Finish For Your School Year-5 Steps

[Charity]

From Teaching Home:

5 Steps to a Strong Finish
for Your School Year
The five activities described below are all important parts
of finishing a school year. Whether or not you were able to
accomplish all you had intended to this year, these steps will
help you benefit from what you did accomplish.


Step 1: Plan Your Finish
What do you do if your school year is almost done -- but
your studies are not?

What Not To Do
Do not panic, feel guilty, or envy those who are on schedule.

What To Do
Talk to the Lord and your husband. Lay out the situation
and possible solutions.
Then write out a "Let's Finish Strong" plan for 2-4 weeks.

1. Concentrate on the Basics.
The three Rs (Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic) are basic
"building block" skills. Other subjects are important, but they
can be postponed for the short term in the interest of
solidifying basic skills.
Find specific goals and practical how-to help in our
15-part Basic Skills series online in our Newsletter Archives:
• Teach Reading with Phonics Vol19.notlong.com
• Spelling Vol32.notlong.com
• Grammar Vol34.notlong.com
• Writing Vol37.notlong.com
• Math Vol38.notlong.com

2. Determine Level of Competence Needed.
Keeping in mind the relative importance of the vast amount
of knowledge you have to teach will help you prioritize your
focus and schedule

Acquaintance
Your children need only a casual acquaintance with many
details presented in their curriculum. When time is at a
premium, spend more of it on things that must be learned more
thoroughly right now.

Understanding
Other parts of your curriculum, such as overall timelines of
history and major concepts of science and math, need to be
understood more thoroughly.

Mastery
Some detailed information needs to be mastered. This
includes the essentials of any discipline, such as instant recall
of math facts and operations, and the rules of phonics, spelling,
and grammar.
Good computerized drill programs (in a game format or
straight facts) are useful for memory aids.

• Print Out Free Triangular Math Facts Cards
donnayoung.org/math/tricards.htm
• Softbasics offers free math facts and concepts software.
www.vgernet.net/sbasics/free.html
• Improving Your Memory: 20 Memory Techniques
stchasedu.notlong.com
• Games for Memory Work, Drill, and Review
home.att.net/~bandcparker/games.html

3. Review What You Have Learned.
Review is a powerful part of learning. Reviews can be
accomplished in a series of short periods.
Flashcards (bought or home made) are helpful for reviewing
factual information. Write the word or information to be learned
on one side and the definition or explanation on the other.
These cards can be used while sitting at the table waiting for
lunch or in playing board games (each player must answer a card
on his level before a turn is taken).
Laminated quick review guides (bought or home made), and
posters also provide review aids. www.barcharts.com
Rhodes College offers study skill tips at
www.stuaffairs.rhodes.edu/couns/study.html.

4. Save Some for Summer.
If you choose to concentrate on basic skills at this time,
you may want to postpone other subjects to finish during the
summer.
For instance, you might take one or more days a week during
June to read and discuss history in a leisurely fashion. Do the
same during July for science, and August for music and art.
You might find that your family greatly enjoys the more
relaxed schedule, more time to devote to the subject and related
interests, and the focus of concentrating on just one subject at
a time.
Summer would also be a good time to add unit studies, field
trips, supplemental reading, and software to enhance your studies
or for a child to pursue a personal interest.

[Charity]

Step 2: Record
Set aside a day or more to do the necessary task of
gathering, filing, and recording the year's schoolwork. The
rewards are that:
• You can find your records easily.
• Your children have meaningful memorabilia.
• You get more space for more books and materials.
• You might even be able to sell books you don't need anymore
for some extra cash to (you guessed it) buy more books!
Gather up all your schoolwork for the year, then sort and
dispose of everything appropriately (suggestions follow).

Schoolwork
• Select samples of work for each child in each area of their
studies to put in their permanent files.
• Send some samples to Grandma (with the clear understanding
that she is free to toss them after enjoying them for a while).
• Give each child a certain amount of space in which to keep
what he wants.
• Throw out the rest.

Books
• Store some books for younger siblings.
• Shelve some books for reference
• Give some away (to a family who needs them, your support
group's library, or a thrift store).
• Trade some with another family.
• Sell some at a local used curriculum sale, a garage sale, or
online. (e.g., http://www.HomeschoolBooksale.com)

Records
You might need to keep a record or a portfolio of your
children's studies to comply with your state's laws or an
umbrella organization, as well as for your own benefit. Choose
any or all of the following options.

__ Record the date and student's name after he finishes each
concept on your scope and sequence chart or list of
educational goals.
• A Beka Scope and Sequence
www.abeka.com/Resources/PDFs/ScopeAndSequence.pdf
• The Typical Courses of Study by World Book
www2.worldbook.com/wc/browse?id=pa/tcs
• Standards and testing by state.
www.edinformatics.com/testing/testing.htm

__ Use lesson plans as records, checking off and dating each
assignment or objective as it is done.

__ Keep track of hours spent by subject if you are required to do
so by your state law or wish to for your own information
(e.g., for a high school transcript).

__ Copy records of family projects, unit studies, field trips,
etc. for each child's individual file as applicable.

__ Keep a journal for each day of a unit study, briefly listing
books read or activities done.

__ List all books read by the family or individual students,
including the title, author, and publisher. (A brief description
of contents and personal evaluation will make this list more
valuable to you and your children in the future.)

__ Place artwork and writing assignments in a notebook or file.

__ Take photos of art, craft, and science projects and activities
such as plays, costumes, and field trips. You can use a computer
scanner or digital camera to create a CD containing these photos
as well as pages of school work, compositions, etc.

