Have you started planning for the next "school year" yet?

[melissel]

I have a few ideas, and I'd like to start watching for good deals on used stuff, but should I wait until we get closer to the end of the "school year"? I started planning in May/June last year, figuring that would be enough time, but I was really unprepared for how long it would take me to get ramped up into our first year of HSing. Consequently, I have absolutely no idea how much time I should give myself!

 

TIA!

[G5052]

I keep a tentative spreadsheet that goes several years ahead, and a running list of things I need for the next year because I buy mostly used or discounted. When I sell things or have a little money at the end of the month, I buy from my list. I never buy more than a year in advance though. I almost have everything I need for next year already, and will probably start thinking about the year after that in late summer.

 

Next year will be our 8th year homeschooling. Where has the time gone?

[Sue G in PA]

If I wait, the money will get used for something else and I'll be stuck! I've purchased about 1/4 of our materials on the used boards so far. I made a list of things I must order new (science experiment kits, any consumable workbooks, etc.). I love planning (it's the implementing I have challenges with :)). Some aspects of our 2008-09 school year are nailed down, some are still up for grabs! Right now, I'm getting ready to place my WTB ad on the Swap Board.

[Michelle T]

At any given time, I'm in the middle of one subject, finishing another, and looking for something else.

 

Next week, we will actually be starting quite a few new things, including an entirely new history curriculum (Oak Meadow, combined with Sonlight 6). I'm sort of considering it a "new" school year because of that.

 

Anyway, I will buy things in advance sometimes. But I've learned the hard way not to do this too often, as it's very likely I'll have changed my mind or found something else before I use what I bought first!

 

If you are certain of what you will use, and find a great deal on a used copy, go for it. But I wouldn't buy more than a year in advance, or preferably, not more than six months in advance.

Michelle T

[beansprouts]

My dh recieved a bonus from work and handed it all over to me for school. I have most of what I need for the next year. When I find something I like I tend to stick with it, and right now I am very pleased with my curriculum choices, so I feel confident purchasing in advance. :cool:

[St. Theophan Academy]

I feel like I am always planning for the next year! :) I do love it, though I am trying to be better about waiting! As for when to buy - if you are able to plan ahead and have a list and buy used I think it is a great idea. I try not to have to place any important orders from April to July, since this is when most vendors are overwhelmed with orders and things take so much longer to ship. That said, this year I am waiting until later in the summer. I feel we need to finish the school year so I can really look at things for next year. And I am dreaming of that uninterrupted planning week that haunts my dreams. Also, I am hoping to check out the new suggestions in the revised LCC book. I am also hoping I won't have to buy too much, since much of what we will be doing I already have. Anne Marie

[Narrow Gate Academy]

This is our 4th year of homeschooling. I generally have started making a curriculum list for the next school year in the beginning of the spring. This year I started earlier so that I could spend more time looking for used curriculum to cut down on costs. Every year there have genereally been one or two subjects that I haven't been able to decide on just by looking online. I hold off making the final decision on these until our convention in June when I can actually hold the choices side by side and make a better comparison. I find that taking the extra time to research in the spring has helped us to keep from buying products that really would not have worked for our family. Without the research, I'm more prone to buy something on impulse that I'll have to turn around and try to resell later.

[Quiver0f10]

My planning and most of the shopping is done! All I have left is my BJU stuff, but I am ordering that in a week or two and then I will be finished.

[Carol in Cal.]

We have some unit studies in American history planned for next year, and Rod and Staff in hand, IEW coop all but arranged, and Writing Strands, Bravewriter, and Writeshop as backup. We have Saxon math picked but not ordered, because we just start 76 so will not need the next book for a while. I still have not picked science, though! It is BUGGING me! I can't decide!

 

Oh, and I also have LLLOTR all poised and ready to go! That one I have started working on planning out, and ordering backup materials. It will be quite an undertaking, and so I want to do a really good job of it. Other than that, it's just a matter of having stuff on hand and not looking at the curriculum boards too much.

[OnTheBrink]

Yes. I'm sticking with R&S math and will be using MOH2, Christian Kids explore earth and space (or whatever it's called), and I'm thinking about using Language Lessons for the Elementary Child 2, with CW, but I'm not solid on those yet. I keep trying to find a sample of CW, but all I find are the message boards. I want to see it. I hope RR has it at their booth at the convention this year. Other than that, I am also adding Memoria Press's Christian studies, Elson's Reader 6, Spectrum Geography 6, and I'm undecided about foreign language.

[Closeacademy]

Yes, I sketched out what I wanted to do in January. I have a staggered school year though.

 

Latin and Math run Jan to Dec. Many things run June to May and some things Aug to July.

 

In Feb. I bought everything to get us through 1st and 3rd grade except the math and Latin that we will start next Jan. But I am still in the process of writing and scheduling all of our material. I will probably buy our math over the summer and our Latin next Nov./Dec.

 

Hope you have a great year.:)

[Ali in OR]

I have just started the process of buying books for history (Biblioplan) next year. I think everything else will wait until summer. I am planning to go to the WA state convention in June and will make decisions on writing there or just after that (SWB and Andrew Pudewa speaking). The other decision to make is Latin, but other than that most things are just the next level of what we're already using.

[SandraDumas]

I'm done planning b/c we buy gift certificates now to pay for cost of materials. So you usually have to decide what you're going to use. I could still buy gift certificates if I were not sure, as long as I bought them from Rainbow Resource or another place that carries almost everything.

[Jenny in Florida]

. . . I'm pretty much done on both fronts. I've scrounged from what I already had on the shelves or purchased (mostly from bargain book stores) well over half of what we need for next year.

