Quarantine Homeschool Tip #1: Deschool
(This is different than unschooling.)
Take a week to “deschool,” which means to wrap your head around all the mess and feel your feelings. It’s too early to make a plan, or a schedule, or buy curriculum, or order ALL THE THINGS. Figure out what will be normal in the new abnormal. Will you sleep in? Will you take a daily walk? Will you have certain times on or off screens? Do you have home projects to tackle? Will you read books together or listen to audiobooks together?
While you may want to print ALL the lists, ALL the schedules, read ALL the blogs, resist the urge to start a new routine when literally NO ONE, least of all children, know what this weird new life will look like. Let this week unfold as organically as you can with family time and personal time.
With the one caveat that you might want to limit totally unmonitored screen time, you will start to notice how each of you gravitate toward certain activities and behaviors at certain times of the day. You might see that there are certain areas of curiosity for your kids that will help you determine how to guide them educationally. Once you have let the week play out, THEN we can start thinking about some more structured schooling stuff.
Here’s a link that helped me understand deschooling. (This isn’t about quarantine, so obviously ignore parts about going to public places, etc.