Hitting a brick wall with planning...

[LisaKinVA]

I still have so much to do to acquire materials and plan out courses for next year.  On top of it, we may be abandoning our plan to take several courses at the high school next year -- which means more work will land on my plate!

 

I'm taking a break.  Working on Swimming workout plans to take us through the summer instead.  It's merely a diversionary tactic for now.  At some point, I have to get back to work on the syllabi and lesson plans.

[regentrude]

Must you have syllabi and lesson plans???

I've never had a single lesson plan. Your kids seem very advanced students - why can't you just do a "do-the-next-thing" type course?

Get a textbook, find  a list of assignments, let them learn at their pace. 

Or gasp, unschool a course or two.

Edited June 25, 2016 by regentrude

[Mosaicmind]

We don't out source anything for high school so it lands all on me to gather materials, plan them out, and get our schedule for the days worked out. I agree that you need a lesson plan because I need to know where they should be. They can write out what they need to do each day in their lesson planners but I have to have my own.

 

This age needs to be responsible, but in my mind not having something laid out leads to disaster. I've had lots of experience with this and it's what works for us. I would say just take one thing at a time and don't plan out too far. I hate erasing plans more than figuring them out to begin with.

[regentrude]

. I agree that you need a lesson plan because I need to know where they should be.

 

Why?

I mean this question completely seriously.

As long as they spend time on task and progress, why "should" they be at a certain point?

 

I found it extremely difficult to predict how long a given section/task would take a student. Even in my job where I have 15 years of experience teaching the same subject, I cannot always accurately predict how long a student will take for an assignment, and it varies from student to student and sometimes between semesters.

Scheduling precisely would require the person who draws up the schedule to work each assignment herself to see where exactly the stumbling blocks are. As a physicist, I have a background in advanced mathematics, yet I am not always able to predict upon merely reading a math problem that it would take *me* one hour to solve it. let alone predict where the student may run into trouble; I would have to work every problem ahead of time, note the stumbling blocks, make a prediction for timing.

Much easier to insist on time on task and monitor the progress; we are done when we are done and we have accomplished whatever we have accomplished when the school year is over. As long as time on task is spent, all is fine.

 

Scheduling out each task to create a "should" timeline is one way of doing things, but by no means the only one.

 

ETA: I have also made the painful experience that strictly adhering to a schedule  - which is a necessity in my large classes where multiple sections must be taught precisely in synch- will compromise the in depth understanding for some students because they would need more time to process the concepts. I see it as a great strength of a homeschool that the students can learn at exactly the right pace they need for mastery. 

Edited June 25, 2016 by regentrude

[Mosaicmind]

Why? Because I have a son who has some issues and the other will tell me he's done his work and then I find out at the end of the week when I look over work that he's lied to me. Many years ago I didn't have lesson plans and we just kept doing the next lesson, or so I thought. I wasn't as good then at making sure things were done because I had 7 kids all at different levels and I was burnt out. We were so behind by spring and I felt out of control.

 

In my opinion, you can't fool around in high school and you should be making good progress or else you will get to the end of the year and find out that you aren't as far as you should be. I've been homeschooling for 18 years and I have a good idea of how long it will take my boys to complete certain tasks. I believe that at certain times during the year they should be in a certain spot or close to it so I know that we are on track to finish on x date, even though we school year around.

 

Some of us feel more comfy knowing that we have lessons planned out and that our kiddos are copying their lessons into their plan books too. I can look at day 62 (I don't go by calendar days) in my planner and see what's to be done that day. Then I go to my son's planners and see they have the same thing written down and then have them show me their work. It may not be day 62's work but I am going to expect it to be within, at the most, 7 days so I know that they are making progress.

 

I also, see the use of planning as a way to know that if I need to schedule the ACT, PSAT, or SAT, they have made enough progress thru their studies so they are ready for those. This of course is a personal opinion based on my last two kiddos personalities, study habits, and how we all work best together. I have had other kids who have had lesson planners but never needed them but still used them so they knew they were on track.

[MerryAtHope]

Hang in there! Sometimes I find it helps me to focus on an easier subject planning-wise first--I tend to pick up steam when I know what I'm going to do for one or two subjects, and then I build on that. Hope planning goes well for you!

