Blog
Let’s Talk About Homeschool Planning
Let’s talk about homeschool planning. Some of us love it – crack open a fresh new planner and give me a beautiful pen. Let me at it!!
Others? Well, not so much; too restrictive and time consuming, right? Not to mention the stress of not keeping up with the plans! Besides, we always end up changing what we do anyway....
Then reporting time rolls around again (why does it always seem to come around so quickly?) and the panic can set in.
So how do we find that sweet spot where planning can support our learners (and our mental health!) whilst also allowing plenty of freedom to switch up our plans and head off on a new tangent?
Let us introduce you to the Simply Homeschool Planner. A homeschool planner created by homeschoolers with your unique family in mind. Planners and non-planners among us, we have designed a planner which works for all of us; and can work for you too.
“This was our first year homeschooling and couldn’t have done it without my SH planner. Just gorgeous”
(Angie)
What’s inside?
Each of your children is a whole unique person with individual interests, strengths and weaknesses. In our planner, we have Learning Plan pages for up to six children. Find a comfy spot and talk about the year ahead with each of your children:
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What would they like to learn?
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What would they like to improve?
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What skills would they like to gain?
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What experiences would they like to have?
At Simply Homeschool we value family relationships. Our unique Learning Plan page saves time starting a topic which your child may not be interested in, saves money spent on printing and resources and most importantly supports family connectedness by working together for the year ahead.
The Big Picture
This page! This is the page which will ease the ‘Am I doing enough?’ doubts which can creep in. Plan a day, week, month – or whole year in advance if you like. The Big Picture page is another wonderfully helpful tool unique to the Simply Homeschool planner.
This page is designed to be a colour-coded snapshot of your child’s learning. And again, we have enough pages for all the kids. Simply list your child’s learning goals/cores/big dreams etc., at the top of the page and use the boxes to plan when they will do each. Or, if you’d prefer, fill it in at the end of the day; it’s up to you.
As the boxes fill up, you’ll be able to see at a glance, that yes! You are doing enough.
“I have absolutely LOVED the planner this year, and could have bopped myself in disbelief when I realised how amazingly structured and perfectly suited for our needs it really was! I truly didn’t know what I was missing!!”
(Amber)
Weekly & Monthly Pages
Ok, time for the best part! The nitty-gritty, day-to-day pages. The Simply Homeschool planner weekly pages are intentionally blank – and huge! There’s plenty of space to write your daily plans as well as all that wonderful unplanned learning which always happens throughout the day.
Each week also has a ‘To Do’ space for you to keep all the things you need to organise in one easy-to-find spot. Let’s say one of your children spots a blue-tongue lizard in the yard and wants to know more, write it in ‘To Do’ - Go to library, find books on lizards. Or, you notice another of your children is struggling with their 4 times tables; now’s not the time to do it. They’re done! So, you write it in ‘To Do’ - Review 4 times tables.
Now, when you go to plan the following week, you’ve got all your notes there ready for you. Plus, when it comes to reporting time, there’s your evidence of meeting your child’s educational needs in one weekly box. Reporting win!
The weekly pages have room for it all; planning and recording. You won’t need multiple planners, notebooks and calendars. There's enough space for it all.
“I have absolutely LOVED using our 2022 Simply Homeschool planner, so much space, well set out, all of the extras, the best planner I have used! And I have used it constantly this year, a great way to keep a record of everything we have done throughout the year.”
(Rachel)
Bucket Lists & Book Lists & Excursion Lists, oh my!
Ok, so you’ve showed me the weekly spreads, but what about all those other things I need to keep track of like books we’ve read, places we went, things we want to do and that awesome idea I saw on Instagram, I hear you ask.
Along with individual learning plans and booklists for up to six kids at the front of the planner, the back of the Simply Homeschool planner has a page each for bucket list activities, excursions, books you’ve read, and documentaries you’ve watched; all with space for the date and a check box.
Can’t remember when you went to the art gallery? Or what books you read together? Or maybe what that doco on sharks was called? It’ll all be listed in the back there with the date. Reporting sorted!
And we can’t forget about space to keep track of games you played and community events, oh and even passwords (for those of us who continually need to click forgot password).
The Simply Homeschool planner also comes with six (6!) lined pages for notes and seven blank pages to sketch out ideas. It really is purpose-built for homeschoolers. Everything you need in one beautiful planner.
“I love mine! Buy it every year as my “teacher present” to myself. Makes me smile every time I see it and helps me so much with my record keeping for reporting.”
(Jodi)
The Simply Homeschool planner is full of everything you need to take the stress out of homeschool planning. We’ve thoughtfully designed each page so you can keep track of all the learning, excursions, appointments, books, grand plans, and bursting ideas!
Our planner has beautifully smooth paper that’s a dream to write on, monthly sticker tabs, a sturdy front and back cover that won’t fall apart on you with daily use, all spiral-bound together so you can lay your planner flat; you won’t need to prop this planner open!
We know you’ll love it! The Simply Homeschool planner is available through our Resource Shop.
A Homeschool Planner Created with your Unique Family in Mind: Thoughtfully designed & printed in Australia