Keeping track.

So I was bemoaning how lately I can't seem to find time to keep decent records of what we're doing every day for Oscar's schoolwork.  I have my weekly plan written down every week, and I generally know how well we're sticking to it, but I'm not doing a great job checking off the boxes or saving records of the narrations and things.  I keep trying different things but what I really need to do is keep a diary or a journal of the day-to-day stuff -- you know, "taught Lesson 117 in math" or "did handwriting page 7" or "assigned definition of 'nomad' for copywork."  It seems easy, but I just can't seem to discipline myself to sit down and do it at the end of the day!

That's what I was thinking as I sat down to give Oscar his instructions for his independent work the other day.  "OK, kiddo, here's what you've got to do," I said, pulling a mini legal pad towards myself.  I ripped off the list from the day before and wrote the current date at the top.  "First I want you to read in your Religion book," I said, drawing a little square for him to check off and writing read pages 107-109 in Religion, "then copy the spelling words," copy spelling list /ng/ words, "then finish your math sheet with the division facts on it," finish math facts sheet D 3.0,  and so forth.  He sat down and chewed on his pencil, reading over his to-do list.  I stood up, crumpled up the list from yesterday, and tossed it in the garbage.

Now how am I going to discipline myself to keep proper records?  What I need to do is sit down and make a list every single day of all the things we did for school.

Wait a minute.

Sometimes I am that slow.

A couple of days later and I had made a nice little printable blank daily to-do-sheet, complete with little square checkboxes.   The last item on each sheet, and only the last item, is pre-printed:  Give this sheet to Mom.  As long as I'm going to write out a to-do list by hand for Oscar every day, I might as well keep the damn things!  I added a space at the top and bottom for my own notes.  Why can't this be my school record?  Or, if it's not enough and I need to keep longer-term records organized on another kind of sheet, why not figure out a sheet that works together with the daily sheet to make a total-year record?

Comments

[Linda]

I homeschooled our daughter from kindergarten on, after retiring as a special education teacher. I kept a record in the computer, using a three column table from Microsoft Word and just added to it as we went. The month & year went in the first column. In the second column, I recorded texts used and topics covered. In the third column I noted specific skills Ruth had practised. I used this throughout the year, including our road trips to visit family when we checked the map twice a day to see where we were & where we were going, played counting games in the car (counting by twos, threes,&c.) and ANYTHING else that was learning-related. As each new school year began, I printed my record and put it into her file with samples of her work and any report card I chose to use. Her entire school career fit into the top drawer of a filing cabinet!