They had to tell us the recommended ages by Common Sense Media, parents and kids and were only allowed to watch movies, play games or download/use apps that were 2 years over the lowest age recommended out of the three. But, there is also so much that is fully within our control. Many of our kids had packed schedules of school, sports, and other activities, with barely enough time to grab a sandwich in the car for supper. Coronavirus Closed Schools: 27 Activities to Keep Kids Busy During School Closures. Resources for Families During the Coronavirus Pandemic. The options are so abundant that it can often be overwhelming, especially for those new to educating their children at home. 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. Yes, movies sometimes work, but how about something possibly more fun (for you and for them)? Retrieved June 24, 2020, from https://responsiblehomeschooling.org/policy-issues/current-policy/, Digital Learning Collaborative. While the kids play, you can plan your day(s). (These are usually set at the state-level and enforced at the district or school-level. 2) Block off the appropriate time for schoolwork on your work calendar and communicate these expectations to your manager and coworkers. Yours will too. 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. Common Sense Media provides two different options for digital citizenship education. (This is the option rated as highest risk by the CDC) (CDC, 2020). When you are planning your days, you will first need to decide how much time you want (or need) to spend with your focus dedicated to your work (in meetings, for example), and how much time you want to spend homeschooling your child (or children). (n.d.). Lets face it, we are all in survival mode right now, and trying to claim anything else would be misleading. The CRHE and HSLDA do a great job of keeping up with the current state regulations and how they are implemented (along with your legal rights and options as a homeschooler) (CRHE, n.d.; HSLDA, n.d.). A big lesson learned in this transition is that no matter what homeschool curriculum you choose, there will be differences in what they learn there and what is covered in the public school curriculum, thus, some material will be repeated and there will be gaps to be filled in other places. The best resource we have found for determining age-appropriateness of movies, games, applications and some websites is Common Sense Media, accessible here: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/. All movies, for example, have ratings from Common Sense Media, as well as a kids rating and a parents rating, but even more helpful are the details provided by Common Sense Media behind their specific rating. Also, be sure that you are fully informed about what activities are offered or not offered for any who opt into remote or distance learning through the school, as this likely differs on a district by district or school by school basis. To step back and take a look at what this truly means, it is helpful to have a lens through which to view this team and the relationships and responsibilities of the members of the team. A great list of them compiled by STEAMsational is accessible here: https://www.steamsational.com/free-printable-homeschool-planners/. A visual representation of the five dysfunctions Lencioni identifies is shown below. If you are homeschooling on your own, you and your children might be the only members of the team, but for others remotely schooling via distance learning options provided through their school or district, there are many other members of the team, as well. You are the parent, and you know what is best for your children. In Connecticut, the only thing you are legally required to do is file with your local board of education a letter of Notice of Withdrawal. It is important to remember this. It is important to remain aware (and equally appreciative for any help they provide) that the schools and school districts are not required to assist homeschooling families, and that submitting an intent to withdraw (and/or an intent to homeschool) does have a direct impact on their budget, as they are funded on a per-student basis. Game Reviews. When trying to decide what is best, there are always multiple considerations. Retrieved April 19, 2020 from https://grownandflown.com/soft-skills-for-teens/, Minecraft. at the schools themselves, but something to be aware of when asking them for assistance of any kind. Trust that everyone is working toward a common goal, for example, is one type of trust. (Remember to make the award something you can make, give or do with them at home, and that they can have or do after your conference call is over.). Some organizations group activities in the following age groups, for example, Kindergarten to grade 2, grades 3-5, grades 6-8 and grades 9-12. Will you and your children be ok with this or able to handle any repetition or boredom by supplementing with other activities? Attention to results is the top and smallest portion of the pyramid. Instead of trying to convince your kids why they should be quiet and calm during your conference calls and hoping for the best, you might try giving them specific activities to keep them busy during these times. Awake and Mindful. Khan Academy Schedules for School Closures. To commit to common goals, everyone on the team has to be aware of the goals, understand why those goals are important, and be aware and accepting of their role in helping the team attain those goals. Retrieved April 19, 2020, from https://www.roblox.com/, Wiess, S. R. (2020a). 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. Everything else is a bonus. Small wins go a long way. For other jobs, like when I administered analytics servers, I had more flexibility to design my work day around the desired school schedule. There are many options for finding safe content online for kids. This includes finding appropriate websites, movies, games, and applications, teaching your children about online safety and digital citizenship, and knowing how to distinguish between free, safe content and free, unsafe content. An alternative is to make your own bingo card that might be more age-appropriate, like one with silly words or um and uh, for example, that might be easy for little ones to pick up on during the call. Welltrainedmind.com. While we await final proposals for opening of schools in the fall from states and local districts, we are all asking what if? What if schools open as usual in the fall at full capacity? ), 2) Do you (and your student) want the ability or option to participate in after school activities? 