A little while ago on the blog's Facebook page, I mentioned that I was in the market for a new plan book and asked your suggestions. I was a little amazed at how different we all are in our wants/needs with respect to a planner! A few of you told me that you make your own planners. Hmmm....Since I've never found a planner that I love, and since I'm fairly comfortable with creating things...I decided to go ahead and make one!
I wanted to make a few different options for covers...
Inside, I started with monthly calendar pages. There are calendar pages for August 2013 through July 2014 plus one blank month in case your school year runs differently than mine!
Next, I wanted a way to visualize my groups for the day and add notes (If you're looking for a simple way to view your weekly schedule, check out one of my posts from last year). I ended up with 2 pages/day...one for morning, one for afternoon. I figured I could add my groups and laminate (or use those Dry Erase Pockets) then add in my planned activity with a dry erase marker.
I also wanted to include information on my students, especially their goal and objectives! I added these student goal and data collection sheets:
You can find out more about the data collection sheets, and download them for free, HERE. What else do I need to keep track of? How about contact information for parents, a contact log, a to do list, and notes section!
This part might not make a ton of sense to anyone but me. You see, I always insisted on buying a planner that had both a month view and a week view. In the week view section, I would ignore the dates and draw boxes for each type of group (e.g., Preschool Inclusion, Kindergarten Artic, Preschool Language Pull-Out, etc.). Then, I would add my planned activities to those boxes. So rather than buy a planner with month/week views, I created these boxes for my planning:
And here's an example of the completed planner pages:
This planner ended up including everything I need in one spot! However, I started thinking I might end up with a 6-inch binder! So, I added extra covers if you'd like to keep the data sheets separate from your planning pages. They coordinate with the plan book covers, but say "Data Book."
Update: (7/30/13, 8PM EST)
You asked, I listened! I just went and updated the planner to include 15 more pages! It's now at a whopping 70 pages! Here's what I added per your suggestions:
A list for screenings and evaluations:
Student attendance sheets. Personally, I would circle the dates the child received therapy, put an X through
holidays and vacations and days absent. You can use the notes section on the side to more clearly document (e.g. field trip, assembly, etc.)
PS, Let me know if I missed anything! Also, if you purchase this item now, you'll be able to download all future updates. That means that next year, when I update the calendars, you won't need to pay for the item again. Just update, print, and go!