Well, yall… here we are – about to start our fifth day of school at home. Or, as I called it in my title, “COVID-19 Distancing Day #5.” If you’re like me, this is still overwhelming to figure out. It still doesn’t make sense. My brain is still totally boggled trying to process all of it. So mama, if all your kids have done is play, then that is the absolutely RIGHT thing for them to do. If your kids have had a structured day every day, then THAT is the absolute RIGHT thing for them. Why do I say these two extremes are both right? Because, Mama. What is right for YOU is exactly what they need. The phrase “you can’t pour water from an empty pitcher” is more true now than ever before. We as parents are totally overwhelmed. Our brains can’t fathom what is going on. So whatever WE need for our kids to do, is what they need to do.
Soon our schools will be providing some work for at home. Some schools already have. Some it will take a couple of weeks to get there. Be patient with your school. Be patient with your child’s teacher. Be patient with your child. Be patient with YOURSELF. Plan for lots of breaks. And take them with your kids. I started out the week trying to clean and organize and do laundry. All of those things are great. But they create burn out. Then I decided to slow down and do those things at the pace I would NORMALLY do them. And do the relaxing, fun things with my kids. Build with the Legos. Build with the magnets. Draw the doodles. Watch the fun videos online (because let’s face it, if it’s exciting for your kids to watch Fiona getting fed Romaine, it probably is for you, too… at least it was for me!!!). Do the brain break activities. Because you need it too.
Last night I finally sat down with the kids and we watched the first of Mo Willems’ doodling sessions. (link and picture below, don’t worry!) It was AMAZING!!! I had as much fun doodling as Becca did! And I know that today when Gray isn’t so tired, he’ll dive right in, too! (Which means Elle will follow along! 😉 If you’re like me, there are actually TOO MANY resources being thrown at me right now. I didn’t know where to start. I have to pick and choose what is right for my kids, and you’ll need to do the same. There are SO MANY video resources, which is awesome (our kids get a LOT of tech at school!)… but I don’t want them doing so much tech at home. Especially Gray. I see a lot of attitudes about regular paper/book practice when too much tech has been allowed. So I have to pick and choose what tech resources I use. And I figure you may be overwhelmed, too. Or you may feel like what’s best for you is for your kids to be distance learning on the computer or tv all day. Whatever works best for YOU mama!!!
So I thought I would give you a list of the resources I have decided to prioritize for my kids at this point, and then if we add any great ones, I’ll let you know!
GoNoodle.com – We use this one at school and it’s AWESOME!!!! My kids are loving using it at home to get moving even on rainy days! (And yall, send up some prayers because it’s RAINING all day today and tomorrow!!!)
Cincinnati Zoo – They are doing Facebook live events daily showing off different animals and kids who watch live can ask questions! Plus, they have tons of other animal videos that are awesome!
PBS Kids – My kids are loving playing their games, and they are ALL educational!! So if you want to sneak in learning, this is a great way!
Prodigy – This is an online math program that our school uses, so Becca has an account and is loving having time to use it. I believe that any kids 1st-5th grade can be signed up from home for a free account as well.
Girl Scout Virtual Meetings – If you have any scouts in your house, it doesn’t matter what troop you are with, the Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas are doing daily virtual meetups with lots of fun activities that ANYONE is welcome to stream – just click on over to like and follow their Facebook page!
Mo Willems’ Lunch Doodles – These are streamed live at 1:00pm Eastern each weekday, but the videos remain online so you can stream anytime. We just did day one last night. With it raining today, we’ll likely do one this morning and one this evening. 🙂
As we add more resources, I’ll let you know, but we really are keeping it simple around here. I need simple. I need organized. I need structure. We can do this!
Looking for activity resources? Check out my First COVID-19 School At Home post here!
Butterbees and Bumbleflies 