Daily planning

[Rachel]

I understand yearly planning, setting goals for the year, etc.  What I'm trying to figure out is the daily planning.  I know a lot of people look ahead at the week to figure out what books, supplies, or copies they need.  How do you prepare for individual lessons each day?

 

This is my first year homeschooling, I have a 6 year old in kindergarten.  We have just reached the stage where I have to actually teach him some subjects.  For the most part we just do the next lesson and my son grasps new concepts fairly easily, the concepts are simple enough that I don't need to do a ton of planning.  However, I can see that soon I will be needing to spend more time in advance.  Right now we are using SM 1A, we are on number bonds to 10.  He basically understands, but needs more practice, so I'm using a lot of the activities in the HIG.  If I have to spend 5+ minutes reading and understanding how to do the particular activity right before we start, he begins to get distracted by other things.  If I read all the lessons for the week on Sunday, I'm not going to remember the nuance of an activity by Thursday.  

 

I understand that part of what I'm asking is just part of my learning process, but I'm looking for ideas on how others approach individual lessons. So what do you do, read through all your lessons before you start for the day, the night before, everything for the week and quick skim immediately before the lesson?

[73349]

I don't call DS to the school table until I'm ready to start everything. So I have the books and papers and markers and manipulatives and everything, the date written, and I know what we're doing. Can you take a few minutes to look at the lesson before school starts?

[sarahj]

I take 5-15 minutes every afternoon reviewing the next day's lessons and gathering the books I need so I am ready in the morning.

[Rachel]

I don't call DS to the school table until I'm ready to start everything. So I have the books and papers and markers and manipulatives and everything, the date written, and I know what we're doing. Can you take a few minutes to look at the lesson before school starts?

[Rachel]

Yes, that is what I have been trying to do. Right now the only lesson I have to review is math and we do that first, everything else is straight forward.

 

I'm probably overthinking, but I'm wondering more about how you handle it when you have a math lesson that requires manipulatives, a science experiment that needs to be set up, and a history lesson with a project. We aren't there yet, I'm just looking ahead and trying to grasp how to be prepared for the individual lessons.

 

Reading ahead the afternoon before sounds like it would work well for me. I already have packed evenings and don't see being able to fit another responsibility in at night.

[Mom22ns]

I'm probably overthinking, but I'm wondering more about how you handle it when you have a math lesson that requires manipulatives, a science experiment that needs to be set up, and a history lesson with a project. We aren't there yet, I'm just looking ahead and trying to grasp how to be prepared for the individual lessons.

 

First of all, don't worry, you'll grow into this and find your way as you do.

 

When my kids were younger, I planned a week in advance. My planning (computer based) had a place to list supplies so I could look at the supply list for the coming week before I went shopping, but also look at the supply list each day, so I could make sure things were laid out and ready.

 

As your kids get older and the lessons get longer and you have more supplies, your day will get longer and you will probably incorporate some breaks. I made sure I was ready to teach math before my kids got up in the morning. After math, they might have a break while I pulled together science materials. Remember, those materials were already purchased, and the list reviewed and possibly even gathered and ready if there was a lot. The day continued like that. If history included a  project it might be after lunch so I would have another chance to do a quick prep. Sometimes I might just prep, while my kids put their things from the previous subject back in their cubby. My school room is organized (about the only part of my house that is organized) and we moved easily between subjects.

[coffeegal]

Yes, that is what I have been trying to do. Right now the only lesson I have to review is math and we do that first, everything else is straight forward.

 

I'm probably overthinking, but I'm wondering more about how you handle it when you have a math lesson that requires manipulatives, a science experiment that needs to be set up, and a history lesson with a project. We aren't there yet, I'm just looking ahead and trying to grasp how to be prepared for the individual lessons.

 

Reading ahead the afternoon before sounds like it would work well for me. I already have packed evenings and don't see being able to fit another responsibility in at night.

 

I purchase the science kits if I can, or the needed supplies, during the summer and store them in a big box near the kitchen. When it's time for an experiment, I simply grab the box and pull out the needed supplies with the children. They run fetch anything that's stored in a different area (such as rubbing alcohol). I also listed the perishable items in my planner by the school week. At the store (since I carry my planner everywhere) I can check my planner to see what needs to be purchased for the upcoming week. I'm notorious for forgetting to check everyone's science book. :rolleyes:

 

Math manipulatives worked in a similar manner. I kept the manipulatives near my school area so I could grab and go. I've been horrid about history projects with the older children, but I'm planning on keeping a history box and a list of needed supplies in my planner like I do with science.

