This is me spilling the beans…

Well this is a whole new game for me! I need testers of a different sort this time. I have been working on a Homeschool Planner. Surprised? Me too. It started out as an idea to get all of the forms I needed for recording our school work onto the computer to use with my Tablet PC, but it quickly grew so big that I decided to share it. This has been a crazy fun project to work on, and a good contrast to the usual writing and drafting projects that I am accustomed to.I wanted this planner to be user friendly for families of all ages and sizes, but not too fussy, AND fun and colorful. My weakness, of course, is that I have only younger children so there may be things missing that would be useful for older homeschooling families. So who's game? I need at least 10-15 families of all sizes, ages, and curriculum's.

The following is the little introduction and index:

Homeschool Planner Introduction

As home teachers there are a lot of things that we need to keep track of for our state/county homeschool standards. It is also necessary to keep records from past years. My desire is to make that task easier, more colorful, and more efficient for families of all sizes without a lot of fuss.

This planner will be available in several different color schemes including black and white, this way you can assign different colors to different children. And mamas are just happier filling out things that are pretty, just saying!

Another thing that makes this planner great for the homeschooling family is that it will be a file that is saved on your computer so you can use it year after year! This allows you to print off as many pages as you need for your family (like the weekly lesson plans, field trip log, the extra reading form, and journal pages). You can create your own planner using a three ring binder, or you may even choose to have it bound at a printing store. For those of you with a Tablet PC you will be able to import/print these files into Windows Journal, fill them out, and save them right on your computer (this is what I do). This also makes them easy to email to the school.

Index

Homeschool Planner…………………………………………………………Pages 4-5

One of these two pages will be the first page of your planner. Page 3 is for several children (more can be printed for larger families) and page 4 is for families with less than five homeschoolers.

Homeschool Group……………………………………………………………Page 6

How many times do you need to call the same mamas for homeschool activities, questions, or field trips? This form will make it easier to find every one's number and insure that no one gets left out when planning an outing.

Field Trips………………………………………………………………………Page 7

It may be an all day trip to the zoo with your homeschool group or a simple trip to the bank to open a new account, but it is nice to have a place to record these special days because they all count!

Extra Reading…………………………………………………………………. Page 8

This page can be big motivation to a child looking back at the end of the year. Record every extra book no matter the size!

Weekly Planner………………………………………………………………. Pages 9-12

Pages 8 and 9 are specifically for younger grades including Phonics and crafts in the lesson plans, and pages 10 and 11 are geared more towards older grades, including literature and vocabulary.

Homeschool Grades…………………………………………………………..Page 13

On this page you will have your child/children's grades for the year at a glance.

Curriculum Log………………………………………………………………….Page 14

Many families use several different curriculum's for each grade level. This log will help you keep track of what you are using for each child, and may come in handy at homeschool meetings and sales so that you will have a sort of inventory of what you already have.

Birthday List…………………………………………………………………….Page 15

In our homeschool group there are several children from large families so it is easy to get Birthdays mixed up. I like to have them all written down so that we can give the birthday boy/girl a call on their special day.

Loaned & Borrowed Log……………………………………………………….Page 16

Loaning out or borrowing educational books and videos is a very big part of the homeschooling group. Having a place to keep track of it all makes every one's life a lot easier when trying to track down a missing item.

School Holidays…………………………………………………………………Page 17

This page may be more popular with the children than the parents, but it's nice for Mom to have it at a glance.

Journal Sheet…………………………………………………………………….Page 18

It's good to remember that just being on a nature walk can provide many educational opportunities; this page will help you and your child record all those little learning adventures.

Team Information………………………………………………………………Page 19

If your child is involved in any team sport this is the place to keep it all together, numbers, schedules, and ceremonies, it's all here.

Spelling Tests…………………………………………………………………….Page 20

You may find it useful to keep track of spelling tests on this page.

Unschooling Log…………………………………………………………………Page 21

As I have said before, some of the most important learning experiences come from places other than school books. This log will give you and your children a place to write about their learning adventures. This is a whole new phase of my mama adventure! Where will it take me next?? Speak up and let me know what you think! And don't forget to let me know if you would like to test this for me (remember to leave a name and email).