How To Get The Most Out Of Your Homeschool Planner

Do you use a homeschool planner? I’ve talked to lots of moms who don’t use a homeschool planner yet because they’re not sure where to start. There are all kinds of different homeschool planners out there and it can be hard to find the best homeschool planner for you. 

Today, I want to tell you all about what I look for in a homeschool planner and how my homeschool planner setup helps me keep track of work towards meeting our goals for the year. Plus, I’ll tell you all about my favorite homeschool planners and where to get your own customizable homeschool planner too.

Homeschool Planners Should Be Flexible

Here at the Waldock Way, we believe in interest-led learning. Since we work to follow our daughter’s lead it’s important that our homeschool planner can be flexible and easily customizable. 

The goal of a homeschool planner is to help keep you organized, so you can achieve your goals. That’s why I need to be able to make changes to my planner easily. We have a lot going on and things are often changing. If I can’t adapt my homeschool planner to meet our needs, it won’t work for us long term.

I prefer a simple homeschool planner setup that allows me to make changes as needed. In my homeschool planner, I leave boxes blank so I can organize things in a way that works for me. For example, the weekly planner pages I use have 4 boxes. When I was attending college full-time I used one box for homeschool, one for household tasks, one for managing The Waldock Way, and one for the college classes I was taking. 

Setting up my weekly pages in this way allowed me to keep track of everything in one place, so I’m not reaching for several different lists and agendas, just one simple homeschool planner. Leaving the boxes on these weekly pages blank makes it possible to use them in lots of different ways. For example, if I wanted to use each of the 4 boxes for a different school subject or day of the week, I could do it without confusion or crossing things out.

As our life has shifted so have my needs. I now use a similiar one page layout that allows me to see our week at a glance, plan for our homeschool (language arts, math, and unit study), and keep a running list off my to do’s.

How I Use My Homeschool Planner

I really hate to erase stuff in my planner. So, I like to use a simple homeschool planner that can be flexible enough to work for my family through all life’s ups and downs. I don’t get too specific with the tasks and goals I write in my planner, that way I don’t have to erase/adjust too much. I also really love erasable pens and highlighters to help make planning easy and pretty.

    

 

Are you ready to take a peek inside my homeschool planner and see how I use it?

Customizable Cover and First Page

I like to customize the first page of my homeschool planner by typing the year on the cover. On the first page, I typed my favorite education quote: “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” It’s something I always want to remember as we move through our homeschool journey.

Record-Keeping Options

I have included lots of options for record-keeping at the front of this customizable homeschool planner. You’ll get pages for making notes about birthdays, anniversaries, and contact information. Plus, a passwords page where you can keep track of all the different usernames and passwords for yourself and your kids. That way, you can remember all of life’s important details easily.

Book Logs & Game Logs 

You’ll also find a resource logs section where you can keep a record of the books you’re reading, games you’re playing, and field trips. For states that require a homeschool portfolio or records, having these logs makes it really easy to keep a running list throughout the year.

Goals Checklist

Next in my simple homeschool planner is a goals checklist. This is where I can list our homeschool goals for the year and check them off as we go. 

If you’re feeling overwhelmed about choosing homeschool goals for your kids this year, check out my printable grade level checklist for preschool through high school. You can sign up to get a copy for free.

Morning Basket Planning Page

We are big fans of the morning basket routine, so I include a page to help me set up and organize our morning basket in my simple homeschool planner setup. It’s blank so I can customize it to fit whatever is in our basket for the month. 

Weekly Lesson Plan Pages

The weekly lesson plan pages make it easy for me to keep track of everything as we go. I can write basic things we need to do each week like play a game, read a book, etc. Then, I can check the boxes off as we go. With five different weekly lesson plan layouts there is sure to be something for every style of planning.

Ideas, Plans, and Goals Pages

These pages are an easy way for me to keep track of things that are happening in our community or places that we might want to visit throughout the year. We might not do all the things I’ve listed here, but it’s a great way for me to remember all the little things that are happening and plug them into our schedule when we can.

Meal Planning Pages

Finally, you’ll find meal planning pages. Meal planning can help you stay on budget and help you to eat healthier meals too. These planning pages will help you keep track of your shopping list, recipes you’re planning to make, and what’s already in your cabinets and freezer. 

My Favorite Homeschool Planners

My favorite homeschool planners are customized for my needs. They are simple and easy to use because they’re flexible too. Over the years, a lot has stayed the same about my homeschool planner because it’s so adaptable, but I have made a few changes. Want one like mine? Check out the options:

Pastel Rainbow Homeschool Planner

My pastel rainbow homeschool planner is a simple homeschool planner layout with lots of options that make it a good fit for homeschool families of all shapes and sizes. 

Bright Rainbow Homeschool Planner

This bright rainbow homeschool planner is another colorful option that’s filled with ways to make it easy to track and meet your family’s homeschool goals this year.

Harry Potter Inspired Homeschool Planner

Are you a Harry Potter fan? You’ll definitely want to check out my Wizards & Wands curriculum. This wizard inspired homeschool planner was created to go with the Wizards & Wands curriculum for a fun theme that’s sure to inspire you this year.

Flamingo Homeschool Planner

This flamingo homeschool planner was inspired by the quote “be a flamingo in a flock of pigeons.” It’s a fun and flexible planner you can use year after year on your homeschool learning journey.

Now that you’ve seen what’s in my favorite homeschool planner set up, share your favorite homeschool planning tips in the comment section. I can’t wait to read your great ideas!

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Related Blog Posts:

• Everything You Need to Plan Your Homeschool This Year
• Do Grade Level Expectations Really Matter in Your Homeschool?
• There’s No Such Thing As Your Child Being Behind!