In this post, I will share a bit about how meticulous planning helps my homeschool really thrive! In a few weeks, we will start year four of our homeschooling journey. I have four kids, aged 10, 8, 5 and 2. This year will be my first year schooling three of them at once.

A Planner By Nature

To no one’s surprise, I have always been a planner. Even as a child, I loved to use the little free agenda books they passed out in elementary school. I would jot down homework assignments, doodle with my pastel Gelly Roll Pens, and tuck notes from my friends inside. I loved decorating the fronts of the planners with stickers, and even filling out the address book with my friends’ addresses. Once a planner, always a planner!

I am also an old-soul, old-fashioned, and an “analog” girl. I do use technology of course–a lot of it is unavoidable. But I still am drawn toward the old ways of doing things. (A few years ago, I even bought a typewriter, for my own writing projects! The kids love it too) I try to keep my kids’ lives as simple and analog-focused as possible, because I truly believe that is better for them. I have written a few posts about the balance of tech literacy within homeschool. You can read more about my callback to computer labs, freebie for social media safety and screen time hacks, here.

For many reasons, planning as always been a helpful foundation for me. Writing out my plans helps me think. I love Google Sheets and Google Docs, and use them frequently to make things neater and also for storage purposes–but I almost always write things out longhand, first. Whether it’s events in my physical planner, little ideas bursting from my Pilot gel pen in a floral notebook, or furious scribbles on scraps of paper in my minivan or sunroom, my ideas have to get down on real paper!

How My Homeschool Planning Has Evolved

My first year of homeschooling, I bought a gorgeous three-ring binder from Target, and used it as a research binder. I read 10-15 of the most recommended homeschooling books, and took notes as I went. I dove into a research hole! I also designed a special survey for friends and family members I knew that homeschooled their kids, or who had been homeschooled themselves–you can read more about my findings, here.

I took some notes as I went, year one, but to be honest, it was a whirlwind. I was pregnant with our fourth, and was sick for the first few months of the homeschool year! I was thankful to be a part of two great co-ops, and surrounded by knowledgeable moms who were so encouraging!

I mostly kept lists. Lists of curriculum, with notes of how it worked for us. I also kept record of costs, and assessed whether the various products were worthwhile.

As we moved into years two and three, my notes became more advanced. Each year, I would create similar documents, but add more detail. I tried to push myself a little further, each time. I gained confidence with curriculum, and streamlined a lot of my systems, so that I could add more in each year.

Homeschool Hack: Using Repetition

You may have read this post earlier this month, on how repetition is the most underestimated tool in any learning–especially homeschooling!

Part of my success as a “homeschool planner” has been repetition. Repeating my “wins” with my kids each year is an easy way to ensure success, keep motivation strong, and spur us all on to learn new things!

A great example of this is how we plan and use repetition in Art History. Here is how my planning has evolved over the past three years:

• Year 1: Discovered Ambleside Online’s free resources, printed off the free colored PDFs for 6 different artists. Learned how to do an artist study. Found supplemental projects on YouTube, checked out books from the library to accompany the artists and their styles, enjoyed every minute with the kids.
• Year 2: Took the same six artists from year one, and planned to repeat them during year two! Used a Google Sheet to organize my plans (after brainstorming on paper first, of course :)). Added in 6 more artists from that year’s Ambleside List, and planned to intersperse them with the review artists. Did 12 artists total. My kids loved reviewing the old ones, and got a kick out of the new ones, too.
• Year 3 (this past year, 2025-2026): Repeated the same sort of pattern: planned review artists, and sprinkled in some brand new ones. I loved being able to compare and contrast the old and new. By repeating the artists we had studied in previous years, I could see my kids really committing these concepts, styles and pieces of art to long-term memory.
• Year 4 (starting in a few weeks): I created a simple Google Doc with 2-3 artists planned, per month. Here is a little snapshot:

This example is pretty basic, because my process for Art History is pretty basic!

