As a disorganized homeschool mom, with too much going on and not enough time to figure out how to get all my ducks in a row, I decided to check out The 2009 Schoolhouse Planner. I’m one of those information junkies.  You know, the kind that loves to read about getting organized, or how to be a better mother, or wife, or friend and on and on.  I nod my head and “amen” whatever I’m reading, put it down and forget all about it, until I need to recommend one of these books to a friend who is disorganized, too.  I don’t want to go into this next school year blind, but where do I even start?  Last year was my first year teaching the bambinos and I wrote out all my goals and ambitions for each child for the year.  My husband took one look at that and told me I was crazy.  “You have about six years worth of information packed into a little child’s school year,” he lovingly chastised me.  ~Sigh~

When I opened The 2009 Schoolhouse Planner I was ecstatic!  There are lesson plans for each month of the school year, broken down into a simple readable text that can be conformed to any age group.  With each monthly plan are helps for the subject.  For instance, one of my favorite months is January, “Using Letter Writing to Connect the Generations.”  In this module, many important lessons are tied together, including creative writing, personal touch to family and friends, technology and family history.  They will learn how to format different types of letters, and there are even a list of resources available should you want or need to delve deeper into the subject with your children.   At the end of each module is a recipe for the  month (which my daughter loves) and a calendar to keep on task.  Each month is diverse and the entire year covers a vast array of subject matters, which will make me feel pretty confident at the end of the year that I have covered all the bases.

Now for you nerds:  There is a breathtaking amount of forms for those of you who like to schedule everyone’s lives, down to what time they should brush their teeth.  There are annual plan forms, recording forms, daily schedules tailored for the amount of children in your home, book logs, field trip planning, journaling sheets, library book tracker, inventory, and on and on.  It does not stop there.  Want to track the rest of your life, too?  What about emergency numbers, health information, repairs, car maintenance, grocery list, vacation planning, etc?  Let me tell you, if you want to get it together, they have thought of everything.

I’ve laid out the “Wow Factor,” so what’s the downside?  Honestly, when I read through The Planner, I was ecstatic until I came to the forms.  Then I was overwhelmed.  My heart started thumping in my chest and I broke out into a cold sweat. How in the world would I keep up with all these forms? If I filled out all these forms I would not have time to teach, or eat, or go to the bathroom, or brush my teeth!  After I took a blood pressure pill I calmed myself and decided I would start out this year using only the basics, such as grocery planning (no more going to the store hungry with no plan.   “Wow, hunny, you bought 12 packs of cookies and we still don’t have anything for supper.”)  I’ll definitely be using the library book tracker – “Ma’am, you can’t check out any more books until you pay the $1,246.46 late fees fine.”  I’ll use the Books Read This Year form and utilize a reward system with my kids to motivate them to read more.  I’ll skip the Field Trip Log and Science Lab Sheets, but definitely use the Nature Journal with my kids – “Mom, can I write about the moose I brought home from my hike?”

My point is, don’t try to do it all.  Pick and choose what is relavent to your family.  Don’t worry, they have thought of things you never dreamed about, and for the price of $39 (which is way below the price of just a generic planner you might purchase at an office store), The 2009 Schoolhouse Planner is a great bargain.  You just can’t get this kind of information ANYWHERE else.  I wish I had known about this last year.  It would have made all the difference!