Earlier this week, my amazing husband created all the files I needed. We are using strips in the kids colors to put their daily tasks on, then the tasks have a coordinating task card on a box. Because we have specifically chosen to use Sonlight for the ability to combine kids for core subjects with ease, and we teach in pairs that share books, each pair will have a set of drawers verses each individual child. For the task cards, I found images on google that I liked, that had both a picture and a word so that they work for both readers and non-readers. We then printed those, their strips, and a set of numbers (also color coded) for each child on card stock, had them laminated, and I spent an hour and a half cutting them apart and applying Velcro dots. I'm rather pleased with the finished product!
As you can see, all the task cards were printed on white card stock, while their task strips and numbers were printed on colored card stock. I admit by the time I was done cutting them apart I was on the verge of stabbing my eyes out, but it was worth it. We only have six task cards so far, plus two "help buttons" per child (for when they are working independently and need my help to finish), but I plan to make more. This is what I needed to get started this coming week, and time was limited the day Rich made everything for me, so it is what it is for now.
The way we plan to do this is each day, each child will have their task cards filled with what they need to do that day, in the order I want them to do it. The items they will need for each task is then placed in the correct drawer, and on the front of the drawer on the right will be that task, and on the left the correct number in each of the two children's colors. As they complete a task, they will take their number card as well as their task card from their strip and put it in the "finished" box. Once they have completed their entire task card, they are done for the day and can work on their chores and then have free time. Their task strips will be hole punched and put on a key ring, but my hole punch is currently hiding from me so I'm unable to do that part quite yet.
We decided to use Trofast shelves from IKEA. Many people (most that I've seen in my research) use bins created for scrapbook supplies, but after reading reviews I was a bit nervous they wouldn't be sturdy enough. With Sonlight, there are a lot of books, so I need something strong enough for that, but equally important, my kids just tend to be hard on stuff. These were not too much more, and I know from years of using them for toys that they can withstand my kiddos.
I'm excited to see how things go this week, and will be updating with our initial thoughts after week one, so stay tuned!
