One of the reasons I am crazy about Pinterest is because I can find and print out just about anything I need to educate my children–usually for free! I did a little research to find the best boards for homeschool printables and this is what I found. You’ll want to pin this post and follow these boards so you can always find what you need. Happy pinning and printing!
Language arts is arguably the most important subject to teach. Thankfully, there are so many wonderful free resources out there to teach it! I’m sharing 100 links that include hundreds of worksheet, game, notebooking and reference pages for you to print. I’ve organized them so you can use them to teach grammar, handwriting/copywork, literature, phonics/reading, spelling/vocabulary, and writing.
You’ll want to pin this post for later because it contains links for students of all ages. Please visit my Pinterest board for graphics of all these printables and the iHomeschool Network bloggers other 100 list posts.
I could absolutely be the perfect homeschooler that some moms already think I am if not for these six things:
#1 I have imperfect kids
Besides the usual signs of childhood imperfection like refusing to leave diapers on, disobedience (I told him not to play with slime), and mess-making, my children have maligned my good reputation by:
Peeing all over the pool deck at swimming lessons, necessitating special clean-up
Shooting the little neighbor girl in the back with an Airsoft pellet on two different occasions (after I assured her mother I would protect her)
Arguing against the faith in front of my homeschool friends (They asked, “Which apologetics curriculum are you using again?”)
And those are just the things I feel comfortable telling you. I could be a perfect homeschooler if it weren’t for my kids.
#2 I have an imperfect husband
My husband is our school principal and he works out of our home. Although his self-employment has been a blessing to us in many ways, it has allowed a rather annoying habit to get in the way of my homeschooling: He likes to call off school for good weather. I will be in the middle of teaching when he will come into the school room declaring, “It’s a beautiful day! We’re going for a hike. Everybody outside!” The kids gladly disappear, leaving me holding the books. I could be a perfect homeschooler if it weren’t for my husband.
#3 I have an imperfect house
Having an attractive work environment really does aid learning. Unfortunately, there’s something wrong with my house. For example, I must have really weak drywall, so that when the kids bounced out of their inflatable trampoline, landing on the wall, the drywall just imploded. The wallpaper must not have been adhered well to the wall, because it peeled off so quickly. My furniture must be poor quality, too, because the leather desk chair’s “leather” has peeled off by itself. I could be a perfect homeschooler if it weren’t for my house.
#4 I have imperfect curriculum
My kids would all already have their Ph.D.s if only better curriculum were on the market. The material is too hard or too easy. There is too much to do or too little. It takes too much time or not enough, allowing the kids to become idle. It’s too interesting, making all other subjects unappealing, or it’s too boring. And to top it off, I’ve spent tons of time and money looking for something that doesn’t seem to exist. I could be a perfect homeschooler if it weren’t for our curriculum.
#5 I have imperfect friends
On days when my husband is working out of the house and I can finally teach, we get a phone call from our homeschooling friends asking if we’d like to do something fun. It doesn’t matter if I don’t take the call, because the kids have already gotten a text message from my friend’s kids and they’ll announce that we need to start getting ready for our field trip immediately. I usually agree because the kids’ behavior, my husband’s impending return, my messed-up house, and our imperfect curriculum will surely make the day a loss anyway. I could be a perfect homeschooler if it weren’t for our homeschool friends.
#6 I have some imperfections
This is definitely last on the list, but I have a few very tiny problems of my own, that I have mostly taken care of. Sort of. Like when the kids were little, I would very rarely (no more than once or twice a day) get so caught up in what I was doing on the computer that I wasn’t supervising them and then they would give themselves haircuts. Nothing big.
Then every once-in-a-while I don’t tell my husband that we’re going on field trips (only never) and so he doesn’t really know our schedule. That could explain why he doesn’t know that we’ve been gone every day this week and today isn’t a good day for a hike.
It’s also happened that on those very rare occasions when I wasn’t supervising the kids (for only a few hours at a time), that they’ve used that time to destroy the house. But I still think the house and furniture should be high enough quality to withstand some abuse.
When it comes to curriculum, I have to admit that in a few instances (every six months or so), I will change curriculum, just in case there is something better available. But you know what they say, “If you love a curriculum, set it free…” Wait, that might not be the right saying. But you know what I mean.
Finally, it’s possible that I might have told my friends that we’re fairly flexible (like I might have said, “Any time you want to go, give me a call!”). It’s also remotely possible that I may have been the one to call or text my friends to say, “Hey! It’s a beautiful day! Let’s go for a hike!”
I don’t seem to be the only homeschooler who will never be perfect! Be sure to check out iHomeschool Network’s other articles. Don’t worry about what the kids are doing. I’m sure they’re FINE.
