How to Homeschool and Work from Home
Something that no one had planned on for this school year has finally come to fruition. There will be many parents who have to homeschool their children in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. That means a lot of parents are going to have to try to juggle both educating their children and maintaining a full-time job. If you are wondering how you are going to do it, I, Matthew Davies, am here to help.
As someone who lives off the grid, I have opted to have a job that allows me to work from home. That being said, I have had ample time to educate myself on how to organize my life so I don’t go crazy or have to cut out sleep altogether. Let’s not waste any more time and get into how you are going to handle this unique situation.
Prioritize
Every family has different needs. It is going to be up to you to decide what is most important on any given day. I would highly suggest that you make a list of the things you need to get done. For this, you are going to want to get a calendar or daily planner. Using these two things is going to make it much easier for you to keep track of what you have to do when.
While educating your kids is very important, you need to realize that you will have to keep up with your work if you expect to stay employed. If you have the chance, I suggest that you have only one parent work and the other can be in charge of the schoolwork. I know this is not a reality for most families, but it can do a lot of good.
The other way you can make sure that everything gets done is by sharing the educational burden. In other words, half the day, you work, and your spouse helps with the education. In the second part of the day, you switch roles.
Scheduling
To go along with your calendar or daily planner, you need to write out a schedule. Doing so will make sure that everyone knows what time and date things are going to be happening. School and work time should be scheduled before any recreational activities. Additionally, it would be best to make sure that your children understand they may have to start school earlier or work later into the day. By the time your kids are in school, they are old enough to know when you tell them what is happening. You might even have to have school on the weekends. Just remember not to put too much work off until the weekend as you all need to have some time to relax as well.
Understand that if your children have distance learning, you will need to be around to make sure they are to class on time. From what I understand, a lot of schools are going to hold online sessions every other day. That means you will have to provide them with the curriculum for the other two days. On those days, make sure that you have scheduled enough time to make sure they get all the information they need.
As an example, my schedule is like this. My alarm goes off at 5:00 am, and I am at my desk doing work by 5:30 am. I do my work for about three hours and then wake my kids. I spend another hour while they are getting ready for school to answer and send emails and other small tasks. At 9:00 am we start school. My spouse or I teach them for three hours. After that, we all have lunch together. After lunch, it is time for the kids to do homework and have quiet time. This allows both me and my spouse to finish up the day’s work. Around 2:00 pm, it is time for the kids to do chores and get ready for dinner. At 5:30 pm, we all sit down for dinner. By 7:00 pm, we are doing something fun as a family. We like to play board games or work on a puzzle. What you do is up to you.
Get Out of The House
Above all else, you are going to want to set aside some recreational time. This can be anything from walks on the beach or just playing out in your yard. The time you set aside for this is crucial for your mental health.
Some things we like to do when we go on family outings are bike rides, build sandcastles at the local beach, and take a relaxing walk in the woods near our place. Remember, these outdoor activities can count towards their physical education. There is no need for you to have to sign your kids up for a sport. Anything physical can be counted.
Quiet Time
Much like getting out of the house, quiet time is vital for everyone. You are all spending a great deal of time together. It would help if you had some time for yourself. I would suggest reading a book. I know that your kids might not be too keen on reading a book outside of school so they can do other activities.
Some ideas for things they can do during the quiet time are arts and crafts, doing a puzzle, or even coloring. All these activities will allow them to decompress from all the school and family time they are subject to the rest of the day and week.
Conclusion
Homeschooling was once thought to only happen for a couple of kids. This year, more kids than ever are going to be homeschooled. To make it work, you are going to have to balance your life a little bit more. That may mean that you are not going to have date nights or a night out with friends. I, Matthew Davies, would not be too worried about it. The pandemic cannot last forever. Before you know it, we will all be back to life as we used to know it before the virus took over the world.