MERIDIAN, Idaho — Parents across the country are trying to figure out just how to juggle working from home while also homeschooling their kids. That’s the new normal for the forseeable future. The sudden transition and extra responsibility can affect parents’ stress or anxiety, but it doesn’t have too.
Gloria Miller is a mom who works full-time from home. Her husband, a first responder, works during the day. So, it’s up to Gloria to home school her two young daughters. But over the past two weeks, Gloria has found ways to make the transition as easy and stress-free as can be.
“Finding that delicate balance” is something Gloria Miller encourages any parent to do. For her, she’s seen the benefits of having a schedule to organize the family but flexibility to keep everyone functioning. Miller tells 6 On Your Side, “we’ve set a schedule where you know it’s reading, math, workbooks, but there’s a lot of wiggle room.”
To keep her girls engaged and entertained while working herself, Gloria, with help from her mother, an elementary school teacher, started setting up online activities like virtual field trips to the zoo, story-time with actors like Josh Gad and doodle time.
Other activities with some educational pull include decorating cupcakes (home economics), jumping on the trampoline (physical education), sing-along to Disney songs (performing arts).
Whatever you choose to do or implement with your kids, Gloria offers this reminder, “do what works best for you, and you know if one day you don’t get around to it, that’s okay. Give yourself some grace.”
Educational Links:
- Draw and Paint Along
- Free access for audible for kids [r.audible.com]
- Pre-K-3 – Storytime Online [storylineonline.net] – stories read by actors, a collection of links and viewable on Vimeo, Youtube or Schooltube
- International Children’s Library [storylineonline.net]ABCya [abcya.com] – free access to games and activities
- Virtual Field Trips [weareteachers.com]