A friend asked how I used the approach. I explained how I am using it to improve my marriage and work with my digital task list. She mentioned that she wished there was a good paper list to be used with this approach and I was inspired! Read on for what I shared with her and what I ended up using to manage my own tasks.
Gary Keller urges his readers to determine the one thing that would make the biggest impact in their lives (usually that will be the thing that makes the biggest impact in others’ lives, too). Once we know that, we can determine the one thing that would have the biggest impact on our lives in the next five years, next year, and so on. The great way he defines the one thing is:
the one thing you can do that will make everything else easier or unnecessary.
If you don’t yet know what you want to do with your life, I urge you to spend time praying and thinking about it. The book itself may help your thinking. Once you know your ultimate goal, deciding the one most important thing to do becomes easier. As a busy homeschooling mom with many interests, I loved the concept of choosing the one thing in every area of my life. I can’t possibly choose only one important area of my life to focus on! If you get stuck choosing one thing, remember that choosing doesn’t mean you can’t do anything else–it just means that you have chosen what you think is the most valuable use of your time for now. Perfectionists, take note: choose what appears to be the one thing. That’s good enough!
For inspiration on using a one-thing approach, listen to Jeff Sanders’s podcast on the subject.
How I’m Using The One Thing to Build My Marriage
I realized from interviewing Dr. Don McCulloch, author of Perfect Circle, that I longed for my husband to ask me what he could do to make the marriage of my dreams a reality. The problem was, like most men, he was inclined to guess what I needed and would give me that instead. Inspired by The One Thing, I asked my husband what the one thing was that would make his day easier (that I could do) and he told me. He was very open to hearing the one thing he could do to make my day easier, too. In fact, he is asking me this question on his own now. Wow!
I recommend asking your spouse what s/he needs first and then telling your spouse what you need most and make it a daily habit. Morning works best for us. Before you know it, your spouse will be asking you first!
How I Use The One Thing to Get More Done with ToDoist
Because I already have my tasks sorted by life area (colored categories) in ToDoist, it’s easy for me to review these and choose my one thing each day. I have tasks dated (something I accomplish during my weekly review) for the week, making choosing one to make top priority quick and easy. Rather than work from the Today view, I keep my list open to Top Priority tasks until they’re complete. I take all of this one step further by scheduling time for each “one thing” in Timeful. I explain more about this in 6 Important Habits for Getting More Done.
How To Use The One Thing with a Paper To-Do List
I’m absolutely crazy about digital task solutions like ToDoist, but I’m also crazy about pretty paper lists–the more colorful, the better. When my friend mentioned a paper list, I had to create a weekly form that would work for 1-Thing Productivity. Each life area has a color and a space for one monthly and weekly thing that will make everything else in that life area easier. What do I mean by life areas? The best way to explain is with examples. My life areas are church/faith, marriage, kids, homeschooling, blog, business, relationships, organization, personal, and scrapbooking.
The beauty of this list is the linear connection between your monthly and weekly 1-things and your daily 1-things. Every day, you list a new 1-thing per life area and check it or cross it off as you complete it.
A few notes. Sometimes your 1 thing won’t correspond with your weekly and monthly 1 thing. That’s ok. The form exists to keep your longer-term things top of mind. You may also have days when you don’t need to do anything in a particular life area. That’s ok, too. The form serves as a reminder of all the important aspects of your life and where you’re devoting the most time. If I don’t complete an area’s “one thing,” I rewrite it for the next day IF it’s still the one most important thing I can do.
Finally, you may have other must-do’s for a particular life area. You can approach this in a few different ways. First, list the rest of your must-do-today’s on the back of the form under today’s date. You could work on them as you complete the various 1 things. Second, you could keep these other must-do’s on a separate list that you only tackle once all of your 1 things are done. Lastly, you could schedule your “one things” and everything else you want to accomplish today on your calendar or datebook or using an app like Timeful. I use the latter approach.
Whatever method you choose, the 1 Thing approach to getting more done is really powerful. What 1 thing could you do right now that would make the rest of your day easier? Let me know how this works for you.
One of my most popular posts is Can a Daily Weekly Monthly To Do List Help You Get More Done? Many people are looking for a to-do list that keeps their monthly and weekly goals in sight. There was just one problem with the form I linked to in my post: I didn’t like it.
I needed more room for my goals. So I embarked on a search! And I believe I have found two great options–one paper and one digital.
Before I tell you about them, I want to explain that a daily, weekly, monthly to-do list has made a world of difference in my weekly reviews. David Allen and many other productivity experts recommend a time of reviewing the past week and planning for the upcoming one. It’s advice that just makes sense. The problem is I wasn’t doing it. It seemed so dreary and time-consuming to look over all my tasks. Goals, on the other hand, are what I get excited about. If I can review my tasks for the purpose of setting weekly goals, the review doesn’t feel like drudgery. Then if you give me a beautiful form on which to record said goals, I’m in business!