[LisaKinVA]

I schedule out roughly 180 hours of work. I number the days 1-90 or 1-180, divide up the text (or book hours) add in lectures, schedule papers, tests or labs, add in review where necessary, and if there is too much, figure out what is less important, and cut. The weekly lesson plans are much more flexible, and aren't done way far in advance.

 

I'm just a bit burned out doing it times four right now. Plus, I don't have the materials for some things, and other things I am just dreading (lots of materials to integrate).

[Carrie12345]

If I didn't schedule out lesson plans (though I admit, some barely count as "plans", lol) my dd wouldn't complete half a course in a year's time.  And I know this for a proven fact!

 

But I hear you, OP!  I'm currently planning a barbecue instead of French.  :tongue_smilie:

[Guest]

How do you feel about block scheduling for six to 12 weeks? You have fewer subjects but spend more time on each everyday. It has made my planning life much easier and has been a big hit with my 9th grader so far. It allows her to be more immersed in the subjects and not constantly switching around which she says she much prefers to six or seven subjects a day. We do keep math normal and daily, but her other subjects we are doing in more concentrated amounts. It makes it easier for me as well with planning and grading. I roughly planned out the whole summer but I only do two weekly plans at a time in case we get hung up somewhere. Not sure if it would work for you, but thought I would throw it out there.

[Mom22ns]

Why? Because I have a son who has some issues and the other will tell me he's done his work and then I find out at the end of the week when I look over work that he's lied to me. Many years ago I didn't have lesson plans and we just kept doing the next lesson, or so I thought. I wasn't as good then at making sure things were done because I had 7 kids all at different levels and I was burnt out. We were so behind by spring and I felt out of control.

 

Have my kids moved in with you? I only had two kids, but I had one of each of those  :banghead: .

 

Planning kept me and them on target. Giving them something and saying go learn it was a total disaster. Neither could ever handle that. They were smart and capable, but one had issues with executive function and one with motivation. Nope, syllabus and lesson plans were always necessary. They both graduated. They've both got plenty of college credits done to prove they could move on even if I had to handhold while they were in high school. PS kids don't have to organize or teach themselves. I don't see why homeschool kids should be expected to.

 

I'm taking a break.  Working on Swimming workout plans to take us through the summer instead.  It's merely a diversionary tactic for now.  At some point, I have to get back to work on the syllabi and lesson plans.

 

Enjoy your break and come back refreshed. I always needed a summer break!

Edited June 27, 2016 by Momto2Ns

[Mosaicmind]

Have my kids moved in with you? I only had two kids, but I had one of each of those :banghead: .

 

Planning kept me and them on target. Giving them something and saying go learn it was a total disaster. Neither could ever handle that. They were smart and capable, but one had issues with executive function and one with motivation. Nope, syllabus and lesson plans were always necessary. They both graduated. They've both got plenty of college credits done to prove they could move on even if I had to handhold while they were in high school. PS kids don't have to organize or teach themselves. I don't see why homeschool kids should be expected to.

I have 7 but only 2 left to get thru homeschool, but I had at least a couple of non-motivated ones. It has gotten better and he doesn't lie (as much) anymore but I still have to keep a schedule and lesson plans to keep us all sane and safe. Ha! I agree with what you said about kids in public school and some of mine have gone thru high school so I know what you mean. I do expect my kids who homeschool all the way thru a little more but I can't just give them their books and say start here and keep going. For me that sounds irresponsible but I know my kids and this is why.

 

Right now, I'm trying to find the right online planner that computes grades too. I give my kids access to it so we can all look in one place to see where everyone is supposed to be and how each is doing in each subject.

[Mom22ns]

Right now, I'm trying to find the right online planner that computes grades too. I give my kids access to it so we can all look in one place to see where everyone is supposed to be and how each is doing in each subject.

 

Yes! My dh is a database guy and made me something to order. It made all the difference!

[Targhee]

We don't out source anything for high school so it lands all on me to gather materials, plan them out, and get our schedule for the days worked out. I agree that you need a lesson plan because I need to know where they should be. They can write out what they need to do each day in their lesson planners but I have to have my own.

 

This age needs to be responsible, but in my mind not having something laid out leads to disaster. I've had lots of experience with this and it's what works for us. I would say just take one thing at a time and don't plan out too far. I hate erasing plans more than figuring them out to begin with.

