Back to School Planning and Prep

Planning and preparing for back-to-school can be a major undertaking. If this is also your first year of homeschooling, this task may seem especially challenging. We designed this article for practical guidance to help both new and experienced homeschool moms and dads have an easier and less-stressful time as you plan and prepare for back-to-school for your family. Read on for tips.

Homeschool Planning Tips

Let’s start by defining the major steps of the back-to-school homeschool planning process, then look more closely at the activities for each step. The main parts of planning and preparing for back-to-school:

1. Evaluate the Previous Year
2. Identify Changes Needed for the Upcoming Year
3. Develop an Overall Plan for the Year
4. Research to Fill Any Gaps
5. Create a Homeschool Budget and Set Priorities
6. Purchase Homeschool Curriculum and Materials
7. Develop Your Daily Schedule for the Year
8. Prepare Weekly
9. Enjoy Your Time Together

That might seem like a lot, but don’t worry. These tactics will help you not only feel accomplished, but maximize your homeschool days with your children.

How to Have the Best Homeschool Year

Evaluate the Past Year

Jot down some notes as you think through how the previous school year worked out. If this is your first time homeschooling, think through past experience in a public or private school. If you’re in the habit of keeping notes throughout the year (which will simplify record-keeping), then use them as a reference. Use these questions to guide you:

• What were the biggest successes with my children? What worked well and was effective?
• What were the biggest struggles? What books/activities/teaching styles didn’t work well?
• In which areas did each of my children excel? What did they enjoy the most?
• Where did my children have difficulty? What didn’t they like and why not?
• What can I do differently during the next year to fix any of these issues?

As you answer these questions, you can also consider the child’s preferred learning style, textbooks by subject, your weekly schedule, prep time, learning environment , and any other factor that had an impact. If you’re stuck on a question, interview your children and find out what they considered the good, the bad, and the ugly of the last school year.

Identify Changes Needed for the Upcoming Year

As your children grow and advance by grade, your plans may change. Transitions from elementary to middle school or middle school to high school can bring significant change. Which subjects need to be added or expanded upon to keep pace academically? For example, science is a required high school subject, but getting a solid foundation earlier on will help immensely.

Other things to consider: Changes in your education philosophy or style (are you a traditional homeschooler? Unschooler? Fan of Charlotte Mason?) Whether you will be participating in a local co-op or partnering with other homeschooling families for advanced science, math, or other subjects. Also determining whether your children will take any non-homeschool classes (music, college credits in high school, etc.)

Remember your children’s interests and aspirations. Are there areas in which they need to spend more time or pursue advanced studies? What about each child’s growing independence? Are there areas where you want to challenge them to grow?

Develop an Overall Homeschool Plan

Now it’s time to pull your answers together into a plan. If you have a lot of issues, prioritize them by importance (high, medium, or low) and focus on the most important issues first. For each of your children, do the following:

• List the issues that you want to fix or the changes you want to make.
• Address as many of these as you can:
  • Create a list of the subjects that need to be covered.
  • Identify any subjects that will be outsourced, e.g. with a local co-op or college.
  • Do you have textbooks already that you can reuse for this child?
  • List the curriculum or books/materials that you know you want to use.
  • Identify which subjects you want to find a new curriculum for. (Need a new science curriculum? We’ve got you covered!)

Research to Fill Any Gaps

It’s not unusual to know you’d benefit from making a curriculum change (or other change) based on past experience and yet still be uncertain what to do. This is when it’s worth it to invest in research time. Talk to friends to find out what worked well for them. Read online reviews, ask on homeschool message boards, and get specific in your searches (“best homeschool science curriculum for hands-on learners” or “online math program for homeschool.”)

The good news is that there are lots of good options out there, and you don’t have to try to find the “perfect” curriculum. Every family is different and it’s likely no review, recommendation, or evaluation will perfectly address your specific situation – but you can still find what you need for a great homeschool year. It can help to make decisions based on a step-change improvement rather than looking for an elusive ideal.

