Dear world of parents who just became educators: Don't panic.

World of parents who just became educators: I see you flipping out.

Credit: Bored Panda

I have the unique experience of being both a teacher (middle school, science) and having been raised home schooled. I was educated by a non-teacher parent, and I got a great education. (Seriously, you can do this)

I have some things I really want you to know:

1. Don’t expect yourselves to come up with 7.5 hours of education a day. When you are only educating 1-6 students, education takes less time. There are transitions, and behavioral issues that come up in a school that aren’t going to waste your time. It takes far less time to refocus 4 kids than it does to refocus 30. When I was home schooled in high school, even with a heavy workload, I often finished my schoolwork for the day by noon.
2. This isn’t forever! They’ll be okay. You don’t have to plan for their whole educational life, you just need to keep their brains limber. If you mess this up, it’s just a small portion of their educational career. Don’t let fear paralyze you.



Image Credit: Edublox

3. Focus on reading, writing, and arithmetic(No matter how old they are)                                    This is an awesome opportunity to reinforce the basics! If you send them back to their teachers with grade level reading abilities, a fluidity with numbers, and writing that is legible and logical, their teachers will be eternally grateful and your students will have a new confidence in school. 
• Reading: If your child is struggling in any subject, chances are their reading level is part of their struggle. This year, I had a large percent of students fail a test question that I knew they knew the answer to. Upon investigation among the students involved, it came to light that they missed it because the question contained the word "abundant" and they did not know what that meant so they were unable to understand the question to answer it! The only way they will truly improve their vocabulary is if they expose themselves repeatedly to an excessive amount of words in the context of engaging stories, so that they gain an internal understanding of these higher level words. They will achieve a better reading level by reading LOTS of books that INTEREST them, so don’t force them to read Dickens. Make times in the day where the only option they have is reading: they pick the book, but reading is the only activity. Don’t be afraid to make it last a while(an hour at a time is not too much). Make them earn technology back, if you have to.
• Writing: When asked to demonstrate their learning, most students struggle with expressing their thoughts in detailed paragraphs(again, I’m talking even middle school grades and upwards). This is a skill they need. It is a skill they should have conquered by 4th grade, and yet most haven’t. Have them “journal” a daily paragraph on their opinions, thoughts about the news, arguments as to why pizza is better than spaghetti, summaries or comparisons of Netflix shows...ANYTHING. Give them a topic and demand a daily paragraph out of them. Let them do the easy topics with you so that they can address the difficult concepts with me. (Note: If they're not in 3rd grade, 3 sentence paragraphs are not sufficient anymore. Every statement should be justified. 6 sentences is not uncommon. Look up RACE writing strategies, or CER for science as models of paragraph writing) 
• Arithmetic: Can I tell you something? Odds are, your middle school and high school students don’t know their division and multiplication tables. (Seriously!) Maybe they learned them, once upon a time, but they have long since forgotten them. They’re trying to learn pre-algebra and above, and they’re getting hung up on 7x9, rather than the algebraic principals or differentiating between densities of substances. They can’t learn new material if all of their brain power is used up on simple math. Bribe them. Threaten them. Do what is necessary to insist they learn their math facts(Please! Have you ever seen your child read an analogue clock? Most of my students get stuck when it comes to reading the minutes because it requires the 5x tables to be known) 



(Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

4. Think of this as a “study abroad” opportunity for your kids.   Instead of traveling, they have the opportunity to broaden their studies! After you’ve reinforced the basics, turn to inquiry based-learning. There are two methods that can be used separately or in tandem.
• Make them teach you. You don't have to be the Sage on the Stage. In fact, you've been parenting long enough to know that when you try to be the sage on the stage, they stop listening. Instead of accepting the weight of teaching your student about a specific historic event or science concept, give them a subject you expect them to teach you. Have them make a poster, pamphlet, children's book, a Tik Tok, a movie or slide show.*(Please see my note at the bottom on internet use) Tell them to come up with and complete a science fair project with the materials in the house. Give them an expected timeline for a finished project(You might even break it down for them. IE: I expect 3 slides to be done by ____ and then 3 by ____). Send them to the internet and tell them you look forward to what they will teach you, and stand by and watch them grow. They will learn great skills about utilizing search engines, and manipulating word/slide programs, editing programs, etc. I’ve done this with my own students and often they teach themselves so much more on the topic than I was planning to teach because they accidentally get interested and “over-research” their topic. They’ll also be learning much needed self-management and problem solving skills. 
• Let them choose what they learn. Ask them what they want to learn. If they have a random question ("Why are there little holes in the bread?") send them off to discover their own answers instead of explaining it to them. We may not be teaching that concept in 6th grade science (or whatever grade your child is in) but it is not going to hurt to let them experience the freedom of curiosity and discovery. So what, if the life cycle of a butterfly is below their grade level? We call that Reinforcement. So what, if momentum of a roller coaster is above their grade level? We call that Enrichment. So what if it's something random like cooking, knitting, coding, building a trebuchet in the backyard, or stop-motion movies? If they are self-motivated to learn, and the materials are available, go with it! As much as possible(and as safety allows) let them do it themselves. There are so many skills and concepts that students learn on accident when they are "just playing around" with a project. They might accidentally internalize the concept of momentum while building a marble roller coaster, which will make the concept "just click" when their physics teacher introduces the academic concepts and equations to them in the near or distant future. Education is best built on background experiences, so let them delve into experiences. Let them realize that education is kind of fun. (It's actually the homework/tests they hate) Schools are such a highly populated learning environment that personalized learning opportunities are few and far between even when teachers try their hardest. Seize the opportunity to give your child some control in their education during this time. 



Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons 

5. Let them be bored. 
   Let them doodle on scratch paper, and teach themselves origami. Send them outside without WiFi to discover the joys of dirt, or following ants, let them build forts, or catapults. Let them watch clouds drift by, and come up with rules for their own games. Play and boredom is SO important for the brain and modern kids aren’t getting enough of it! Let’s face it, MANY of science’s great discoveries came from either being outside or being given too much time to think. Let your kids have the chance to bore themselves to their own genius. 
6. Don't be ashamed of technology. This may seem in direct contradiction to the point above, but it's more about balance. And sanity. Sometimes, you, as an adult, need a break. Sometimes, them watching an educational show on Netflix actually has academic merit, wedging little facts and songs into their brains that may help later. (Also, you can get Schoolhouse Multiplication Rock on Amazon...cough cough math facts cough cough cough!!!) Exercising on whatever gaming console is a good thing. Learning to compete playfully with each other is a good thing. YouTube, while it holds a whole lot of wasted time, also has MANY redeeming educational videos. It has art lessons. It has astronauts. It has Rube Goldberg Machines. It has yoga and dance lessons. A well-monitored YouTube can be AMAZINGLY educational. Brainpop, Plum Landing, Study Jams, PHET, Prodigy Math, and other educational websites are FANTASTIC resources with simulations and helpful games. Code.org and Codecombat.com will teach your kids coding through games, which is useful, because it forces your students to practice cause and effect thinking. Even if they don't design the next big app, it will help them academically to learn to think through a problem! There are math game websites, there are logic websites. There are free or cheap apps that can be used to teach everything from languages(Duolingo), to reading(Hooked on Phonics), to problem solving(Zoombinis). USE THEM. They are minimal brain work for you, and extra brain practice for your kids.
7. Use everyday moments. Have them measure out the ingredients for you. Most students struggle with fractions, and this is a real life reinforcement. Let them be in charge of making a meal (Maybe start with breakfast or lunch, they're easier). Have them follow the directions on the back of the mac and cheese box. Have them read the meat thermometer for you. Have them cut the veggies. Have them help you repair a leak. Let them help/watch you trouble shoot a household problem that comes up. Show them how to use a screwdriver and hammer safely. Teach your teens how to change a tire or the oil, or put on snow chains. Teach any child who can reach the washer(even with a step stool) how to do the laundry from start to finish (seriously, I went to college with students who didn't know how to do what my 5 year old can do on his own with a step stool). Make your teen pay some of your bills online, while you guide from behind their chair. Send your teen out to teach his younger brother something the teen does well. These are all incredibly valuable learning opportunities that busy families don't often get. 
8. It's okay to blow off a day. No one is going to mark your kid absent or call you to provide a doctor's note. If your plan/schedule goes out the window, and everyone just brain rots for a day, maybe it's what you needed as a family. Don't beat yourself up. You'll have other days.
9. Don't let random internet strangers like me boss you around or shame you. I'm giving tips with the best intentions, but I don't know you or your family like you do. And maybe that one mom with the perfect schedule and the amazing Pinterest "summer camp" projects actually is doing all of the stuff she's posting(and... maybe she's not), but you shouldn't beat yourself up if it's more stressful than helpful. If something a random internet stranger says doesn't work for you, don't burden yourself with guilt. You know your family, and you're the one responsible for making sure you survive them and they survive you, do what's right for you! 

I originally started this post as just a quick Facebook status, and then I realized I had too much to say. I've just spent the day watching parents panic on social media, and the main thing I want you to take away from this is: Don't panic. Take advantage of the opportunities you can, enjoy what you can, survive what you must, but don't worry about the teachers judging you for what you accomplish during this time. I can't speak for the rest of the teachers, but I'm just going to assume you did your best and be glad that everyone survived each other!


*A note about technology and the internet: PLEASE, no matter what the child's age(toddler or teen), do not give them unlimited, unsupervised access to the internet or social media. Even the most innocent of children can stumble across dark zones of the internet, and the less innocent ones know how to discreetly change the tabs to something else and erase viewing history when they hear your footsteps coming down the hall. I know you may think, "Not my sweetheart, she's too young..." or "he's a good student" but I've taught with Chromebooks in the classroom for 5 years now. You wouldn't leave them unattended at the beach, if you knew there was a possibility of rip tides. There are rip tides on the internet. NO child should be allowed privacy on the internet. Have them do their research with the computer on the dining room table, screen facing towards the heavily trafficked part of the room, and glance over their shoulders regularly.