The world is in an uproar over Covid-19. Many schools are closed and children are suddenly being educated by parents at home. As both an independent study teacher of 20 years and a homeschool mom of 15 years, I’d like to come alongside and help equip you for successful teaching and learning at home. These five keys will enable you and your children to thrive in a school-at-home situation during this time of uncertainty.
# 1 Enjoy Your Children!
Stress may be running high for a myriad of reasons, but take a deep breath and try to see the positive. Some parts of this crisis can be a blessing in disguise because it gives you the ability to spend extra time with your children. A year from now, you will want to look back on this time of “shelter in place” and realize that you didn’t waste the time you had to spend with the ones in your home that you love.
It’s important to be relaxed with your children and have fun! Play games and work on projects together. Pop popcorn and watch movies. Go outside and exercise together or do stretching and calisthenics inside. Ride your bike, shoot basketballs, play catch, kick a ball around, or jump rope. Hook up the Wii and bowl or dance. Laugh together. Let your children know that you love them. All of these things will reduce stress and help create strong family memories.
Use this wonderful opportunity to get to know your children better. What are their interests and goals? What are their fears? What are their dreams? Now’s your chance to work on character traits like integrity, honesty, compassion, courage and loyalty. Use stories or role play. Discuss topics together; read together; journal together. You can even use writing assignments to help open conversations.
# 2 Don’t Be a Martyr
With children at home, you will now find yourself with extra responsibilities. Try not to let these additional pressures get you down. Keep in mind that as a family you are all in this together. It takes time to educate and care for children, so they in turn need to help with household tasks. Prioritize what you must get done; delegate what you can.
Do chores together. Understand that your children might not be able to complete them as quickly or as well as you because they need more practice. Expect that your house will not be spotless. Try to keep things sanitary, but let some of the clutter go unchallenged if you can. The bottom line is that more people at home means more mess at home. Strive not to stress about it.
Teach the tasks that your children haven’t learned yet like laundry, cooking, yard work, budgeting or home repair. Learning these skills will benefit them in the future. Even young children can match socks. As they do, teach math concepts like “sorting by attribute” and counting by twos.
Don’t forget to take care of yourself along with the kids. Feed yourself before you get grumpy. Have that extra cup of tea or coffee in the morning before you get started. Send kids outside to play when you need some peace and quiet. Force a “quiet time” in the afternoon where kids read in their room or listen to an audiobook so you can catch up on chores, a hobby, or other interest.
# 3 Find a Rhythm that Works for Your Family
When I first began homeschooling, I felt I needed to start school each day at exactly 7:30 or 8:00 in the morning. Although that routine might work for your family, it did not work for mine. There was too much rushing around and grouchiness in the morning. We do better if we start school around 9:00. Then take a morning break for 20 minutes around 10:30. Work until 12:00 and have lunch. Then come back around 1:00 to finish up. This schedule has worked for us for years. Sure, my children school later in the day, but we enjoy a more leisurely pace.
I have seen all kinds of schedules for homeschoolers including ones where lessons didn’t start until the afternoon while toddlers were napping. I have also seen working parents do school with their children after work and into the evening, treating the workload like typical “homework time”. Some students prefer to do school work on weekends and leave a few days free during the week. Pick what will work for you and your family. You don’t need to put extra pressure on yourself right now to do it just like the local school district does.
# 4 Schooling at Home Doesn’t Need to Look Exactly Like School at School
Other than the obvious fact that you can do school in your pajamas, (smiles) there are other aspects of educating at home that can look different from the brick and mortar kind. For one, children don’t need to sit at a desk all day. Although a table and chair or small desk is great for kids to write spelling words or figure math, most of the time they don’t need to sit at a desk. Find someplace comfortable to do independent work. Beds, chairs, couches, or the floor work well for a variety of activities. Need some extra vitamin D? Work on the back porch or read a book up in a tree.
Another thing to consider is that you don’t need to switch subjects every thirty minutes to an hour. Although I do recommend developing a routine, tasks don’t need to be forced into particular blocks of time. For example, science on Monday can include a two-hour nature hike. Or if the chemistry lesson is going well in the kitchen and the muffins you are baking are not done, you don’t need to stop in the middle because a school bell is about to ring. You have the flexibility to extend the task and do other subjects another day.
Realize that kids learn in a variety of ways, so take advantage of this opportunity to do things a little differently. Bring out the puzzles and learning games. Let your children catch up on building the models that they received for Christmas, but were too busy to get to. Catch up on art, music, and home economics. Do crafts. Look up some science experiments for hands-on learning. Take some virtual field trips in lieu of traveling.
# 5 Read Together
I love literature and books. I believe that if we are reading together, then we are learning together. I adored it when my children were little and they cuddled around me to read picture books. Even as they got older, I tried to read to them almost every day. So much can be taught through literature including history and science.
In today’s world of technology, there’s a bonus for all ages. The parent or child doesn’t necessarily need to do all the reading. Audiobooks abound and listening is just as fun and educational. Finding audiobooks does not need to be an expensive endeavor. Public libraries will allow those with a library card to check out books virtually. Many companies, including Audible, have a list of free books ready for your listening pleasure.
As you read or listen, keep in mind that young children do not always need to sit still in order to concentrate. One of my children loved to play legos while I read. Another child I instructed seemed to learn more if he was up-side-down. (Go figure.) Stop your reading or the audiobook periodically to check for understanding. Ask good questions. If students are paying attention and can answer, then they are learning. If not, then modify accordingly. If you want things to look more academic, a child could do a puzzle on the floor or color during a read-aloud. The important thing is to integrate books into the school day. Reading together makes the day great!
In Conclusion
My first attempts at home education brought some extra trials because I was trying to recreate a brick and mortar school situation in my home. Let me reassure you; that doesn’t need to be the case. Don’t make my mistake. Instead, take a deep breath and engage, pursue, explore. Learn and laugh together. If the weather is nice, go outside. Enjoy the extra time you can spend together. Use this time wisely because you are never going to get it back.
Thank you Melanie❤️