 

I'm still foraging--spent about four hours in used and discount bookstores over the weekend--but will go ahead and order anything I haven't yet found sometime around mid-May. That way, I will have everything on hand and can write my lesson plans for next year over the summer.

 

--Jenny

[nutmeg]

I keep a tentative spreadsheet that goes several years ahead.....Next year will be our 8th year homeschooling. Where has the time gone?

 

This sounds like us. I put together a similar spreadsheet when my eldest was a 3rd grader, and tweak it continually. For the upcoming year or two I jot down specific curricula to purchase, while the subsequent years list intentions or choices. My eldest is finishing up 6th grade now, and I have a good outline or map for high school. Although I know I have plenty of time to make changes, it gives me some confidence to face the high school years, while so many of our friends bale out and head to public school.

[PeterPan]

You should plan NOW while the weather is yucky. :) Come April and spring, you won't want to be cooped up inside looking over samples of this and that. Print off the planner forms at DonnaYoung's website so you can write out your goals and figure out how to meet them. When is your state convention? If it's in the summer, you want to have 70% of your stuff figured out and BOUGHT before then. At least that's what they always say, because shipping gets so slow and things get backed up in the summer. I'm going to a March convention this year, so I'll make some serious headway then, decide a few things, and purchase whenever.

 

Planning gets easier as you go along because a few of your things become sequential or go on auto-pilot as you find your groove. (next year of math, next year of grammar) Also, don't buy everything for the whole year at once, at least that's my two cents. I like to get new things midstream, just to reinvigorate me. :)

[chiguirre]

Sort of. I know that we'll continue with R&S Math 2 and Pathway Readers 2nd grade, so I'll buy those during the R&S sale. We'll use SL C and possibly the old core 1 for our main content and I've got those on hand.

 

My major new curriculum will be WWE so I'll buy those when they come out.

 

Hopefully, we won't have to switch up our basic curriculum next year. We've spent K and 1 finding something that works for math and reading and I'd like to cruise for at least one year without major changes.

 

Dd's using ds's old K materials, so we're set with that. :)

[mcconnellboys]

I usually start in January/February and I have purchased a planner and most of my books for next year (just got them in last week). I am slowly working through them and adding details to my planner now as I veg in front of the tv/computer at night.

 

I've always done this, so I'm not sure if I would still be okay doing it later. I never know what summer is going to bring or how busy I'll be then, which is why I like to do it at this time of year. Also, it allows me to be familiar with things I might want to pick up that I didn't originally plan for.

 

I just went back through the RRC catalog last night and marked some things I want to try to see at convention this year which I may purchase later.

 

Regena

[Milseain]

When I find something I like I tend to stick with it, and right now I am very pleased with my curriculum choices, so I feel confident purchasing in advance. :cool:

 

This is me. My planning and shopping is done. I even got most of it already. We school year round and our school year begins in Jan. and ends in Dec. We always purchase our curriculum with our tax refund money. :)

[GreenKitty]

Yes, and several after that. Though shopping has not begun. :)

[Kristen in NC]

My curriculum planning is pretty much done. I'm still haven't completely decided if we're going to use TOG next year, so if I decide no, then I've got some serious planning to do. I have most everything saved at Rainbow Resource ready to place my order.

[Beth in Central TX]

Uhh, yeah. I actually have a plan for each year until they graduate. It changes from time to time, but I like to see where we are going.

[elegantlion]

I'm like Beth. I have several years penciled in and next year solidified. For budget reasons I will break it down into two orders, but it's all ready to go.

[Paula in PA]

And started buying when we got our tax refund. I have most of it now but for my RRC order. Though I have made one major change, in spelling, which we will implement in 2 weeks, then continue into next year. Maybe. I have to see how it goes and if it makes a difference. Other than that, we're set.

 

Paula in PA

[nukeswife]

We too are tax refund curriculum buyers. We actually set aside a "school budget" each year and I have a seperate checking account that is only for school purchases. I usually start a list of what I'd like to use for the following year in Nov/Dec and then keep adjusting and tweaking it until Feb. Then once the refund comes and the budget is deposited I start purchasing. I'm not a big used buyer though so I've usually by this time searched out which place has the best price. I've been burned too many times on used purchases which is why I'm a buyer of only new things unless I can see the used copy with my own 2 eyes. This year I was able to do that with a few things because I live near a pretty decent sized used curriculum store.

 

I actually just put all my orders in this past week. Part of that was due to making my own Early American History curriculum for next year. We'll only Native Americans until the French and Indian War but then I'll make 2 more years of curriculum up for the rest of American History Revolution- Present time.

 

I say now is a good time to start looking as many people are close to wraping some things up and starting to sell.

[Jennefer@SSA]

I am a planner by nature and it's something I love. I have a folder on my desktop with all my choices for next year and each time I see something I want I add it there. Hopefully I can start buying soon! I will buy just enough to get free shipping at Rainbow each time, breaking it up into a few different purchases.

[Bee]

Math for both children and LA for oldest is being shipped now.I have my spines for next year's history and youngest child's science already.Things collected or to be reused by my youngest from oldest child's first go-round through those subjects.There are things I haven't decided upon yet...music,art,science for oldest dd.Will we do Latin?There are things I think I want to buy but I'll wait until April.I've chosen that as my official curriculum buying month.There are one or two things that I am waiting for that haven't come out for sale yet.

[Jill- OK]

...we're starting our first year of high school, next year, and I need some extra time to tighten up our scheduling.

 

And I'm excited. :)

[SnowWhite]

I like to have my school supplies in hand by the end of the current school year so I can relax all summer!:D