This story is part of “Parenting in a Pandemic,” WTOP’s continuing coverage of how parents are dealing with child care, schooling and more through the coronavirus pandemic.
For many parents, the stress of juggling work from home and their children’s virtual learning is overwhelming. But one expert says with a little forward thinking, doing less could be more beneficial.
Ann Dolin, president of Educational Connections tutoring center, told WTOP the best way to manage your child’s learning from home is to “prioritize completion over quality.”
“Really right now, parents’ job is to make sure kids are logged in on time, they’re engaged with their teacher and they do their work, and leave the quality up to the teacher,” she said.
Dolin said a good way to keep kids on task is to print out their class schedule and have a brief conversation with the child first thing every morning to make sure they understand what they have to do that day.
“So, having those quick conversations with kids helps them to think ahead about the day, when otherwise, they might just be in the moment,” she said.
According to Dolin, setting up an individual space for your child — like their own desk — is another way to promote good workflow. However, Dolin said to be mindful of potential distractions for the child.
“Generally for younger students, the bedroom is just inherently too distracting,” she said.
Dolin added, “Ideally, if your child is in elementary or middle school it should be in earshot from you so that you’re able to just check on your child throughout the day.”
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