning session. I have a list of what I need to start doing - i'm just adding to it as I think of stuff right now. I finish up school on June 21, and then THE LIST has to start happening.

 

Most curriculum is in house, so that will help - and most of it starts "now" and not in the fall.

 

So planning on working on a routine, and finishing some household projects that are impacting the school area. I like the aspect of being able to go on auto-pilot - we really NEED that around here.

[birchbark]

Next year my 7th grader is going to be managing more of his schoolwork a la Joanne Calderwood. I have his curricula chosen and mostly purchased. I will be getting him a student planner and meeting with him this summer to go over our new modus operandi for next year.

 

I'm also going to get a teacher's journal and make notes as I go through 1st grade with my 2nd DS. This will provide feedback for myself for when I school the next two kiddos. I also have dreams of writing/organizing my own curriculum some day.

 

I plan to empty the only closet on the main floor (which is in the dining room where we school) of the huge TV/video cart and fill it with shelves or drawer systems. This will provide a ton more school storage space.

 

I love these ruled calendars from Donna Young. I always print one out and figure out which weeks we will school and which we will take off.

 

What worked last year:

Having plenty of wiggle room in the schedule

Staying on top of correcting

Using a basket for current read-alouds

Using pre-punched paper and popping things into binders as soon as we're done.

Getting bookshelves put in the living/dining area and now having all materials in the area where we work

[amyofPA]

These are such great ideas! I also felt like this past year went by too fast and I felt a little out of control, not being able to finish all of our lessons. I do plan to switch some curriculum, and also have plenty of freezer meals available for those days where school just takes over.

[fourisenough]

Two things that worked tremendously well for us last year were:

 

1) Using a student planner to record what my daughter actually accomplished as opposed to planning it out in advance and frequently feeling 'behind' for not doing enough. We recorded what she did in a regular order, rather than in the order she worked. It was helpful, because I could easily glance back at a previous day and see exactly where she was on something. I tend to do too much, rather than too little, but still having to constantly erase my "plan" and write in reality was frustrating for me before. Using curriculum that is preplanned (just do the next thing) is required for this style of teaching.

 

2) Grading/discussing/fixing everything, everyday before we were done for the day was a huge relief. She got immediate feedback which furthered her learning and I was liberated from ever feeling behind because I hadn't gotten to the ever-growing stack of work on my desk that needed grading & corrections. I found that she was much more meticulous when she knew she would have to watch me review it and make any necessary changes before she was finished with her day. I reserved 10-15 minutes at the end of the day for this purpose and it was time VERY WELL SPENT!

 

Two areas in which I need improvement:

 

1) I need to purge my bookshelves of things I'm not using and likely won't use again. Even if I just box them up and toss them in the basement, I will feel much less cluttered and disorganized. With one more child to educate, some things may get revived, but some I've just outgrown/decided I don't like/no longer fit my teaching style, etc. Those should be donated/sold.

 

2) I can't begin teaching until all the beds are made, the laundry is picked up (and a load started), kitchen counters are wiped and dishwasher emptied/re-loaded, and bathrooms wiped/tidied. I'm just a little OCD that way. I know, I know, I know that my kids could do more of this stuff, but the reality is that it is much more important to me than to them and, frankly, I prefer it done my way. I need help - I get that! The good news is that it only takes me about 20-30 minutes and I feel so clean, organized, and ready to face the world when it is done. The bad news is that I also like to lounge in my PJs & bathrobe drinking a second cup of coffee and reading WTM forums in the morning. I need to reconcile these two competing demands, because doing both gets our morning started too late to accomplish everything.

[Kelly1730]

2) I can't begin teaching until all the beds are made, the laundry is picked up (and a load started), kitchen counters are wiped and dishwasher emptied/re-loaded, and bathrooms wiped/tidied. I'm just a little OCD that way. I know, I know, I know that my kids could do more of this stuff, but the reality is that it is much more important to me than to them and, frankly, I prefer it done my way. I need help - I get that! The good news is that it only takes me about 20-30 minutes and I feel so clean, organized, and ready to face the world when it is done. The bad news is that I also like to lounge in my PJs & bathrobe drinking a second cup of coffee and reading WTM forums in the morning. I need to reconcile these two competing demands, because doing both gets our morning started too late to accomplish everything.

