Do you feel that homeschooling is a challenge? 

Of course, the past couple of months has been really tough for all of us. With schools closed, we are forced to homeschool our children. 

It has indeed been quite a ride homeschooling our 4-year-old but these 6 simple tips really helps us remain sane and intact.

6 Simple Tips to Homeschool During the Pandemic: 

1. Have a Planner.
2. Have a Routine.
3. Help around the house.
4. Encourage independent play.
5. Mindful Screen Time.
6.  Drain and Recharge.

1. Have a Planner:

Maintaining a homeschool planner has been a game-changer! So at the end of each month, I spend 15-20 minutes writing down what we want to do for the following month. 

This includes things that our son likes and things that I want to introduce to him. And while planning, I try to keep the 7 areas of learning and development in mind

• Language
• Mathematics
• Cognitive Skills
• Visual Spatial
• Knowledge/Comprehension
• Memory
• Social & Emotional
• Motor Skills

I feel having a homeschool planner, is more for me than for our son as it helps me get going through the month and not end up feeling lost.

The goal of having a homeschool planner is not to complete every single thing that I write down. Sometimes we are able to complete everything that I write down but there were times we did not even complete half of what I wrote down. But I guess that is the beauty of homeschooling! 

You can be so flexible! 

There is no hurry to complete any curriculum or pressure of testing what you have learnt! 

And you can just enjoy learning at your own pace and have fun as you learn!

If you are looking for a monthly planner, you can download our Homeschool Planner at the end of this post.

2. Have a Routine

“Children are creatures of habit and very much depend on a routine to feel secure and function well!”

So apart from a set time to homeschool, we also have a thing or two assigned to each day of the week. For example, Wednesdays are our cooking day and Friday are our math days. 

We, usually, spend an hour a day homeschooling our son but this duration is so flexible. Sometimes, it is just 20 mins and sometimes if we are playing a game it can go up to 90 minutes.

Personally, I feel learning is not limited to that particular time that the child is at school or is homeschooled but it can happen throughout the day during simple conversations and everyday activities.

3. Help around the house:

Often times we get so carried away by activities, worksheets and academics that we forget that children can learn important life skills just by helping around the house. 

So helping around the house is a huge part of our homeschooling routine. From cooking, to cleaning, to doing the laundry, we make sure that our son is a part of it!

It of course gets messy at times but it is so worth it!

4. Encourage Independent Play:

Unlike school, we cannot engage our children from 9-4. So it is important that they learn to play independently. 

With our son, we try to keep a couple of things handy so he can reach out to like blocks, snap circuit, coloring pages, mazes, puzzles but mostly he prefers to play with his cars and airplanes and also robs my kitchen for scoops and can openers.

So there is no one thing that we do for independent play, how he prefers to play is so random. Sometimes he blows bubbles but other times he is so bored that he just ends up scribbling on the floor.

5. Mindful Screen Time:

The real challenge of having children at home is managing screen time.

I do not believe in zero screen time but I believe in balance and I also believe in being mindful of what we let our children watch.

So our son gets 2 hours of screen time a day. This includes watching his favorite YouTube channel or painting online or playing online games like chess-

By the way, I highly suggest you check out this website www.chesskids.com it is free and absolutely amazing.

6. Drain and Recharge: 

Little children are so energetic and during this pandemic, the opportunity to get that extra energy out is very limited.

We have a little terrace that we are so grateful for and this month, the weather in Canada is good so our son gets to play outdoor but if the weather is not bad then we stay indoors and do kids workout or kids yoga.

So just like how it is important to drain that extra energy off, I feel, it is important to recharge our energy as well. 

So we set aside a couple of minutes a day to just sit down quietly. We do guided kids meditation but our favorite is Wim Hoff.  We love this guy and we love his breathing exercises! It really help calm us down after a long day!