Tips for How to Prepare for the Home School Year

Cleaning house isn't what you normally think of when you hear back-to-school. However, this is just one of the many things home schooling parents must consider before their kid heads to back-to-home school. In fact, parents home schooling their children may actually have more to do to prepare for the school year than other parents.

~Clean House

A cluttered home is full of distractions. A home must be tidy in order to serve as a school. There should be plenty of space for books and projects. Cleaning up the summer clutter doesn't have to be a hassle though. Recruit your child or children and if possible, work together with other home school parents. Together, house cleaning can be fun and even profitable.

Take house cleaning as an opportunity to teach your child about organization and charity. As you clean, pack up things you no longer want or need to donate to charity. Have your child do the same. Instead of them constantly pushing old toys to the side, teach the value of donating them to others. Another alternative is to teach your child about organization and business by organizing a yard sale.

Once your home is clean, you can move on to other things.

~Separate School and Home

Students in public or private schools normally keep all school supplies in their book bags or their lockers at school. For home school children, the locker and book bag are known as home. However, there needs to be distinct differences between the home and school environment.

Set up one room of your home as the classroom. Don't allow this room to spread out into other rooms of your house. If you're using your classroom for other things as well, be sure to put away all school supplies as soon as class is over for the day. It's important to allow students to completely get away from school when class is over. This gives them the down time they need to just be a kid.

~Get Organized

Set up your classroom carefully. Purchase color coded bins for different supplies. Have a bookcase set up for all school books. You will also need notebooks to store any paper work, including school work.

Create a supply list and go over it with your child. Make sure you have everything you need before classes start. Otherwise, you will find reasons to delay or cancel classes as you run back and forth for supplies. Place everything in the appropriate bins and areas for easy use later.

Don't forget to let your child help. Allowing children to help makes them feel as if it's truly their own personal classroom. By having your classroom set up and organized before classes begin, you can spend more time on the lessons.

~Create a Schedule

First and foremost, be certain you can stick to any schedule you create. This is one of the hardest parts of preparing for back-to-home school. Make sure you talk to your child while you plan their schedule. Sometimes, you may forget about "after-school" activities they may have such as community sports or dance.

Set up a subject list and allow your child to choose from a list of electives as well. After all, school can't be just English and History. Allow your child to help determine the order of the classes and how they want the semesters set up. For instance, you can choose to teach the same classes all year, or teach half the classes one semester and the other half the next semester.

Don't forget to include down time in your class schedule as well. After all, we all need a break now and again. This includes holidays, teacher workdays, and any activities your child is involved in. Just be sure you have ample class time as well.

Be sure your schedule includes any tests and paper work you need to complete. If you need help with scheduling, you can search the internet for ready made schedules and calendars. The most important thing to remember is stick to your schedule once it's made. No ifs, ands, or buts. As a home school parent, you are not only the teacher, but the principal as well.

~Create Lesson Plans

This goes back to being organized. If you know what you are going to teach and how you're going to teach it, you can have your supplies already on hand. Also, lesson plans help you keep on schedule.

For each class, either create set lesson plans for each week or at the very least, a list of goals. Each state has certain criteria your child must meet to be at grade level. You can use these criteria to help create your goals and lesson plans.

Using the textbooks or supplies you've purchased for each class can be a huge help in creating a lesson plan. Plan around the lessons in the textbooks and add in as you see fit. As long as your child is getting the absolute most they can from the subject, then you're doing fine.

Be sure to have the lesson plans complete before school starts. If you are disorganized, your child may have a hard time staying focused. Having the lesson plans done before classes begin will help classes go smoother.

~Grading

Determine exactly how you will keep up with grades before classes begin. There are software packages on the market for this purpose. Other parents prefer to use notebooks or even scrapbooks. Regardless, you must keep up with their grades and progress.

Be honest with the grading. When grading your own child, you may be biased, but it's for their own good for you to be honest. Allow them to see the graded work. Keeping the work in a binder is a good way to use their old class work as a reference and learning tool. They can use the binder to study for tests and see where their weaknesses may lie, so that you both know where to focus your attention.

By having a grading system set up before classes begin, you will not be trying to keep papers and grades organized haphazardly. After all, you and your child need the feedback from their class work to know how well the lessons are actually sticking.

Now that you're prepared for back-to-home school, the only thing left is to enjoy a little R&R in the last few days before classes begin. Enjoy a little down time, you and your child both deserve it.