Back to In-Home School 2020
It’s month number whatever of your home serving more functions than usual, and now school is ramping back up for families, remote or partially remote. Maybe you’re ready to go (again, sigh) or maybe you’re panicking (again? aaaah!). A few steps below will help you cover most of the bases…No one has them all covered.
Step 1: You are amazing. No really. You’re probably not giving yourself enough credit. Pause and think about something that is going really well in your space. Maybe you decided the dining room could be reimagined as work/school space, and you went for it. Maybe you found a game changing item that you can’t imagine doing without now. Whatever it is, go you! Do more of that. Pat yourself on the back because no one else can right now.
Step 2: Make the most out of what you have. Before you fill your online cart with items to turn your space into a school, what do you already have? An old corkboard that could be repurposed as a school bulletin board/calendar/command center? Extra command hooks? Clear shoeboxes/Tupperware that could hold supplies? Every single time I help someone organize we find extra bins/boxes. Also did you order anything from the school’s supply list already? If items are on the way, make room for them by reviewing what you already have and seeing if it’s ready to be tossed (broken crayons etc.).
Step 3: Think about second (and third and fourth) locations. A desk/workspace is obvious, and particularly if you have more than one kid, you’re going to need multiple locations: places where they can be on video calls (quiet, maybe a background that’s less distracting), maybe a reading nook/chill space to escape from siblings, an outdoor spot to chill/exercise. Think about setting up more than one station/area. Give them fun names (idea lab, leave me alone corner, whatever). Consider how supplies will travel between spaces.
Step 4: Bonus round.
Food. Set up a station/area where kids can get their own snacks/food for the day. Use bins on pantry/cabinet shelves and a bin in the fridge.
Sanitation/health station. Do you want to have a designated spot for masks, hand sanitizer etc.? Maybe a first aid kit? Chances are, again, you have what you need for this, and if not, it’s a good time to fill any gaps.
Drop zone. This will depend on how remote school is in your case. Fully remote and activities cancelled? Maybe this is a chance to take the drop zone space back for another purpose. Going back and forth to school a few times a week? It might be even more important to make sure everything has a place if it’s coming and going outside of the home.
Step 5: Double bonus round. Actually this should come first. Before you do anything else for anyone else, what’s the one thing on your to-do list that would make you feel supported? Where do you find joy in your home? (A drink in the basement? Ok I get it.)
That’s it. That’s all. No one is coming to save us. This year will come and go, and we will learn from it. Nobody does all of this alone, so reach out for help if you get stuck.