 

Another thing I do is to check the next day's lesson before I put the book away. It usually doesn't take more than a minute or two to glance at the lesson and see what's planned.

 

[Alicia64]

This is not my strong suit. I'm making daily planning a goal in '14.

 

Alley

[athomeontheprairie]

Either the night before or in the morning prior to starting school I make a stack (possibly similar to workboxes) of everything I will need for every subject. I do this for each student. If ii need several supplies at once or if I need to set something up prior to that lesson, I do that while the kids are playing, then it's ready to go when recess is over.

[Farrar]

I usually do the sort of thing you're talking about while they're working.  I mean, I have the book out anyway.  I just flip ahead while they're doing the practice to see what's next to make sure I get it.

 

Beyond that sort of thing, and occasionally getting set up for a project or a science experiment, I rarely do any daily planning.  I only do big picture stuff and set up routines.

 

There's plenty of ways to do planning.  If sitting down formally in the evening and mapping everything out works for you, then that's great, but don't get caught assuming that's how it has to be.  You can choose curricula and styles that don't require that at all.

[fdrinca]

We have activities built in our school day where my 5 and 6 year old are able to do tasks themselves (journal writing, Explode the Code pages, some spelling work). I use those times to get new activities up. Also, we have lots of breaks (bathroom, baby needs a diaper, snacks, toddler's eating glue...), and before we regroup I'll set something new up.

 

I do think that it comes down to routine. I was hard to bring the kids back to work after a break, or after I'd lost their attention, but we've been working on it all school year. It's really much easier now than it was in August. 

 

If it's setting up a science experiment, getting out manipulatives, or something that doesn't exactly require your concentration, you can keep a conversation going with your child as you go. 

 

As for planning, I like to make our weekly plan on the weekend. We have five folders that we use to hold papers we'll need. For science and history, I'll write out lesson plans for each day so I'll know what to do. As our routine has taken over, these lesson plans aren't that involved. I figure I'll get to use them again with the younger two, so it's worth doing well. I also draft a master list of what I need to do each night to get school ready for the next day. 

[leeannpal]

I am trying to reschedule our days to take our outside activities more into account. Dd has requested a weekly checklist instead of a daily schedule, and I am going to do that, but I'll also have a daily schedule available for me and her dad. We use workboxes, so she will have her daily workbox, but if she wants to work ahead in one or two subject, she will be able to with the weekly checklist.

[OneStepAtATime]

Everyone ends up with different rhythms and planning patterns that work for them.  You will find yours eventually.  What works for me, when I really focus on doing this, is to read through everything over the weekend, make sure I understand the material and have anything needed already on hand, then I put everything in a couple of colored bins such as the manipulatives, etc. that we will be using.  I actually have a roll-around cart I bought on clearance that I keep everything in that we will be using that week, including all books, TMs, the colored bins for manipulatives, educational games, etc.  I also have a clear storage box for each of us (each child and me) with our names on them that hold pencils, pencil sharpener, tape, paper clips, markers, colored pencils, etc. so no one can say they can't find supplies and I am not wasting time looking.    I roll the cart up to the table and unpack what we need for each lesson as we go.  They help me repack and put away stuff already used (back on the cart).  

 

The day of the lessons, I quickly skim through everything again to refresh my mind and confirm I have everything before we even start.  Sometimes I leave post it notes in the books, TM, etc. for anything I really want to emphasize or work harder on or approach differently (or highlight if highlighting is sufficient).  I also have a checklist for the day or sometimes for a two day or even one week period so I don't forget anything unusual.  The kids have checklists, too, but my kids are older than yours.  I do know that, just like you, if I have to take too much time to prep while we are in the middle of lessons, we lose our momentum and the kids get distracted...At the end of each lesson, if I have a moment to skim the next day's lesson, I find I am much better prepared for the next day, but I don't always have time and just have to wait until the next morning.

[Rachel]

In Singapore, I have found that reading through the lesson ahead of time and highlighting what I want to do jogs my memory enough. I keep the math manip nearby too. As he gets older and less distractible, you'll figure out more how to give him some work to do while you look it over.

Yes, he is quite distractable, and his lessons are so short that I really don't have much time to read ahead during lesson time currently.  I can see as he becomes more independent I'll be able to use that time more. 

