Your child or children will be perfectly fine with a couple or a few hours of school-related work and other fun, educational activities while you focus on work. There are actually more options than you would think, and you are your and your childrens best advocate. They also expect to have to make up for missed learning in the fall for this last spring, especially for the younger students in lower grades. (2020). (n.d.). Considerations for Schools. Attention to results is the top and smallest portion of the pyramid. There are many options for finding safe content online for kids. It's a very small bank, however very personable. 100 Things to Teach Your Teen While Youre Stuck at Home.

The people there are amazing and very easy to get along with, as well as work with. However, with everything clearly defined and with trust, constructive conflict and commitment, holding each other accountable for their respective parts becomes much easier, and does not need to involve finger pointing or other negative non-constructive behaviors. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-compass, Common Sense Media.

If yours has not done so, or you would like to supplement the work provided to your kids, there are many approaches to doing so. Its important that parents, educators and administrators clearly define what the goals are and monitor progress toward those goals. Youre Probably Homeschooling Way More Than You Need To. For example, Connecticut only requires a notice of withdrawal, legally, but does recommend (only a recommendation, not a legal requirement) a notice of intent to homeschool and portfolio review. How School Closures Can Strengthen Your Family. How We Rate and Review. Being completely clear on goals, roles, and contributions can promote commitment and team cohesion. Well, the best approach comes down to whether this is a temporary or long-term/permanent option for you and your family. If you decide you are not comfortable sending your child to their current school in the fall, what options do you have? Retrieved March 19, 2020, from https://hellobestow.com/blog/gratitude-games/, Headspace. We made a decision years ago to provide some independence and ownership of content decisions to our kids, specifically for movies, games, and apps. The ability to have an open and honest discussion with their teacher, administrator, or even boss, is a skill that will only help them in their future. Are you comfortable sending your children to school in the fall if they are physically opened for attendance? These are all considerations when building a foundation of trust in a remote or distance learning team with all parties involved. (2018). The pause for them is a huge change and requires adjustment, but provides an opportunity for us, as parents, to teach them how to slow down and be ok with being bored or finding their own activities. (Note that this is not a comprehensive list.) If you have decided that you are not yet comfortable physically sending your kids back to a school building, thinking through some of the following questions might be helpful in deciding between distance learning (assuming this option is available/offered through your school) and homeschooling: 1) Do you want to choose your own curriculum, make your own lesson plans, etc., or do you want to assist your children in completing teacher-assigned activities? (n.d.2). 3) Clear out, setup and organize your dedicated storage area for your schoolwork and related supplies. The traditional homeschooling community is extreme in their desire to be unregulated and to have full freedom to educate their children however they wish, with minimal or no governmental intervention or oversight. What if schools are opened in a virtual-only format to start the school year and transition to blended or alternating schedule formats, or even full capacity later in the school year? If you plan to homeschool long-term or permanently, focusing on this alignment might not be quite as important or impactful. The fourth consideration is the schedule of the subjects you have selected to teach. With some states canceling in-person schooling for the rest of the academic year and others extending the closures for additional time periods or indefinitely, but messages coming from politicians that we need to re-open the country, we are in a state of wait and see. A template for this can be found on many of the CT homeschooling group websites or Facebook pages. You dont have to wait until plans for the fall are released to figure out what you are comfortable (and not comfortable) with. I will gather and post a list of the supplies I always kept on hand soon. 4) *BONUS* You can also take an inventory of what you have for school supplies (paper, pencils, pens, markers, crayons, glue, scizzors, stapler, tape, whole punch, etc.). Given the current closure of public schools, many publishers are providing content online for free, as well. Administrators have never run schools, districts or boards of education during a global pandemic. What Ill provide below is a brief overview of some of the options for planning the work, starting with four considerations for doing so. (n.d.). The reality is that we need to accept that nothing is going to be perfect in this imperfect situation, so for the perfectionists out there (like myself), if we are surviving and our families are surviving, we are doing the best we can, and that is good enough. The key is not to be happy or unhappy about the approaches, but to be informed. Remember that you have options and that considering the short term and the long term will help smooth any future transitions for you and your children. I enjoy the people and the members. Management and co-workers are friendly and willing to work with you on scheduling.