A Better Paper Daily Weekly Monthly To Do List
I found a beautiful free form available in teal from Jana Laurene. But I paid a few dollars to get the forms in a number of different colors. I printed mine in gray so it wouldn’t look obnoxious on my refrigerator. I wanted it there as a constant reminder for me and also so my family could see what I was up to. The forms are two to a page, but I felt I didn’t have enough room to write that way, so I expanded mine to a full 8.5×11 in Word.
When completing the form, I found it helpful to note my appointments on various days, too. It’s much easier to plan a doable task load that way.
A Better Digital Daily Weekly Monthly To Do List
I found out about DayMap for iOS on Mark Forster’s forum. I watched the video explaining the rationale behind DayMap and loved the plain-spoken developer’s story. Then I downloaded the free version of DayMap to my Mac and HELLO! It was exactly what I’d been looking for and I didn’t even know it. (That’s kind of how it was when I met my husband, too, but I digress…).
Here’s how I use DayMap as my daily, weekly, monthly to-do list.
I listed all the main areas of my life across the top using the same titles and colors as I use in ToDoist.
I chose any tasks listed under each life area in ToDoist that I wanted to accomplish this month and added them to DayMap.
I upgraded to DayMap from DayMap Lite so that I could pull in Apple Calendar (which is synced to my Google calendar). That allowed me to see my commitments so I could plan my tasks accordingly.
I pulled monthly task goals from the upper life area to the day I wanted to achieve them.
There isn’t a weekly goal section per se, but seeing the entire week at a time gives me the same effect. It’s big and it’s beautiful. What’s more is there is a syncing iPhone app, so I can check tasks off as I go. And unlike paper, it’s easy to move tasks to a different day. I do this if I have a goal that requires daily work. I don’t check it off, but move it to do the next day as well.
Planned tasks are italicized in the area list above. Completed tasks are crossed out. It’s very possible to use DayMap as your only to-do list. But because I have so many email-associated tasks and one-offs, I will continue to use ToDoist as my catch-all list and DayMap for planning and goals.
My apologies to those without Macs, because I love this app! However, I have found that my readers prefer paper. So check out Jana’s to-do list and give it a whirl!
What do you think? Have you come across a daily, weekly, monthly to-do list that you like better than these?
Last week, we planned our goals for the school year. This week, we will begin the rest of our planning so the summer doesn’t get away from us.
#1 Discuss what you want in a planner or system
What worked and didn’t work with the planner or system you used last year? Be sure to get the kids’ input! If they don’t like it, they won’t use it. And actually, that applies to us moms as well. Don’t make assumptions about what your children want in a system. I assumed my high school son would want a new “high school” planner, when what he really wanted was the same planner I set up for the other kids.
As you discuss, keep in mind that you don’t need an optimal system, but the simplest tools for getting the job done. I realized that while a digital record keeping system may be ideal for me, it included many features I didn’t need and took me way too much time. I switched to a paper planner and didn’t look back.
Confused about what kind of records you need to keep? This excellent HSLDA article will help.
#2 Research and purchase supplies
Bearing your discussions in mind, research options. If you want a list of available homeschool planners, including digital, check out this list. If you want a paper planner, consider my easy record keeping system and A Plan in Place as their planners can be customized (this is my choice this year). Be sure to check out my podcast on homeschool planning as well. You may also consider a Workbox system which you can learn about at Confessions of a Homeschooler. I simply have my kids’ books in crates. They remove them to work on them and then mark the work completed on their planner.
You will also want to create a system for saving kids’ work. Two options to consider are binders and file folders. Bright Ideas Press has fantastic ideas about what to include in end-of-year binders. I use the file folder approach, keeping this year’s work in files in a school tote and previous year’s work in file boxes stored in my school room. Check out this post for more. Neither option is very expensive, but both are effective.
#3 Set up system for materials
Once you know how you will set up your children’s school work and you have what you need, organize that today. As soon as I have my children’s books in, I have the kids label them with their names. This is my favorite label maker. If you are using a workbox system, you will need to spend more time labeling the boxes.
#4 Set up system for records
Once you have your binders or folders for storing records, print covers or labels. I love the printables I shared here. Each summer I print file labels for last school year for long-term storage and labels for the new year. I also take time to pull work samples from workbooks and file them at this time. If you choose to keep digital records only (by scanning work), make sure you have a backup system in place.
I’m a Christian psychologist turned homeschooling mother of six. My life can be a little crazy, so I look for sanity-saving ideas to use and share. I hope you’ll read my About page to learn more.
