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help...overwhelmed with planning


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I feel overwhelmed by the amount of time it's taking to plan our school year (for K, 2nd, 4th, and 7th).  I use the same forms and follow the same procedures every year and have a nice plan by the end of summer but it just takes so.long.  I don't do daily schedules, just term ones.  And that's not even counting the amount of time it takes to research and purchase curriculum!  I'd love to just buy a packaged curriculum but I think I would just end up tweaking them and being frustrated because of having to stick exactly to a schedule.  Also, we school 4 days a week and most curriculum packages seem to be scheduled for 5 days/week.  

I think part of the reason it takes me so long is because I want to look at or think about things several times before finalizing a plan or making a decision.  Also, I think I am choosing too many subjects, and each of them require researching time to choose a curriculum plus planning and scheduling time.  Our days don't end up being too long (and are actually probably shorter than most here) but there are a lot of short subjects involved.

For example, here are my 7th grader's subjects this year.  I figure this will take her 2.5-3 hrs/day, not counting free reading time.  Also we will do some things as a family in morning time which takes around 30 mins/day: daily devotions, hymns, poetry, picture study, composer study, Vocabulary Cartoons, Yo Sacramento! to memorize states & capitals, ASL, and some personal-growth type stuff.  

Bible: (daily Bible reading & memory work, 1 devotional + 2 other books)

Writing: Jump In!
Spelling: Megawords 5&6

History: state history + 1 go-along (2 terms), civics/government (1 term), basic economics (Penny Candy + another book by that author)

Geography: (Mapping the World w/Art + Book of Marvels The Occident)

Science: (Explore the World of Physics, Bite-size Physics, Instant Egghead Guide to Physics + 7 go-alongs)

Math: Teaching Textbooks 7

Drawing: Art with a Purpose 6

Foreign Language: Greek/Latin roots, Getting Started with Spanish

Poetry: Poetry for Young People Tennyson

Literature: 5-6 books to read and discuss

Music: piano lessons

Handiwork: free choice

Electives: (Typing-daily, current events–1 term, The Fallacy Detective–1 term, Health–1 term)

Free Reading: 20ish books

What can I do to cut back on the amount of time I'm spending on planning?  And on researching and buying curriculum?  Do I just need to choose fewer subjects?

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Well, to be honest. If you do it yourself it takes time. I have four, too, and it does take hours--but I enjoy it. 

You could use more textbooks or try Sonlight or My Father's World if you don't have the time or desire to plan. The better planned the better things go. 

I don't think you have too many subjects. 3 hours isn't that long if a day. You do have a lot of pieces to your subjects, but it seems to fit a lit based Charlotte Mason style of teaching. That type takes thought. You either have to do it or pay someone else to do the thinking. Textbooks would be more straight forward, but not fit your pholosophy. 

Edited by freesia
I meant someone else not someone worse!lol
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I see that you are using multiple things for many of your subjects. That's going to make planning longer also. If you just had one book, like a textbook for science, for example, it would be pretty simple to, say, schedule 1 section a day 4x a week, or whatever. I'm not sure exactly how you schedule, but I look at each subject and ask "How much and how many times a week do we need to do this in order to get it done this year?" So, for Teaching Textbooks 7 (I also have a kid doing that this year), it's one lesson 4x a week. I write in my planner for 4 days per week. Then I move on to the next subject and do the same thing. Does that make sense? If you're doing something else, then maybe that's not helpful.

Also, maybe there are things that you don't necessarily have to schedule. Like literature. If she's going to read 5-6 books, can you just hand her the first one and when she finishes it, hand her the next one? That wouldn't really require scheduling then.

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Looking at the ages of your kids, K and 2nd wouldn't take me long to plan.  I do minimal academic work with my kids that age.  I don't write out plans at that age bc I have found that their learning is far too variable.  I plan resources and general scope-sequence for the yr, but pace is wide open day by day.

Planning for the 4th and 7th graders would take me a considerable period of time, but it makes my days go by so much more smoothly b/c all of the plans are in my head as well as in their planners.  It takes minimal prep time daily b/c I already know what we are doing. I just need a reminder.  

