The state regulations say that families MAY submit a Notice of Intent to homeschool and participate in portfolio reviews. What we sometimes forget, though, is that our kids are, as well. (2020). Khan Academy Schedules for School Closures. (This is the option rated as highest risk by the CDC) (CDC, 2020). Our children need to be able to disagree and question things when concepts or instructions arent clear to them. There are many options for finding safe content online for kids. Its important to have an honest conversation with your family and make the decision that is best for you, and to communicate that through these surveys. Some subjects that lend themselves to video lessons are art, music, history, and even physical education, for example. Retrieved March 19, 2020, from https://www.headspace.com/covid-19, Khan Academy (2020). Accountability is the forth level in the pyramid identified by Lencioni, and aligns closely with constructive conflict and commitment. Being completely clear on goals, roles, and contributions can promote commitment and team cohesion. Homeschool Organizations. 2) Identify the subjects you would like to teach each of the children. While you are working on a schedule more customized to you, your kids and your work schedule, two companies, Khan Academy and Scholastic, have recently provided lesson plans and activities free for children who are now staying home due to school closings. Below, I will provide a few options and considerations for finding content for your children that is age-appropriate and safe for them, as well as being safe for you and your computer. Enjoy! Common Core Resources: Textbook & Publisher Resources. Ultimately, only you can decide what is best for you and your children. that you will be bound by?
In all honesty, because we got sick of answering the question of Can we watch? questions, we came up with a specific rule to guide their choices. The first consideration is the age levels you are teaching.
(n.d.). This is not true, legally.
This is a great time to have the conversation with your manager about the priorities of the work currently assigned to you, the hours they expect, or require, you to be available, and where flexibility does (and does not) exist in your schedule, workload and work-related responsibilities.
5) Choose activities to start your day off on a calm and positive note. 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. Almost three years later, I can tell you that it was the right choice for both of them, without a doubt. 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). (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.). Administrators have never run schools, districts or boards of education during a global pandemic. The public school administrators where we are were extremely helpful in working with us to determine the best placement. Making sure others respect your time is actually easier than it might seem at first. For gratitude, an easy option to start your day would be to talk about three good or positive things. Why not act like the dedicated school time is just another meeting? What Are the Non-Core Subjects?. (2020). Retrieved April 19, 2020, from https://www.focusonthefamily.com/parenting/age-appropriate-chores/, Grown and Flown. Digital Compass. When I started homeschooling and working from home, we had one preschooler and one toddler. This is when choosing distance learning through the school, working with the school on curriculum or even taking advantage of optional portfolio reviews, or employing a certified teacher in a pandemic pod could work out better than doing what we did with creating a custom curriculum. Scholastic Learn at Home.
You can ask the school about options for continuing distance learning (if they dont already include that as an option in their fall plans). (2020). Yours will too. The one thing that all of those spaces had in common was a dedicated space to store all of our supplies and work. ), So, with this conflicting guidance and information, what should you do? I was in the same situation as many of you, having to figure out what to do to keep the toddler busy while working with the preschooler. As you wrap up the day, after allowing your kids to play and relax for the first day, take three deep breaths and smile, knowing that you completed some planning and organizing, and that you are on your way. Its important that parents, educators and administrators clearly define what the goals are and monitor progress toward those goals. Focusonthefamily.com. 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. 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. Retrieved March 19, 2020, from https://hellobestow.com/blog/gratitude-games/, Headspace. It is important to remember this. 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.
Schedules created and posted in a common location provide clarity to everyone involved and help the parents avoid questions like what are we doing today? and what subjects are we working on today? There are many free printable planners and schedules available online. Common Sense Media provides two different options for digital citizenship education.
