I had planned to post this review after I finish all of my Teaching from Rest book studies for the
summer next week, but the price on this resource is going up this Wednesday (June 21, 2017)! I
did not want you to miss out, my friends. I am not being compensated in any way
for this review; I just really want to share how much I love this kit!
THE KIT
Pam Barnhill, a fellow homeschooling mama, has created a
remarkable resource to bridge the gap between the theoretical homeschool and
the day to day reality. Her Plan Your Year Kit is a true gem, and if you are hoping to be more intentional about planning your
homeschool year, every page is worth every penny!
The current price is $24, and this includes the Planning
Guide in PDF format, (currently) 74 beautiful downloadable forms for planning,
two inspiring audio workshops, an invaluable Facebook group, and lifetime
updates to the product. Pam updates calendars every season and adds custom forms
requested by users.
She has also just added a 14-page student planner, The Independent Student, in 4 different
graphic formats with an audio workshop, specifically for this new planner,
which is included in the kit for free until July 2! You can download free sample pages from all of the above now to see if this product is for you.
Now, let me share why this kit has been such a gift to me!
NEXT STEP
I have found that PlanYour Year is the logical next step after reading Teaching from Rest. Most of my readers and friends know how much I
love Sarah Mackenzie’s wise words. She regularly challenges us all to imagine
our vision for our homeschools and focus on our priorities. Pam’s guide insists
that the first thing one should do before buying materials or making a schedule
is to write down on paper (or you can even type into Pam’s forms and save a
pretty typed version) our overall vision and our goals for each child.
Once I have read about how I should “bring [my] basket,” “simplify
the curriculum,” and “plan to breathe,” personally, I will completely forget
about those ideas once I walk into the homeschool conference and start talking
planning with my homeschooling friends. Even the subtitle of Pam’s guide, Plan Your Year: Homeschool Planning forPurpose and Peace, reflects the subtitle of Sarah’s book, Teaching from Rest: A Homeschooler’s Guideto Unshakable Peace. (Yes, I think they did that on purpose; they’re pretty
good friends, if you hadn’t guessed!)
And another day I’ll post a review of MySchoolYear.com,
a homeschool record-keeping program, which has totally improved the day to day
execution of the plans I make with Plan Your Year! My process includes: Step One, read Teaching from Rest;
Step Two, Plan Your Year; and Step Three, use MySchoolYear.com to make it
happen! (3 fantastic resources created by fellow Catholic homeschooling
families!)
HOW TO
As I said in my testimonial above, there are probably
thousands of free homeschool planning forms on the internet today. I have used
many of them, but none of them come with a how-to guide to filling them out. Pam’s
planning guide walks you through the ten steps to planning your year: Vision,
Goals, Course of Study, Scheduling Options, Plan a Week, Purchase Resources,
Booklists, Organization, Records, and the Daily Plan.
The forms themselves are clean and pretty, and I love that
you can type right into the spaces to make your own personalized planning
pages. There are so many different forms for so many different situations,
including everything you would expect for homeschooling planning and a selection
of specialized forms for family chores, morning time, loop scheduling,
transcript planning, reading logs, etc. But the guide also includes links to
resources and action steps to be sure you’re putting your family’s priorities
first when you plan.
If you are like me and get overwhelmed by the details such
that you forget the big picture, PlanYour Year is for you. I used to start with a long list of the things I wanted
to teach the following year without stopping to consider why to teach those
things and which were realistic for my family. I would see the shiny new books
and the bargains at the used book sales and decide to jump in without
evaluating our needs. Going through Pam’s careful planning steps ensures that I
walk in to each conference or sale with a list of what my priorities are and
which books I think will best fit those principles.
PERSONALIZED
I admit that I am the type of homeschooler who cannot use
somebody else’s plans. When I look at sample pages to purchase daily lesson
plans from whatever provider, I would make so many changes that I see them as a
waste of my money. You may not be that way. Perhaps you love the structure of
daily plans and maybe are enrolled in a full time or hybrid homeschool program.
Plan Your Year can work for all of
us!
This kit really is personalized. You decide the goals and
print out the forms you want. You make a list of resources you need and when
you need them. You plug in the activities and lessons on the calendar if you
want. You map out the best approach to each day based on the needs of your
family. And since an individualized education is one of the reasons many of us
homeschool, this is the tool to make those wishes come true!
Finally, I cannot say enough good things about the wonderful
ladies in the Plan Your Year Homeschool Planning Facebook group. Pam’s
assistant, Dawn, guides the group in regular discussion during key planning
times, and Pam pops in to share relevant wisdom, opportunities, and resources,
including a file section with some of those customized forms I mentioned above.
If you have a question or need someone to look over your plans, the mamas there
are ready to help you make a plan that works for you!
GUARANTEE
Need another reason to click and buy? Pam offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you are not satisfied for any reason, she will give you a full refund.
Whether you are an orderly thinker who loves filling out forms, or tend towards being a scatterbrain and need someone to help you focus step by step through planning, I think Plan Your Year will work for you! I have just begun to print forms and dive into the process this year, but I am looking forward to pulling together all the thoughts swimming around in my head about next year into a definite plan.
Let me know in the comments here if you decide to join me and tell me what you think about Plan Your Year. Maybe we can even meet here or on Facebook to share our plans as we develop them!