I will say that the longer I homeschool, the faster I get at planning.  What used to take me all summer now takes me about 3 solid weeks.

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1 hour ago, Kiara.I said:

Do you have older plans from a couple of years back? Doesn't that cover the younger ones or do you pick new curriculum for every child?

My K and 2nd plans are most reused from prior years.  But my 4th grader is dyslexic and can't handle the reading his sister did at his age so I'm mostly coming up with new plans/curriculum for him.

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2 hours ago, hollyhock2 said:

 

Also, maybe there are things that you don't necessarily have to schedule. Like literature. If she's going to read 5-6 books, can you just hand her the first one and when she finishes it, hand her the next one? That wouldn't really require scheduling then.

 Yes literature doesn't need much scheduling, but it's a time-sucker in other ways.  First I had to choose the books, then I'll have to find time to read them ahead of her so we can discuss them or so I know what she's talking about if she narrates them.  And I have to find a literature guide for each book if I want to discuss it because I have no idea what questions to ask.  Workbooks seem so much simpler sometimes.

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It seems we have similar styles.  I am very eclectic and love to pull together resources vs following a curriculum.  Researching is sort of an ongoing, never ending hobby.  You can start a bullet journal or use software to organize future resources as you stumble across them.  I just stopped confining it to a particular time of year and I am just always making lists and bookmarking ideas for things to use later.  I organize it by grade and subject.

As far as planning, I am a big picture person so I have a clear idea of my goals and the educational outcomes I am trying to achieve for any given year. I usually have a fairly good idea of the basic resources I will use to achieve these goals, but sometimes resources are added or dropped.

I don't try to plan out my year all at once.  I schedule for roughly 3-6 weeks at a time (in pencil). I usually can write out about 3 solid weeks of fairly firm lesson plans (still in pencil, lol).  Then I look at the next 3 weeks after my detailed plans end and estimate what books and resources to go ahead and order from the library or supplies to buy if they are not on hand.  I usually spend a few hours one afternoon per month on planning. And that probably only takes so long because I write everything by hand, old school style.

I will say as a recovering hoarder of way too many resources (some of which have never been used!) that the next shiny thing isn't a magical cure.  No matter how fun and interesting I try to make it, sometimes it is still a slog to get through school.  I find the planning and researching to be more fun than the day to day implementation...and when school gets tough or boring I have been guilty of researching the next shiny thing to distract myself from those realities.  As I have realized this the hours I spend comparing resources (and the money spent on them!) has gone way down.

Edited by CaliforniaDreamin
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17 hours ago, caedmyn said:

I feel overwhelmed by the amount of time it's taking to plan our school year (for K, 2nd, 4th, and 7th).  I use the same forms and follow the same procedures every year and have a nice plan by the end of summer but it just takes so.long.  I don't do daily schedules, just term ones.  And that's not even counting the amount of time it takes to research and purchase curriculum!  I'd love to just buy a packaged curriculum but I think I would just end up tweaking them and being frustrated because of having to stick exactly to a schedule.  Also, we school 4 days a week and most curriculum packages seem to be scheduled for 5 days/week.  

I think part of the reason it takes me so long is because I want to look at or think about things several times before finalizing a plan or making a decision.  Also, I think I am choosing too many subjects, and each of them require researching time to choose a curriculum plus planning and scheduling time.  Our days don't end up being too long (and are actually probably shorter than most here) but there are a lot of short subjects involved.

For example, here are my 7th grader's subjects this year.  I figure this will take her 2.5-3 hrs/day, not counting free reading time.  Also we will do some things as a family in morning time which takes around 30 mins/day: daily devotions, hymns, poetry, picture study, composer study, Vocabulary Cartoons, Yo Sacramento! to memorize states & capitals, ASL, and some personal-growth type stuff.  

