I’m not a pro at this, friends, but after many years of weaving in and out of different homeschool, private, and public school settings, I can truly say that it pays to have really good homeschool records keeping skills.
How is your homeschool records keeping?
Now that I have a high school student, I’ve come to the conclusion that keeping homeschool records is absolutely imperative- both out of necessity (for the reasons I’ll list below) and just for my sanity. Here are three main reasons why I believe keeping homeschool records is essential- especially for those of us with high schoolers.
1.) Homeschool records keeping allows you to keep good memories!
I absolutely love seeing the progress my kids have made over the years. It makes me happy to see how much growth has occurred from kindergarten through high school. Even just one year of record-keeping allows me to see when one of my kids has made a leap in maturity and was able to tackle a subject much easier that year. Watch the video below to listen to me explain my take on keeping good records for memory’s sake, plus info on a homeschool planner I currently use.
2. Homeschool records keeping helps with college admissions.
Colleges love records! The more information you have on file for your students, especially those in high school, the easier it will be for you when it’s time to apply for college admissions. I’m currently keeping for my high schooler information such as:
- lists of books she’s reading
- her hobbies and interests outside of core academics
- volunteer opportunities she’s participated in
- contests, presentations, or other significant events which show academic excellence or leadership
- course descriptions
Lee Binz has been an instrumental resource in helping me to figure out how to prep my high schooler for college. Check out this interview I had with Lee Binz a few years ago on homeschooling high school.
You can keep records for your students’ nostalgia.
If anything, whether your student chooses college or not, I think it’s important for them to see their own academic progress. It helps our kids to focus on what they’ve accomplished and achieved rather than all the hard labor of those long days of homeschooling. I want my kids to be excited about graduating and to feel honored on their graduation day.
Looking back on something like a memory book that contains both their academic records and snapshots of their work samples throughout the years will give them good memories of what they’ve achieved from kindergarten through 12th grade. I plan to throw in some photos throughout the years and lots of memorabilia for my daughter’s graduation memory book! Keeping great records, for me, is not just for college admission, or for myself, but it is also for my child who deserves to preserve good memories of her home education.
Do you keep homeschool records? What are some reasons you choose to keep homeschool records and what are some methods you use to organize them?
Leave me comments below about your favorite homeschool records keeping strategies.
