Tips for Balancing Work and Homeschooling
Have you found yourself in a situation where you want or need to homeschool your children but still have to bring home the bacon? It can be done! No doubt, working outside the home while homeschooling is pretty tough unless you are employed part-time, your kids are older and self-sufficient during the day, you have a spouse or partner helping you, or you have a grandparent that has graciously stepped up to help with the homeschooling duties. These are all solutions worth looking into; keeping in mind that sometimes we need to make sacrifices for the greater good.
Homeschooling is much more do-able if you have the flexibility to work from home, which so many of us did these past few months. Zoom calls are now the norm and, who knows, maybe working remotely will continue to grow now that most businesses have realized that there is really no need for every employee to come into work every day. If you are considering working and homeschooling, here are 10 tips for making it all flow:
Divide and conquer. If you share parenting and homeschooling responsibilities with a spouse, split the day up– one can work while the other homeschools. While you are at it, divide the chores up - everyone can chip in and be responsible for household responsibilities in a way that eases things up for you. Delegate! This is a good time to make older children responsible for the younger children while you are working, or have family members pitch in with chores that would normally be a part of your routine like laundry, doing dishes, feeding pets, or vacuuming. If things start falling through the cracks, address it right away by having a family meeting to sort it out, and find a solution.
Work unconventional hours if possible. Depending on how flexible your job is, if you can get your work done at night and do school in the day, or even better, get your work done early in the morning before your kids even get up you will have plenty of hours in the day to get everything accomplished. Remember, homeschooling will not take 8 hours a day. It can range anywhere from an hour a day for the youngest kids to 5-6 hours a day for the older more “hands-off” ones. Think about how your kids spend their time in a traditional school setting. Are they really doing 8 hours of academic work each day? No, they aren’t. Much of the day is filled with transitions from class to class, the time it takes for a teacher to work with twenty-five kids versus one, and the time a student spends in recess, gym, and lunch. Plus add in other interruptions such as fire-drills, assemblies, and announcements throughout the day.
Take check-in breaks. If you are working during the day, take regular breaks from your work to do a status check on your child, and assess how things are going. Expect the unexpected. There are always going to be interruptions and things that will throw the day off course. Your wi-fi will go down, the cat will run away, one of your children will spill an entire gallon of milk on the floor, and you’ll discover you’re out of wine — all on the same day. Take a zen moment, prioritize, and then do your best. Some days will be harder, but some days will be a piece of cake. You got this!
Have a safe space. Escape to the bathroom or a closet when you need peace and quiet. Desperate times sometimes call for desperate measures. If you need to focus on finishing an email or have to make a phone call without chatter in the background, there is nothing wrong with locking yourself away for a little bit.
Teach kids how to help themselves. Keep the snacks for the day accessible and have a designated snack time so the kids aren’t constantly asking for something. As soon as they have figured out how to prepare simple food for themselves, let them manage their options for the day. If you aren’t comfortable with your kids in the kitchen, make lunches in advance of each day so you do not have to stop in the middle of the day and prepare. Encourage your children to figure out how to fix problems and situations on their own without having to constantly ask for your assistance. Lastly, make all of your school supplies accessible. Leave out the things you want them to have access to and put away the things you don’t want them helping themselves to or using without supervision. Teach them how to clean up their messes (because if you have to always do it, you’ll need to find more time in the day). If there is anything that they did not clean up, do not jump in and do it. Have them clean up alongside you so that they start to see the correct way to do it. Eventually, it will sink in.
Learn the art of communication. I love agendas, charts, calendars, and to-do lists to make sure we are all on the same page. Every morning (or the evening before if that works better for you) discuss the upcoming day’s plan so that everyone is aware of their responsibilities and expectations. Let children know your schedule and approximately what times you will be working one-on-one together and what tasks are expected to be done independently (and quietly).
Set boundaries. Be clear about when you are working and not working and try to stick to those times. Younger children might need a clear visual, such as a timer or a door closed when you are “at work.” It is good to have filler (puzzles, workbooks, or even an educational show) for times that they cannot continue on with their work without your help but they need something to do aside from saying the word mom.
Work smarter. Not harder. Do your very best to be organized and efficient. I cannot stress this enough. To-do lists are magical. Minimize distractions whenever possible. (It’s not always possible). Plan time buffers around work and school so you aren’t rushing from one thing to the next. Organize your computer. You will most likely be using the same one for work and for school and it can get really wild, really fast with all of the downloads and tabs open.
Rely on the village. Microschooling is a new way of schooling where a number of families in a community join together to split the time and the cost of homeschooling their children, essentially creating their own private schools. Co-ops and homeschooling playdates can also help working parents create some kid-free time each week to use for long stretches of focused work. And, of course, don’t forget nap time for the kids. Drag that out as long as you can!
Don’t neglect self-care. Put your own well-being high on the list of priorities. Take care of YOU by exercising, eating right, drinking your water, and taking moments out for yourself that do not involve your children or your employer. And no, food shopping does not count. Take time off to reboot and recharge.
You have undoubtedly made homeschooling a priority for good reasons. Make sure to revisit those reasons when things get crazy and you feel like letting go. Working while homeschooling is not for everyone, but it can be for you. It just takes effort, perseverance and a little patience. (Stay tuned - that is what my next article is about!)
My new book, Homeschool Happily: Yes, You Can! is available on the SHOP page
