Too many posts about planning, you think?
You could be right, but it is that time of year, and bullet journaling is my new obsession tool of choice to make things happen. In May, I plan to write an “Are You Ready” series, sharing my own thoughts and experiences about the adjustments families should consider before starting on that trek called a homeschooling journey. If you know a family who is considering that journey and they don’t know what they don’t know (if you know what I mean) , those posts could be worth a share. In the meantime…
The title of this blog post is somewhat laughable because, to date, I have not actually completed the task of converting our normal planner into a bullet journal. A significant portion of what I am sharing will be moreso what I am thinking to do rather than what I have done. But, that is the beauty of a planning system like a bullet journal–it is flexible enough that I can change it without having to scrap a planner.
Bullet journaling as a homeschool planner seemed like a natural next step. I previously shared that one of the things I love about bullet journaling is the ability to cater it to my life. So as our daughter begins to make her plans on top of our plans for her, or as I see it, taking more ownership of her dreams, a prescribed planner just seems wrong. The bullet journal gives me a tool to manage and document her high school record, and capture warm memories of the weeks that pass. With our oldest now entering her young adult years and hubby and I starting to think about decluttering, downsizing, etc., trudging through memories–first handwriting samples, early drawings and celebrations–has become all the more precious to me, and I realize the true value of their academic keepsakes as well. I will say, however, that transitioning from this…
to this…
is work in and of itself. I mean, after all, this is literally a clean slate. Hence, most of the homeschool bullet journal is in my head rather than in a place that I can readily display–for now.
I do have the inside cover, however, featured above. It is a favorite of our youngest, converted to a magazine style using Canva. Candidly, you have to use everything you can. So I took the opportunity to capture “who” she is in a photo, along with a couple of words of inspiration and a quick peek into her interests.
I have also completed a simple curriculum page.
Other pages will include scriptural affirmations (first page), as well as a listing of goals. Of course, our yearly and weekly logs will be there, but I am still trying to decide what that all will look like. Again, the blessing is that I can change it if it does not come together for us. Some ideas I have for capturing memories (and training habits) are as follows, but I am not sure how often and when to incorporate them:
- What made me smile or laugh today/ this week?
- How did I show kindness today/ this week?
- What is something beautiful that you saw today/ this week?
- What is something that was hard for you but you did it anyway?
Here are some other links from moms who have this homeschool bullet journal/ planner thing a little more together than I do:
Why Your Homeschool Needs a Bullet Journal
The Easy Way to Create a Bullet Journal
A Powerful Homeschool Miracle Worker
I wish I had more to share in the moment, but such is it on today. I look forward to the update–as much for myself as for anyone else!
I never heard of a bullet journal. Sometimes I feel like I am living under a rock ~ lol! I love the idea. You ALWAYS leave me thinking.
Blessings, Dawn
Hey, Dawn! I think that the bullet journal concept has only been popularized in the last 2-3 years. I, too, feel late, but it’s been monumentally helpful for me in getting my own life in order; hopefully it will do the same for our daughter! If it does what I’m hoping it will do for both of us, I say better late than never!!