Warren County Connection
Working from Home? Kids Home Too! By Cynthia Pollich, MS Ed, PennState Extension Associate, Food, Families & Health Everyone benefits from knowing what to expect. Setting a schedule is one way to accomplish this. Well, welcome to the new normal. To make this time fun and productive, it is important to think about consistency, having a schedule and being flexible. Build in family time throughout the day to reconnect and break up the monotony of the routine. So, consider an appropriate schedule for your family. You may choose to have one for the work week and one for the weekend, or you may keep the same schedule seven days a week. This is something you can decide as a family. Remember to build in breaks and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) throughout the day and staying hydrated with water. Begin by waking up at the same time every day. Keep your usual morning routine. After having time to yourself, organize your workday. You may want to make a task list and check off the tasks as you go. Wake the children the same time every day. Maintain their schedule for clean-up and breakfast that they would follow for a typical school day. Give the children time to transition from the morning routine to schoolwork by allowing them 30 minutes of screen time after breakfast. Just like your work, organize theirs by setting goals for the morning and the afternoon. This is the academic time of day. English, math, science, history. Ask them to check off their tasks as they go too. It's mentally satisfying to see their finished work. Remember to take breaks regularly. Adults should take 2-3 minutes every 30 minutes to stand and move around the room. Children will need more time. Take at least 10-15 minutes of moderate to rigorous physical activity every 3060 minutes depending on the children's age. Pick your favorite exercises. Windmills, jumping jacks, squats, marching, running in place‌or just go outside for a short bike ride, a jog, or a ball game. Yoga may be fun at this time too. Remember to keep yourself and the children hydrated by drinking plenty of water after physical activity. Remember to include snacks during break time. Make it healthy such as fresh fruit, veggies, or a yogurt smoothie.
Page 9
Research shows that small energy-rich snacks help children and adults work more efficiently during cognitive tasks. Then the children have a quiet reading time. Audio books are great too. While they are reading, you are working. While they are reading you can devote that time to completing another task on your work list. Time for some more physical activity. Yoga may be fun at this time. After lunch, provide additional quiet or nap time allowing the children to transition to the afternoon schedule. Having a break will reenergize the children to complete any unfinished schoolwork tasks before playtime. Playtime is learning for children. So, organize a variety of activities for music, art, and dramatic play. If you need ideas, Common Sense Media has put together a huge list of free music lessons, art, writing, virtual tours and so much more. Pick the children's favorite activities. Busy children will buy you more time to finish your “to do" list for work. Remember after each transition to wash your hands and have a drink of water. One more snack time of fun, healthy foods and you're in the last stretch of the day. Children can finish any academic work they need to at this time. If they have finished all their schoolwork for the day, they can do what they would normally do when they get home from school. Maybe more independent reading time. You can wrap up your workday and get organized for tomorrow morning. At the end of the day, plan and create a great meal together as a family that you can enjoy sitting around the dining table. Make conversation starters and put them in a jar. During each dinner time, pull one out and use it to have a fun conversation time. Ask the children about something nice that they did for someone or share their favorite part of the day. While cleaning up after dinner or getting ready for bed, start a conversation about everyone's accomplishments of the day. Acknowledge the children's successes including yours. Take a few minutes to plan for the next day including ideas from the children. After the children fall asleep, briefly review your task list and consider listing new ones for the next day. Staying organized will help you to feel more efficient and less overwhelmed. Remember, routines and consistency are so important every day, but even more so as we settle into this new normal. Everyone benefits from knowing what to expect. We don't have to fear this time but embrace it for what it is.
