Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Mike Smith:
HSLDA's Early Years coordinator, Vicki Bentley, is our guest this week. Vicki, thanks for joining us!

Vicki Bentley:
Thanks Mike! I always enjoy being here!

Mike:
Vicki, would you explain to our listeners what lesson planning is, in the homeschool context, and why it’s so beneficial in your opinion?

Vicki:
Well, there’s a saying, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Lesson planning is just determining what you want to cover in the school year and laying out a framework to accomplish those goals: kind of a strategy for success. Some parents will be more detailed than others, but having an overview or rough sketch in writing puts your priorities in black and white and lets you see what you may have inadvertently left out.

Whether you use a prepackaged curriculum or an eclectic approach, a written plan can help you sort of operate on autopilot. And if your kids can read on their own, include them! Whether you let them look through the lesson plan book, or set out work boxes or learning stations for them, they’re on their way to taking some personal responsibility in their own lesson management. A lesson plan also gives you a timeline to measure against as the year progresses. And if you’re in a state requiring the submission of lesson plans, or a record of what you’ve accomplished, you’re ahead of the game.

Mike:
Vicki, thanks so much! We’ll continue talking about lesson planning in more detail all this week. And until then, I’m Mike Smith.