Parenting by itself is challenging, but as more parents start to work from home, more parents are working from home and homeschooling kids and toddlers at the same time.
Juggling working from home and homeschooling is a modern lifestyle choice that is particularly challenging for many families, but this need not be as hard as it may seem.
The key to successful homeschooling when both parents work is flexibility and an open mind, maintaining well-defined boundaries, and keeping the lines of communication open.
10 Ways to Juggle Work From Home and Homeschool Your Children at the Same Time
The best ways working parents can juggle working from home and homeschooling, is by having a daily schedule or timetable, joining a community, and adopting a flexible and open mindset.
When juggling work and homeschooling, it can be hard to find time to get things done and have a family life.
Here are some tips on how to make the most of your time to stay organized, maintain levels of productivity at work, and have fun at home while still being able to succeed as a home educator.
1. Be flexible with your workday
If you’re used to working outside the home and having your child go to school, you’re probably familiar with a rigid weekday schedule:
- School time, early morning from 7.30 am to late afternoon at 3.00 pm.
- Family time, late afternoon from 3.00 pm to bedtime.
But when you’re all working from home, your schedule may look quite different.
You’ll need to practice flexibility and develop plans and schedules that allow for working and family times that fall outside these traditional times of the day.
Your day-to-day schedule may vary, thus you’ll find juggling between working from home and homeschooling may require more than a flexible schedule but a flexible attitude as well.
2. Get organized and put a plan in place
Getting organized and staying that way starts with a plan that works for all members of the family, not just the children.
The best plan is one that you, your partner, your children, and your pets can agree on. It must reflect real-life situations and be a realistic representation of what is an ‘essential’ and what might have to be left off.
Most of all, the schedule must be:
- Realistic and achievable
- Easy to understand
- Flexible and have room for adjustments
Work from home and homeschool schedule
Here is an example schedule of how to homeschool your kids when both parents are working from home.
| Time | Schedule for kids | Schedule for parent (Dad or Mom) | Schedule for parent (Dad or Mom) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.00-8.00 | Asleep | 1-hour working | 1-hour working |
| 8.00-9.00 | Wake up, make the bed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, get dressed | Preparation for the day | Preparation for the day |
| 9.00-10.00 | Playtime outdoors if weather permits | 1-hour with the child | 1-hour working |
| 10.00-11.00 | Literacy: reading, practice writing | 1-hour working | 1-hour working |
| 11.00-12.00 | Art: music, visual art, cooking, or dancing | 1-hour working | 1-hour with the child |
| 12.00-12.30 | LUNCH TIME | LUNCH TIME | LUNCH TIME |
| 12.30-1.00 | Playtime | 0.5 hours with the child | Home Chores |
| 1.00-2.00 | Numeracy: maths, puzzles, electronic arithmetic games | 1-hour with the child | 1-hour working |
| 2.00-2.30 | Self-managed quiet time: nap, yoga, quiet reading, drawing | 1-hour working | 1-hour working |
| 2.30-3.30 | Online academic time: educational games and virtual museum tours | 1-hour working | 1-hour working |
| 3.30-4.00 | Self-managed tidy time: put all activities away, charge electronic equipment | 1-hour working | 0.5 hours working |
| 4.00-5.00 | Family time: walk, trip to the park, bike ride | 1 hour with the child | 1-hour working |
| 5.00-6.00 | DINNER TIME | DINNER TIME | DINNER TIME |
| 6.00-6.30 | Bath time | 0.5 hours with the child | 0.5 hours working |
| 6.30-8.00 | Free time: television, online, and family activities | Mixed duties working/ spending time with the child | Mixed duties working/ spending time with the child |
| 8.00-9.00 | Ready for bed: brush teeth, put on pajamas, reading | 1-hour working | 1 hour with the child |
| 9.00-11.00 | Asleep | Work or relax as needed | Work or relax as needed |
You will find that whatever schedule you develop, you will need to tweak it as you go.
3. Know yourself
Studies from the Department of Psychology at Stockholm University have found that people can be broadly categorized as either ‘work-life integrators’ or ‘work-life segmentors’.
- Integrators. Work-life integrators prefer to combine their personal and working spheres. For example, they will check their email out of work hours and make a doctor’s appointment during a break at their desk.
