Free Homeschool ID cards

Tired of explaining to curious commenters that you homeschool when they ask why your children aren't at school? You may want to print out one of these free Homeschool ID cards.  The site asks that you become a member, but it is free to join. You can print out a set for free or order plastic laminated versions from the site for a cost of $6.95.  We have opted to print them out and laminate them ourselves. 

I blacked out the birthdate for privacy issues.

A Peek Into Our Homeschool Room

Here is a little peek into our homeschool room.  We share this are with my grocery stockpile, so I will just show a few views.

Our Bookshelves

We read a lot around here, so bookshelves are a must.  I am hoping to re-sort and label the green book bins by author or genre, I haven't quite decided yet. 

Our Supplies

I try to stock up on supplies during the back to school sales in the fall so that I can get the best prices.  Here are some of our supplies.  And yes they are in alphabetical order because I am a little OCD organized.

Desk Space

The kiddos normally work at the dining room table (as you can see in the picture below), the couch, or their rooms, so we don't really have separate desks for them. The oldest three each have a desk in their rooms.

 This is my desk which is in the homeschooling room area.

I am writing this post as part of the Not Back To School Hop. If you would like to share your curriculum plans, be sure to hop along! I would love to see what others are using!

Homeschool Planning - Setting up Your Homeschool Calendar

If you are anything like me, you want to do everything, and you want to do it now!  But, really, wouldn't it be easier, and so much calmer if you took things one step at a time? That's what I am trying to do, we'll see if that happens!

So, for today's organization/planning task, set up your homeschool calendar.  You can use a regular calendar, you can print this calendar template out, or you can try a calendar like Stephanie O'Dea' Totally Together which also includes sections to keeping your house clean and organized. (You can win a copy here!) Whatever you choose, just make sure it is something that you will use, and that won't add to your workload.

Now that you have picked out your calendar, it is time to start filling it in. Decide how many days you want to homeschool during the calendar year. Some families choose to Homeschool 4 days a week leaving one day as a fun day or co-op day.  Other families keep a traditional school year Monday - Friday approach.

Next, figure out what days you are NOT going to homeschool - for holidays, vacations, breaks, etc. Put those in your calendar now.

Look over the curriculm you have chosen (or your standards, themes, or whatever else you have planned). How many lessons are there? Tentatively divide them out among the days you plan on schooling.  I say tentatively, because things always happen. Maybe your child picks up a concept much quicker than you thought, or maybe they need a few extra days of review.

Don't forget to pencil in some planning days or hours for you!  It is much easier to spend a day planning when you don't have to spend that day teaching and grading as well.

Your last step - Relax and enjoy the rest of your day - I will have a new task for you tomorrow!