How Do I Keep a Homeschool Plan Book?

South Carolina Law requires homeschool parents maintain a plan book detailing what you accomplish each school day. So, one of the most common questions we receive is, “How do I keep a plan book?”

Record Keeping Part 1- (1)

 

The good news is: it’s not nearly as hard as you think! Plan books can be as simple or as fancy as you desire.  Our store carries several commercially produced planners. These have all the bells and whistles you might look for.

Our most popular planners include:

The Ultimate Homeschool Planner by Deborah Bell is a favorite resource for many experienced homeschoolers. If you are a ‘planner junkie’, this one’s for you!

The first 11 pages explain how to use the planner most effectively. She has pages to record both academic and character goals for each child. There are overviews for yearly planning, monthly planning, and weekly/daily planning. This planner includes pages for recording grades, reading lists, and field trips/outside activities. Pages 272-273 are a planning guide to help map out a high school academic plan.

Ultimate Homeschool Planner - Bell

 

You can use this planner solo, or you can combine it with the other two planners in this series. The Ultimate Weekly Planner for Teens fosters independence in planning and organization needed after graduation when students are managing adult schedules.

Ultimate Weekly Planner Teens - Bell

 

The Ultimate Daily Planner for Students is the first step to instilling independence in young learners. Once they can read and write well enough to record tasks assigned, have a weekly planning session with your child and let him record the assignments you have mapped out for the week. Over time, you will be able to let children do their own planning with your oversight.

Ultimate Daily Planner Students - Bell

For those overwhelmed by lots of  bells and whistles, The Homeschooler’s Journal is much more straightforward. It comes in a variety of colors, so you can match your student’s plan book to his or her favorite color! The 1st few pages include a log for objectives and resources, books used, and field trips taken as well as pages to record grades. The last few pages include a log for recording educational resources you use (including websites) and a list for contacts you stay in touch with frequently.

The book has blocks for each subject and day of the week, so you can record assigned work in an orderly fashion, grade it, record the grade, and check it off as the work is completed.

The Homeschooler's Journan

 

While Deborah Bell’s resource will accommodate multiple students, The Homeschoolers Journal will allow you to track one student per book.

S. C. homeschool law requires each teaching parent maintain a homeschool diary or plan book for each student taught at home. Commercially prepared journals, like our most popular ones above, meet the need for many families. However, if you are not a ‘planner junkie’ or just haven’t found a plan book that suits your needs and pocket book, a DIY option may be just what you are looking for.

Part 2 of this series on record keeping details how to set up and maintain a DIY plan book.

 

Setting Up Your Own Homeschool Planner

As a new homeschooler (or if finances are an issue), commercially produced planners can seem overwhelming. If you are already in information overload, planners may be reassuring. They may also be intimidating if you are organizationally challenged or need time to figure out your own path. Setting up your own homeschool planner may be more appealing while you find your ‘homeschooling legs’.

Keeping a plan book or journal can be as simple as purchasing a spiral bound notebook or journal and entering the information specific to your child’s school day. Let’s look at how our fictional student, Eve Adam’s, mom maintains her plan book.

Homeschool Record KeepingPart 2-

On the cover (or 1st page) of a simple spiral bound notebook, she recorded the name of the student whose educational plans will be recorded along with the academic year and Eve’s grade level.

On the next page, she records the curriculum and resources for each subject:

Subject & Curriculum

Language Arts
Daily Grams 7
Writers in Residence Vol. 1
Selected Novels from suggested reading lists noted in daily plans and book list

Math
Horizons Pre-Algebra

Science
Masterbooks Anatomy and Physiology for Junior High

History
Selected living history books  re Civil WAr noted in daily plans and book list

Art
Homeschool art lessons at the community center,  Tuesday from 10a – 12n
PE
Soccer team practice and games x 6 hrs a week, April 1 – October 15 (M, Thur, Sat)

**Leave several spaces between each entry so you can add new resources or activities if you change or add things mid-year. Set aside 2 pages to record curriculum and resource information.

Now, create logs for your reading list:

Eve’s mom has begun to record her reading list.

