Organizationally Challenged - Part 2

Most lesson planners are just not flexible enough for me. I hate using the "daily planning" method. I always end up writing out detailed lesson plans only to find our studies leading us in an entirely different direction. When a child's interests lead you in another direction, I think that it's a good idea to follow. I mean, don't get me wrong, we do have structure. There are things that kids need to learn that they might not be truly excited about. Still, I think it's important to follow their interests as much as possible. There has to be room for both. But in doing that, sometimes we are led off of the beaten path. If I have my lessons all planned out for each day, this throws them off BIG time. We'll have to do what I had planned for Tuesday on Wednesday. And then Wednesday's work has to be done on Thursday. But then we decide to do something else and we're another day off of schedule. This leaves me feeling lost, behind, and frustrated.

I decided that I needed to create a lesson planner that is easier for me to keep up with and a lot more flexible. I have included a space for grades to eliminate extra paper work. The less that I have to keep track of, the better. Click on the following links to download my free lesson planning templates.

Math Lesson Plans

Science Lesson Plans

Bible Lesson Plans

Language Arts Lesson Plans

Geography Lesson Plans

History Lesson Plans

Toddler/Preschool Lesson Plans

Blank (Any Subject) Lesson Plans

Blank (Any Subject) Lesson Plans in MS Word Format/ Customizable



I write out the lessons that I plan for us to do in the order that I think we will do them. As we complete each lesson, I mark the date it is completed along with a check mark or a number grade. If we do something that I hadn't planned on - No big deal. I simply add it to the bottom of the list and write in the date. I can do the lessons in any order that I choose and it all works out. I don't feel like I'm falling behind every time we get off schedule. It saves me so much frustration!

Super E's plans are a little different. He obviously doesn't receive a grade for the activities that he does. But I do like to keep track of the areas that we need to work on as well as the activities that he really enjoys. Our "Fun Factor" scale works like this:

 = Super E loves this activity

 = We didn't like this activity

W = Activity that we need to work on

TA = Too advanced

I keep everything in a three ring binder. The first two pages of my binder are Dates to Remember and Book List.

 

Dates to Remember is for recording dates to later transfer to my Sticky Note Wall Calender/Planner. The wall planner is great because it is right there - out in the open for me to see. But it's not portable and it's not always available when I need to record a date. Having the Dates to Remember page in my lesson planner helps me to keep all of my dates together in one place until I can write them on the calender. This way, I don't lose them or forget to record them.

 

The Book List page helps me to keep track of books that I need for future lessons. If I see a book that I would like to use, I write it down on my list. Then I can look for it at the library or book store. Once I have the book, I check it off.

 

I have a separate tab for each subject that we study. Under each tab I include my lesson plans for that subject followed by a week or two of worksheets, printouts, and notes for the lessons. All other materials are kept in a separate binder until needed.

 

Don't forget to check out my Freebies/Printables page for other great printables.

 

Questions and comments are always welcome. You can also email me at adventuresofahomeschoolmama@gmail.com.

 

Thanks for stopping by! Please make sure to check back. I'm just getting started but I will be adding new stuff daily.



Organizationally Challenged

I have to admit... I am organizationally challenged. While I do understand the concept behind planning, I simply have trouble with the execution.

I have tried every type of planner and organizer I can find but still find myself struggling to keep it together.

I have come to the conclusion that the people who are designing these planners are very organized themselves. I need an organizer  that is designed for the organizationally inept. I need something super simple that's not complicated to follow. I don't need to record every detail of my day. If I do, I forget to look at what I have written down. So I end up not doing half or even a third of what I had "planned" on doing. And then I feel guilty for not "staying on task". It's a vicious cycle!

But I do understand that planning is important. "He who fails to plan is planning to fail" - Winston Churchill

So I decided to design my own planner. I wanted it as simple as possible. My biggest problem is that I tend to not check my planner after I have done the planning. So I decided that I needed to make something that I would be sure to see.

And the Wall Planner was born!

 

I painted a sheet of poster board red. You could simply use colored poster board and skip this step. I wanted a red background and I didn't have any red poster board... so, time to break out the paint.

 

Then I used sticky notes to make the calender. I recommend that you use the ones that say "super sticky". They are a little more expensive than the generic ones but, unless you want the days falling off of your calender, they are a much better choice.

 

If you wanted to get really organized, you could use a different color of sticky note for each member of the family. Stick them right on top of each other. I, myself,  have no desire to be that organized. But sometimes I do stick multiple sticky notes for a day that I need extra writing space.

I used foam letters to add the days of the week across the top.

Long sticky notes worked great for my extra planning section. I had just enough room to stick a row of these down the side.

I use the top one to record library books and due dates. I hate paying library fines. I mean, you might as well just buy the book! I also write the due dates onto the calender to make sure I don't overlook them. Trust me, I need all of the help that I can get when it comes to remembering stuff.  

 

I use the second one for notes.

 

The last one is for upcoming events - not in the current month.

 

The great thing about sticky notes is that if you need more room you can always stick another one on top. They're stackable!

 

I wanted to reuse the same sheet of poster board for each month, so I laminated (contact paper) the month labels and used velcro to stick them to the calender. So, for each month, I can simply pull off the old month and put on the new one.

I laminated a strip of scrapbook paper and then I stuck 3D stickers (Dollar Store) on top of the laminated strip.

 

I stuck it to the wall using mounting putty. You can find it on the office supply isle. It reminds me of chewed, chewing gum. But it's really easy to use and it's removable/repositionable. You could also use Command strips - LOVE them.

 

I do still use a three ring binder for my lesson plans. I will post my lesson planning printables and ideas later on.

 

Questions and comments are always welcome. You can also email me at adventuresofahomeschoolmama@gmail.com.

 

Thanks for stopping by! Please make sure to check back. I'm just getting started but I will be adding new stuff daily.