Too much paperwork?

[taylorsmom]

hello again:wave: Taylor is almost 9 years old....
im into my 3rd day of homeschooling...feels like im doing more work than my daughter.:confused2 probably im doing to much paperwork?
well anyways
bye all
tays mom

[Dianna]

hello again:wave: Taylor is almost 9 years old....
im into my 3rd day of homeschooling...feels like im doing more work than my daughter.:confused2 probably im doing to much paperwork?
well anyways
bye all
tays mom

If you feel that you're doing more paperwork than your daughter, you probably are. Tell us what you're doing and we can help you trim down. :smile2:

Dianna

[taylorsmom]

well i journal everyday of what she does and how well and what we need to work on....i give her homework and save it all in a folder.
uhm,,,i have daily schedules which i try to write down ahead of time what subjects and assigments that she should do...ggezz and usually we end of doing stuff a little different because of our schedules or trips to the barn...
we let her watch the farrier put shoes on our horse yesterday and she asked him questions for a story she could write later...what subjects would that be covering? im trying to get away from the textbook mentality.....its hard figuring out how to teach say science with out looking at a textbook telling me to teach this piece of info at this time in this order..oh geez now im confusing myself:redface2: again thanx for your help
tay's mom:cry:

[Dianna]

well i journal everyday of what she does and how well and what we need to work on....i give her homework and save it all in a folder.
uhm,,,i have daily schedules which i try to write down ahead of time what subjects and assigments that she should do

You don't have to keep daily or weekly journals and daily or weekly lesson plans - just choose one. Journals are like a diary where you write down what you've done after the fact. You may have an idea of what you'd like to do, but you actually write it down either daily or weekly when you're finished. Lesson Plans are planned in advance, usually weekly. More details about both of these methods, and the pros/cons of each are detailed in my FAQ area at http://www.carolinahomeschooler.com/faq.htm (let me know if you can't find it).

...ggezz and usually we end of doing stuff a little different because of our schedules or trips to the barn...
we let her watch the farrier put shoes on our horse yesterday and she asked him questions for a story she could write later...what subjects would that be covering?

This sounds like social studies (what a farrier does), writing (researching facts for a story), and science (studying horses and their care).

im trying to get away from the textbook mentality.....its hard figuring out how to teach say science with out looking at a textbook telling me to teach this piece of info at this time in this order..oh geez now im confusing myself:redface2: again thanx for your help
tay's mom:cry:

There's no set thing to teach in science or social studies at any specific age/grade level. I moved a lot in my youth (was an Air Force brat), and the curriculum goals changed at each school I went to. I went to three different Junior High schools in SC - and each one had different criteria.

Remember that there's so much information in the world that there's no way we can learn everything in one lifetime. So the goal should be to learn how to learn and to inspire a love of learning. If we let our children follow their interests and show them how to find information, they'll be able to find out anything they need to know as adults. We don't have to try to "get everything in" during the "school years". They'll be learning throughout their lives.

If you'd like a general guideline because it makes you feel better, or because you'd like ideas for learning topics, World Book's Typical Course of Study for PreS - 12th grade is a good (and free) resource. You can find it here: http://www.worldbook.com/wb/Students?curriculum

Let me know if you have any other questions. :smile2:

Warmly,
Dianna

[becca_3boys1girl]

How long after our year ends do we need to keep portfolios? And do we also need to keep lesson plans/journals for the same amount of time?

[Dianna]

How long after our year ends do we need to keep portfolios? And do we also need to keep lesson plans/journals for the same amount of time?

I keep my portfolio until the new year gets a good start, and then I toss everything out and start putting in the new year's samples. I keep a copy of each year's bi-annual reports. Since I have their weekly/monthly journals on my computer, I print out a copy of those to keep. I may also keep specific essays or stories they've written, so they can compare their writing skills over time. If I give a stardardized test, then I keep the results of that. That's all I keep.

Dianna