Does this father’s story sound familiar to you? 

“I have four kids and three of them are in elementary school. One of the main issues with virtual learning is the coordination. So many emails coming in. So many assignments we have to check. So many Google classrooms we have to sign into. Just going through and searching for the links we need takes a lot of time. When you have multiple kids and no central location where you can do it all, it makes it super difficult.”

When we talked to this parent he said he is sure many other parents with multiple children feel the exact same way navigating the world of online learning in the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic. 

Virtual learning creates some convenience: children can work from the comfort of home and won’t be able to leave a homework assignment behind. But it also creates challenges. Those challenges multiply if a parent has several children of different ages. 

Here are 3 tips for managing virtual learning with multiple children: 

Work from the same schedule. Try to get children on the same schedule with each other. This especially applies to scheduling breaks and free time. It can be difficult for one child to concentrate if they see others are playing or relaxing. 

Maintain your own boundaries. You won’t be able to attend to all your childrens’ requests and questions as well as your own work simultaneously. Create a strong boundary when you are working and can’t respond to your child’s request so that you don’t try to juggle too much and burn out. 

Collaborate with your children on solutions. Each family will face its own unique challenges with distanced learning. Whether it’s trouble focusing, sibling fighting, cabin fever, or screen fatigue, bring your children in on finding solutions. Ask them what would help them be successful and if they have creative ideas for navigating difficulties. 

It’s hard to parent and it’s hard to teach and it’s very hard to do both at the same time. That’s why we designed TeachPar—to help parents, students and schools navigate the challenges of virtual learning. TeachPar keeps things organized with calendar syncing, assignment cards, and consolidation of assignments and due dates. 

To learn more, visit www.teachpar.com.