Keeping a schedule is a must if you want to keep your sanity and the family organized. However, there is nothing routine about the current coronavirus outbreak. According to Education Week, at least 69,000 schools across the U.S. have been closed or scheduled to be closed soon. Social distancing measures are being encouraged by health care professionals, which means a lot likely the whole family will be at home now.
Everyone being home means extra challenges to balance the demands of work, school, and home life while the coronavirus continues to remain a concern. Keeping a regular schedule is important, especially a learning schedule for all your kids while schools are closed. We all know that we cannot fit in a 40-hour work week before the kids are up or asleep too.
You need to create a schedule that works for your family! Keeping everyone mentally engaged with their academics and happy while staying in the home together is important. As well, creating a routine that is consistent every day will help reduce worries and create a sense of normalcy for everyone.
Find out how to Create a Daily Home Schedule While Kids Are Home During Coronavirus School Closures!
Creating a Schedule That Works for All of You
Creating a schedule that works for all of you while the kids are home during the school closures is important. You can set to a strict schedule that would replicate a normal school day for your kids during the weekdays. This is a great idea if you and your partner are working from home.
Estimating Your Working Hours
In order to build a daily schedule that actually works with kids at home you need to estimate your own work hours. Figure out with your team or yourself what your top priorities are going to be. You might have deadlines to meet, so remember that prioritization will be the key.
If your partner is working from home too, it’s always great to talk to each other. One of you can be on a working shift while the other is on parent duty. Talk to each other about what you need to get done for work and come up with a plan that works for the both of you and your work prioritizes to get completed.
Tip: Look at your work at the beginning of each week and see how many hours you’ll need to work each day.
Don’t Forget the Chores
While everyone is at home, it’s important to not forget the chores. Assigning chores for everyone to do every day is a great way to keep a routine going. It also makes members of the family feel important and part of the family during the outbreak.
Set School Hours
Schedule a time each day where can expect your child to learn independently. While it might be hard at first since it isn’t a normal school day, with a consistent and set schedule the kids will adapt. The best time their energy levels are high and their brains fully awake is in the morning time.
Keep Recess Going
Being cooped up in the house all day can really be hard, especially if you have younger kids who get recess at school twice a day. Schedule sometime to go outside once a day or more. You can go on a walk, ride a bike, or another fun activity so long as you keep social distancing parameters in mind.
Set a Screen Time
It’s easy to allow the kids to have endless amount of screen time while they are home from school, but screen time should be given as a reward at the end of their school day. Allow your kids to use screens only for educational time during the day or set hours.
Sticking and Building Your Schedule
Sticking to a schedule will help create a routine that is stress free but also productive for you as well while the kids are at home. There are many things to consider when creating a schedule, but not everyone’s schedule is going to be the same as yours and work well with your family too.
There are some key items to consider when building your schedule. Try creating a schedule with some of these:
- Family time
- Independent learning
- Learning together
- Meal and snacks
- Outdoor time
- Screen time
- Chore time
- Quiet Time
I made a schedule example with some of these key items above to give you an idea. When you create your own you can share it with your family. Everyone will then know what to expect each day. Having a consistent schedule is helpful and really gives everyone a sense of normalcy during the outbreak.
Remember you can always make changes to your schedule. Assess what your family’s needs are. If it’s more free time for yourself, adding quiet time to your morning, or spending more time with the family make those adjustments.
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