Tips For Homeschooling During Coronavirus

If you’re one of the tens of millions of parents who are now essentially homeschooling your kids, we have some tips to help you keep your kids engaged and everyone sane.

Know your kid.

Different kids will do best in different learning environments. If your child learns better in groups, try a Zoom study session with a fellow classmate. The older kids are, the longer they may be able to work on their own. And remember, resources are going to become available slowly for students who need them — you may not have to do this all by yourself.

This is a good time for passion projects.

Ana Homayoun, an educational coach for students in the Bay Area, says this is a good time for kids to pursue interests they haven’t had time to focus on in the past. It could be cooking, building in Minecraft, or drawing. Bonus: If it’s something they’re truly interested in, you won’t have to bug them to do it.

Free online resources are amazing but just the beginning.

Free online educational resources don’t equal free education. Don’t get bogged down by the flood of downloadable PDFs and lesson plans available online. If you’re working from home yourself, they can be especially overwhelming.

Instead, find a couple of resources that work and build from there.

Set up designated space and time for learning.

Kids may need to move around during the day, but Homayoun suggests having one or two designated areas for learning. Have your kids pack up their materials into a basket so they can put them aside when they’re finished.

Same goes for time. While it’s good to have a general daily routine, you can also be flexible. And don’t forget to get outside — learning happens outdoors too.

Be forgiving of yourself and your kid.

This is a very stressful time. If you need to put on a movie to get through the day, that’s absolutely fine. Homayoun says, “You don’t have to home school if it’s really going to cause severe emotional distress for everyone involved.

Excerpted from “Tips For Homeschooling During Coronavirus,” an article adapted from an NPR Life Kit podcast. You can read the full article online. Listen to this podcast episode, hosted by Anya Kamenetz and Cory Turner:

And here is a comic version of these homeschooling tips!

Source: NPR | Tips For Homeschooling During Coronavirus, https://www.npr.org/2020/03/23/820228206/6-tips-for-homeschooling-during-coronavirus | © 2020 npr

---

Do you need someone to talk to? CHC can help.  We invite you to call or email our Care Coordinators at 650.688.3625 or careteam@chconline.org to set up a free 30-minute consultation.