1. I have all of the prints laminated and stored in a special folder. For each new artist, I take out their prints and hang them up in our sunroom. We do simple observations, talk about style, technique, and color, and compare to other artists.
2. I will typically look ahead and check out a few books from the library about the artist, when applicable. These are nice to have on hand for quiet time.
3. I have a separate document of supplemental YouTube videos saved. I paste them into our SafeShare account, so that we don’t see ads or have YouTube suggesting things for us. My kids can watch them safely at the kitchen table while I’m prepping dinner. (I don’t mess with YouTube!)
4. For some artists, I will do a special art project with the kids. This year we’ll do pointillism with q-tips in honor of Georges Seurat, who is a review artist. I may do this pastel floral project when we study Georgia O’Keefe, as a new artist this year.

The “HIGASFY” reference on the document is a special YouTube channel that I stumbled upon our first year. The acronym stands for “Have I Got A Story For You,” and the teacher is Mrs. Beth. She is phenomenal. She explains the art and artists in such an engaging way, and is an excellent storyteller. My kids always remember the details she gives about each artist!

Planning Ahead To Ensure Success

One subject I can’t use quite as much repetition for, is history! Each year, we study a new volume from Story of the World (full curriculum review here, and details of how I use history for upper elementary, here) so a lot of the information is new.

In this case, planning gets more meticulous, I supplement more, and we spend more time discussing! I should say–there are some things that are repeated. These are basic concepts that I feel are timeless and universal, no matter what country or time period we are studying: the fact that history repeats, and many patterns can be found! Because studying world history at an elementary level is rare in mainstream classrooms, I don’t require my kids to memorize dates or facts, right now. I am more concerned that they are noticing patterns. Patterns like–what people have fought about, over and over again, throughout history: power, resources, religion, and land. Most conflicts boil down to those essential concepts!

Therefore, for history this year, my grid is looking much more in-depth! I took my spreadsheets from previous years, and am upping the ante a bit this year. Here is a snapshot of the first few weeks:

Making a spreadsheet like this takes time, but it is 100% worth it. This way, I have the whole year laid out for me.

Building Your Planning Stamina

Like most things in life, hardcore planning takes practice! I would also stay I have built up stamina in two ways: 1) stamina for the amount we can accomplish in a day, week and year, and 2) stamina in how much, and how detailed, I plan ahead.

This year, it will be our fourth year doing Story of the World. We are on volume 4, Modern History, which is the last book in the series. Next year, we will start over again at Ancient History and repeat the cycle! I am really excited about this model, because each year that passes I can improve my instruction, assess what works well and what doesn’t, and fine-tune the teaching.

Up until this year, the planning I did was just chapter planning. I made a spreadsheet of the weeks of our school year, and divided up the 40-some chapters into what we would do, when. Most weeks, we did two chapters–they are not super long. Then I blocked off breaks like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and had a plan for the year.

This year, as you can see by the photo above, my planning is more intentional and detailed. Rather than scrambling, week-of, at the library to find supplemental books that may add some context to our learning, I am planning the books ahead of time. I will plan to request them 1-2 weeks in advance in case there’s a wait, and this way, I can see weeks and months ahead to what we will be studying.

I will also spend a few minutes each week searching key concepts on YouTube, finding kid-friendly educational videos, and then pasting them into SafeShare for us to view during history that week.

I wrote this post about how my mind is constantly flowing with ideas, both for the co-op class I teach as well as for my own homeschool-so I know that more ideas will randomly occur to me while I’m pushing my youngest on the swing at the park, or standing in the checkout line at Target!

Slow & Steady Wins The Race

If this type of planning feels overwhelming to you, don’t worry. Like many things in life, it takes practice, and baby steps towards success! Like I mentioned, the first three years of history learning, I just made a date-and-chapter reading list. Dates for the school year, and “chapters 17&18” – that is it! As I have grown and learned the past three years, I will start year four with a more detailed set of plans.

Make sure that you are taking care of yourself! Homeschool parents invest an exorbitant amount of time, energy, blood, sweat and tears to making sure their kids have an excellent education. As the saying goes, you can’t pour from an empty cup! For more ideas on how you can care for yourself while caring for others, check out this post on being the best homeschool mom you can be.

If you love planning hacks, or really any type of hacks, you’ll probably enjoy other posts in this series!

Lastly, if you haven’t already, grab my FREE PDF that is the ultimate planning tool: an editable student checklist for your homeschool. My kids use these every week. I open the PDF, type in their specific schoolwork, tasks, chores, etc., print and go! I love being able to customize it for each child. No more micromanaging their daily lists!

With love,

Cait