(Also, in Connecticut, if your children were never enrolled in a public or private school, no notice of any kind needs to be filed. Mens https://medium.com/taskworld-blog/lencionis-5-dysfunctions-of-a-team-330d58b2cd81. Tee, Mens Retrieved June 24, 2020, from https://www.k12.com/. (n.d.). (Note that we do still have the requirement that they add us on all social media accounts so that we can monitor their activities there if we choose to do so.) Coronavirus (COVID-19). You can research options for full-time online schooling, which some states offer for free (Digital Learning Collaborative, 2018). Here are a few suggestions of where we might start: 1) Develop (and ensure everyone knows and understands) clearly defined goals. 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. Remote Learning with Khan Academy During School Closures. 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. SheKnows.com.
(This is a big deciding factor that can save or cost you a lot of time and stress.
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). One is that everyone (or nearly everyone) you work with is in the same boat right now, so they understand the need to balance, and you shouldnt be shy about sharing what you are trying to accomplish. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/about-us/our-mission/about-our-ratings, Common Sense Media. But, there is also so much that is fully within our control. On a sports team, each team member (player, coach, manager) has to understand their role in the teams success to be committed to being the best in that role that they possibly can, thus maximizing their contribution to the team and the teams progress toward that goal. 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. 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. 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. Uncertainty and lack of direction and why can cause unnecessary stress and a lack of commitment. There are so many options available to teach every subject, and many are free. 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. You dont have to wait until plans for the fall are released to figure out what you are comfortable (and not comfortable) with. Then, your stress levels went through the roof when it didnt all go smoothly with calm, quiet kids and dedicated focus for you. Retrieved March 16, 2020, from, Zao-Sanders, Marc. 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.
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. The truth is that our kids (or any of us, for that matter) have never learned or gone to school (in person, hybrid or online) during a global pandemic. Others split them into pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten, grades 1-2, grades 3-5 and grades 6+. 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. (n.d.2). (n.d.).
(n.d.). Connections Academy. (The first is required if choosing homeschooling and not purchasing a pre-packaged curriculum or enrolling your children in a full-time online school. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/resources-for-families-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic, Earthcam. 3) Identify the delivery mode you want to use for each subject and each child. (n.d.). While you are determining how much time you want to dedicate to your work, also consider if there are specific days or times of day that you have regularly scheduled meetings, deadlines for regular work, or other time-specific restrictions. Parents need to be able to bring concerns to educators and administrators when things arent working for them and their children. (2020). Educators need to be able to express concerns to parents and administrators when things arent working for them, their class, or even particular students. 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. The second consideration is the subjects you wish to teach.
(n.d.). 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. The state, on the other hand, wants to have as much control and oversight as possible, in many cases. (Note that this is an unpopular opinion and not promoted or frequently supported in the traditional, long-term homeschooling community, though, so questions about this option in these traditional groups or distribution lists may not be met with the most positive reactions.) (Remember: If you dont know where you are going, any road will get you there. Either way, you will need to allocate time for schooling for your children and for your work. (2018). Grownandflown.com. (Many states do not allow homeschoolers to participate in activities at the public school, but some states do. Stay home and stay safe.
), 4) If you choose homeschooling instead of distance learning, are you fully informed of any reporting requirements, regulations, etc. 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. If this was or is you, trust me, you are not alone.
Are you comfortable sending your children to school in the fall if they are physically opened for attendance? 4) *BONUS* You can also take an inventory of what you have for school supplies (paper, pencils, pens, markers, crayons, glue, scizzors, stapler, tape, whole punch, etc.). (n.d.). 2) Develop open lines of communication between parents, educators and administrators. 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. Retrieved June 24, 2020, from https://hslda.org/content/orgs/, K12.com. Graphic (n.d.). If yours has not done so, or you would like to supplement the work provided to your kids, there are many approaches to doing so.
