My first suggestion is, don’t even try to be an educator, just try to be a guide. If you had selected homeschooling as a method of instruction voluntarily, the circumstances would be different. You’d research a curriculum, select one that works best for your family, and be emotionally and mentally prepared to embark on this journey.

However, if the Covid-19 pandemic has wrangled you into homeschooling, it’s going to take a shift in parenting mindset. I have a degree in elementary education, but I never activated my certification by teaching in the classroom.

My three children are in 7th grade, 4th, and 3rd. They are bright and motivated, for which I am grateful. But despite the excellent and regular communication from their school about the transition to online learning, the one component that was missing was the transition required of parents to becoming homeschooling guides.

Here are two structures I suggest putting in place, if you are the designated education supervisor:

Set Boundaries

Make sure you decide as a family when the school day will start and when the school day will end. The latter part is key. If school ended at 3pm prior to the pandemic, use that as a rough guide for your days.

There’s no such thing as “homework” anymore, so to limit overwhelm and stress about the completion of work, set a start and end to the day. The same goes for the week. If your family wants to reserve the weekend for rest, it’s up to you as the guide to enforce these set boundaries.

Humans tend to be most productive when work time and free time is clearly defined, and this applies to children too. It’s easier to relax when the expectation of productivity falls away.

Delegate Responsibility

During this pandemic pause, students have the opportunity to learn a number of skills beyond the given assignments by their teachers. Planning their day and week, selecting which tasks they’d like to complete in which order, and trying out different learning spaces around the house will build their confidence and allow them to fail in a safe environment.

Each morning I sit with my children and I help them block out their classwork for the day. I ask them to plot what tasks they’ll do, in which order, at what hour of the day. We decide who will use the computer when, and in which room they’ll do their work. I set up my own work and workstation in a central room nearby.

I empower them to work at their own pace and take their own breaks.

You’re probably thinking, “this arrangement will never suit my kids.”

But what’s the downside? As the homeschooling guide, you can run your schoolroom as you see fit. If your children work best in the afternoon, encourage them to put their more challenging tasks on the schedule for those hours. If they want to work outside, give it a try. If they have a hard time sitting still, suggest bouncing on a yoga ball or work while standing.

Allow them to approach their required learning from a new perspective. See this as an opportunity for them to explore their personalities and learning style- within the time boundaries the family has decided upon - because the upside is tremendous. Resilience, flexible thinking, and having the courage to try something new are just a few of the potential qualities that will serve them well into the future.