Bible: (daily Bible reading & memory work, 1 devotional + 2 other books)

Writing: Jump In!
Spelling: Megawords 5&6

History: state history + 1 go-along (2 terms), civics/government (1 term), basic economics (Penny Candy + another book by that author)

Geography: (Mapping the World w/Art + Book of Marvels The Occident)

Science: (Explore the World of Physics, Bite-size Physics, Instant Egghead Guide to Physics + 7 go-alongs)

Math: Teaching Textbooks 7

Drawing: Art with a Purpose 6

Foreign Language: Greek/Latin roots, Getting Started with Spanish

Poetry: Poetry for Young People Tennyson

Literature: 5-6 books to read and discuss

Music: piano lessons

Handiwork: free choice

Electives: (Typing-daily, current events–1 term, The Fallacy Detective–1 term, Health–1 term)

Free Reading: 20ish books

What can I do to cut back on the amount of time I'm spending on planning?  And on researching and buying curriculum?  Do I just need to choose fewer subjects?

Well, this isn't your first year, so you pretty much know what works for you. :-) However, your plans just for history, geography, and science sort of make my head explode, lol. So.many.things, for each one. Adding in Art With a Purpose (which I like, BTW), and then the literature books (which you want to read first) *and* the poetry,  *and* the foreign language...plus you expect your 12yo to be able to "free-read" 20ish books...I don't know how y'all make it each year. o_0

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14 hours ago, caedmyn said:

 Yes literature doesn't need much scheduling, but it's a time-sucker in other ways.  First I had to choose the books, then I'll have to find time to read them ahead of her so we can discuss them or so I know what she's talking about if she narrates them.  And I have to find a literature guide for each book if I want to discuss it because I have no idea what questions to ask.  Workbooks seem so much simpler sometimes.

For the literature guide issue, how about adopting a "90% solution" or "Good enough" mentality?  Just choose your "Trusted provider" of literature guides and pick the 5-6 selections from their offerings.

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Scheduling Methods:

A time slot for each, and the student pick up whatever they want of that subject until they all get finished. Example: Time Slot for science: Each time they could pick one of the following ( Explore the World of Physics, Bite-size Physics, Instant Egghead Guide to Physics + 7 go-alongs) until they all get finished.

Another Idea schedule a different one for different day of the week.

If you want each option scheduled each day, divide the science hour into 20 minute sections for the 3 options; or if you have half an hour for science 10 minute sections.

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(((hugs))) You are in a super mom-intensive time of life, what with 6 children -- 2 of whom are toddler/infant, 2 of whom completely need mom for school (K & 1st), and 1 (4th grader) who is in high-need of mom for schooling.

I totally understand wanting to pull together the best of the best for your children, but it sounds like you just don't have the time to spend on planning it all out at this stage of your life. Gently, I'd suggest working on letting go of feeling you "must tweak and plan everything", and switching to more open-and-go materials (programs that are "just do the next thing" -- no scheduling needed -- and you're never off-schedule because if you go faster or slower or miss a day, you "just do the next thing").

Also, loop scheduling, or having a longer school year can help you make programs that are scheduled for 5 days/week fit your 4-day school week without having to spend time tweaking. Or, just drop a book or two or skip a unit in the program when you get to the Christmas break and see you are not going to get to everything and it would be too stressful to make everyone do every last bit of the program. Really, it's okay to give yourself permission to do this!

And, if you are one who really does enjoy putting together your own materials, perhaps this is the year to realize you have to compromise about doing that for every subject so that you aren't burned out trying to plan it all before you even get to the *start* of school.

So for your 7th grader, perhaps pick just ONE subject that you would most enjoy planning out and doing with your 7th grader, and then switch to mostly-solo-working curricula and open-and-go programs for most other subjects. A few possible ideas for open-and-go curricula for your 7th grader

English
What you currently have lined up:
   - Writing = Jump In  -- a good open and go program
    - Spelling = Megawords  -- a good open and go program
    - Literature = pick 5-6 books to discuss; Poetry for Young People; free reading of 20 books

I'd just suggest going with a one-year Lit. program that's all layed out for you for literature info and discussion to make the Literature mostly solo-working and open-and-go. Also, middle school is a good time to start moving into more formal lit. studies, and an open and go program can help you with that. And, you can still have the book basket of other books for DD to enjoy for solo reading.

