Hellobee Boards

@PurplePeony: following! I was just thinking this today, I’m going to be home with 3 kids and still expected to get my work done, I’m definitely going to need a plan!

Spend the first week establishing a routine, so the kids get used to it. In general it’s helpful to do the hardest thing first (whether that’s practicing reading, math) get it out of the way, and then let them do independent work. Later in the afternoon or whenever you have time you can do more “fun” stuff (like science experiments, read-alouds, art projects).

If I’m stuck home all day this is what we do with my kindergartener

-Breakfast (we review some work verbally during breakfast)
-On couch with me: practixw reading, some phonics, review math facts (10-15 min total)
-Independent work: he does a korean worksheet, 2 math work sheets, and some copywork/writing which he can do mostly independently. If he needs help he just asks me for help. (30-40 min. total)

If there are no big disturbances then we get through all that within an hour. Then he’s free to play with toys, draw or color, etc...

I save science, read-alouds, history, art, board games for when my youngest naps.

But if school is closed and this is a temporary situation for you- just make sure you’re doing some math and reading... I would just read as much as you can with them on books of all topics and make sure to give them access to art supplies, LEGO’s, games... no need to worry about the other subjects.

ETA: I would focus a lot of energy and be pretty firm the first week. Once the kids know this is how it’s going to be and they have no choice they will more happily do their work. Compared to traditional school you can get through a lot at home in a fraction of the time.

Yes to what Mrs. Kiwi said.

I have a 6 year old kindergartener and a 3.5 year old who are homeschooled. It took a while to get into our routine but now it's more expected.

Our routine:
- breakfast and then get dressed.
-read aloud (because they love it) - books, picture books- raid your library
-school work time- focused on math and phonics. We have curriculum but there are plenty of math games/worksheets for free, same with phonics and handwriting. We have to do this early or energy and focus is gone in our house.

- snack and will do art (you are an artist pastel videos, Make pictures/thank you notes) or free play.

-lunch: we listen to a podcast at lunch

-Outside time or free play or a board game.

-We still have "quiet time" from 2-4 where they play in their rooms. You could try a shorter time. It's good to get a break from each other.

-supper prep, and family time till bedtime.

This link has good ideas: https://www.maryhannawilson.com/schools-closed-activities/

This preschool tpt store is free right now
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Pencils-And-Chalk

When the kids are sick of playing and need input from me, our favorite things to do are play games or read books.

I’m wrapping up my 4th year of homeschooling. To begin with, I think it should be noted that homeschooling in the middle of a pandemic is dramatically different than homeschooling under normal circumstances. I’d ordinarily say that you should take your 5 year-old out to your local museums/zoos/nature centers, visit the library, and generally take advantage of the fact that you’re free during the day to do things like go on hikes and meet up with friends for play time at the park. But those things really are not an option when there’s a nasty virus circulating. (I hope those things are all closed, but even if they’re not, please stay away! The point of cancelling school is not to clean the schools, but to slow the transmission rate down, which isn’t going to happen if everyone convenes in other locations to share germs.) Anyhow, the point is that homeschooling looks quite different in a pandemic for full-time homeschoolers too.

Now, I have a question. Do you have to do the packets?

If you do, I think I would approach it more like helping with homework than doing homeshool. I imagine that schools that send things home and set up online learning will expect those things to be completed, which is really quite different than homeschooling.

If those things are optional or aren’t going to take very long, then I have some thoughts.

First, with a 5-6 year-old, I start first thing in the morning whenever possible. In this situation, that should be easy, because you just won’t have the play group/field trip/appointments issues that homeschoolers have to juggle. So: breakfast, wash hands, brush teeth, get going. An exact start time matters much less than having a routine. The best time of day for younger kids really seems to be not too long after they wake up and eat. When I tried to do afternoons or early evenings, it was a bit of a disaster with a child that young. If you have to do stuff then, you can, but it will almost certainly be harder.

Second, SHORT lessons. Ten minutes tops at first. Start your day with reading a picture book or some poems before you do a phonics or math lesson, to get everyone settled and focused. And then allow for frequent breaks to go play or do something that isn’t “school.” Just establish that “we’re doing this and we’re doing it every day,” and you’ll set yourself up for success. Unless you’re reading aloud. In that case, knock yourself out for as long as you’re both happy. Reading out-loud a lot is a major component of K for us, and I think it should be for everyone.

Third, unless she already does homework regularly and without supervision, I wouldn’t expect her to do any independent work that you assign. I never have a 5 year-old do worksheets or workbooks, so all the academic things we do at that age, we’re doing together, right next to each other.

To your other questions: I don’t do science "experiments" for K-3, and I wouldn’t recommend doing them unless you particularly enjoy things like that. The canned/preplanned ones are almost all demonstrations, they often take a fair amount of work to set up, and despite the fact that they sort of look like you've done something at the end, there's usually very little learning involved.

However, if you have science books, those would be good to read now. Stuff on the human body, animals, plants/trees/flowers, birds, bugs, astronomy—all that is good. If you've got general reference stuff like a bird guide and use it to look up birds you see, that’s good to do too. It doesn’t need to be formal.

Similarly, I don’t do much directed art at that age either. I do have supplies readily available for use, and they get used all the time. Instead of lessons, I get out my own sketchbook and theirs regularly and we work together on our own drawings. I do more directed lessons on composition as kids get older. The point is to lay the foundation and establish the habit of careful observation (which is the same thing you want for science, actually).

Important point: General life stuff is going to be a considerable challenge if you want to make a serious stab at homeschooling and working. It’ll be even more difficult if you’ve got more than one child. For 6 weeks, I would lower your expectations about housekeeping. A LOT. Talk to your spouse and get them on board. If you’re all at home for every meal, you’ll have more dishes, glasses, etc. Keeping up with that, plus laundry (you might have much more of that, because under current circumstances if anyone goes out in public, I have them change when they get home and everything goes into the laundry…), general tidying, and homeschooling and working is going to be really hard. Not impossible, but not easy. Homeschooling well takes time and effort, so you have to be okay with a far from perfectly kept home.

Finally, I wouldn’t worry about all the new togetherness. It’ll be different than what you're used to, but you’ll find your rhythm and it will be really good. One of the biggest benefits of homeschooling is that you have a lot of time to really connect with your child. I'm sure it will go well!

@ilovepie: Thanks for posting your routine! This is great!

@hellobeeboston: good point! We do have chore time after lunch or while I'm making supper. My kids empty the dishwasher, set the table, help me fold laundry, clean up the toys and make their beds (pull up blankets). I usually just assign everyone something to do and we all work on house stuff at the same time. They fight over who gets to help with mopping and vacuuming and cleaning the toilet.

So many great ideas on here! I am not very disciplined and my girls are not getting along right now so I will really try to be firm as you mentioned so I can get some work done if our schools cancel!

This has been floating around