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Hi! I am currently organising myself for our 2012 school year, and I am using Preparing, Beyond and LHTH. I took some time yesterday to organise myself and I had an idea to help myself have a smooth year next year and I wanted to share it with you.

1. I printed off the list of materials needed for these programs from the HOD yahoo group (thanks to those ladies that are such good sharers!) and then I got a medium-sized, clear box with a secure lid for each program.
2. I put every single thing that I will need for these programs in the boxes that I already had around my home (eg. small ziplock bag of paperclips, folded aluminium foil pieces, small jar with lid, clay, marble, etc, etc).
3. I made an extra list of things I need to buy to go into the boxes that I don't have yet (eg. flashlight with batteries, cotton balls, etc). I am going to buy at least 5 things on this list every time I go shopping between now and when we start school next year.
4. I made another list of things that I do have in my home that I am not going to take out of my pantry until the day we need those items (eg. vinegar, food colouring, etc). This list is taped to the inside of each box as a reminder of what is in the pantry.

I am hoping that I will do every single experiment and craft/history project this year because I am organised, have every single thing I need, and have them all in one place. I am also hoping that my DD8.5 will be able to be very independent with her own science and history projects as she will know exactly where all the items she needs are (ie. in the Preparing Box) or where to find them (i.e. the pantry).

So, has this been helpful at all? Clear as mud?

Great idea!

That's a wonderful idea!

I really need to do this! I've already skipped over a couple of things because I didn't make sure I had what we needed. DS is the very independent type. He'd love to have it set up for him and in one place.

Another idea I just had--- look ahead to find out the topics for the Research box in Preparing. We started today, and they were supposed to research a coat of arms. I looked over the wikipedia article, and IMO, it was too much for a 3rd and 4th grader to dig through to find out some basic information on a coat of arms. I quickly tried to find information geared towards children, but I didn't really have time to find what I was looking for. Instead, I took them to that "create your own coat of arms" site and let them do that. I told them how when knights were all dressed in armor, you could tell who was who by the coat of arms on the shield.

Later on today I'm going to look at the next few units and see what the research topics are. I will find suitable websites or library books ahead of time.

sharonb wrote:Another idea I just had--- look ahead to find out the topics for the Research box in Preparing. We started today, and they were supposed to research a coat of arms. I looked over the wikipedia article, and IMO, it was too much for a 3rd and 4th grader to dig through to find out some basic information on a coat of arms. I quickly tried to find information geared towards children, but I didn't really have time to find what I was looking for. Instead, I took them to that "create your own coat of arms" site and let them do that. I told them how when knights were all dressed in armor, you could tell who was who by the coat of arms on the shield.

Later on today I'm going to look at the next few units and see what the research topics are. I will find suitable websites or library books ahead of time.

Have you tried http://www.merriam-webster.com/ for research? It is very good and free.

Great ideas. I would never think to look ahead and plan, so this is a big idea for me!

Tidbits of Learning wrote:Have you tried http://www.merriam-webster.com/ for research? It is very good and free.

No, I'll have to check that out. Thanks!

One of the things I always wanted to do was to put each project's supplies in baggies and just have it all set and ready to go. Labeled by unit, day and subject.

But then that would be extremely anal and people would laugh at me. So I just think about it. I love to organize!

annaz-
No one here is going to laugh at you for organizing project supplies. Just be careful who you tell IRL.

I LOVE this idea! I think I will do this, too! Thanks for sharing!

YAY! I am so glad I could help and share an idea that I *hope* will make our next year run smoothly. Annaz - I love how you think! lol. That is so ME! I love organising.... it is so exciting! lol. It helps us to accomplish a lot. Thanks for your encouragement!

Sounds like a great plan! Way to go on getting so organized!!