SUDDENLY HOMESCHOOLING - A QUICK HELP GUIDE
Welcome. I know this is a crazy time and you are struggling to figure out "what now" in terms of everything in your life, including the fact your kids are now home with you every minute of the day. The goal of this page is to try and offer you some ideas and suggestions to make the most of this time together.
A WORD OF ADVICE
If you haven't read it yet, this is blog post is the best place to start. It offers ideas on how to use this time to add learning to your day and advice on how to handle this sudden thrust into learning at home.
FAQs
First, just breathe. It's going to be ok.
Second, you don't HAVE to do anything right now. You will not ruin your children if you don't consider adding school to your day right now.
Third, make everything you easy. Do not replicate school at home - it rarely works and will stress all of you out. If you have multiple kids, try to do some fun learning stuff together.
Follow the guidelines of KISS - KEEP IT SIMPLE SILLY.
If you really need a guideline for a daily schedule, there are plenty floating around social media. Honestly though, it's better to kind of go with the flow and have a general routine than one that runs on a clock.
For example, your day can run like:
Wake up and Breakfast, Learning time, Chores, Lunch, Outside time, Free time, Supper, Free time, Bed on whatever kind of flow works for you.
Do not plan to do school for several hours of the day. Keep learning times short and fun.
For learning ideas, see below.
Remember, it's all kids everywhere dealing with this same issue. No one will get farther ahead than anyone else right now.
Start with an area that your child might struggle with in the classroom, if you want to, but don't feel pressured to "do school" because they might fall behind. You can use this time to help bolster their learning and get ahead.
Do not spend money on major homeschool curriculum. There is a good possibility that the school system will provide *something* for their students if this situation will be long term, but they just haven't had the time to put that together yet.
Instead, focus more on life skills, beefing up areas of weakness, building relationships, and just spending time together.
Look below for some learning ideas.
You can find a fantastic list of amazing French Language resources for stories, podcasts, educational websites, news, fitness ideas, and other activities at Taleming.com.
Also check out ForFrenchImmersion for French Immersion resources.
Welcome to the world of prioritization.
This is an admittedly challenging task, figuring out what needs to happen when. Setting time for learning and time for working is a good way to help.
I have a blog post with some tips on how to work and homeschool that might help.
IF this goes on longer than expected and the school systems don't offer an interim solution, do not panic.
There are so many awesome resources out there that your children can learn from. It will be ok.
I will update this page as things progress.
FUN ACTIVITIES TO DO WITH YOUR KIDS
ADD LEARNING TO YOUR DAY
If you just want to add some learning to your day, here are some ways to do that:
PRESCHOOL
- ABCya (Numbers)
- Baking
- Use buttons / candy and do adding / subtracting
- Make a map of your house or your community.
- Watch episodes of "Are We There Yet? World Adventure."
- Go for nature walks and see what you can observe together.
- Do some hands on experiments.
- KinderArt
- Listen to some classical music and talk about what they hear, how it makes them feel, and what they see while they listen.
ELEMENTARY
- Read books and do a book report.
- Play Scrabble or Bananagrams.
- Write a daily journal, blog post, or email to a grandparent or friend.
- Pick a "word of the day." Learn how to spell it, the definition, part of speech, etc.
- Write a story: Planner from NaNoWriMo | My Story Planner
- KhanAcademy - lessons for Math from K-12
- ProdigyGame (this is a magic style RPG game)
- IXL.ca
- Take a trip around the world and learn about different countries. (Just do the activities you can from home.)
- Read some historical fiction and the research the event/period of history it was based on.
- Go on a trip across Canada.
- Do some MysteryScience activities.
- Watch The Magic School Bus (It's on Netflix!) and do some related activities.
- Do a lesson from ArtTango.com
- Play a game from the Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra.
- Listen to Classical Music and discuss what you hear.
MIDDLE SCHOOL
- Read books and do a Book Report
- Write a Story
- Do Daily Grammar activities
- Khan Academy or Courseware offer free math curriculum online.
- Do some Hands-On Canadian History activities.
- Read some historical fiction and research the event/period of history it is based on.
- Play GeoGuessr. Where in the world are you?
- Watch episodes of Science of Stupid. (This is like a combination of fail videos combined with the science of why it failed.)
- Watch CrashCourseKids science videos.
- Do some art technique lessons.
- Listen to Classical Music and discuss what you hear.
HIGH SCHOOL
- Do some Daily Grammar.
- Write a story. (Love creative writing? Watch this University Creative Fantasy/Sci-Fi Writing course by author Brendan Sanderson.)
- Take an English Composition Class through Coursera to improve your writing skills (when you make an account, you can audit this course for free.)
- Play Scrabble or Bananagrams.
- Khan Academy or Courseware offer free math curriculum online.
- Play GeoGuessr. Where in the world are you?
- Do a non-science Crash Course.
- Watch a movie and discuss.
- Listen to Podcasts in Class (from the CBC).
- Take a CrashCourse.
- Review lessons on whichever science class you are doing this year.
- Listen to Classical Music and discuss.
- Do some art history. Pick your favourite period of history and explore the art from that time.
- Create some art.
If you just want to add more intentional and focused learning to your day, here are some grade by grade resources to help you:
FREE ONLINE FUN CLASSES
ART
Kennedy Center Education
Artist-in-Residence at Home
1 pm Eastern
Grab some paper and pencils, pens, or crayons and join Mo to explore ways of writing and making together.
New episodes will be posted each weekday at 1:00 p.m. ET and then remain online to be streamed afterwards. Check back each weekday for new LUNCH DOODLES!
ASTRONOMY
From Discover The Universe
2 pm Eastern
We've decided to help all families isolated during the COVID-19 pandemic by offering free online astronomy mini-courses for kids aged 8-12.
Join us every weekday at 2 p.m. (EDT) for 30 minutes of educational fun. Various subjects will be covered and many collaborators will be presenting.
ANIMALS
Cincinnati Zoo
3 pm Eastern
While the Cincinnati Zoo is closed and kids are home from school, let us help make your children’s hiatus from school fun and educational.
Join us for a Home Safari Facebook Live each weekday at 3pm EDT where we will highlight one of our amazing animals and include an activity you can do from home.
FROM MY SITE
FREE PRINTABLES LIBRARY
For now, all the printables in my library are available to everyone without having to register. Find resources for history, geography, science, math, language, and more.
TAKE A VIRTUAL TRIP ACROSS CANADA
Take your kids on a tour of Canada – from Newfoundland to BC and through the three territories - all from the comfort of your home.