Once you feel comfortable that a curriculum or other solution can improve your schooling results and address particular issues well, just go with it. Rarely is it worth investing more research time looking for something a little better…and the great thing about homeschooling is you can always tweak things as you go along.

Create a Homeschool Budget and Set Priorities

Now that you have a solid plan, it’s time to think about the cost. Even with only one student, it’s unusual to afford everything you want for homeschooling. (Because let’s face it, there are a lot of exciting options and opportunities out there.)

Start by adding up prices for the new curriculum you’ve picked. Then, consider the cost of other necessary materials, like science lab materials and standard back-to-school supplies. Also take into account extracurricular activities, like music and sports.

More than likely once added up, costs will be higher than expected. Education can be expensive but the reward is priceless. Your decision to homeschool and give your children a strong education consistent with your values is something that can have a lifelong positive impact.

Here are some practical ways to reduce your investment without sacrificing results:

• Reuse curriculum from an older student whenever possible. Just buy new workbooks.
• Buy used homeschool curriculum from friends or online (check Amazon’s “used” options).
• Prioritize critical components (e.g. student text, lab manual, etc.) over what might be unnecessary (e.g. an expensive teacher’s guide for a subject you’re well-versed in).
• Use the local library to avoid costs on extra or supplemental books.
• Get your back-to-school supplies in July and August when they are on sale.
• Use options like Home Science Tools’ customizable curriculum lab kits to buy only what you need at the lowest possible cost. You can also break up lab supplies or literature books (if using Sonlight or similar programs) into 2-3 purchases over the course of the year.
• Consider teaching some subjects together with another family to share costs. This especially makes sense with expensive high school science courses.
• Take advantage of opportunities to spread payments out over 3-6 months without interest. This is common with payment options like PayPal Credit. You usually have to spend $100 or more with one store to use this feature, so plan purchases accordingly.

Purchase Those Homeschool Curriculum and Supplies

You’ve done a lot of work making sure you have a workable plan for next year and now it’s time to put in motion. Get your books first, then with remaining funds make other important purchases, like hands-on science materials to complement your science curriculum. Finally, buy supplemental materials or general school supplies.

Develop Your Daily Schedule for the Year

It’s an exciting feeling when you get your hands on the next year’s curriculum! Spend some time looking at each subject’s general preparation requirements so you can get a feel for when to fit things in. As a homeschooler, your daily schedule doesn’t have to look like a traditional school’s. Whether you use a planner, spreadsheet, or sticky notes, create a weekly schedule that works best for your family. Your homeschool schedule might include the following:

• Time for each subject for each student
• Time for you to review lessons, gather materials, etc.
• Extra-curricular activities like music and sports

Consider the best time of day to study each subject for each child – and then feel free to change it as needed. Math and science are usually best mid-morning when students are fresh. Older children may be able to complete subjects like language arts independently. Science labs with an older student may be best in the afternoon if you have young children who nap. Again, you’re not looking for perfection, but a workable plan. You can always improve schedules as the year progresses.

This schedule will become a map for you and your students. Stick to it to ensure you cover everything every week, and yet be flexible when necessary, as things will not always work out as planned.

Prepare Weekly

Every week, take time to review each course you’re teaching and make sure you know what will be covered that week. Gather all the supplemental books, science materials, and other materials you need for the week, so they’re readily accessible when you need them. Make copies of worksheets or printables that will be needed.

Consider using an assignment book as well for each student. Writing down all the assignments each week helps communicate expectations to students effectively. It also provides an easy means for students to check off work as they complete it. These assignment books are also excellent documentation of what was covered over the course of the year.

Enjoy Your Time Together

Enjoy your time with your children. We know there will be struggles and days when you want to tear your hair out, but we hope you have fun together too, as you get this rare opportunity to customize learning for YOUR family.