- Segmentors. Work-life segmentors prefer to keep their working and personal lives completely separate. For example, they will only check their work email during working hours, and do personal calls or book an appointment only after working hours
As individuals, we will probably fall somewhere between these two extremes. But it’s important to take a step back and find out where you might sit and why.
This will help you to develop your working from home and homeschooling schedule that will work best for you.
4. Embrace imperfection
Allowing yourself to be anything less than perfect can be very hard for some of us. But the pursuit of an unattainable level of perfection will add anxiety, stress, and pressure to our daily lives.
Embracing imperfection means:
- Using mistakes to learn to improve how you do things
- Not berating yourself or your children if you don’t achieve your daily goals
- Having the freedom to choose which goals are the most important for you and your family to achieve. It might not be your work KPIs but rather a happy child and stress-free family dynamic
- Enjoying your present even though you are still working towards achieving your goals
- Recognize your achievements and those of your family.
5. Have your own workspaces
Research in the field of human resource management has shown that it is important for people who work from home to have a clearly-defined space where they can work. For some, this can be a dedicated office. But for others without that option, it can be a desk or other nook around the house.
Just make sure it’s not in the bedroom, as studies have also shown that this will have negative effects on productivity and maintaining boundaries between work and non-work time.
If you are looking to create your own workspace for productivity, check out these 2 articles,
It’s about controlling your space to decide how and where you conduct your work and creating the ambiance that works for you.
The same is true for your child. If they are happy and comfortable, they are more likely to complete their tasks. However, they may need different types of workspaces or activity spaces depending on the type of things they are doing.
Here are some options:
- Set up a desk for their literacy and math tasks
- Have a comfortable nook or spot on the floor (a beanbag or rug is a great option) where they can practice their reading
- Let them get creative on the kitchen or dining table
- Allow time outside or in the local park for them to get active.
6. Cut everyone some slack
Being together for most of the day will be a new concept and may take some getting used to. It’s important to recognize that the situation is likely to cause tension in some form or another.
You can try:
- Having weekly meetings to discuss any issues
- Letting people know when you cannot participate in non-work activities (for example meetings with clients) and when you are more flexible
- Being open to changing your schedule based on feedback from other members of the family
- Talk to your colleagues or manager to work through some issues you might be having. They may be happy to create more flexible working arrangements.
7. Embrace your child’s independence
Working from home and homeschooling is the perfect time to enhance your child’s independence.
Here are some tasks that children, even youngsters, can achieve that will not only free up your time but help them learn valuable life skills:
- Let them make their own breakfast and lunch, and help with dinner. Make it easy on yourself with easy-to-manage foods that they can help themselves to.
- Set up routines so that the children can handle basic chores like replacing the toilet paper, sharpening their pencils, putting their rubbish in the bin, and feeding the family pet.
- Assign household chores to each member of the family according to their needs.
- Have everything the child might need easy at hand, for example, stationery supplies, a charged electronic device, and craft items.
8. Welcome surprises, the good and the bad
It’s important to take regular breaks and to check on your child’s progress, even if you have a partner to help you.
There will be interruptions, new deadlines, dodgy wifi, and home emergencies. Try to take them in your stride, breathe deeply and do the best you can.
Some days will be better than others, and there are many online resources to help you stay in the moment, mindful, and relaxed.
9. Be part of the community
The old saying ‘work smarter, not harder’ is a great frame of mind for when you work from home and homeschool your children. Gather as many resources as you can and make them work for you.
For example, why not hire a university student to tutor your child for a few hours each week? They can be virtual or in-person and can actively teach or simply babysit as needed.
Another option is to share the load with the help of your child’s classmates and their parents. A great idea is to organize a rotating roster of online activities such as art classes and physical education that other parents can run.
10. Don’t forget yourself
No one will benefit if you are not coping, so set aside time for yourself to relax and unwind. Give yourself some “me time” so you can recharge your body and relax your mind.
No one is perfect, be patient with yourself, as well as your family, friends, and colleagues.
What are the benefits of working from home and homeschooling?
For working parents, getting the balance right between working from home without losing productivity and providing your children with proper homeschooling is one of the most important ways to have a successful family life because:
- It can bring your family closer together
- Your family can learn from each other
- You have a greater understanding of what your child is learning
- You will know more about your child’s learning style and be better able to help them throughout their learning journey
- Both parents have the chance to share in their child’s learning.
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