 

 

Um, yes;) At this moment, I am sitting in front of the laptop in my pink, fluffy bathrobe drinking what may or may not be my fourth cup of tea this morning. Excuse #1; it's raining and will be all. day. Excuse #2 School is over for the year. However, the beds, laundry, dishwasher, breakfast, bathrooms and hopefully a shower still need to be accomplished;)

[MSNative]

 

2) Grading/discussing/fixing everything, everyday before we were done for the day was a huge relief. She got immediate feedback which furthered her learning and I was liberated from ever feeling behind because I hadn't gotten to the ever-growing stack of work on my desk that needed grading & corrections. I found that she was much more meticulous when she knew she would have to watch me review it and make any necessary changes before she was finished with her day. I reserved 10-15 minutes at the end of the day for this purpose and it was time VERY WELL SPENT!

 

 

2) I can't begin teaching until all the beds are made, the laundry is picked up (and a load started), kitchen counters are wiped and dishwasher emptied/re-loaded, and bathrooms wiped/tidied. I'm just a little OCD that way. I know, I know, I know that my kids could do more of this stuff, but the reality is that it is much more important to me than to them and, frankly, I prefer it done my way. I need help - I get that! The good news is that it only takes me about 20-30 minutes and I feel so clean, organized, and ready to face the world when it is done. The bad news is that I also like to lounge in my PJs & bathrobe drinking a second cup of coffee and reading WTM forums in the morning. I need to reconcile these two competing demands, because doing both gets our morning started too late to accomplish everything.

 

 

 

I love your grade every day idea. Am stealing!

 

As for your OCD, I agree. I can't think if things are out of order and I don't think my kids think as well either. I have figured out a way to make it work for us. My kids do their kitchen chores while I read aloud to them. They love to be read to and I love them doing their chores.

[Soror]

So far I've just bought my curriculum, like a previous poster I've bought pretty much every book I think we will really need so I don't have to worry that a missed library trip will derail our plans.

 

I've started pre-reading some on our History, I need to finish that. I have a rough outline to the year for history as well and will be making more detailed plans for the first 6 wks to get us started and then we will go from there.

 

I'll be checking out our science to see what supplies we need and buying them. I've already bought our supplies for art.

 

I have to reorganize the bookshelves as we moved everything downstairs this spring so it is a bit of a jumble right now. Hopefully we can get in a better routine with the baby as that certainly will help but they constantly change at this age, so we will do the best we can.

 

Oh, we are keeping up w/ a bit of school over the summer to keep everything fresh. I'm also starting some of our new programs slowly over the summer so it is an easier transition.

[happypamama]

-Purchasing and planning early; we won't start for about 3.5 more weeks, and I still have some small stuff to accomplish, but I could start today if I wanted.

 

-Putting everything into my planning app

 

-Getting our boxes and everything cleaned out and restocked and ready; everything is printed and bindered or whatever.

 

-I'm making a list of library books and supplies I need to have on hand for the first month or so; I'm hoping to do that about once a month for the upcoming month.

 

-I think I am going to do a trial run today to set up our first day's worth of work, so I can see what is not as easy to use as I expected or what I might have forgotten.

[ElizabethB]

Moving. :huh:

 

OK, that is so not setting me up for success!!

 

I do plan on putting all the homeschool books I will need as supplements in our bedroom so that they will be in separate boxes. I'll bring our LA and math with just to be on the safe side. (Last move, we had 40 or 50 book boxes so it is important that my homeschool books for next year are clearly labeled and separated.)

[Sobeknofret]

The biggest thing I'm doing is to

1. Work with DS on his reading and math, at least 15 minutes a day.

2. Get him evaluated for LD's and ADD/ADHD. I hope this will lead to some answers so I can reliably plan for next year!

[Sahamamama]

1. Sleeping in :closedeyes:

2. Swimming & working on our tans :coolgleamA:

3. Continuing with math, reading, grammar, spelling, composition, Latin, French, music, and Bible, Literature, History & Science read alouds (IOW, we go year-round).

 

Also, we recently moved, and in this house, we have set up a dedicated homeschool room. We'll see how (and if) that works. It LOOKS fantastic! :)

[Wabi Sabi]

I'm purchasing and gathering all the supplies needed for at least a semester's worth of science. I'm determined to finally do BFSU this year and hope that having all of our supplies already gathered and organized will make us more likely to get it done.

