calendar for our family activities. It also
serves as my daily journal and prayer
journal, and it holds my lists and phone
numbers.;The;Old;Schoolhouse® offers
a wonderful resource for recordkeep-ing,;planning,;and;organization—their
Schoolhouse Planners (schoolhouse-
family.com/new-2013-2014-school-
house-planners/). My husband keeps
his own online calendar for appointments with Google Calendar, and the
children’s homeschool grades, atten-dance,;and;coursework;is;documented
in an Excel spreadsheet from www
. DonnaYoung.org. However, this year
we;started;utilizing;Applecore;through
SchoolhouseTeachers.com. It has been
so easy to record everything and print
out what we need; it will even generate
a transcript (which is especially important considering that we now have a
high school student). Our records are
easily;maintained,;and;I’m;free;to;move
on to other duties without spending a
large amount of time getting or staying
organized.
4. Delegate
We all have responsibilities in our home
and to each other. Everyone pitches in to
clean. Dusting, sweeping, and cleaning
windows are jobs that are divided between
the;kids.;I;clean;the;bathroom,;and;we;all
pitch;in;with;keeping;our;rooms;picked;up.
We also all work together when it
comes to feeding the animals, harvesting the honey, helping preserve food
(
canning),;or;cooking;meals;and;clean-ing up after dinner. Children need to
learn;the;responsibility;of;not;only;pick-ing up after themselves but also of chipping in and helping around the home in
general.;Don’t;feel;like;it’s;your;respon-sibility—alone—to manage the home.
Delegate where possible so that every-one;learns;teamwork.
5. Prioritize
What is the most important part of your
day,;week,;or;month?;Look;at;a;monthly
calendar;and;fill;in;meetings,;family;plans,
vacations, appointments, homeschool
support group meetings, or events. Once
those;are;filled;in,;determine;if;there;are
any projects that have a higher priority
than those major monthly events. Does
the car need to be serviced before your
family;goes;on;vacation?;Pick;a;day;be-
fore your vacation starts and write down
that;task;on;your;calendar.;Pretty;soon
your;days,;weeks,;and;months;will;be;pri-
oritized;and;you;won’t;miss;an;event;or
double-book;your;family.
6. Set deadlines (and keep them!)
If;I;don’t;set;a;deadline;for;a;project,;it
will;drag;on;forever.;It’s;not;that;I;pro-crastinate, but other issues arise that
need;to;be;addressed;first.;I’ve;learned
to set realistic deadlines. If you want a
project;finished,;make;it;a;priority;(see
#5;above);and;set;a;deadline;to;finish;it.
7. Be Diligent!
It’s;easy;to;give;up;and;not;finish;a;proj-ect or to lay aside a plan in order to do
something fun, but listen carefully to
King;Solomon’s;words;in;Proverbs;21:5:
“The thoughts of the diligent tend only
www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com
Delegate;where;possible;so;that;everyone;learns;teamwork.
