For all my homeschool families, it’s that time of year! If you caught my last life update or have been following my stories on IG lately, you’ve seen how I’ve been in full homeschool planning mode for the fall! 

This will be my 4th year as a homeschool mama, and we have a lot of great things planned! LJ will be interviewing for an internship soon! He’s also going to take a physics and economics class. He’s really into learning why things work the way they work. We’ve been talking a lot about inflation and supply and demand in real estate. Jaxson is going to take an acting class that he’s super excited about! He’s already a character so acting is right up his alley!

And I’m also excited for my youngest Kam to being deschooling! We started with him over the summer, and one of the things he’s really taken an interest in is photography. I love seeing the boys get excited about exploring their interests because that’s how learning should be. It’s amazing to see how they grow and evolve with their passions!

A lot of you are curious about our field trips and travels. We have a couple of big trips planned and will definitely sneak a couple of local ones in, too. I’m so excited to kick off our homeschool semester in Chicago! The boys have never been there, so it’s going to be a great time!

As homeschool parents, there’s a lot that goes into making sure our kids have a successful year. That’s why I put together 10 tips on how you can plan for the new homeschool year, especially if you’re a working mom or dad! These are things I’ve learned over the last three years through trial and error, YouTube, and talking to other homeschool families!  

  1. Schedule time and write down what worked well last year and what didn’t.

  2. Ask your kids what they want to learn more about going into the new year.

  3. Declutter and organize your homeschool area in your home.

  4. Make a list of supplies you need for the new year and take advantage of back-to-school sales.

  5. Write down a plan and a focus for each month in a homeschool planner.

  6. Make a list of potential field trips that your kids would like to visit. 

  7. Sign up for a co-op and any online classes they want to take. A great resource for free online classes is Khan Academy. 

  8. Plan out what your weekly work and homeschool schedule will look like, and make sure everyone in the house is on the same page. 

  9. Ensure that you talk to your co-workers / team about when you will be available and when you won’t. (Add it to your calendar and share your calendar with them.)

  10. Decide when your first day of school will be and schedule some rest beforehand!

I hope these tips are helpful! Is there anything you would you add? Do you have any homeschool questions? Let me know!