In the first days of school closure, the district supplied online Bingo cards along with activities related to grade-appropriate learning objectives, Halfhill explained. The goal is to fill up the Bingo cards by completing the activities.

A first-grade activity might be a scavenger hunt through the house to find geometric shapes, while a fifth-grader might be working on fractions, he said.

Now the district also has linked students to online learning platforms such as ST Math and Prodigy that teach math and computer coding and Lexia that focuses on reading and grammar.

To keep the household functioning, "we balance," Halfhill said. "When I have to be online, I try to get the girls learning at grade-appropriate activities."

He tries to maintain a 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule.

When his 10 a.m. commitment online is finished — he records and posts lectures and maintains office hours to "meet" with students — he checks on the girls, then they have a snack and move on to the next activity.

"We have a schedule, but it often breaks down," Halfhill said. "Sometimes we succeed and sometimes we do not. Days are tough. It's hard to keep everyone happy."