Title                                                  Author               # Pages           Date                  Subject

The Red Badge of Courage           S. Crane               99               Sept 10             literature
Abraham Lincoln’s World            G. Foster             376               Jan 10             history
Rosa Parks  (CD)                            D. Brinkley         7 hrs           Feb 15               history

As you see from the list, Eve is studying the Civil War for history.  She read a book related to Civil War history for both literature and history. She also listened to a book on CD about the life Rosa Parks during February for black history month. They recorded the date Eve completed the books in the date column. Eve’s mom will continue to record each book Eve reads or listens to on CD or iTunes for the entire academic year as noted above.

Eve’s family will make lots of use of audiobooks while they are riding for errands, trips to grandma’s and for vacation, and on sick days, etc. The latter is a great way to ‘have school’ when a child (or mom)  is feverish and unable to do a lot of work.

Next, create pages for DVD’s and website resources:

In Eve’s case, she has watched a YouTube video review of math to prep for Pre-Algebra. She also watched a DVD they got from the library.

Resource                    Author/Source                                            Time               Subject                   Date
Quick Prep Math Review  – Video Math Tutor (YouTube)    25 min.            Math                    August 20
The Human Body – National Geographic Classics (DVD)     5 hrs                 Science                Sept. 3

So, anytime they use a library DVD or online resource, she will continue creating the records.

On the next pages, list field trips and activities:

Location                            Date/Time                                       Subject
Civil War Museum          October 12   2-4 p.m.                  History
City Park                            Sept 5                  PE/Back to school party (dodgeball & tag)
Soccer                                M & Th 6-7:30p; Sat 2 hr games (Aug –  Oct)    PE
Homeschool Art            Tue  10a – 12n    (Aug – May)        Art

Now, you are ready to begin your daily logs:

You will have a log sheet for each of the 180 days you homeschool. Your log book can include your attendance record with a very simple approach. After the day’s date, put the # of your school day in parenthesis. That way, you will always know at a glance what day of school you are completing on any given date. When you hit 180 in your daily count, your school year is over!

Here’s the way Eve’s mom set up her daily log:

Monday – August 1, 2016 (#1)
Language Arts: Daily Grams –
complete day #1
                                Red Badge of Courage – read chptr 1
                               Writers in Residence – see the daily schedule on p. xliv and complete day #1
Pre-Algebra:  
All of section 1 & 2 on p.3; do every other problem on p. 4
Science:  read Pp. 4 – 9. We will look at the teacher guide together and plan the rest of the week together.
History:  Read Abraham Lincoln’s World Pp. ix – 21
PE: practice from 6 – 7:30p

This no frills approach to keeping your homeschool journal or plan book is a great method for folks who are new to homeschooling or who need a cost effective approach. A simple, DIY homeschool journal is not as easy to set up as you think and allows easy tracking for your attendance days as well.

How Do I Withdraw My Child from Public School to Homeschool?

In South Carolina, you may not legally withdraw a child from traditional public school until you have enrolled in one of three homeschool options.

If you withdraw your child without the proper paperwork in place, you are at risk of contact from truancy officials.

How Do I Withdraw My Child From

When you begin to consider homeschooling, take a look at our member handbook and our S. C. Homeschool Law tab. Review our information regarding what is required of you as the parent-teacher in your homeschool.

To homeschool in South Carolina, you must have legal physical custody of the child you are homeschooling and must have at least a GED.

Follow these steps to withdraw your child from public school:

1) Fill out our membership application and submit your payment.

2) Be sure to indicate you are withdrawing a child from public school on the membership form.

Checking that box let’s us know we need to provide three documents for you: a school withdrawal letter, a membership letter, and a membership card.

If you are withdrawing children from separate schools, we will send a letter for each school with the name of the child who is withdrawing from that school listed.

3) Once we have received your application and membership fees, we will create your school letter, membership letter, and membership card.

You will receive your membership card and letter in the mail within 5-7 business days.

We will email you a scanned copy of the school letter as soon as it is ready.

Keep a copy of the school letter for your records. It will serve as your member letter until you receive that document in the mail.

Give a 2nd copy of the school letter to the school from which you are withdrawing your child. Once you present them with the letter, you are free to take your child home and begin homeschooling.

***In an emergency, you can come to our store, fill out your paperwork, pay your fees, and leave with a school withdrawal letter the same day.