school

Going Back to School as a Stay-at-Home Parent

You are a stay-at-home parent who helps to get back into the workforce or launch your own company. And you need to expand your knowledge and skill set beforehand. Returning to school can seem like an intimidating prospect, especially when you’re juggling childcare and other responsibilities. But with the right combination of planning and determination, nothing can stop you from accomplishing your goals! Today, Danielle Rivenbark shares some tips to help you get started.

We quietly started our homeschool journey

If you had told me seven years ago that I would be the one educating my kids from my dining room table, I would not have believed it. My husband and I both are the products of public school education. Parenting is hard enough and now it’s my responsibility to make sure they can grow up to be productive citizens?!?! I’m just coming out of the haze of having four kids in five years! No way I can do this! And yet here we are. Last week we quietly started our homeschool journey.

How to Design a Distraction-Free Workspace for Your Kids

Is homework clogging up your kitchen table, or is your kid’s violin practice becoming too much for your living room? Setting up a dedicated, distraction-free space for your kids to help get their work done has some major benefits for their education and your peace of mind. Whether it’s getting their science projects done or working on their latest musical masterpiece, here are a few ways you can set up a workspace of their very own:

Back to School Ideas for Your Special Needs Kiddos!

Today is the first day of school and while my oldest, Gardner, is now a First Grader cue tears he is still just six years old and I wanted to make his transition as seamless as possible for him. As many of you know he has autism, but after many meetings, testing sessions, and conversations with the school he doesn’t qualify for an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). He does have a 504 in place, which is basically a step below an IEP, but we all know how crazy the first few days of school can be, so to make sure that he had what he needed we did a few things to make his life (and his teacher’s life) a little easier.

I phoned in my "mom responsibilities" last week... then I called in reinforcements

Last week was “Career Day” at Gardner’s school. This meant that on Friday, Gardner needed to go to school dressed up as what he wanted to be when he grew up. I knew about this on Monday, so we had all week to get his costume together. Simple enough right?… Sure!… If you remember that it’s Career Day on Friday, but if you completely forget about the teacher’s note as soon as you read it until Friday morning when Gardner says he needs to dress up as a recycling man… then not so much.

How I was reminded to change my attitude about school this year

Remote learning for 9 weeks…. 9 whole weeks… at least! That’s the news we got last month about the re-opening of schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yes, I know it’s safer for our awesome teachers and families, especially those that are at risk. Yes, I know that bringing the kids into school would both cost a lot more for cleaning and possibly put the kids at risk. Yes, I want to be a good citizen and protect others. However… NINE. WHOLE. WEEKS. TEACHING. AT. HOME. I was terrified. I AM TERRIFIED.