Suddenly Homeschooling

March 29, 2020

VIDEO CHAT THIS SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 5pm ET.
How did the week go with schoolwork? What more do you need.?

Last week we had to fit a lot into 40 minutes, so this week I have opened up more time on Zoom so we can have an extended conversation. Email me if you’d like to attend: mfoster110@gmail.com.

March 23, 2020

We just finished our Sunday evening chat. Here’s a summary, if it’s useful…pass it on : )

Big Picture:

  1. Reading, writing, math, interest areas, using a planner
  2. Try to find a balance between school requirements and authentic learning
  3. Teacher communication is problematic right now, we’ll have to muddle through…but not a good chance that schools will be strident about outcomes.
  4. Courses like AP’s can be done online, and if the young adult wants to pursue those, I would advocate for their credit after the fact. There are no guarantees, but it seems reasonable. College Board has recommended AP online courses you can use.
  5. For younger readers, if the school has not put together a plan for their ongoing programs, use Great Leaps along with personal choice reading––it’s all some students really need.

Calendars and Schedules: Use them!

  1. Review a family calendar on Sundays
  2. Each family member should have their own planner to make their school/work/chore plans for the week
  3. Homeschoolers can spend 50% or less of their time on schoolwork than in-school students, making the same academic progress.
  4. Remember to schedule in time outdoors…20 minutes refreshes attentional systems.
  5. Allow late wake-up times for some and help them discover their optimal energy times during the day.

Stress

  1. Change is stressful, and transitions are the most stressful! And that means reduced executive functioning skills. Find a balance between your child’s current abilities and the school’s expectation
  2. There are two kinds of stress…and we should talk with our children about those. Good stress gets us ready to work (think race time), bad stress keeps us from work. Monitor these for yourselves and your children.
  3. Exercise to reduce/manage stress. Let each child find their own best version.

Socializing

  1. Children and young adults are missing their highly social school lives right now. Find ways to connect them online/phone for school projects and/or social time. We adults need our social connections to stay healthy as well. I will be having Sunday Dinner with my adult sons in California for the first time tonight!

Stay healthy and count blessings––we’re all in this together : )

Best!
Margaret

 

March 20, 2020

There’s lots of advice out there right now about schoolwork at home, length of time off school etc…etc.  If you’ve found good direction from your school, onsite group, or whatever…congratulations, go with it! If you’d like some help tailoring all that info to fit your own life, perhaps my Big Picture below will help.

Please feel free to write to me with questions or suggestions for topics and I will be sure to respond…perhaps even offering some video meets for folks with similar issues.

VIDEO CHAT FOR YOUR “BURNING QUESTIONS” THIS SUNDAY, MARCH 22, 2020. See Chats, Workshops and Presentations tab above for details.

In any event, I am here for questions, or more formal consults as needed. Email me––I’m here to help!

Big picture for education right now…it’s about learning.

While schedules and materials are good, for some this is problematic. Baseline, as someone who has been in education and special education for (yikes) 40 years: read, write, do some math, find an interest area to learn more about (science or history or art or music).

1. Read. Every day. 20 minutes or so for most. For those with reading problems, consider Great Leaps Digital if you want to improve reading, or you can listen to audiobooks instead. Or you can watch a good series on TV. Read your friends’ stories, or edit your own. You will still learn about far away places, people other than yourself and how stories flow.

2. Write. Stories, letters, notes to folks who could use some cheering up. And yes, texting is writing. And for those with writing disabilities, practice speech-texting to help with all subjects now and in school.

3. Math. None of us knows how this school year will finish up, but math is a cumulative subject that takes practice. Use Kahn Academy, computer math games, “kitchen math”…it doesn’t matter. A little bit of practice and a couple of new things should do it.

4. Interest areas. Go for it! Find a topic, explore it, talk about it…whatever!

5. Use a planner or journal to sort out the chaos, keep track, and keep you school-ready. Sit down once a week, scratch your chin and ask yourself how that went. Even highly experience teachers know that it take 2-4 weeks for schedules to come together.

6. Routines are good…when they fit the family and individual. They dispel the unknown a bit and help us get things done. Flexibility is good as well––especially when stressed. Stress is the enemy of learning so work on finding your own balance.

Good luck! Good things will come of this even though we are all struggling now.

Count blessings and carry on : )

Margaret Foster

mfoster110@gmail.com

Leave a comment