Developing Your Lesson Plans

As a homeschooling parent you are acutely aware of how important it is to have daily plans and be organized. Everyone has their own methods and tactics. And most of these plans certainly weren’t perfect right out of the gate and have evolved over time. 

As homeschoolers one of the greatest benefits is that of having great flexibility with how you educate your child. But even with this great educational flexibility you shouldn’t really be sailing without a compass. 

When it comes to educating, that compass is your lesson plan. 

Although homeschooling generally doesn’t require exacting lesson plans to be turned in, however, not having one at all certainly isn’t a good approach to your child’s education. 

Let’s take a look at some general concepts and commonalities about lesson plans that may assist you in developing yours. 

First of all, you have to start your thinking with what it is you are going to teach. From there, you’ll need what your objectives for the lesson are. In other words, you’ll want to be able to observe specific behaviors your child is going to be able to do or perform as a result of your teaching. You want the outcomes of your teaching to be measurable and quantifiable; so the more specific the better it will be. 

5 Tips On Writing Lesson Plans Like A Pro

Aside from the grade level, writing lesson plans generally follows a format much like the outline below. While different teachers - and curricula - alter the format somewhat, the basics are the same.

Overview

This section contains the subject matter and an assessment of how much ground the class has covered in the topic area. The overview addresses the importance of the lesson within the context of the subject matter. It the topic is Supreme Court decisions, the overview might discuss the impact of high court decisions on everyday Americans.

Purpose

This section defines the overall goal of the lesson, both mandated academic requirements and actual educational value. Writing lesson plans should always include both elements, but it is important that the mandated goal not overshadow the learning involved.

* Personalize the educational goal. Write the lesson plan to define your purpose for each student: 'Every student will understand the importance of the First Amendment within the context of his personal life and the context of any professional goals he might have.'

Objective

How To Compare 529 Plans?

If you are investing in a 529 state plan, it is easy to compare. The reason is that American citizens are allowed to take any state plan, and then they can even switch between plans if they want to. That is the reason everyone wants to compare 529 plans before they actually open an account. So how do you make the comparison? What do you look for? 

Well, it is not quite straightforward to compare 529 plans of different states. There are too many things to take care of. However, here are some guidelines that might help you to make the comparison. 

1. Look into the tax breaks the plans are offering. In fact, if your own state plan is giving you a tax break, then it is not necessary to look into the plans of other states. Any limitations that exist in your own plan will be overcome by the tax deductions your plans offer. Currently, 31 out of the 50 states in America provide tax deductions on their 529 plans, along with the District of Columbia. These 31 states are: Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. 

2. Look for the expenses of the plans. The expenses you will have to bear when taking a plan will be the enrollment fees, annual maintenance fees and the program management fees. This is a good parameter to compare 529 plans. Some plans, like that of the state of Wyoming have very high expenses. Even the plans of the stats of Alabama, Arizona, Maine and Tennessee are very expensive and hence not at all good choices.