The good news, as I learned then, is that you don’t have to recreate school at home, even for the short term. For most families, the best thing about homeschooling is the flexibility to do whatever fits your needs at the moment.

To show you how, I’m sharing some ideas to help you keep your kids learning and active while they’re stuck around the house, the best way to make those experiences meaningful and educational -- and how to maintain your sanity while you do it.



Be sure to also check out my books of hands-on learning activities, my project tutorials, and additional blog posts featuring tips for covering every subject for kids from elementary school on up!

Make Screen Time Worthwhile

If you opt for online school, virtual lessons and activities will fill at least part of the day.

But that doesn’t mean the rest of your kids’ time online has to be mindless entertainment. There are sites that offer straight school-type lessons, like Khan Academy. But kids will enjoy, and learn from, information presented in less static ways too. For instance, they can:

Practice a new language with an app like Duolingo.

Watch science in action with exciting shows like Mythbusters Jr..

Begin to program their own games and animations with free online software like MIT’s Scratch and Microsoft’s MakeCode.

﻿Learn 3D design with a collection of real-life “building” objects like pencils and cardboard tubes using the free online Tinkercad Making at Home collection.

Read or listen to e-books and audio books borrowed from your local public library!

Use What You Got

Homeschoolers know that kids can learn a lot just using stuff around the house. With you, or on their own, they can: