Planning Together

Planning together helps when the school day starts before you do.

It has happened to me several times: Friday comes and we enthusiastically greet the weekend. "Will plan next week's lessons over the weekend," I think. Next thing I know, the alarm clock is ringing Monday morning and I never found a moment to plan. Sound familiar to anyone else?

Meanwhile, the kids are up and at it. The oldest is taking all morning in the bathroom, while the youngest has his bed made and is at his desk wondering what math lesson to do. The middle child wants to do her science experiment. "Aren't we starting the new unit on electricity today?" she asks.

Oh yeah, the electricity unit! I do not have anything ready for the electricity unit study. Where DID the weekend go?

This is when we start the Emergency Homeschool Organizational Management System. It starts with The Huddle. You know, you have seen it on football, except we don't have to bend over.

"Okay, kids I'm not quite ready for the homeschool day, and I'm going to need your help.

Kid One: Look through our books and see what resources we have on hand for electricity. Put them on the unit study pile I started over there already.

Kid Two: Do an internet search for the three best websites on power and electricity. Make a comparison chart of the value of each, as well as their strengths and weaknesses.

Kid Three: Get our "Cool Science Experiments That All Kids Love With Common Household Items" book. Look for the electricity experiments and make a pile in this laundry basket of all common items in the experiment that you can find in the house. Make a list of items we don't have, and text message them to your father to get on his way home tonight.

Kid Four: Look in the Teacher's Guide for our curriculum and see what library books they recommend for this unit. We'll take it to the library when we go tonight.

These assignments should take each of you half an hour. At the end of the half hour, finish your chores. While you are doing that, I'm going to get the math and English assignments for the week done. We'll meet back on this couch in one hour. Everyone got it? Set your watches, now go!"

The Emergency Homeschool Organizational Management System actually taught me something. Planning together improved results. The kids did better when they had distinct assignments to do in order to plan their own units. Given the task, "Everyone write your own goals for a study on electricity, you'll get blank stares." But give them a distinct task and the ability to contribute, and the electricity does flow.

If you are planning unit studies, the types of activities described above can help produce the resources used. The students often have ideas we likely would have overlooked.

Later, that night or the next morning, when the next phase of unit study planning begins, they will have more to contribute. They already have some ideas of what they will study and want to accomplish.

Even if you don't use unit studies, the same system can be used. Give the students organizational tasks when you need some time for administrative duties. They can be organzing, cleaning, starting their next workbook lessons, or involved in a creative project. The more you gather their assistance in planning together and organizing, the better their education will be.

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