School at home is not something that was in the plans for many households around the world, but with COVID-19 it is happening in most homes.
As more and more schools close to limit social contact, parents are trying to navigate their children’s schooling at home.
In our house, Asher was the only one of our kiddos that was attending school outside the home. He attended a part-time kindergarten program three days a week.
Though he wasn’t attending full-time, the change in schedule was not something he enjoyed.
The Change to School at Home
For our family moving to school at home has been a welcomed and anticipated change. It has been our plan to move to homeschool after this school year so schools closing simply moved our plans up a little sooner.
But not all families had plans to complete school at home so this change has not been one they have enjoyed.
As many families begin to look for ways to conduct and organize school at home, I thought it would be a good time to share how we are handling schooling at home right now.
Creating a Plan for School at Home
The first thing I did to organize our school was to review the materials sent home from Asher’s teachers. The wonderful teachers sent him home with two weeks worth of material.
This material was an outline of what they were currently working on at school. For his class, they were continuing their work on their sight words, addition, subtraction, handwriting, and beginner reading concepts.
I opted to create a handful of activities that focus on these areas of work.
These activities have included worksheets (because he LOVES them), reading books together, coloring and crafts, and playing different games.
Schedule for School at Home
Since school at home is NOT regular school I have not even tried to maintain the same schedule.
Instead, we have been focusing on achieving roughly 1.5 to 2 hours of school a day. The “schooling” is broken up into 15-minute activities.
In our schedule, I have set up two times in the day where we try to focus on school work. I like to do activities for one hour in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon, after lunch.
Related: How My Family is Preparing For COVID-19
We don’t always achieve everything in our schedule but the kids enjoy the time we do school. Some of the activities planned are loved so much that they last longer than the allotted 15 minutes, while some activities are not enjoyed and we cut them short.
During this time of school at home, I am not focusing on finishing activities but rather we are just trying to get some learning each day.
Related: My Homeschool Planner
To keep things stress-free, I like to follow the lead of our kiddos. Right now Ellery is just tagging along and likes to do activities because big brother is as well. Asher is usually really into school and we are able to complete things without much of an issue.
Organized Plan for School at Home
To make sure that I am not rushing each day trying to throw something together for school, I have created this printable to outline a whole week of activities.
Activities are written into each slot and the corresponding materials are placed into a folder.
I have created a folder for each day of the week and all of that day’s materials are placed in that day’s folder.
Even though Asher is the only one in true school at this time, Ellery tags along as well. She enjoys doing “school” while he does so I have created easy activities for her to do as well.
One side of the folder is dedicated to each kiddo and their activities are kept on their side.
Plan School at Home One Week Ahead
On Sundays, I like to fill out the plan and put the folders together for the week. By having a plan set in place, I am able to navigate the week ahead with less stress for everyone.
For each day I simply pull out the folder and begin the activities. No rush or stress trying to put something together in the moment.
How to Find Activities for School at Home
We were very blessed with teachers that have provided worksheets for our kiddos to use if they want. Because Asher actually loves worksheets, I have opted to use them.
If you find yourself without a plan, don’t hesitate to reach out to the teachers and see what they would recommend. Scout out ideas from friends and even Pinterest.
And most important of all… don’t forget the value of life-long lessons. Plan to cook with your kids, show them how to change a tire, balance a checking account, handle bills, stay safe in case of an emergency, and so on. There are loads of lessons you can teach your kids that don’t have to originate from a textbook.
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