As homeschoolers, they worked at their own pace in different subjects, which was great for their education and learning, but made the transition to an age-based grade-level determination a challenging one. Common Sense Media provides two different options for digital citizenship education. They already do for other meetings and for lunch, right? 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. When you get stressed or overwhelmed, just remember that surviving is all you and your family need to do right now, and the rest will all work out eventually. 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. The rule for our girls was that they had to look at all movies, games, and apps up on Common Sense Media and bring them to us prior to asking the question of whether they could play, watch or download something. No year, and no day, to be honest, looked the same for us, even when I tried to plan it to be the same, and my kids turned out just fine.
Calvill Khan Academy Schedules for School Closures. This can be important if you are deciding between temporarily homeschooling your children and opting into distance learning (especially in middle school or high school grades). Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/kid-safe-browsers-and-search-sites, Common Sense Media. In these times, I found educational videos that could fill the spaces, where my children could still be learning, but I was able to focus on the meetings and my work. 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. PEKABET Focusonthefamily.com. Its important that parents, educators and administrators clearly define what the goals are and monitor progress toward those goals. Etsy is powered by 100% renewable electricity. The state regulations say that families MAY submit a Notice of Intent to homeschool and participate in portfolio reviews. 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. 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. Retrieved March 19, 2020, from https://hellobestow.com/blog/gratitude-games/, Headspace. 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)? 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. AvidonDesign Others may be planning their own lessons and activities. 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. Will you and your children be ok with this or able to handle any repetition or boredom by supplementing with other activities?
(Various factors played into our decision, but one major factor for us was for the girls to have the option to participate in sports, clubs and other activities, and we were living in a location where they were districted into good schools.). From shop CortenStore, $85.35 Why not act like the dedicated school time is just another meeting? The seller might still be able to personalize your item. 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. (n.d.). Decorating Amazon boxes and used soup cans make great arts and craft projects and excellent organizers! Ad from shop LostRiverFab There are many options for finding safe content online for kids. Or, are you not comfortable sending your children to school at all until there is a vaccine, for example? We noticed you are visiting from Canada. Are you comfortable sending your children to school in the fall if they are physically opened for attendance? Under Add your personalization, the text box will tell you what the seller needs to know. You will need to decide, based on your family values and rules about electronics and screen time, your work schedule and flexibility, ages of your children, and learning preferences and styles, what modes are best for you for each student and each subject. The options are so abundant that it can often be overwhelming, especially for those new to educating their children at home. How might this impact your childs motivation to do their schoolwork? 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. Ad from shop DLMetalDesigns At this point, state and local boards of education are doing the best they can with the little information they have to plan for something none of us have ever had to deal with before. What is Montessori Education? There are many misconceptions about homeschooling, in general, but especially with working and homeschooling. There are actually more options than you would think, and you are your and your childrens best advocate. that you will be bound by? From shop MercuryMetalDesign, $47.18 Good news! 3) Identify the delivery mode you want to use for each subject and each child. 
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. Best of luck with this years educational adventures. BlackBearMetalWerks 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. 
These options are completed at a time and location of your convenience and have assigned teachers for all classes, as well as providing official transcripts and grades, just like on-ground/in-person school options. (Also, in Connecticut, if your children were never enrolled in a public or private school, no notice of any kind needs to be filed. at the schools themselves, but something to be aware of when asking them for assistance of any kind. Retrieved March 18, 2020, from https://www.khanacademy.org/about/blog/post/611770255064350720/remote-learning-with-khan-academy-during-school, Scholastic. 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). Best Kids Yoga Videos on YouTube. All Pedestal planters are insulated with Styrofoam to help ensure that plants stay healthy in both hot and cold extremes. 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). From shop RailAndOak, $600.00 Literally blocking it off on your calendar and communicating your schedule with your bosses and colleagues will make sure you are all on the same page and that everyone will respect that time. Retrieved June 24, 2020, from https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/schools.html, Connectiond Academy. 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. Cortenfan (This is in no way intended to imply that they wont help you, since we have always experienced the exact opposite, especially when in direct contact with teachers, administrators, etc. From shop PacificLaserArts, Sale Price $197.11
