Kristy Cammell Ok, so I need to be honest about something. I don’t tend to plan like others I know.
I’ve tried a planner: it didn’t work. Same with a diary. And a dedicated calendar. Smartphone apps. I’ve made charts and checklists and timetables galore, and nope. Even blank notebooks to inspire creativity haven’t worked for me.
I’ve lost track of how many I’ve bought and started with gusto, then waned after the first couple of days. It’s not for want of trying, believe me! It’s so bizarre, because I’m truly an organiser at heart!
But I’ve realised that, in my own kind of way, I do plan.
Just not in the way you might expect.
My home is the heart of my homeschool.
And my walls are the planners!
They reflect the kind of atmosphere I want to encourage within my family (at least, that’s the goal) and work as a visual guide toward what I want us to be doing.
That, and laying out my home and homeschool resources to invite interaction (aka strewing). It’s something I love to do, that then spurs me on to the nitty gritty, like organising my art supplies or making sure I have the curriculum each child needs organised neatly in their own cute magazine file.
It turns out that I’m rather partial to pretty things – and when I can combine the decor I like with the plans I have in my head, my whole family ends up inspired.
It’s been a surprising but heartwarming side effect of bringing things I love into our home (I have also found plan-related things that DO work for us along the way, like sweet little calendars and weekly whiteboards, but more about those another day.)
This photo is of my desk – and nope, it’s not staged, the photo was an afterthought! It was an investment last year, one designed to inspire me towards creativity, much like I want my kids to be inspired. It’s something I saved towards by selling secondhand homeschool material.
Because, what better way to inspire than to model?
As you take stock of your own homeschool haven, remember to consider what it is that enthuses you, as well.
Your home is worth investing in.
And even those seemingly indulgent, “pretty” things, just might have a place. (Like the little bird I couldn’t leave behind, that now graces my desk and reminds me that even the littlest sparrows, matter).
Find out more about how I plan by checking out these two main steps!
Stay awesome,
