Not all work from home parents are homeschooling at the same time. But it is a good bet, in this day and age, that if you are homeschooling, you are also trying to work from home. Not only are there so many flexible options for parents to do this, but it often helps fund the homeschooling life you are living.

However, this is a tough balance. It is almost like having two full time jobs. The homeschool life is a full time commitment, in many ways; and any work from home effort requires plenty of your mental attention as well. 

Today, I am sharing lessons learned with my family, from over a decade of balancing homeschooling and working from home.

Use time blocks. 

For a long time, I would simply sail through my day with a giant to-do list and haphazardly do whatever I felt I could handle next, along the way getting distracted by every demand from a child or a text… Sure, I checked things off my list, but not efficiently, and definitely not with any sense of purpose or direction. I was in survival mode. 

I carried this mode right into the beginning days of homeschooling, and quickly realized we needed a little more structure and managed expectations for each day. 

Add in me, as the homeschooling mom, trying to work from home on the side, and we clearly needed a better system. 

I tried strict scheduling. That’s a nope for me (and my kids!). 

I tried no structure at all (again). Also a big nope. 

We gradually found our happy place in time blocks. Modes. Rhythms. Whatever you want to call them. THIS is my recommended method for balancing working from home and homeschooling. 

What are Time Blocks?

The basic idea behind time blocks is to assign a certain type of task to a specific section of the day. During that block, you are FREE to focus on that type of task, and save all others until their designated block of time.  The other side of that coin is that you are EXPECTED to focus on your work and free to stop when the time block is over.

I also think of them as “modes.” For example, after my own breakfast, I go into “Kitchen Mode.” Tasks related to cooking and dishes are my least favorite. But when I am in “Kitchen Mode,” I don’t have a choice but to do those tasks (momentarily ignoring other demands on my attention). It helps my motivation to know that I am free to be done with kitchen tasks for the morning when I am done with that block of time.

Some types of time blocks/modes I use in my days include:

• Kitchen Mode
• Homeschooling
• Client work
• Connecting with my kids (outside of schoolwork)
• Connecting with my husband
• Taking care of me
• Tidy up
• Planning Mode 

This last “Planning Mode” is where I take time to plan where all these time blocks go each day and what I will accomplish during them. I also am free to do meal planning, homeschool lesson planning… whatever is related to planning! Time blocking works best when you plan it out ahead of time.

Tips for using time blocks

This method works best when you enable yourself (and others in your household) to both focus on the tasks for the current block of time and avoid getting distracted by tasks for other blocks of time. Here are some tips to help with this mindset:

1. “Be where your feet are.” I put this in quotes because it is not original to me; I have heard it said by various people before. We are talking about your mind. Your mind needs to be where you are, doing what you are supposed to be doing. You are FREE TO FOCUS on your current mode. Have this phrase in your mind to help yourself focus. 
2. Have a sticky note nearby to write down items that come up which are unrelated to your current mode. For example, if you are doing client work and a text comes through regarding your child’s event next week, write it on your sticky note to handle during your planning time later. If your brain remembers you have to send an email to a client, but you are having quality time with a child… it goes on a sticky note for your work block later. 

Manage expectations 

Here is where the teamwork really begins. You can have all the goals you want, but if your family does not know your goals, you are swimming upstream, especially if it involves them!

Think about your expectations for your work time blocks. Do you want or need to be in complete isolation? Will you be working in the family room, but expect everybody to be quiet? Or can you do your work with the TV on and kids playing around you or working alongside you? 

Now think about your expectations for homeschool time blocks. Are you leading group work? Is everybody working independently? Are you all sharing a table, or is everybody in their own spot? Is there music? Quiet? Snacks? 

Be realistic. Write these ideas down, and communicate them to your family. This could be a quick family meeting, a discussion of a visual chart or schedule you’ve made, or just pulling aside each kid separately to talk about it all and answer any questions they have. (Some of my kids really do listen better when I talk to them one-on-one, than they do in a group.)

Manage your family’s expectations of how the day will go and what needs to happen during each time block, by thinking through your expectations and communicating them clearly.

 Enlist the help of your kids

This is the magic sauce… the secret ingredient that thoroughly brings balance to your work from home/homeschool life. This element is customizable for whatever your family needs, but there are some key areas where homeschool students can help out.

The main area is housework. I believe household chores should be part of a healthy homeschool routine anyway. This is especially the case if you are using part of your day to work a job. Enlist the help of your kids. Make a schedule, start a rotation, pass out daily assignments… whatever it needs to look like for your home. 

Older students can also begin to help with the planning of life: planning their schedules and routines or meal planning, for example. Part of parenting is preparing our children to function as adults on their own eventually. Helping you plan and balance life is such a valuable part of this.

It is very possible to work from home and homeschool your children. The main keys to this balance are to use time blocks, manage everybody’s expectations for how the day will go, and enlist the help of your kids along the way. Your family has to be a team in all the ways.

Don’t forget to customize this for your family. Do what works for you. Don’t fight your family’s natural rhythms. If you are late sleepers, don’t plan a day that begins at 6 AM. It’s okay to think outside the box! Homeschooling will NOT look like regular school. Working from home will NOT look like a regular job. This is YOUR life. Balance it YOUR way, using these time-tested tips.