In light of the COVID-19 outbreak and the recommendations for social distancing, many of us are about to find ourselves working from home with the kids as our schools are closed for at least the next 3 weeks or more.

As I look toward the next few weeks, I know my kids (and probably my husband) are thinking VACATION! but to avoid chaos and 3 weeks of complete vegetation, I am thinking that we need some structure to survive and keep my kids on track with school work. I was thinking through some ideas for the next few weeks and how I might structure our days to ensure that we can enjoy our time together, play, learn, and make the most of our time together.

Here are my ideas, for now, which am I sure will evolve like all lesson plans I have ever made once the kids get involved.

Work on Goal Setting and Other Executive Functioning Skills

Did you know that if you set a goal and write it down you are more likely to accomplish it? Executive functioning can be boiled down to these 5 things:

• Paying attention
• Organizing and planning
• Starting tasks and staying focused on them
• Managing emotions
• Keeping track of what you’re doing

Despite the importance of executive functioning and the need to develop proactive people who can self manage, we don’t always provide time for kids to learn HOW to do this. Well, with everything canceled, this is a great time to develop some of these skills. After we set our schedules, I know it will be important for my kids (and me) to set goals and track progress to see what we are getting accomplished and what we still need to work on to accomplish our goals.

Personal Work Time and Skill Building

Although I know these kids will be engaged in activities and learning throughout the day while also relaxing and playing, I want to create a designated personal work time where they can manage their goals and tasks that are relevant to what they need to work on. Depending on the age of your kids, this time may vary, but for mine, who are 9 and 11, I am going to try for 1-2 hours of personal work time to start. This should include skill-building work in math, writing, and some foundational literacy and word work. There will also be plenty of time to curl up and read our favorite books independently and together:).

There are a ton of sites and programs that companies have made available for families here. These are the 3 that I will start with for skill-building work where my kids can work at their own level.

• Kahn Academy
• Newsela
• Education.com (spelling patterns)

Do a Passion Project

One of my favorite lines from Google’s video, Rubik’s Cube: A question, waiting to be answered (If you haven’t seen it, take a minute and watch it), “…when the right person finds the right question, it can set them on a journey to change the world.” The images of kids conducting experiments, building robots, playing in the mud and even blowing things up always make me smile at the thought of what is possible when learners are inspired and have the support to explore their ideas, questions, and passions in and out of school. Here are some questions to get kids thinking about what they might want to work on.

• What problems are you interested in working on?
• What do you want to learn more about?
• What do you know and what do you still need to learn?
• What resources i.e books, articles, videos might help you learn more?
• How does this connect to what you already know?
• What are some creative ways to solve this problem?
• Who are the experts you can learn from?
• How will you share what you are learning?

It is critical that we are asking these questions (and more) and helping learners understand that learning is a lifelong pursuit rather than something we do for a test or for the teacher. When we focus on learners, connect to their interests, needs, and goals, we can create experiences that ignite curiosity, develop passion, and unleash genius.

There are great resources to spark curiosity here and Jenny Pieratt from Crafted Curriculum has a great set of ideas here. These are 2 of my favorites:

• PBL-ish ideas for parents: Beach Clean-up and recycled art. Do a beach clean-up and turn what you recycle into art. A quick trip to Michael’s and you can buy a canvas, some paint and other fun materials to create a masterpiece!
• PBL-ish ideas for parents: Teach your child a crafty skillset and open at Etsy shop. This is a great way to teach business skills-logo and branding, basic marketing concepts, math related to pricing, taxes and shipping, photography and informational writing. Here is a sample from what I helped my daughter with last summer:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/MadebyMik

Get Outside and Move

Depending on the weather these activities may vary but regardless we will be moving and preferably outdoors. I am looking forward to some hikes, long walks, running around outside (this one is for them, not me). This one should be pretty easy!

Set Boundaries for Technology

A parent asked recently how to handle kids who get sucked into their technology all day and lamented they would be playing video games for 3 weeks. Each family and parent is different but structure and boundaries are really important because kids and teens (and many adults) don’t always know how to manage their time yet and when to out the devices away- see the section on executive functioning:). If kids know what to expect and have time when electronics are not allowed, they may not like it but it is easier to manage.

Play is so good for the brain and the kids need to have unstructured play. I love to see what my kids create and how they bond when they play outside. They don’t always do it on their own, however, especially if TV or iPads are available, so I will make sure that we create the time daily without structure or technology to make up games, play cards, climb trees, make forts, draw and let them be bored. It usually takes less than 5 minutes for them to find something to do (or stop complaining) when electronics are not available.

Help Out

This might go without saying but this is a great time for the kids to help out in the house like some extra spring cleaning projects or even making some meals or just doing a few extra chores to chip in around the house. It’s also an opportunity to think about how we can help others who need it both locally and globally. Can we help out the neighbors who need to run an errand? Can the kids teach the younger kids next door about math or do a project with them (with appropriate distance, of course!) Can you call and check in on someone who might be lonely?

Slow Down and Connect

Although it will be helpful to have a schedule as we reset our new normal for the next few weeks if not more, it’s probably most important to use this time to slow down and connect. With practices, games, school events, work trips, and many other commitments canceled, we can use this rare opportunity to recharge personally, catch up on my to-read list, connect and enjoy being together as a family.

Co-create the Schedule and Activities

I am pretty sure that if I come to my kids with all of these ideas and a predetermined schedule they will push back. They won’t win but it will be a power struggle that I am not eager to start this marathon off with. So, instead, my plan is to co-create the schedule with them. My hope is to list all the things that we might want to do, the things we know we need to do and think about how to organize our days/weeks. I also want them to be invested in our plan so they buy into it. A little choice and agency goes a long way!

This sample schedule is helpful to think about how one might organize their day and how we might use parts and modify it for us.

I would love to hear what you are trying and what is working or not. Please share any other resources and activities that work for you. I also know that many parents can’t work from home and are trying to figure out how to navigate the uncertainties that COVID-19 has caused and we all are doing these very best we can. Stay safe, ask for help, take time for yourself when you need a break and find ways to connect with others to stay sane.

We got this!