Now that we are finishing up week 3 of virtual schooling we are doing our best to have some semblance of a routine. And we have figured out some things that have helped us balance it all that I am sharing today. If you are virtual schooling with your child or know someone who is, I hope you find these items helpful! We definitely have!
1. Blue light blocking glasses
We are all spending so much more time at our computers, especially our children. I worry that their eyes will see the affects of that blue light if we don’t take care to protect their eyes. I ordered some blue light glasses from amazon; a pack of 3 and then another, nicer pair. Good thing I had so many pairs because my family each took a pair! Matt has been using them for work and Claire has been SO good about using them during school. She absolutely loves them! And she has said they help her eyes not feel so tired at the end of the day and prevent headaches (apparently she got headaches at school, who knew?!).
We are a shoes-off household and I realized how much more time I’ve been spending barefoot a few months after quarantine began. My feet started aching towards the end of the day on my heels and in my arches. I finally had a lightbulb moment and since then have been making a conscious attempt to wear my summer slippers or a pair of my running socks around the home. Now that fall has begun, socks will be more of a part of all of our daily outfits. I was sent some Feetures Everyday Crew socks to try. I already had running socks I personally purchased and some of their No Show socks. You would not believe what a difference well-made socks can make, especially when you spend 90% of the day without shoes. The Everyday socks are specially made specific to each foot to help with arch support. They are also VERY breathable. I kid you not, I have never had a blister while wearing a pair of Feetures socks, and as a runner, that says a lot. Feetures cares men’s and women’s sizes as well as youth sizes for your children. Good socks are important!
3. A timer
Why a timer? Well young children have a harder time monitoring themselves during independent learning. So they may miss signing back onto Zoom for live teaching unless they have a timer to remind them. We’ve been using a visual timer to help Claire see how much time she has left on her independent activities before checking in with the teacher or beginning her next subject. Setting it with just a few minutes less (25 minutes for a 30 minute block of time), allows the child time for transitioning and cleaning up before signing on. And it allows for that extra time to sign on if there are zoom issues!
Are your kids as messy as mine?! I am playing school custodian and virtual school assistant! I’m so sick of crumbly snacks so part of our end-of-day routine is to have Claire use a handheld vacuum around her desk and clean up the crumbs.
As quiet as we try and keep the room where Claire is doing schoolwork, it just isn’t reality to have a perfect environment all the time. We have a pair of headphones with a mic so Claire has the option of listening through the computer speakers or via her headphones or switching back and forth-whatever helps her concentrate best!
