"Are we going to finish the book?" This calculator answers that in one glance. Type in how many lessons the curriculum has, how many you've done, and the date you want to be finished. It counts your real school days, skipping weekends and the days off you list, and tells you the pace: "2–3 a week" or "1–2 each school day." Fall behind after a sick week, add the dates, and the plan recalculates.
What the Homeschool Pacing Calculator tells you
Lessons Left for every subject and every child, up to 12 rows.
Status: On Track, Catch-Up Needed, Completed, Not Started, or Deadline Passed, in color.
Ahead / Behind: +11 means eleven lessons ahead of an even pace; −4 means four behind. A number, not a worry.
Simple Plan: the weekly or daily pace that finishes on time, written in plain words.
Lessons per week, lessons per school day, school days left, and percent complete for anyone who wants the math.
Built for real homeschool years
Days Off tab: list Thanksgiving, Christmas break, spring break, co-op days, the flu. Sixty rows. The pace tightens automatically.
4-day or 5-day school week, picked from a list.
Dates, not day counts. Type 8/17/2026 or pick from a calendar; the spreadsheet does the arithmetic.
Works with any curriculum that has numbered lessons or chapters: Saxon Math, Math-U-See, Teaching Textbooks, All About Reading, Apologia, Story of the World, and read-alouds by chapter.
Formulas are locked so a stray keystroke can't break anything. No macros, no account, no internet needed.
What's in the download
Excel Edition (.xlsx): Excel 2010 or newer on Windows or Mac, and Excel Online.
Google Sheets Edition: a link; File → Make a copy and it's yours on any device, with a pop-up calendar on every date cell.
Parent Guide (8-page PDF, one per edition): three things to count before you open the file, a worked example family, a fix-it page for every status word, and plain answers to the questions parents ask.
A filled example file you can study, then clear.
Who it's for, and who it isn't
For parents who don't do spreadsheets: if you can type a number and a date, you can use it. For families who've felt "behind" since October and want to know by how much. It is not a daily planner; it tells you the pace, not what to do on Tuesday. It doesn't track grades, attendance, or hours (our Individual Learning Plan Kit does). Not for Apple Numbers.
Made by First Homeschool, a used and new curriculum store in Springdale, Arkansas, run by a former special educator and principal who homeschools. The calculator came from the question we hear at the counter every spring.
Instant digital download. No physical item will be shipped. For personal/household use.
