My daughter and I butt heads about school all. the. time. I think she knows school would be way more of a time suck, but it still doesn’t help her with a seemingly never ending pile of work. When saw My Student Logbook being offered for review, I pretty much begged.
My Student Logbook
My Student Logbook is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Available as a spiral bound dated logbook planner or an undated PDF, My Student Logbook is a grid that allows students to see at a glance what needs to be done & what has been completed. There are 9 columns across the top (one for the task, time, and each day of the week) and 20 rows. The print logbook retails for $15 and runs from August to July; a calendar year edition is also available. There are no hard and fast age guidelines, but I would say as long as they can read and make an x or a check mark, you could make use of this resource.
Likes and Dislikes
One of the reasons I wanted this for my daughter is that we are always fighting to get every. Single. Thing. Done. Chores, school, you name it. I was hoping to make a list a task master. In fact, I had just started a morning high five, which was helping a bit. Plus, I am doing some PreK with her little sister and since she is a proficient reader, I am trying to get her to work independently.
I cannot even tell you how much we have BOTH loved the My Student Logbook. We used it for about 4.5 weeks with my 6.5 y/o doing second grade work (we were on vacay for ~2 of the weeks).
I love that the list is the boss. I don’t argue or cajole. I simply tell her the chores need to be done before breakfast, the schoolwork before lunch.
She loves checking off the list and being able to see how much she has left. She literally wastes no time. She can see the end in sight and knows that when her list is complete, she is free to do whatever she wants.
I was recently reading an ebook on learning styles and it explained how this child needs to work. Turns out that this is perfect for kids who are judgers (think Meyers-Briggs for kids).
I love the flap set up and the space for notes underneath. On the busy day that we do little bookwork, I use a highlighter for things that don’t need to be completed. I like that there are several flaps in case you need to tweak your schedule. And though my daughter hasn’t used them yet, there is a section in the back where the student can list favorites and things making the whole book a great keepsake and record of the school year.
Summary
Overall, I’ve really loved the My Student Logbook. It works great for kids who like to check off lists, but maybe aren’t good enough writers to write it all down every day or even every week. If you are trying to move children to more independent study, it works awesome for that, too. If you find yourself fighting about tasks and chores and schoolwork, this could be a tool that pulls you out of the middle. At only $15 it’s sure worth a try! I have sung this books praises to my husband almost nightly. No joke. I will probably buy these every year for this child.
To see what other members of the Schoolhouse Review Crew thought of My Student Logbook, click here.
