Organization and Home Management

from cl-phacademy:

I don't "do" schedules for our homeschooling. I think I probably do a lot like you... just go with it. The way I manage to feel like I'm doing something, or doing right by my son, is to write down what we did- after it is done. Schedules didn't work, and if I write down before we do stuff, I end up erasing or using white-out (I tend to use a pen nowadays). I used to use a teacher planner book from an office store, but a couple of years ago, I made my own pages up using a microsoft word or publisher. I print the blamk pages out, and 3-hole punch them and put them in a binder. If I leave it open on a table with a pen, I can remember to write in it. I can see that I'm doing stuff, even when I feel like I'm not doing a lot. Having subjects lined up by day helps me to see what we have done, and what we still need to do so I don['t forget anything. Some people call this way of doing things "journalling".

When I started off, I bought a pocket-size notepad, and dated the top of a page and wrote things down as a list of things done. Each day, I'd start a new page. Sometimes I'd write a page, sometimes more, sometimes less. Then I moved on to planner books, then to my current printed-myself format. When I was homeschooling all 3 of my boys, I bought a planner book for each boy so there would be plenty of room to write, and besides, it made it easier to distinguish who was doing what. This may sound complicated, but it was the easiest way for me to feel organized without doing a lot.

Another thing I did was buy plastic bins. These are about a 3 gallon size. I removed the lids, and stand the books in them upright, so the books stick out the top. The books are about the width of the bin, so it looks fairly neat. If you have 2 bins, you can move the completed books into the second bin, and it makes it easy to select something else that needs done. If you are using computer programs or online resources, get a piece of cardboard and write on it what the subject or program is, and place it in the bin so it isn't forgotten. When you're done, the empty bin can be stacked under teh now full one, and you can move the books into the other bin the next day. This keeps materials together so they don't get lost, too. (we used to have a problem with misplaced books).

The tv... we used to have that problem- me included. My solution was to get a piece of fabric and cover the tv up- out of sight, out of mind. It didn't come off until things were done. This helped me to realize that tv really was sucking us in for a lot of wasted time. Now the fabric is gone, but the tx isn't on all the time either. We established a good habit and have managed to keep it.