The standard subjects tend to include math, language arts, science, history or social studies, art, technology, health, physical education, and music. 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. For example, one was created by E. Gilliam, and is accessible here: https://www.conferencecallbingo.net/blog with the printable version accessible directly here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/xbwyrg21rbg79fj/conferencecallbingo.pdf?dl=0. Considerations for Schools. We have never parented (or helped our kids with remote learning) during a global pandemic. 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. I present to you the conference call activity challenge for today (03/17/2020): Conference Call Bingo (with your kiddos)! However, we can control our reaction to it by staying safe, keeping our family safe, and following the Center for Disease Control (CDC) (2020) guidelines posted here: In my experience homeschooling and working full time (from various locations and time zones), the biggest lesson I learned was that I needed to be organized, but also flexible. Its challenging to ensure everyone is on the same page during a normal school year, but even more challenging during a global pandemic. 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? Harvard Business Review. Attention to results is the top and smallest portion of the pyramid. The second option is for grades 6-8, called Digital Compass, which is accessible here: https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-compass. 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. Tee. See below for our experience transitioning our kids from homeschooling to public school and considerations/lessons-learned that you might find helpful. (n.d.). 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. 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. Big Note that this option and how it is implemented differs greatly per state. Graphic ), As you think through the answers to these questions and others, I would like to share about our personal experience with the transition from homeschool to public school in Connecticut only a few years ago. Resources for Families During the Coronavirus Pandemic.
You are visiting Psycho Bunny from {{CN}}. In the middle of the fall, we collectively decided that it was time for the girls to attend public school. (n.d.). State Virtual Schools. (2020). An example of this is a new kindergartener starting homeschool in the first year of school eligibility. Some of the common misconceptions include: Lets attempt to address these one by one. 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. If your student is overloaded with work, have them work with their teachers and administrators to request extensions or accommodations where needed. How might it impact their learning? Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/kid-safe-browsers-and-search-sites, Common Sense Media. For other jobs, like when I administered analytics servers, I had more flexibility to design my work day around the desired school schedule. Retrieved April 19, 2020, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/game-reviews, Focus on the Family. Many state and local education-related publications have language that indicates that the notice of intent to homeschool and the portfolio reviews are required. (n.d.).
(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.). (Dont forget to include what you used to keep your fort together tape, staples, clothes pins, etc. 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. On top of a foundation of trust is constructive conflict. ), 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.
(2020). Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://nu.libguides.com/CommonCore/ccss_publishers. 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)? 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. 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. 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. 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. So, how do we, as a team of parents, educators, and administrators, work together as a high performing team and not fall into the 5 dysfunctions of a team identified by Lencioni? 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. Making it clear that it was a big kid privilege to sit at the table with us to work on schoolwork was also helpful in motivating (relatively) quiet focus. You will need to determine what is best for you and your children. Are you comfortable sending your children to school in the fall, as long as CDC guidelines for schools are followed (CDC, 2020)? These are legally optional.
Common Sense Media, for example, provides a list of Kid-Safe Browsers and Search Sides, accessible here: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/kid-safe-browsers-and-search-sites. Without clearly defined roles and goals, it is difficult to hold team members accountable for their contributions to the team and to the teams success. Retrieved March 25, 2020, from https://www.earthcam.com/events/animalcams/, National University Library. The fourth consideration is the schedule of the subjects you have selected to teach. With everyone rushing around trying to figure out what they are going to do for the fall, it is important to also pause, step back, and consider how the plans you make for the fall fit into your future educational plans. If you decide you are not comfortable sending your child to their current school in the fall, what options do you have? 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. Retrieved April 19, 2020, from https://welltrainedmind.com/a/what-are-the-non-core-subjects/?v=7516fd43adaa, Common Sense Media (n.d.). AnimalCams. The last thing we need is to waste time searching for books, pencils, paper and other supplies while we are trying to work and homeschool. In my personal opinion, consistency in accountability, especially for online learners, is fundamental to their success, I believe, but it takes everyone involved being on the same page to maintain an appropriate level of accountability. 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. (n.d.). Commitment is built on a foundation of trust and 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.
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