10 Tips To Shelter In Place With Kids
UPDATE: EVEN THOUGH WE’RE NO LONGER SHELTERING IN PLACE, these easy-to-implement suggestions and strategies can help you deal with the stress of homeschooling, dealing with bored kids during the summer, or simply trying to manage parenting stress.
Humans are creatures of habit, and with covid-19 sweeping across America, we’ve lost any semblance of routine. To help our kids (and ourselves) adjust to our new situation, we need to give them back some normalcy. Playing it fast and loose for a few days is expected, but if we let it go on for too long, we’ll all implode.
How do I know? Most summers, the kids and I head off to a remote lake cabin that sets us into isolation for 2 or 3 weeks. There is no car or boat to make trips into town for groceries, and we rely on the few neighbors to restock supplies once or twice during our stay. Shelter in place feels a lot like those weeks sequestered from most of civilization. I can tell you from experience, by week three, we’ll be done with it all. Tensions rise, and our tolerance drops.
But I keep returning to the cabin year after year because the pros outweigh the cons. During our stay, I start my after-action report to make sure next year is smoother than before. I can tell you with certainty, planning is critical. And so is flexibility.
To help you shelter in place with kids, here are some ideas and proven techniques I use at home and in my work:
Pick and choose what works for you, and if you have any suggestions, please let me know. I’m always looking for ways to improve my process.
1) Time Blocking: If you’re unfamiliar with this term, it’s dedicated time to provide concentrated work. I am most productive when using 1 - 2 hour blocks for deep work, but for kids, half-hour blocks seem to work best.
The beauty of using time blocks is flexibility. If I have a client call at 10:30, I sure don’t want my kid practicing his trumpet, so we shuffle the blocks until they fit. The location on the calendar may shift, but the requirement doesn’t. What needs to be done is very clear — only the “when” changes.
2) Everyone has a schedule: Before designing your plan, brainstorm ALL of the things you’d like your child to do during the week. Examples: school studies (social studies, math, etc…), exercise, reading, socializing (critical during isolation from friends, especially for the older kids), regular chores, extra help chores, games, creative time/art, etc.
Next, use time blocks to create your child’s schedule. Some people find the word “schedule” too rigid, but it’s meant to be flexible. If you prefer, use “daily plan” or “activity list.”I use BusyCal to manage my family/businesses (Android users check out Clockify). It’s more visual than iCal — I can see the time block in color. This is very helpful for kids.
Give everyone a separate color calendar, so it’s easy to isolate, print, and post. Spreadsheets work well, too. If your plans change from day to day, you can use post-it notes on the refrigerator and move them around like puzzle pieces.
3) Include solo downtime for everyone: Make a list of activities they can choose from. Solitare, video games, silent reading, baking, shooting hoops, walk the dog, listen to an audiobook.
4) Create zones for productivity: An absolute necessity if you have to work at home or your spouse does. The dining room is my office during the day, the family room is my husband’s office, and the living room is for the kids.
5) School schedule: Give your kids a break. We’ve cut the 6 hour school day down to 4 with an hour lunch break. Some people are doing less and others more. Do what works best for your child.
6) Be flexible with their school work: Not all teachers have given work for the kids to do, so concentrate on helping them remember what they’ve already learned. Now is not the time to push them. Use Ted-Ed, Khan Academy, or give them a theme/topic to explore on their own.
7) Relax screen time and get creative with what they consume: I’m relatively militant on the screen time my kids get, and I don’t want to fold entirely. While I’m allowing more mind-mush time (video games and mindless TV) during their free time, I’m also allowing unrestricted viewing of anything educational (documentaries, animal planet, etc…).
8) Facetime with friends (Google duo, skype, or zoom): My heart hurts for my teen daughter because she's such a social being. She Facetimes nearly all day with her friends, and I’m 100% okay with it. They even do homework together!
9) Stay on track: Sunday put the next week’s schedule together for family (dinners, movies, education plans, work time). Every night, review your schedule and theirs to make any changes. Print and post schedules.
10) Set expectations and adjust as needed: After you’ve posted their schedules, go over it with them to avoid any next-day frustration about feeling blindsided.
If you found this helpful, please share. We’re all in this together.
Much love my sheltering-in-place friends!
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