There are many ways to occupy school-aged children while you work from home whether it’s temporary or you’ve been home for years. Many of us may have been working from home for years and this is second nature to us. However, some of us may have been working from home for most of 2020 due to the global pandemic.
Whether you work from home for yourself or for a company it can be a struggle to keep your children occupied. You may decide to send your child to daycare however this does not suit everyone. With the pandemic, many schools are closed and some work commitments require over 35 hours a week.
How to Occupy School-Aged Children While You Work From Home
It can be a real struggle to balance your lifestyle of your working from home and have school-aged kids to occupy. Some of us don’t have the support of parents all the time. Even if you don’t work and are a stay-at-home mom these easy solutions can really help you out.
Here are some simple and effective easy top keep your children occupied.
Allow Effective Screen Time
In my house, we allow a certain amount of screen time a week. However, it’s not encouraged all the time and I strategically allow this time. A good thing to remember is the time of day you allow your children the screen time. I don’t allow my children to have screen time in the morning as they get used to it and it’s very difficult to get them away and motivated for the rest of the day.
The best time to allow your children the screen time is at the end of the school day just as you would if they were attending school. This will keep them motivated to finish their schoolwork and something to look forward to for the end of the day.
Set Up School Work At The Start Of The Day
Most families whose children are at home due to school closures are still distant learning during the week. Just like in my household there;s school work that needs to be completed during the day provided by the school.
It makes your day very easy if you lay out the school work at the beginning of the day. If you log into the school learning site, our school uses google classroom you can find out the work that needs to be completed. You may want to lay out all the work that needs to be completed alongside the books needed to help complete the work. Other items such as pencil cases or geometry sets should also be available if needed. This way you’re child will know everything is available to switch from task to task.
Allow Help From Friends And Family
If your child is a whizz at schoolwork and tends to finish early there’s no better way to keep them occupied than the help from friends and family. There have been many times where video calls to grandparents have really helped. This can also help grandparents interact with their grandchildren and feel less alone.
During the pandemic, video calls have become more important than ever. You can get your parents to read books to your children. This really does allow you to get on with housework or even your working day if you work from home.
Zoom calls are one of the most popular sites for video calls. There ate many things you can do with friends and family members on zoom calls such as:
- Kids can play with toys
- Help your child with school work
- Each child can help each other with school work
- Read stories to your child
- Your child could read a story
- Have a dance party together
- Do craft and art projects together
These are just a few activities that can be done on zoom. The possibilities of what you can do on zoom are endless you can even cook together.
Prepare Activities And Snacks At The Weekend
There are many times during the day and week that your child will disturb you. However, it’s best you prepare activities and snacks for the week during the weekend when you have a little more time.
As mentioned above some families may realize that distance learning doesn’t take up as much time as a typical school day. As some children may finish their schoolwork a lot earlier like 1 pm rather than 3 pm. If this is the case it’s important you have some activities available for them to get stuck into.
Activities can keep your child motivated and even if you have a child that takes a bit longer with their school work it’s important to have activities available.
Here are some ideas of activities for children:
- Arts and Crafts
- Help you prepare for dinner or baking
- Games and puzzles
- Allow them to play with special toys
Preparing quick and healthy snacks in advance can also be a great help as many children tend to eat a lot more while at home. It’s also important to tell your child each day what snacks and activities are available to them. Let them know the time and where to find them.
Keep Your Children Active With Exercise And Chores
exercise is very important when your children are at home. This not only keeps them healthy but gives them more energy to complete school work and stay motivated. It can also break up the day keeping their minds active.
There are many exercise routines available for kids on Youtube you can do from home.
Another great way to keep your child active is Rising Wild they offer an app and Subscription boxes that can keep your child active for hours.
Depending on the age of your child chores can also help keep them active. Vacuuming with a cordless vacuum can be a fun way to exercise. Why not reward them for chores such as picking up books and toys putting the dishes away or walking the dog.
Ways to Occupy School-Aged Children While You Work From Home- conclusion
The pandemic has been a crazy time for all of us and we wish it would be over soon. However, in the meantime it’s important you become creative and innovative with your family.
The tips stated above are more productive and can keep you sain for longer. It’s important to keep your kid’s minds active as they can start to get irritable staying and home and being unable to go out and play with friends.