Schedules created and posted in a common location provide clarity to everyone involved and help the parents avoid questions like what are we doing today? and what subjects are we working on today? There are many free printable planners and schedules available online. Retrieved June 24, 2020, from https://www.digitallearningcollab.com/state-virtual-schools, HSLDA. (2020). Trust that everyone is doing their best (whatever their best looks like on a given day) and trust that everyone has the childrens best interest at heart are a couple of others. AnimalCams. So, how do we, as a team of parents, educators, and administrators, work together as a high performing team and not fall into the 5 dysfunctions of a team identified by Lencioni? (n.d.). ), 2) Do you (and your student) want the ability or option to participate in after school activities? Uncertainty and lack of direction and why can cause unnecessary stress and a lack of commitment. The last thing we need is to waste time searching for books, pencils, paper and other supplies while we are trying to work and homeschool. Remember the CDC guidelines and be innovative in your organization and space planning. While I worked and homeschooled, I had a variety of types of jobs, all technical/knowledge-working jobs, some with more flexibility than others. For states who are planning in-person school options, many are still providing distance learning as an option, and homeschooling is always an additional option. Connections Academy. Monitor your investments 24 hours a day, around the clock from around the globe. There are many misconceptions about homeschooling, in general, but especially with working and homeschooling. Or, are you not comfortable sending your children to school at all until there is a vaccine, for example? You will need to determine what is best for you and your children. Retrieved March 19, 2020, from https://www.steamsational.com/free-printable-homeschool-planners/, The new challenge to keep the kids occupied during conference calls is: FORT MAKING!!! The state regulations say that families MAY submit a Notice of Intent to homeschool and participate in portfolio reviews. For parents looking online for content for their children, who may not be familiar with different websites, movies or apps, or unsure how to tell what might be safe or age-appropriate, this post is for you. (n.d.). Scholastic Learn at Home. (The first is required if choosing homeschooling and not purchasing a pre-packaged curriculum or enrolling your children in a full-time online school. (2020). 1) Draw out a rough daily schedule (or weekly, if your daily work schedules vary), allocating specific times for work and for schoolwork.

Although Im not fully convinced that this is the best approach to managing your time, the concept of Timeboxing is similar to the approach Ive recommended above. There are so many options available to teach every subject, and many are free. (2020).

(n.d.). Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/about-us/our-mission/about-our-ratings, Common Sense Media. We also chose to provide our girls with education regarding proper behavior online, rather than feeling the need to constantly police them and their online activities. ), 4) If you choose homeschooling instead of distance learning, are you fully informed of any reporting requirements, regulations, etc. For example, if you choose to homeschool or opt for distance learning to start with in the fall, will you want to send your children back to school (this year or in the future)? If you want to really make it fun and engaging with everyone involved, you or the meeting organizer can make up a bingo card and send it out to everyone on the call. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/kid-safe-browsers-and-search-sites, Common Sense Media. Its also important to understand what is and what is not likely to happen in the next year curriculum and academic-wise and how that might impact you and your children. Retrieved June 24, 2020, from https://www.connectionsacademy.com/, CRHE. (n.d.). Here are a few suggestions of where we might start: 1) Develop (and ensure everyone knows and understands) clearly defined goals. (This is a big deciding factor that can save or cost you a lot of time and stress. Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas, Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information, news and insight around the world. If this was or is you, trust me, you are not alone. Looking at these from a more positive lens, as opposed to negatively identifying them as dysfunctions, the list of what teams need to thrive include: The foundation of working together as a group, especially in a stressful, unclear, unpredictable situation like remote learning during a global pandemic, is trust. You will need to determine, based on the number and ages of children, your work schedule, and any other constraints, what subjects you want to teach and can manage to do so with minimal stress. Starting your day with gratitude and calm activities has been said to start your day off on a positive note. A few of the things that are currently within our control are: 1) our reactions to the current situation, 2) our attitudes, 3) our schedule and 4) our space. These are accessible here: https://awakeandmindful.com/best-kids-yoga-videos-on-youtube/. While you are on a conference call today, have your kids stand next to your whiteboard or sit next to you coloring or doing some additional activity, and work with them to complete a bingo card based on what is said or done on your conference call. You can choose to homeschool your children with you being the primary teacher (as opposed to distance-learning where you are assisting your children with work assigned by their teacher). It is important to remember this. So, what options are there? The truth is that our kids (or any of us, for that matter) have never learned or gone to school (in person, hybrid or online) during a global pandemic. We cannot control what this pandemic has become or is about to become or the ripple effects it may cause. You can use an existing bingo card, plenty of which are posted for free online.