[stm4him]

What I'm doing this summer:

 

-Putting all papers into a binder or file organized for the 24 weeks of CC next year and setting up a disc-bound notebook that will hold all their morning papers for one week and another notebook for their afternoon/content work

-Designing a schedule that is more of a loop with an every day morning devotional and reading time at night, a definite lunch time and end of school time

-Taking a break every 6 weeks to catch up plus a long winter break to fill in whatever runs over 24 weeks (like Math) and having a three week buffer at the end

-Hopefully going through the math and reading the literature for next year (already behind on current year)

-work through Greek with my daughter so it will be easier to teach my son in the fall

-I will do more than one cooking day before the year starts to have six weeks of meals ready

-Planning out our Disney trip for week after Thanksgiving

-Ordering reams of paper for next year instead of multiple notebooks

-Having my playlists for memory work completely organized

-Declutter EVERYTHING!!

 

What worked well this year:

-buying books instead of the library

-not curriculum hopping....tweaking what I have

-choosing language arts that stays the same every year and can trickle down to the youngers (like Essentials)

-not doing a bunch of hands on projects

-grading immediately

-once a week subjects with daily flashcard review (Latin, Greek, and logic)

-once a week written memory work test

-Apple TV w/ Ipad!!! (for memory work app)

-ordering 2nd semester living books on winter break

-less curriculum, more repetition

-reliable rotations, predictable routines

-committing to less social life for a season to focus on consistency

 

Goals for next year:

Consistency of the basics: morning devotions, after lunch read aloud, silent reading at night and bedtime routines, chore habits

Mandatory margins for Mom

Preventative training instead of reactive parenting

Less stuff to manage

Order before Instruction

Sanity over productivity

Teach from a place of peace

 

And one I'm ignoring right now.....Go to bed on time! Get up on time!

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

I have littles, so my list my be a bit different. I saw this year that if I didn't already have it photocopied, already have the book, or already have the supplies, it didn't get done. Also, detailed lesson plans were useless after day 3 or so. :-) Instead, this year I hope to:

 

- Make checklists for content subjects with 36ish weeks worth of lessons, but not "schedule" them to any particular date. This would be science, history, memory work, spelling rules, French, copy work, artist study, and art.

- Make photocopies of all the SOTW pages I need, put them in a binder, and use it workbook style.

- Gather what I need for science class in 6 week blocks.

- Put all of my planning tools together into a teacher's binder

 

What I did this year that worked great- taught my kids how to use the hole punch and gave them each a binder for their drawings. The kids produce an astounding quantity of drawings, and somewhere between "saving to show daddy", "I'll look at it when dinner is in the oven", and such, they always end up shuffled into my paperwork for school. And God forbid any child should find his or her drawing in the recycling bin by accident! Sheesh!

 

 

 

 

-

[Murphy101]

Same as every year. We school mostly year round, but im planning on taking all of July off.

 

Clear out shelves and such in the school room.

 

Write out topic outlines for the year, so I have an idea of what all is being covered when.

 

Write out weekly plans for the first month.

 

Make the weekly routine schedule for reference next to the calendar. It shows when we are home and when we are not.

 

Finish up some of my projects so they don't distract me.

 

Stock up on art supplies and anything else I might need to keep on hand.

 

Clear computers. Backup. Delete stuff I don't want anymore. Clean up the drives. Create hard copies of stuff I want to keep in addition to saving to disk. This is basicly my "desk" clearing.

 

Create or print off anything I need for the year and place in appropriate binders so they're ready when we need them.

[mamabear2three]

:lurk5:

[FO4UR]

Purging, cleaning and planning...striving to keep it simple.

 

I splurged on several nutshell kits so I don't have to hunt down a list of supplies for science. I love planning. Hate hunting!

 

 

The school files have been purged so I have room to make all copies for the year. I will file by subject (probably) and term (6 6-wk terms).

 

Everything has to be "pick-up-and-go" this year with a baby in the mix.

[JenC3]

Setting aside yet ANOTHER schoolroom. We always end up back in our huge kitchen, but I really want to avoid that this year. I get distracted by chores and interrupted too many times.

 

Banning all electronics except a CD player during schooltime.

