Record keeping for Your Homeschool

So you’re going to be homeschooling this school year. You know what curriculum you’ll be using. You even have the space organized and ready to hold supplies. Your child is excited and so are you. But what about record keeping?

Keeping records for your homeschool is very important. It is required by law in many States, and can really help when your homeschooled child is ready to apply to colleges. But record keeping is not only important for the sake of regulations. It is also an exciting way to record and document the learning process of your child.

If you use an interest-initiated homeschooling approach means that the topic of studies can be far ranging and vary greatly. It can be a challenge to write quarterly reports for the school district, when it is difficult to classify learning into neatly pigeonholed areas.

When most of the learning is done through play and there is no clear cut index of topics that have to be covered, it is necessary for the parent to keep some sort of a log which records the child's progress.

Your homeschool records can be as simple as a daily journal, or as elaborate as a software program designed to input each and every activity. If you participate in a support group, you probably have set forms and requirements. But even so, keeping track of daily work makes reporting easy and efficient.

There are various record keeping methods used by homeschooling families.

Some of the more popular ways of recording the homeschool years are...

Journal:
Maintained by the teacher or the student the basis of the homeschool journal is to keep a log of what was learned and what was done. Recording memorable events that happened in the course of the year is a great way to reminisce later on. 


Daily planner:
I personally love daily planners. You can lay out the plans and the assignments for the week in a teacher's planning notebook. Check off each item as it is covered. And maintain a separate area where any additional things can be recorded. This
includes field trips, books ready, and videos etc. Any extra topics that were covered are also recorded in this area. Make a summary every quarter.

Portfolios:
Use a portfolio to show off your child’s work.This consists of a collection of varied materials that show what the child has achieved and done during the course of each year.Portfolio assessment is a very effective way to chart your child's
progress. It gives structure to what can be a loose and flexible form of homeschooling. Things you can include are...

• A drawing portfolio that consists of some paintings or sketches that are considered the best in that year.

• A language portfolio that may consist of essays, stories, reading-logs, spelling samples or letters.

• Your child’s progress in mathematics, fine arts, history, science and social studies can all be recorded this way.

The biggest advantage is the portfolio way of record keeping places control in the hands of your child. You may find them more inspired since they have a tangible record of what they have accomplished.

These are just some good examples of how you can keep records of your child’s homeschooling years.

Regardless of which method you choose to use, record keeping in one form or the other is very important. Your child's future may well depend on the well-maintained records that you have kept over the years.

Record Keeping Programs:

• The Home Scholar
• The Full Year Notebook
• Homeschool Tracker