 

 

The day of the lessons, I quickly skim through everything again to refresh my mind and confirm I have everything before we even start.  Sometimes I leave post it notes in the books, TM, etc. for anything I really want to emphasize or work harder on or approach differently (or highlight if highlighting is sufficient).  I also have a checklist for the day or sometimes for a two day or even one week period so I don't forget anything unusual.  The kids have checklists, too, but my kids are older than yours.  I do know that, just like you, if I have to take too much time to prep while we are in the middle of lessons, we lose our momentum and the kids get distracted...At the end of each lesson, if I have a moment to skim the next day's lesson, I find I am much better prepared for the next day, but I don't always have time and just have to wait until the next morning.

Post-its are a great idea, I can't believe I haven't thought of that before.

[Aspasia]

Everyone ends up with different rhythms and planning patterns that work for them. You will find yours eventually. What works for me, when I really focus on doing this, is to read through everything over the weekend, make sure I understand the material and have anything needed already on hand, then I put everything in a couple of colored bins such as the manipulatives, etc. that we will be using. I actually have a roll-around cart I bought on clearance that I keep everything in that we will be using that week, including all books, TMs, the colored bins for manipulatives, educational games, etc. I also have a clear storage box for each of us (each child and me) with our names on them that hold pencils, pencil sharpener, tape, paper clips, markers, colored pencils, etc. so no one can say they can't find supplies and I am not wasting time looking. I roll the cart up to the table and unpack what we need for each lesson as we go. They help me repack and put away stuff already used (back on the cart).

 

.

I love the cart idea! We have a school room right next to our family room and we tend to do school right next to that at the kitchen table--so it's not far. But it is definitely far enough that sending dd to the schoolroom to grab manipulatives or a pencil can create a break in the momentum. I love the idea of wheeling a cart out at school time, working from it at the table, and then wheeling it back to its home in the school room!

[OneStepAtATime]

Yes, he is quite distractable, and his lessons are so short that I really don't have much time to read ahead during lesson time currently.  I can see as he becomes more independent I'll be able to use that time more. 

 

Post-its are a great idea, I can't believe I haven't thought of that before.

What I've done with post-its is have a little box I keep all different sizes and types of post-its and I always look for sales, clearance and coupons to keep the cost down.  I have some that are big with lines on them, some that are just those arrows, etc.  Makes the whole process faster.  I keep a couple of highlighters, pens, and pencils in the post it note box so I have everything on hand when I need to review material for the next week.  I help run the family business now that my dad has passed away, and I handle all the personal business at home (husband gone a LOT) so I have limited time even without the homeschooling...

 

I love the cart idea! We have a school room right next to our family room and we tend to do school right next to that at the kitchen table--so it's not far. But it is definitely far enough that sending dd to the schoolroom to grab manipulatives or a pencil can create a break in the momentum. I love the idea of wheeling a cart out at school time, working from it at the table, and then wheeling it back to its home in the school room!

I did a lot of research on carts.  I decided I wanted one designed to be used in a library since it (theoretically) would be sturdier than one designed for home use.  I ended up buying a Sandusky single sided sloped book cart, with commercial strength metal, construction and wheels.  They also have some great double sided carts, lots of different widths to choose from and there are many colors to choose from if you go with one of the distributors that gives you color choices (like School Outfitters).  

 

However, I didn't care nearly as much about the color as about the size and price, once I knew which model I was seeking.  I found two that were available through Amazon (I have Amazon Prime so I sought and found two carts offered through Prime so I wouldn't pay for shipping since this is a heavy item) but they were out of my price range.  I put them in my shopping cart and watched the price over several weeks.  One of the carts went up in price.  The other dropped significantly, to what I was willing to pay, so I bought it.  Got here in two days, a couple of weeks before we were going to start school again.  The cart is wonderful.  Really rugged.  All we had to do was put the super strong wheels on the bottom, no other assembly required.

 

The cart is such a life-saver.  The room I keep all the educational material in just doesn't have the space or the lighting of our kitchen table, so I can just put whatever we are using for the week on the cart, wheel it in for use each day, then wheel it back into the other room when we aren't using it.  I don't have to stack books on top of each other.  They sit neatly on the cart.  I have all our supplies on the cart, bins on the cart, etc.  If I have time to review materials, I wheel the cart over to my office desk or back into the breakfast area and pull out what I want to look over.  I even wheeled it outside one day when the weather was nice and we worked on the porch.

 

FWIW, I also ended up getting a wheeled dry erase/cork board, too, since we don't have the wall space for a mounted dry erase and there are times when we need a big dry erase board, not a little one.  We can keep whatever maps we are using that week pinned on the cork board side and both kids can be working on the dry erase side without disturbing the maps.  There are magnetic colored dry erase markers stuck on the sides so they always have access to dry erase markers.  We wheel it in when needed, then wheel it back into the other room when we aren't using it.