__ Place your records in a labeled box for the year or for each child.

Extras
__ Create a yearbook by placing photos, sample work, and other
memorabilia in a scrapbook.
www.creativememories.com/SchoolDaysAlbumIdeas.asp?GID=0
www.creativememories.com/layouts.aspx?GID=0

__ Tape record some of your family's answers to the evaluation
questions below (especially the positive ones!) as a sound
recording of your school year.

Resource
ATCO School Supply www.atco1.com/catalog.asp?section=23

[Charity]

Step 3: Evaluate
Use this checklist or make your own to see what went right
and what went wrong this year so that you can adjust for next
year. This needs to be done now, while things are fresh in your
minds!
You might want to discuss these items as a family and/or do
a private interview with each member to get a complete picture.
Be sure to include your husband and each child for their
individual perspectives. You will need to adapt the questions
for each one (e.g., Dad: Do you know what our children learned
this year? What would you have liked them to learn that they did
not learn?).
Please do not let this evaluation discourage you! Rejoice
and thank the Lord for what went well and learn from weak areas
so that you do even better next year.

General

__ What did you like best about our home school this year?

__ What did you like least about our home school this year?

__ What did you learn?

__ What did you not learn that you would have liked to?

Academics

__ Were basic foundational skills of reading, language, and math
improved, mastered, reviewed, and practiced enough?

__ Were specific facts connected to "the big picture" of
overall knowledge through the use of a globe, maps, timelines,
charts, and related studies?

__ Did we use a variety of teaching methods and materials,
including textbooks, workbooks, unit studies, hands-on
activities, computer software, library or supervised Internet
research, field trips, oral and written reports, etc.?

__ Were thinking skills taught and encouraged by the types of
discussions we had (e.g., comprehension, knowledge, analysis,
synthesis, application, and evaluation). See:
www.teachinghome.com/newsletters/vol_2-no_25.cfm
www.teachinghome.com/newsletters/vol_2-no_28.cfm
www.teachinghome.com/newsletters/vol_2-no_30.cfm

__ Were the following educational resources available and their
use encouraged and modeled: reference books, videos, tapes,
educational games, software, supervised Internet use?

__ Was there enough good supplemental reading done as a family
or independently?

__ Were there time, resources, and encouragement available to
pursue individual interests?

Spiritual

__ Were Bible knowledge and Bible study skills increased?

__ Were Bible reading and memorization given at least as much
importance as academic studies?

__ Were subjects taught from a Christian worldview?

Character Development

__ Was character development an important part of our school
(e.g., honor and obedience to mother as the teacher and parent;
kindness to siblings; diligence; truthfulness; and attention to
details in studies?)

__ Was child discipline maintained in a simple, straightforward,
and kind manner? Were the rules and consequences clear and
consistently carried out?

__ Were there enough positive motivations and negative
consequences?

Life Skills

__ Were life skills included in your training and related to
academic subjects (budgeting, cooking, shopping, driving,
cleaning, organization, scheduling, repairs, maintaining a house,
yard, car, voting, finding information by phone, letter, or
supervised Internet use)?

Logistics

__ Was the schedule realistic and easy to keep? Too strict or
too lax? Was doing schoolwork a regular, daily habit (along with
chores and personal grooming)?

__ Were the classes we did as a group interesting, and did they
allow each student to learn?

__ Did we have a good balance between group and independent
study?

__ Was mother available for help when needed? Was there a need
for alternative activities or procedures when she was
unavailable?

__ Did we care for our toddlers and babies in the best way for
them and for our studies?

__ Were our class settings appropriate and conducive to learning
(e.g., dining room table, couch, individual desks)?

__ Did we have enough, not enough, or too much independent
study? Was there enough time, space, supervision, and help
available for these studies?

__ What got bogged down that could have gone more quickly?

__ Was there enough organization and planning for space,
materials, schedule, and chores?

__ Were there enough varied experiences or too many outside
activities? Were our supplemental and outside activities worth
the time and effort?

__ Was the atmosphere of our home warm, loving, and supportive?

Bottom Line

__ What do you want to do the same or differently next year?

[Charity]

Step 4: Prepare To Plan

Use your evaluation outcomes to make general, broad plans
for next year and for your summer studies. You can do specific
and detailed planning later; this is just to be sure you include
the valuable input from your evaluation.
Make quick notes beside certain answers on your evaluation
forms. Then set dates for your comprehensive planning for next
year, allowing time for purchasing and becoming familiar with any
new curriculum.


Step 5: Celebrate and Share
A celebration gives a nice closure to this section of your
studies and ends on a positive note which will help propel you
forward into your next scheduled studies or activities.

1. Praise the Lord!
Together as a family, thank the Lord for your family, for
the opportunity and freedom to home school, and for the guidance,
wisdom, and strength He provided this year.

2. Plan an Event
• Invite neighbors, friends, or relatives to an open house.
This can be combined with another family if desired.
Show displays of schoolwork, projects, and art.
Give oral, musical, or dramatic presentations.
Serve refreshments.
• Have a party, dinner, or picnic with another home-school
family or families.
• Take an educational field trip or an outing just for fun with
your family or others.

3. Find someone else that you can encourage and help.
Reach out to another family that is home schooling or
considering beginning. Point them to the Lord to find the
guidance, wisdom, and strength that they need. Offer moral
support and/or practical help.

www.TeachingHome.com