In each child's reading section of their notebook I keep a book log. After they finish reading a book we record the title and date. Then they get to vote on the book. As they do this it gives me an opportunity to talk to them about the book in a very informal setting.
You Did It!
I use this form as the first page of their notebook. Over the school year I record their accomplishments and it gives me the opportunity to write little encouraging notes to them.
Lesson Plan
I use this excel document for my lesson planning. It is based on the format Sonlight Curriculum uses. I do my lesson planning on Sunday for the coming week. I order my library books that day for anything I need two weeks from that date.
Weather Chart
I used this to track the weather and make different graphs based on the data collected over the months.
Calendar
I used this in Kindergarten and the first part of first grade. It is based on the calendar work that students of Saxon do during their meeting time everyday. The kids filled out the date and drew the correct pattern symbol for that day. I would ask them questions while they filled it out. What is today? What day is tomorrow? What was last month? I would ask them to recite all the months of the year. They quickly learned their calendar lessons this way.
Daily Homeschool Report
I wanted to make sure my now ex-husband felt connected to the progress we were making in our homeschool. I decided to email him everyday with short answers to these questions. I pick and choose what questions I'm going to answer but I try to give him a sense of what we worked on so that he has something to talk to the children.
Homeschool Journal
This free software is wonderful. It is a computer based diary where you can keep notes on your homeschool journey and pictures. You can search your entries and print. I use it to write my blog entries and then copy/paste to my blog. You could use it just to keep track of your curriculum and how things are going with each child.
Challenge yourself to use more descriptive words that will better impact your students. Here's a list to start!
Number Chart
A traditional chart starts with 1 and ends with 10 on each line. This isn't accurate based on what happens with place value. I use this number chart instead which makes more sense based on place value.
Basic Facts Worksheet Factory
Make worksheets for FREE! My kids love this worksheet generator because it contains silly riddles on each page. I customized the worksheets to include our school logo. I use it as extra drill practice.
This free software is what I use for attendance. I used to use the journal feature but I like the Advanced Diary software above much better since I can include pictures. My state requires that I keep attendance. This software makes that a breeze. I've tried using the lesson plan features but it is too complicated for my tastes.
This graphics file has an array of smiley faces to use on your forms. Do you need a sad or bewildered smiley face? Do you need an angry or sad smiley? What about a smiley cat, fish or dog?
Here's the actual Microsoft Excel document I use for my lesson planning in first grade. Feel free to down load it and utilize all the formating I've done or tweak it to meet your needs. * This is an excel document
Phonics Magnets
Here are some phonics magnets for your frig. Print these out in color on magnet sheets you can get from your local office supply store. The phonic blends and combinations can be used to play and build words with beginning readers. These are also great for playing with spelling patterns for your students who've got their phonics down and are now focused on the spelling rules.
This is my favorite site to check the reading level of the books my kids are reading. The search function works well. Don't try to print this. It is HUGE!
For those trips to the library, save your back and use one of these wheeled carts. I have over 60 books out at a time and I use this to haul them back and forth to the library. (Of course, do your renewing online).
After we decorate the fireplace hearth with all of our library finds, I put the empty cart behind the couch. Done with a book? Put it in the bucket! That way, on library day the cart is loaded and ready to go!
You Might Be a Homeschooler if:
You stay in your PJs past noon without guilt.
Great HS Advice:
Don’t look at HS catalogs on the days the children are having brain farts or are picking at each other. This allows you to see the forest and the trees in your curriculum choices.
-WTM board
These are the forms I use in my homeschool. Hopefully they will be useful for you as well. Do you have any forms you to share with others? E-mail me and I'll post them here.
These are all pdf files and can be read with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader software. Click on this star if you need to download this free program.
One of my sons is in love with math. However, his fine motor skills weren't ready to keep all those numbers in the proper columns. These are the worksheets I made up for him so that he could have more room to write and a better sense of columns so that his place values stayed consistent.
Here's the hub of our homeschool. This is one of those office mail cubby organizers. Each child has there own column of shelves. This is where all their workbooks and assigned reading books are kept. I put any worksheets for the day in their cubbies.
They can look on the marker board for our daily schedule and can get the next thing on the list from their cubbies on their own. It fosters independence and save me headaches.
On the top are their 3-ring binders. The each have:
1) meeting book binder for calendar/weather/art
2) history binder for Story of the World
3) science binder for REAL science
4) language binder for book logs, copy work, grammar, dictation.
