Short answer, YES!
In our household, both parents work full-time out of the home and we homeschool multiple children. Is it easy? Not always, but it’s possible and we are really enjoying it.
The first thing you have to do when thinking about making the switch to homeschool is forget everything you know about a traditional school. There is no possible way if you work 8-5, you can homeschool from 8-5. You have to figure out how to work a homeschool schedule around your work schedule. Guess what? It’s ok to teach at 6 o’clock at night, it’s also ok to do lessons on Saturdays! You make the rules and figure out what works best for you and your kids.
What about childcare?
This topic I am going to touch on very briefly, you need to figure out what works for your family, school shouldn’t be looked at as childcare anyway. Thankfully we have a great family support system that assists us in that area, but all they do is provide care, they do not assist with any homeschooling- that is all on us as parents.
What does our schedule look like?
I only plan out 1 week at a time, I spend 1 hour on a Sunday planning our week. I plan daily, individual tasks Monday – Thursday that should only take a couple hours to complete. My kids enjoy using technology, and this helps TONS while working full-time and homeschooling. This is huge when trying to homeschool and work, you must have INDEPENDENT children. Besides their online lessons, which take only 20-40 minutes per day, I plan out supplemental worksheets and projects. My goal is 2-3 hours MAX per day on schoolwork.
So can you do it? Can you work full-time and homeschool?
Of course, but it’s going to take work. My biggest recommendation is to plan 1 week at a time, plan around your work schedule, and share this with your kids. This might even take a bit of “unschooling” to get yourself and them use to a non-traditional school schedule. One of the great benefits of homeschooling is you do it your way and what works best for your family, once you have that understanding you can do anything!
I would love to hear how you balance working and homeschooling! Please leave a comment below!
