The chances of you having a baby or toddler clinging on to your leg for dear life while homeschooling is pretty high. Especially if you are like me and like to just pump the babies out one after another.
There has been a lot of cereal spread around the kitchen, yoghurt smeared all over the floor, oh and let’s not forget the diaper cream artwork on the tv. That was just the toddler. A baby brings a whole other set of challenges. Babies don’t care that you need to teach their brother to read in the morning, they will still wake up 20 times through the night leaving you a zombified form of your former self. Then there is the nursing and the rocking and before you know it it’s dinner time (probably cereal at this point) and you realise you never got around to the reading lesson and your kids went to the school of Netflix for the day.
It’s okay. It will get better.
I want to share with you my best advice after years of trial and error and disasters so hopefully you can avoid some of my biggest mistakes.
Take a Break
When I had my third baby I was trying to homeschool my eldest and do preschool with number two. I thought “oh a week or so break will be fine”. A week long break was not fine. It was a disaster. I put far too much pressure on myself and everything turned to custard.
When you bring a new baby home give yourself some time to heal and adjust. This is not only for you but for the whole family. I would suggest a couple of months.
When you find out you are pregnant try to prepare in advance so you are able to relax and enjoy this new bundle of joy before you jump back in. If you really feel that you need to be doing some sort of school let Dad take over. You can prepare activity packets for the children in advance so all they need to do in pull it out.
Get Into a Routine
A new baby always requires a routine change. These can often take a few weeks or more to establish…especially if you have one of those babies who has their days and nights mixed up! Once baby is in a predictable routine it will be much easier to work around their nap time schedule.
Make it a priority to get that routine sorted.
The Baby is the Lesson
Let your older children help and be involved in the child care. There is so much they can learn by helping. They can read stories to baby, feed bottles, give cuddles, and so much more. You will be surprised at how much they take in as you talk to them about what you are doing. There are so many questions to answer like “why does her belly button look like that” and “why can’t I give her candy” (my forth baby’s first food was a red sucker proudly shared by his 2 year old brother)
Older children too will thrive on being able to be apart of looking after baby. One of the benefits of homeschooling that they are home to enjoy these special moments as they bond with this newest family member
Work Around Nap Time
It was by baby three that I realised if I was going to get anything done it was going to have to be when he was sleeping.
During his first morning nap (before I had been completely zapped of all energy) I would take care of reading and math. It didn’t matter if there was a load of laundry in the machine that had already been wash 3 times because I kept forgetting to dry it or if the dishes were piled high and half eaten toast on the ground. I got the school work done because if I started the housework school never got done. There is always ALWAYS going to be housework to do. It’s one of the constants in life.
Once baby woke up I could feel confident that I had covered the basics and everything else for the day was a bonus. When he napped again I would use that time to do the housework if I hadn’t got to it already or I would get out the art supplies or science experiments.
I can not stress enough how vital having consistent nap times was for managing to homeschool the older ones.
The Toddler
I have covered how to cope with a baby, hopefully you are feeling a little more positive! Now I want to talk about those adorable toddlers.
Toddlers are known for their curiosity and copious amounts of energy. They aren’t as well known for their ability to sit and concentrate for long periods of time before decided some mischief is needed.
For the first few years with toddlers I truely thought I might lose my mind with the chaos and mess that they came with. I could not possibly give them the attention and supervision that they were wanting so I needed to up my game a bit more to be able to accomodate them as well as have it work well for me too.
Let Them Join In
This one is at the top of my list because it has been hands down the most beneficial to me. When we are working at the table my toddlers are right there with us most of the time. One of these types of adjustable high chairs are perfect. I love how it grows with the child and can be used forever instead of just a year or two. Wood is perfect too because it is long lasting, who knows your grandbabies could sitting on it at your table in 20 years time.
If you are doing nature journals at the park let them take along a book and crayons to do their work too. My toddlers love to be included and they want to be a part of whatever the big kids are doing.
Busy Activities
You need to find something that your will keep your child’s attention for a decent amount of time. We have always loved playdoh. I used to make my own but found that it wasn’t as easy to clean up as store bought play doh. I will probably go back to making my own one day but for now I buy it. We have a lot of play doh sets too. My 3 year old has a shelf in the pantry dedicated to his play doh tools and sets. This can keep him occupied at the table while we work for about an hour especially if I am talking and interacting with him. It is much easier to do this at the table than if he were to be doing it elsewhere.
Another resource that I feel every homeschool and family should invest in is magnetic blocks. These toys last forever and they are enjoyed by all ages. My one year old loves them right up to my husband who will happily sit and build with the kids for an hour or so…then continue on once they have left. They are on the pricier end for toys but I promise you, you will not regret it. If grandparents are asking about what to get the kids for christmas this is it. These ones are fantastic and you can buy add ons of wheels and bigger tiles which is a bonus.
Give Them Attention
I know it is hard to spread yourself out among everyone and everything but making time for this age group is so vital.
I know I have found that if I don’t make the time to spend some quality time with my toddlers that they are more clingy, whiny and needy.
It can be as simple as finding the time to snuggle up for a few books or letting them be your date to the store. I will often take my toddler out to run errands with me and leave the others at home. It makes a huge change in his behaviour when he gets that time with mummy.
Teach Them Independence
I am a firm believer in teaching kids to become independent at a young age. It is not that I am lazy and don’t want to do things for my children it is simply that I want them to be confident in their abilities.
If they can get their own drink of water or snack that is going to make your life a lot easier by not having to interrupt lessons but they also feel confident that they can take care of one of their own needs.
Final Words…
Homeschooling with toddlers and babies can be rough at first. Once you get into the swing of things it becomes a lot easier. If you take anything at all away from this post I hope it would be that it is possible to do it and not go crazy. It will take some planning, trial and error, probably a messy house for a period and definitely a few horrible miserable days but it is worth it and you get there in the end. It is okay to reach out and ask for help. Grandparents usually love to look after their grandkids so call them up to see if they want to take someone out for the morning.
I think sometimes as homeschooling parents we feel as though since we decided to take this road that we have to do it alone. We don’t. It is not admitting defeat to acknowledge that homeschooling with little ones underfoot is exhausting! If you don’t have anyone around to watch them for a a few hours so you can take a break then take them to an indoor playground and take a break there. They can burn of their energy and you don’t have to worry about them. Those places tend to have food and chocolate and coffee too…just saying.