More details about the rating systems used for the Common Sense Media ratings can be found here: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/about-us/our-mission/about-our-ratings. We cannot control what this pandemic has become or is about to become or the ripple effects it may cause. From shop MKDesignElements, $390.00 (n.d.). (2018). Ad from shop MatrixOutdoor If you are teaching one child, you can skip this section. Learn more. (n.d.). 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. Accountability involves all levels, including our children consistently being held responsible for their work. It is nice to have a separate table, countertop, or other area that you could leave your work out on all the time, but in most cases, this is not an option. United States | English (US) | $ (USD). 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. (This is the option rated as highest risk by the CDC) (CDC, 2020). Yes, movies sometimes work, but how about something possibly more fun (for you and for them)? Retrieved April 19, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/game-reviews, Focus on the Family. 2) Block off the appropriate time for schoolwork on your work calendar and communicate these expectations to your manager and coworkers. Ad from shop Extrahome FREE shipping, ad by TechniqueDesigns Ad from shop RailAndOak ), 2) Do you (and your student) want the ability or option to participate in after school activities? Age-Appropriate Chores. 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. ), So, with this conflicting guidance and information, what should you do? These can be accessed here: https://www.headspace.com/covid-19. FREE shipping, ad by DLMetalDesigns 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. As parents, educators, and administrators, (and our children) we are all part of a team with a common goal of ensuring that our children are safe, cared for, and that their learning is promoted and supported in all ways possible. Ad from shop Steelworkx If this was or is you, trust me, you are not alone. KEY POINT: You do not have to replicate your full workday and the full school day, so give yourself a break and get rid of that expectation right away. It will make your planning much easier and less stressful if you acknowledge right now that you are one person and cannot be an effective fulltime teacher for 8 hours and full time worker for 8 hours, nor do you need to be. FREE shipping, $425.00 FREE shipping, ad by ExcellentFabLtd As of now, you at least have an idea of how much time you want to allocate to work and to homeschooling and have identified an area where you can store and organize schoolwork and related supplies. Ad from shop MKDesignElements (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.). 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. 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. From shop OutdoorPrivacyScreen, ad by AvidonDesign Ad from shop materialKing Calling it schoolwork for the toddler made her feel like she was getting to do something cool that her big sister was doing, while really just doing what she would have been anyway. 3) Clear out, setup and organize your dedicated storage area for your schoolwork and related supplies. Think about other ways that you can work to promote trust, constructive conflict, commitment, accountability, and attention to results as part of your students learning team and pick one item to focus on at a time. In fact, they have created a launch page for the current times, accessible here: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/resources-for-families-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic, Common Sense Media. Resources for Families During the Coronavirus Pandemic. From shop WORTHGARDEN, Sale Price $71.99 schoolwork has to follow the school day/week schedule, the schoolwork has to only include academic subjects, the kids have to be working on academic work the entire time, socialization is an afterthought when homeschooling, the kids are responsible for schoolwork and parents need to continue all of the housework. Educators have never taught during a global pandemic, much less taught remotely or taught some students remotely and some in person at the same time. Many other options exist, just be sure that you are accessing them through sites that you trust. Ad from shop AvidonDesign See below for our experience transitioning our kids from homeschooling to public school and considerations/lessons-learned that you might find helpful. AnimalCams. On top of a foundation of trust is constructive conflict. Marc Zao-Sanders (2018) wrote an informative article on TimeBoxing, accessible here: Organizing your space is another aspect of your current situation that you have total control over. FREE shipping, $540.00 Organizing any extra items needed (for science experiments, for example) over the weekend for the entire week will also help make your work/homeschool days flow much smoother. Are you comfortable sending your children to school in the fall, as long as CDC guidelines for schools are followed (CDC, 2020)? 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. You've already signed up for some newsletters, but you haven't confirmed your address. ExcellentFabLtd Headspace, a mindfulness and meditation app, is providing a series of their meditations for free in the midst of the current situation. Its also home to a whole host of one-of-a-kind items made with love and extraordinary care. ), 4) If you choose homeschooling instead of distance learning, are you fully informed of any reporting requirements, regulations, etc. From shop TechniqueDesigns, $421.00 In my previous post, I noted that some schools and some districts are providing work for their students, which is great! Having a dedicated space will allow you to put everything away in a neat and orderly fashion after every day, so that it is available and easy to access the following day. From shop LostRiverFab, $139.00 FREE shipping, $250.00 Ad from shop AmericanAftermarkets A template for this can be found on many of the CT homeschooling group websites or Facebook pages. An example of this is a new kindergartener starting homeschool in the first year of school eligibility. Etsy uses cookies and similar technologies to give you a better experience, enabling things like: Detailed information can be found in Etsys Cookies & Similar Technologies Policy and our Privacy Policy. While many of the items on Etsy are handmade, youll also find craft supplies, digital items, and more. The activities in the basket could be anything from printed mazes, cut and paste activities, manipulative for counting, coloring books, etc. From shop AmericanAftermarkets, $105.00 Current Homeschool Laws. Retrieved March 18, 2020, from https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSZhOdEPAWjUQpqDkVAlJrFwxxZ9Sa6zGOq0CNRms6Z7DZNq-tQWS3OhuVCUbh_-P-WmksHAzbsrk9d/pub, Khan Academy. Awake and Mindful. Greater Good Magazine. We've sent you an email to confirm your subscription. There are so many options available to teach every subject, and many are free. ), Have your parent/guardian take a picture of your fort, with the list of equipment used and post it to Twitter using the hashtag #fortchallenge and tag @HomeschoolWork. From shop PEKABET, $328.99 In work environments, especially when working on projects, everyone has clearly defined roles and responsibilities which are laid out on a project plan. 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? (2020). Ad from shop OutdoorPrivacyScreen FREE shipping, $365.00 4) Ensure that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined and identify how each will be held accountable and how opportunities for improvements will be identified, evaluated, and implemented. (2020). Given the current closure of public schools, many publishers are providing content online for free, as well.