Keep Everyone Organized and On Task Like a Pro!

Conquer the Crazy

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I am writing this from the point of view of a single mother with four kids. If I can do it, you can definitely do it! 

It took me awhile to figure out how to succeed with this remote learning thing while working a full time job. I was more than crazy at first. I have one child that absolutely STRUGGLES in school. And I mean the struggle bus hit her hard. I never thought I would be able to do it all will all of my hair still intact.

I have great news though, you can! Not only can you do this and do great, you can feel great too!

I have so much advise on this topic but I decided to narrow it way down to 6 BASIC SURVIVAL tools. If you can stick to these 6 rules, your life will be much easier. 

Once again, I’m writing this from my perspective. I had absolutely no help at all. The kids had to stay home themselves (teens are old enough to supervise) while I was stuck at work all day. There’s no rest for healthcare!

1. Buy a Home Camera System.

This is the exact home security camera system that I have. I bought mutliple cameras for each room. Why do I love it so much?

• You can talk through it via an app on your phone.
• You can set it to movement so your phone is alerted any time there is movement. It will take a picture immediately and alert you day or night.
• You can keep your kids accountable by logging in at certain times to make sure they’re doing their work.
• You can zoom in to see what they are working on.
• The kids get used to being spyed on and will automatically do what they are supposed to do after some time.
• You can prop up your phone right beside your desk and watch your kids all day long.
• If they aren’t answering their phone, you can see why. 
• You can buy a camera for outside use so that you can see before someone knocks on the door.
• You can hear and listen in to what is going on all day long!

Have I mentioned that I love this?! I had a desk job and a really cool boss when I first bought these cameras. They are simply amazing. I propped my phone up where customers could not see and put it on mute.

**Make sure you bring your power cord though because it can drain your battery faster than normal.

If I could see the kids picking at each other, I simply turned on the microphone button and yelled at them through my phone. They were always startled lol. It wasn’t long before they behaved and did what they needed to do in fear I was watching. 

I also loved that I could zoom in and see what schoolwork they were working on. I could tell if they were on the computer doing what they needed to be doing. SO COOL!

There was also a time when I had a lengthy hospital stay for testing and had to be away from home. Before the kids left to spend that time with their father, they couldn’t find the cats. Everyone was afraid that the cats were locked in a bedroom. I set my cameras to motion detection and soon enough screenshots of all cats were sent right to my phone!

I could think of a million ways this camera can be useful but I’ll spare you the lengthy novel. I think all single moms should have this. 

2. Schedule, Schedule, Schedule!

Schedules are so important it’s crazy. If you would’ve told me as a teenager that I would love schedules, I’d laugh straight in your face! I’m so NOT a scheduler. I’m more of a free flowing flower loving gypsy. Ha. But then….KIDS. So yeah. Schedule is a survival mechanism for us all. 

We use an old cell phone to set every single thing to an alarm. I have matching alarms on my phone so that I can check the camera to see if they are doing what they need to. I have no used the medication alarm above but I thought it was neat. Large print and you can label each alarm.

When I mention the scheduling don’t freak out. It doesn’t have to be super complex or crazy. Just make sure you keep the kids busy busy busy. When they are busy, they are more likely to keep active and not cause trouble. And by busy, I don’t mean actually busy. Let me explain.

They need time for rest and play too. These things are so important just like school work is. My kids loved their free time and couldn’t wait for it every day. Our schedule looked something like this:

8:00 a.m. Breakfast

8:45 a.m. Get Dressed and Log into school board.

10:00 a.m. Snack and Drink

10:15 a.m. More School

11:00 a.m. Break and Free Time with Stretching

12:00 a.m. Lunch

1:00 p.m. School work

2:00 p.m. Free Time and Craft

3:00 p.m. Any Extra School work or reading then Free Time

5:00 p.m. Chores 

Always make them do chores right before you come home. You’ll be in a MUCH better mood and they won’t have a chance to mess it right back up after. This made a WORLD of difference for me. I liked to come home and relax. My kids would also be responsible for starting dinner one day a week. They are gone on the weekends and there is four of them. That left me with ONE day to start dinner. ONLY ONE! Ahhhh

But once again, I have teenagers. The teens did the harder dinners that included stove top cooking. The younger preteens were more responsible for things like tuna and crackers, fish sticks in the toaster oven, grilled cheese on the George Foreman Grill..etc.

Depending on what your school requires, your schedule will differ from mine but you get the basic idea.

3. Every Kid has Their OWN SPACE

Every kid must have their own space. Now I know that there are many people like me with limited space and impossible situations. This may not seem realistic. I’m telling this absolutely is a must.

The kids need their own space for schoolwork. Keep it simple. The desks above are amazing. You can mount the one right on the wall. The other one can be set right on their lap. Look for storage options as well as room for a laptop.

I have just one printer and the cord is taped to the small desk that it’s on! If someone needs to print, they walk their laptop over and hook it up to print. We also have that same small area with a labeled basket for crayons, pens, pencils, clean paper, done schoolwork, tape..etc.

Let me note that a space for done homework is very important. We used it a lot when my child “thought” they uploaded their work and it didn’t go through. It also allowed me to sit down and look through their work later on.

4. Keep a Dinner Menu

Dinner menu is also a massive help. You are going to need time to go over homework and schoolwork when you get home. The absolute last thing you should be thinking about is dinner. Plus, like I mentioned before, my kids need to know what to start before I get home. This also prevents the amount of take out because of everyone is too tired.

It doesn’t have to be difficult or complex either! When I first started the dinner menu, it really stressed me out. I thought every single meal had to be loaded with nutrition. That’s great but if it’s totally unrealistic, don’t do it! You can add nutrition here and there without going crazy.

We use our microwave for a 6 week menu. It simply recycles over and over. I just change the dates! Of course there are days where no one feels like eating what is planned and we change it up a bit. But the basis for dinner time makes it amazing!

If you are having the kids help out with dinner, this will also allow you to plan out easy meals on their days. 

We put ours on the microwave

because it’s right in your face to look at while cooking. Another amazing thing about a dinner menu is realizing when you need to thaw meat. I’m so terrible at that. You can also plan your grocery run WAY EASIER AND CHEAPER! Amazing.

5. Pack Lunches and Meal Prep

Meal prep makes me batty and want to pull my own hair out. But stick with me here. If you hate it as much as I do, keep it simple. It is just as much as important as a dinner menu. Why?

• The kids will go for junk and crash through the day.
• There will be way too much time spent holding the fridge open wondering what to eat and burning schoolwork time.
• The kids will be grumpy and crazy if they don’t eat right.
• Or absolutely STARVING when you come home….
• You’ll be starving with your crazy schedule and no time to pack.
• You’ll get take out way too often and spend more $ 

Just save yourself and meal prep! Please! It really doesn’t have to be a big deal. I love these boxes from Amazon. You can cut small pieces of cheese, meat, fruit and snacks for many days. Then put them in the refrigerator. I bought a different color for each kid and myself. Voila! 

Make sure you add a fun snack. I LOVE

I never rip off my pages either. There were many times that I had to flip back and see when things were due or appointments. I go as far as writing the due dates of every bill for the entire year! This keeps me on task. The kids also look when assignments are due or they have appointments. It’s great. 

We keep it simple too. We don’t have any elaborate system or anything. It works great for us. If it wasn’t for this giant calendar, my whole world would be lost!

The best thing about this calendar for homeschooling is that I can remind the kids when things are due and keep them on task. I look at it every morning on my way to the shower and on the way out the door.

I hope this list helps you in the crazy time! Let me know if it works out for you and your family. Lots of love!