DD will do typing instruction on her own time and I will study and plan if everyone "happens" to be occupied.

 

Stocking a KIndy area for dd2 to keep her included and occupied longer.

 

Succumbing to a 9-3 schedule. With 3 hsing and an infant, we'll take more breaks and the day will just be longer.

 

Working super hard 4 days a week again and not scheduling anything, but fun stuff on Friday.

 

Taking a shorter break at Christmas.

 

Having everything super organized!

 

Putting dd 1 in charge of breakfast while ds and I get chores going so we are finished with chores, breakfast and bible reading by 9.

[happypamama]

Also, I set up files for each child, one folder for each month of the year (so, right now I have 36, for my three oldest children, although since the almost 2yo is starting to enjoy scribbling with crayons, I should make a folder for his creations too), and I also have a labeled "Inbox." The kids know that if they've written on something, it goes in the Inbox; otherwise, the book goes back into the workbox for that subject. (They know that if they haven't put the book back into the workbox [with its laminated bookmark in place] and/or paper in the Inbox, and the workbox back into the "used" stack, they don't get credit for having finished that subject. No credit means no check in the box for that subject, which means no credit for the day, which means no screen time. This took time to train but reaps huge rewards and saves me time tracking down/redoing bookmarks and compiling boxes each night.) Once I check work that is in my Inbox (and it gets corrected if need be), it either goes back to the book crate/workboxes (if it's a workbook -- crate for things not used every day, workbox for things that are daily/frequent use) or it goes in the monthly file for that child (this makes my portfolio-creating MUCH easier). I try to get to the Inbox every day or two, especially for math (and I will prioritize that over other things), but sometimes it doesn't happen.

 

Systems and pushing the systems until they're automatic. Otherwise, I would go insane with piles of papers and books and water bottles and sunglasses and everything that is needed for several children. (We have pencil boxes for each child's crayons/pencils/pens/scissors/gluesticks/erasers, bins for each child's shoes, hooks for each child's jacket/hat/backpack, small cubbies for each child's sunglasses/EpiPens/speech therapy homework.) I tend to go for overly divided things (tabs, files, bins, cubbies, whatever) so it's less to go through.

[wehave8]

Two things that worked tremendously well for us last year were:

 

1) Using a student planner to record what my daughter actually accomplished as opposed to planning it out in advance and frequently feeling 'behind' for not doing enough. We recorded what she did in a regular order, rather than in the order she worked. It was helpful, because I could easily glance back at a previous day and see exactly where she was on something. I tend to do too much, rather than too little, but still having to constantly erase my "plan" and write in reality was frustrating for me before. Using curriculum that is preplanned (just do the next thing) is required for this style of teaching.

 

2) Grading/discussing/fixing everything, everyday before we were done for the day was a huge relief. She got immediate feedback which furthered her learning and I was liberated from ever feeling behind because I hadn't gotten to the ever-growing stack of work on my desk that needed grading & corrections. I found that she was much more meticulous when she knew she would have to watch me review it and make any necessary changes before she was finished with her day. I reserved 10-15 minutes at the end of the day for this purpose and it was time VERY WELL SPENT!

 

Two areas in which I need improvement:

 

1) I need to purge my bookshelves of things I'm not using and likely won't use again. Even if I just box them up and toss them in the basement, I will feel much less cluttered and disorganized. With one more child to educate, some things may get revived, but some I've just outgrown/decided I don't like/no longer fit my teaching style, etc. Those should be donated/sold.

 

2) I can't begin teaching until all the beds are made, the laundry is picked up (and a load started), kitchen counters are wiped and dishwasher emptied/re-loaded, and bathrooms wiped/tidied. I'm just a little OCD that way. I know, I know, I know that my kids could do more of this stuff, but the reality is that it is much more important to me than to them and, frankly, I prefer it done my way. I need help - I get that! The good news is that it only takes me about 20-30 minutes and I feel so clean, organized, and ready to face the world when it is done. The bad news is that I also like to lounge in my PJs & bathrobe drinking a second cup of coffee and reading WTM forums in the morning. I need to reconcile these two competing demands, because doing both gets our morning started too late to accomplish everything.

 

I could have written this!!!! Since you already did...I may print it out and post it on my frige as a reminder. :)

 

Pam