Semantics, but this to me is a schedule. A lesson plan is just that, a plan for YOU on how to actively teach a lesson.

 

Either way, I see there are pros and cons to schedules. If you want to make it through a certain amount of content then a schedule helps keep you on pace. However, we can become slavishly and rigidly beholding to a schedule at the expense of time for contemplation, time for deepening our understand or making connections with prior knowledge. We often are beholding to a schedule as an employee or as a provider of goods and services, and learning to manage time well to be successful in such a situation later in life is probably a good idea. Then again, passion, problem solving, and creativity are often sacrificed in the name of productivity.

 

So I guess be judicious about which courses need a schedule?

[Mosaicmind]

Semantics, but this to me is a schedule. A lesson plan is just that, a plan for YOU on how to actively teach a lesson.

 

Either way, I see there are pros and cons to schedules. If you want to make it through a certain amount of content then a schedule helps keep you on pace. However, we can become slavishly and rigidly beholding to a schedule at the expense of time for contemplation, time for deepening our understand or making connections with prior knowledge. We often are beholding to a schedule as an employee or as a provider of goods and services, and learning to manage time well to be successful in such a situation later in life is probably a good idea. Then again, passion, problem solving, and creativity are often sacrificed in the name of productivity.

 

So I guess be judicious about which courses need a schedule?

When we first started homeschooling 18 years ago (I feel tired just typing that), I purchased Managers of their Homes and scheduled out our days in 30min and hour increments. I needed it because we had 5 children at that time, some school age and some not, but we worked best this way. When we had added kid numbers 6 and 7, that way of scheduling our days had become a way of life and it was working for us. This is what I mean when I'm talking about a schedule. Our schedule has changed somewhat these days now that I'm only schooling 2 kids versus 7 kids but it's still vital and works for our family to follow a loose schedule each day. I've learned that I've not become a slave to one because I'm not controlling or ocd by nature.

 

Lesson plans are different imo and I'm a little more strict when it comes to lesson plans. I consider lesson plans to be what I've written in my planner and what the boys have written in their's for what is to be done in each subject that day. What we use are all called lesson planners, so this is why I've always used "lesson plans" when referring to what each boy needs to do each day. I've learned to not get behind more than by 7 days and to check that what they've written down matches up to my planner and to check also that they are doing their work.

 

I've learned about how much time to allow in our schedule for each subject and if we run off on a bunny trail then we just go with it. We don't have any classes outside of our home, they have one extra curricular activity, and our family is very laid back and we don't fill up our days and weeks. This gives us time to devote extra time to something that sparks our interest and we utilize weekends and evenings if we need to. Schooling year round helps also but I've seen my kids work on school work during our weeks off or in the evenings because they see these bunny trails as fun and not work, so school work gets done despite going deeper into something.

 

I've always had some kind of teacher's/instructor's manuals to use to "teach the lesson", what you call lesson plans. Some I've thrown out the window after the first week, others I've tweaked to fit me, and still others of which I've used verbatim. I look at these more as a guide for how to get the most out of the curriculum. Sometimes these manuals/guides can suck the life out of what's really a very good curriculum because they can drag out or skim over what's being taught. There's a balance that I seek to attain to get the most out of what's being taught and still keep us on track while my boys soak up the material and really learn it. You can become a slave to these teacher's manuals too, and find at the end of the lesson that your kiddos got nothing out of what you just taught. I think that learning this balance comes with time and learning your child's learning style so you can present the material in a way so that child can assimilate it. I believe that even in high school this is important, though maybe not as much because students at this age can do a lot for themselves without us teaching it all.

 

In my opinion every course that my boys will take this coming school term will need to be scheduled into our days and planned out daily in each of our lesson planners. I don't believe that I will have to teach every lesson of every course using the accompanying teacher's manual. Deciding how much time each course will take usually takes us a couple of weeks to figure out and with my youngest just starting high school this coming year, I know to allow extra time for courses especially during the first month or so until he gets a better understanding of what I expect of him and what each course will need to be done each day.

 

This week is actually the first week for me to start writing out lesson plans in our lesson planner and figuring out a schedule for each day. This year our days won't look the same because both the boys got onto a large homeschool soccer team, which is just like an elite traveling team, and they will have practice, games, and be traveling for tournaments in and out of state against other premiere and elite traveling soccer teams. We are all excited to start our new year!!