     - Lightning Lit. 7 -- 4 novels; 2 poetry units; and 2 short stories

If you find that Jump In is not a fit, or requires too much planning, or you don't like it, you might check out these mostly-solo working open-and-go writing programs:

     - Winning With Writing (gr. 7 level) -- workbook based
     - Essentials in Writing (gr. 7) -- DVD lessons
     - Cover Story (gr. 6-8) -- independent; creative writing + developing writing skills 

Math = Teaching Textbook -- a good open and go program

Science
Seems like too many little items that you are having to gather up and plan; consider for a solid program that does it for you, and your student can read Exploring the World of Physics on her own. Ideas:
     - Rainbow Science (Christian) = year 1 (physical science, which is an overview of physics and chemistry topics)
     - Elemental Science: Physics for the Logic Student (secular) = designed for solo-working student
     - Nancy Larson level 5 (secular) = scheduled 5 lessons/week BUT only 95 lessons, so lots of flexibility for "just do the next thing"
     - Switched on Schoolhouse (Christian) = computer CD; solo-working

- History
Seems like too many little items that you are having to gather up and plan; consider for a solid program that does it for you, and your student can read Penny Candy on her own as an extra add-on. One open-and-go idea is Switched on Schoolhouse (Christian, computer-based, self-paced, self-grading). For 7th grade, all of these are possibilities:
    State History
    History & Geography 700 is the gr. 7Social Studies overview: Hist., Geog., Sociology, Anthropology, Econ., Political Science
    Civics

- Geography
Mapping the World by Art + Book of Marvels. This seems pretty time-intensive to plan and to do. This could work if everyone is doing it. Or, it could be the ONE time-intensive subject for planning/doing. Or you could use this as the program you work on letting go of "tweaking and planning" and just do a few pages or project as you have time -- perhaps schedule 30 minutes 2x/week and whatever gets done is golden, and the next scheduled time you pick up where you left off. And if it takes you 2-3 years to finish it, no worries! You had a leisurely, *enjoyable* geography study! (:D

Foreign Language
- Greek/Latin roots = if not using aopen-and-go, switch to a solo-working workbook such as Vocabulary From Classical Roots
- Spanish = either drop; or outsource (online or local class); or hire a tutor to come in once a week -- perhaps for a family-wide lesson, and to provide 7th grader the next week of solo work (so you are totally not having to plan anything except to give DD a block of time each day to do the work)

Art
Can Art be done just once a week, for as long as 1 lesson takes? Then you're not having to plan anything for Art With a Purpose -- it is just "open and go". If Art with a Purpose can't be streamlined to reduce the planning, then drop Art during the school year and enjoy doing Art With A Purpose over the summer in a relaxed, non-formal, non-scheduled way. Or, drop Art With a Purpose entirely and outsource as lessons with a studio instructor or as a class, so that you're not having to plan or oversee it -- just get your student to the class once a week.

Piano, Electives, Handiwork
What about these needs to be planned? Can that just be DD's responsibility to check off a box of daily practice (piano) or completing 30 minutes of the elective or handiwork? And does handiwork even need to be part of the planned school day -- if it's free choice, can DD just choose and do, without it having to be scheduled and planned by you??

Meaning all of this gently and kindly. Please disregard if nothing is helpful. And wishing you a joy-filled new school year with your new little one, and starting the Kinder and 1st grader in their exciting paths of being to do school like their big siblings! Warmest regards, Lori D.
 

ETA -- PS
Also, to help you reduce the amount of time needed for researching materials, you might check out Cathy Duffy's 102 Top Picks, and her free online reviews -- for the online reviews, she has an "instant key" box on the right that lists the grade levels, Christian/secular, and whether it is student independent or parent intensive. That could help you fast-track to a short list of items to research in more depth, so that you could make all of your curriculum decisions in just a few days, rather than needing weeks. Just a thought!

Wishing you all the BEST! Warmest regards, Lori D.

Edited by Lori D.
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