Have a Beautiful Homeschool Bullet Journal Planner in Less Time!
The first time I discovered the bullet journal (aka dot journal), I fell in love with how beautiful the pages could be and how custom every design was. I considered switching from my regular planner to a bullet journal planner several times but was always deterred by the amount of time it was likely to take to design every page. There’s real value in just buying a planner with the outline already there….especially when you’re a busy homeschooling mama, right?!
However, last summer I decided that I was going to bite the bullet (haha…get it…bullet…:D) and finally use a bullet journal for the following school year. And I did. And I loved it. And I’m still using it.
Here’s a peek inside:
The Index:
Adding page numbers to each page and creating an index made it easy to find what I was looking for.
The Key:
For remembering what the markings used on my calendar and to-do lists mean…you know, for when I might forget at first. 🙂
Year at a Glance Calendar
Attendance Log:
Quick and easy way to record attendance and keep track of the days.
Curriculum Map:
Color coding our curriculum choices made it easy to see what each child was using at a glance. It also shows how much of each subject is being covered. Plus it’s pretty. 🙂
My To-Do Lists:
I put events at the top and tasks underneath, filling them in as I finish. At the end of the dated period, I create a new list and decide what unfinished tasks get transferred to the next list and which ones have become irrelevant or unnecessary. The arrow through the box (in the photo) represents a task I’m moving to the next list. These are the markings I record in the KEY.
The “to-do” pages can be used however makes sense to you but this has been an effective way to manage mine!
This is only a sample of my planner but it hopefully gives you an idea of how I used it!
BUT. Now that it’s summer again, my calendar pages are filled. I’m also running out of extra pages for creating new ones. I knew I could just make another one this summer…..but the TIME it took me. I really didn’t want to start all over. Plus some of the pages didn’t need to be redone but with the kind of bullet journal I bought, I would have to redo everything.
So that’s when I started thinking. What if I could re-create the pages I loved using in my current bullet journal planner in printable form so that I could just re-print the pages I needed for a new year (without having to actually design them again too!) and also leave the pages that don’t need replaced?
It took me awhile to create these digitally, but now that I’m finished, I love how they turned out and, even more than that, I don’t need to ever create them again!
Below you will see the finished product and what I’ve printed out to use for myself this coming school year. I have many of the same designs that I liked from before with a the option of printing out plain dot paper to stick at the end for when I want/need to create more lists and designs on the fly. (I did this a lot with my current bullet journal planner so I knew it would be necessary to have this option!)
The main difference is that the size is a normal letter size of 8.5″x11″ where my other one was a bit smaller. But I was ok with that.
I have it printed out already on spiral notebook punched paper. Then I sent my husband to Office Depot to buy some clear plastic presentation covers and have them spiral hole punch those as well. This works well for me but it could also be put into a three ring binder or another form of planner system as long as you have a way to punch the holes and it will fit this size.
Now, that I have it all printed and ready, I’m really glad I took the time to make these digitally so I don’t have to sit down and draw everything out from scratch like last year. (Not that it wasn’t fun to do that…it just took WAY more time than I want to give every year!)
One of my favorite two page spreads in my homeschool bullet journal planner is the master grocery list. It was one of those “I didn’t even know I needed it” things. It’s helped me plan out our menu and grocery list faster than before because instead of trying to think of everything we need, have, or might want…I can refer to this list and it helps me get ideas and remember what we need more quickly!
Check out below if you’d like to try it out yourself. 🙂
My Homeschool Bullet Journal Planner in More Detail:
Option 1: Watercolor Dots ( the one I’m using this year!)
—-> Get my Watercolor Dots Homeschool Bullet Journal Planner HERE! <—-
Option 2: Botanical
—-> Get my Botanical Themed Homeschool Bullet Journal Planner HERE! <—-
Option 3: Black & White Interior (ultimate customization and save ink!)
—-> Get my Black & White Interior Homeschool Bullet Journal Planner HERE! <—-
Tips for Printing:
- Use a heavier weight paper to avoid bleed through
- Print yourself or let an office supply store do it for you
- An office supply store should also be able to make it into a spiral bound planner for you as well
And that’s it! That’s the story of my planner. 🙂
If you have any other questions for me regarding how I use this, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments below!
For more planning freebies, make sure to check out the following before you go….
Happy Planning!
