Stuck Inside With The Kids? How To Stay Sane!

It seems like a second wave of coronavirus is finally hitting the country. Even though some scientists are devout in their belief that the first hasn’t actually finished yet. Even so, it seems like there are a lot of parents stuck back inside with their children. Most schools are still open, but some have decided to keep their children home for medical reasons, or because the lockdown has made it so. Schools are also taking a lot more direct involvement in mandating their closure status, so if there is a mini outbreak it seems like either the whole school will shut or at least the year group. It means being stuck inside with the whole family. Stuck inside when the weather is starting to turn. Cases are going up too, so you can’t rule out a national lockdown. It’s tough to keep everyone happy, but here are some tips to help you out. The important thing to remember is that every family is different. Children have different needs, just like adults do and it can be a feat to keep everyone happy. Be careful when looking at advice. You need to look at your own situation first and make sure the advice will work well because only you know your family. Even if you’ve considered these, they can help shift your perspective and help you succeed.

Set Medication Timers

Again, only you’ll know the needs of your family. One thing which is dangerous in terms of taking medicine is a break in the routine. If your child, or even yourself, have gotten into a routine, it can be easy to miss taking something important. So, make sure you plan everything out. If you’re taking CBD oils, make sure you know how to calculate CBD dosage. If you’re diabetic and usually took insulin before going to work, make sure you take it at the same time at home. You have to be even more hands-on with your children of course. The best thing you can do here is to set timers for yourself. You can do this using Alexa or another smart device, or using your smartphone. Once it’s set in your mind it’ll soon become part of the new routine. Getting this right is important. Most medication prescribed is needed. If you miss a dose and become worried, call your doctor as soon as you can and get the advice you need to take the next step.

Stay In Touch With Teachers

One thing you don’t want is your children to fall behind on their schoolwork. This is especially the case if they’re at home for whatever reason, but the rest of their class are in school. You need to be proactive and can’t rely on the teacher. Ask them for work and you’ll get it, then it falls to you and your children to make sure it gets done. Hopefully, they’ll only be home for a short amount of time, but try to set out clear parts of the day when they should be doing their work. Make sure they submit this work to teachers for marking too so that they can follow up. This can be hard to do if you are working from home full time, so try to get into a routine by where you check their work at the end of the day.

You may also need to be on hand to answer any questions from your children. Usually, they’d ask the teacher to clarify or point them in the right direction, but they aren’t there so it’s only fair that you help. Staying in touch with the teachers easily beats having to find and set work yourself, which doesn’t build a child’s knowledge in the right way and helps with beating the final exam. Each school does things differently. If your child is in a high school they may be able to keep in touch with their teachers online, as well as submit work and get marked work back online. If they’re in primary school it might be easier if you have that direct line to the appropriate teacher so that you can find out exactly what they are missing and work out a way to pick up the set work in the absence of an online space.

Find Your Space

If you’re all stuck in the house it’s only fair that you all find space to relax and work. If you’re all on top of each other it doesn’t really help anyone. This usually depends on what kind of home you’re all living in and how much space you have in that home. If you’re working from home hopefully you have a study or home office to work from. But your child will need space to work too, as will your partner if they’re working from home. You may need to come up with some kind of rota. Or you need to maximise the space you have so that your children have space to work form too. It isn’t always easy but the internet is full of inspiration. One of the best ones is to get your child a bed which is raised to the level of a bunk bed, but beneath is the space for a small desk. Technically you’re not taking up any extra room but you’re fitting a whole other space there from which you child can work and study.

Try to Get Out Of The House

It’s important for you and your whole family that you see other scenery. Even during national lockdown exercise was encouraged. You should be aiming to get out at least once a day and get some steps in. If it makes it any easier, try to aim for a goal in terms of steps done or calories burnt. It’s a nice thing to do together too, especially if you’ve been stuck inside or working separately all day. First, keep it simple. Go for walks in the local area. As you get accustomed to it go farther afield. Maybe try for more uphill sections at a faster pace. You don’t have to walk, you can try going for a run. Hard with young children, so maybe vary it. Or, if you’ve got the space or the inclination, you can all go for a bike ride instead. It’s great for blowing off some energy and allows you to be able to get some well-needed exercise too. You can also do these things alone a few times in the week. It can be good to clear your mind and focus it on what’s important, be that work-related or family-related. This of course depends on how old your children are or whether there’s someone else there to watch them for the short while.

Check The Internet Connection

If there are two people working from home, as well as a child or children doing schoolwork, then there’s going to be a significant strain on the WIFI you’re using in your home. Of course, it all depends on what you’re doing while working from home. Your child might not be using the internet 24/7 either, but you’ll know how much they’ll be using. If you’re working in the cloud, on intensive spreadsheets, or on video software and having video team meetings etc. the likelihood is that you’ll need good internet. If you’re struggling to get a good connection, at first think about boosting the signal. You might need a wifi booster to do this properly. Place it strategically. This is important especially if you usually work far away from the router. If that’s not the case, consider using an ethernet cable. A wired connection is always stronger than a wireless one. If this still isn’t working, speak to your provider. It might be that there’s an issue somewhere on the line which you can sort out, or they might be strangling your connection. If it’s just slow, you might just have to bite the bullet and pay for faster internet. Remember to compare what’s out there first as you could end up saving money rather than upgrading with your current provider.

Incentivise Good Behaviour

When kids are stuck inside for a long time it can get pretty tough. They’re used to spending time with their friends and having fun as well as learning. It’s why being stuck at home can lead to bad behaviour. Getting out and about can help, but so can incentivising any good behaviour. This can be time allowed on a games console, or maybe a gift they want, or some pocket money they can use. If you incentivise something it makes it far more attractive. Of course, doing this means you can’t raise the bar too high. The prize has to be attainable. At the same time, you don’t want to give too much for little reward or there won’t be a need on their part. Striking the balance is really important otherwise this won’t work. You also need to be consistent between your children if you have more than one. It can get expensive quickly, so maybe weekly or even monthly targets are needed.

What do you do when you and your family are stuck inside? Have you got plans in case of a second lockdown?

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