I know you are likely winding down from your 2017 homeschool year, and I am right there with you!  We are counting down the days till summer vacation over here, and it can’t come quick enough!  With the wrapping up of another successful homeschool year, it’s the perfect opportunity to reflect on what worked and what didn’t so that we can plan for the upcoming year ahead of us.

One task I like to complete at the end of the school year is to start planning for the next year.  I know that might not be how everyone likes to do it, but I like to have a plan in mind BEFORE the garage sales and homeschool books fairs start to pop up.  Otherwise, I turn into a homeschool curriculum junkie and I just buy it all, whether I need it or not.

My favorite way to plan my year is with my Simple Homeschool Planning Pack, which I’ve been using for years.  This year I’ve updated it with a couple more pages, and a whole lot of Rainbow….because this homeschool mama likes color!  It really only takes 3 or 4 pages and I’ve got everything planned out for my kiddos each year.   I’ve had so many people ask how I can get away with just a few homeschool planning pages so I thought I’d preview my planning method below:

Homeschool Goals:  Sometime before you start your curriculum planning we suggest sitting down and writing out your goals for each student.  This doesn’t have to be detailed, it can be as simple as, “Get through 5th-grade math.”  However, there may be subjects that you have more detailed answers for, “Develop empathy and self-control.”  Doing this for each student is a great way to customize their education.

Homeschool Curriculum:  Print one page for each student and use this sheet to keep track of what products, resources, and classes you’ll be using during the year to cover each subject.  Take this sheet with you to homeschool conventions and curriculum sales so you can always update and keep organized.

Homeschool Lesson Planner:  Sometimes curriculum doesn’t come with a weekly schedule, or it will be a five-day schedule and you want to homeschool over four days instead.  In this case, the simplest way to organize your lesson plans is to count the number of lessons or the number of pages in the curriculum.  Then divide that number by the number of weeks you plan to homeschool.  This will give you the number of pages you need to cover each week.  You can then further divide that number by the number of days you plan to homeschool each week. You now have weekly and daily goals for this subject.

Homeschool Calendar:  This sheet is intended to be an independent planner for your students.  Print and add in your daily subjects and a photo of your student.  Laminate or store in a page protector then provide your student with a dry erase marker to keep track of their daily tasks. Encourage students to mark off the boxes as they complete each task.  The page comes with a blank version as well so you can write in your own topics.