We have all been there. You wake up with a terrible cold and fever or you have a migraine that rocks your whole life. I live with chronic pain and have for about 5 years now. I have had many days where I just couldn’t get anything done. But, that little guilty feeling creeps in and I just have to get some kind of school work done with my kids.
Over the years I have come up with a few ways to get some kind of schooling done when I am sick or in too much pain to formally teach. I have gotten a little creative with some of my ideas as well.
One of the ways that I school when I am sick is “Netflix”. Yup, good old TV. A lot of people don’t do electronics or TV. That is okay. I do. I will give my oldest son a list of “approved” shows for when I am sick and he can search for them and watch them with the other boys. Usually, the list includes mostly educational shows that pertain to something we are already learning about. There are many lists on the internet for ideas of shows.
Another way that I school when I am sick is to send my kids outside with their nature journals. They have special nature journals and pencils that I keep available to them. I give them a few ideas about what to look for outside depending on the season and weather. They have free-reign to draw to their hearts desire. When I am feeling well again we research what they drew and learn more about those items.
I also like to read aloud to my children when I am sick (as long as I am not feverish or contagious). I get a few good books and our current read aloud and gather my boys on the couch. We snuggle and read until we get tired of it. We then talk about the books together. It has opened up some great discussions.
If I am too sick to read to them myself, I have a quite a few audio books to put in the CD player. I am always on the lookout for good audio books for my kids. The library has a good selection as well. They sometimes sell them to the public for very cheap. I like to grab them up when I see them like that.
We have games that are special for sick days as well. They are games that they don’t normally get to play. That way it keeps them busier so I can get a little rest. Sometimes they need a little help but I can sit in a comfortable chair next to them and direct them as needed.
My kids all have their own tablets. They are inexpensive ones and I have pre-loaded them with educational apps. They are allowed one non educational app each. On days that are really bad, I let them have free time on their tablets. They must do an educational app first and then they can play their “fun” app. This gives them a little bit of both worlds.
One last thing I do when I am sick is to let it go. That’s right. Homeschooling moms have a lot going on. Having a sick day to recuperate is okay. Let the kids play, watch a little TV, draw, and anything else so you can get some rest. Let the guilt go. Most homeschoolers get more done in the few hours a day they actually do school work than public school kids do in the long days they are away.
P.S. I am writing this post as I sit here with the sniffles and coughing and sneezing. No school work got done this week. I used some of my suggestions above but also had a free day of doing nothing. Happy Homeschooling!
