[weagle05]

The whole thing is fubar. We're doing our public school's virtual school for our 3 elementary age children. I don't see how its sustainable. This age group cannot do school by themselves, so my wife and I are having to do school while also trying to keep our work going. My productivity is just going to be shot.

This is day one, but here's what I'm going to try this week: 1). Get up earlier. I'm going to try to be in front of my computer with coffee by 5:30am. I'm hoping I can log a couple solid hours of work before I have to punch in for school. 2). Long lunch for the kids. Their school schedule only gives them 50 minutes, but the school is going to have to deal with it. I'm going to do 90 minutes so I can try to focus on work while inhaling a sandwich or something. 3) Bourbon when the kids are sleep.

I really hope we can get a rhythm and my kids can pick up some study skills where we don't have to be so hands-on.

[actfrench]

This sounds really stressful. Have you considered any virtual childcare/tutoring options? I run a digital learning pod that meets 3 hours a day. We use the online medium to our advantage, working together on math apps, yoga, science lessons, critical reading (sharing the screen) and other engaging activities. The kids love it and barely every need help from their parents. If you find apps and games your kids love, it's a lot easier to get them to focus than on stuff they dislike. Happy to recommend tools to you if it's helpful. My email is [e-mail]

[jeffrallen]

Your proposed schedule will also need time for burnout and therapy. Maybe not a good plan...

You're going to have to let something slide. Choose one priority and then fit what you can into the time that's left, and accept that it doesn't all fit. I hope you choose your child as your priority, but you'll find your own way. Good luck.

[actfrench]

I agree. Everyone knows that this is hard. And I think you should definitely consider asking your school to give you some leeway or change the schedule to make it work better for your kids. I know a lot of parents who have asked their companies and their schools to accommodate to what they needed and were surpised at the flexibility they found. This is a new situation for everyone. Ask for what you need and you might be surprised by the answer.

[actfrench]

I'd also add that kids learn a lot faster with 1-1 instruction than in a group setting, so if you want to consider homeschooling, you might find that you only need to teach them an hour or two a day and that will be more than enough to keep them at or above grade level. The rest of the time they can plan and enjoy being kids. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastery_learning