5) Understand and be honest and open about what you (and your student) can and cannot reasonably take on and complete given everything you have going on outside of school responsibilities, and be open to working with your student and their teachers and school administrators. What is Montessori Education? Retrieved March 16, 2020, from, Zao-Sanders, Marc. When we homeschooled, for earlier years, where I had many conference calls, and the kids were younger, we used videos for most of the elective subjects and studied each subject almost every day. CommonSenseMedia.org. 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? (2018). Digital Compass. No one knows what the right answer is to any question or problem right now, BUT, we can all try things, fail, get back up, and try something else. 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. Considerations for Schools. We cannot control what this pandemic has become or is about to become or the ripple effects it may cause. Another point to consider is that you have every right to make the time spent educating your children as high a priority as any other meeting, so schedule it. In my previous post, I noted that some schools and some districts are providing work for their students, which is great! Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/kid-safe-browsers-and-search-sites, Common Sense Media. Educators need to be able to express concerns to parents and administrators when things arent working for them, their class, or even particular students. In sports psychology, life coaching and other venues recently, youve likely heard the term locus of control or phrases like control the controllables. Situations like the pandemic we are currently experiencing bring to light the true meaning of these phrases, as there is so much that is truly out of our control. Accountability involves all levels, including our children consistently being held responsible for their work. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/, Common Sense Media. We have never parented (or helped our kids with remote learning) during a global pandemic. that you will be bound by? You will need to determine the best balance and schedule for your family based on the ages you are teaching, the subjects you have selected, and the modes you have chosen to use to teach those subjects. 1) Draw out a rough daily schedule (or weekly, if your daily work schedules vary), allocating specific times for work and for schoolwork. Khan Academy has provided help and getting started pages for their content here: https://www.khanacademy.org/about/blog/post/611770255064350720/remote-learning-with-khan-academy-during-school, and the lessons themselves are accessible here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSZhOdEPAWjUQpqDkVAlJrFwxxZ9Sa6zGOq0CNRms6Z7DZNq-tQWS3OhuVCUbh_-P-WmksHAzbsrk9d/pub, Scholastic has provided schedules and lessons here: https://classroommagazines.scholastic.com/support/learnathome.html. Or, are you not comfortable sending your children to school at all until there is a vaccine, for example? Some of the common misconceptions include: Lets attempt to address these one by one. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/about-us/our-mission/about-our-ratings, Common Sense Media. Before you start, identify an award they will earn if you get a bingo and/or if they black out the entire card by meeting the criteria of each bingo square on the entire bingo card. Age-Appropriate Chores. 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. If you are unsure, Common Sense Media is a great place to start. Then, your stress levels went through the roof when it didnt all go smoothly with calm, quiet kids and dedicated focus for you. You can make, download and print your own bingo card at sites like BingoBaker, accessible here: https://bingobaker.com/ Yet another alternative is to keep your call off speaker, but let your kids mark off the square on the bingo, and you tell them when the criteria has been met. How Timeboxing Works and Why it Will Make You More Productive. Find a fort posted by someone else and draw a picture of their fort and estimate how many people you think could fit in their fort. It is important to be fully informed of all legal and regulatory requirements prior to making your choice, so that you are making a fully-informed choice. 100 Things to Teach Your Teen While Youre Stuck at Home. Always be appreciative.). 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. Homeschool Laws By State. Retrieved March 18, 2020, from https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSZhOdEPAWjUQpqDkVAlJrFwxxZ9Sa6zGOq0CNRms6Z7DZNq-tQWS3OhuVCUbh_-P-WmksHAzbsrk9d/pub, Khan Academy. Administrators need to be able to raise concerns when they see inactivity and absences, to agree or disagree with reasons behind them, and then for everyone to be able to constructively discuss options for solutions, and even test out different solutions (and yes, sometimes fail and try something else). Patrick Lencioni wrote a book called, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, which gives a simple, straightforward way to think about what is needed for teams to function well and to thrive. Given the current closure of public schools, many publishers are providing content online for free, as well. Connections Academy. (n.d.). Science and art took the most preparation because we conducted experiments and made a variety of art and craft projects, so we split these days, so that they were not back-to-to back, allowing for some planning and preparation time in between. For those that had more meetings than others, I allocated the time for the meetings first, and then figured out what schoolwork I could fit in. (n.d.). Weathering the Storm. 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!!! Its challenging to ensure everyone is on the same page during a normal school year, but even more challenging during a global pandemic. (n.d.2). 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). 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. 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.