Household Management for Homeschool Moms

Household Management While Homeschooling

If you’re a stay-at-home, work-from-home, homeschool mom like myself, you may be struggling to find your flow when it comes to household management!

Trust me, you are not alone, my friend.

Figuring out how to get the kids through their homeschool day, keep the house clean, finish work projects, and actually manage to get dinner on the table is literally the hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life!

While no system for the overwhelming task of household management is perfect, these are the 7 things I lean on for keeping up with household management while homeschooling.

7 Easy Ways to Tackle Household Management While Homeschooling

Not sure how to sneak in all those pesky household tasks while you’re at home with the kiddos all day?

Check out how I steal little moments for household management throughout our homeschool day.

• Utilize Independent Learning Times

This little tip might just change your life as a homeschool mom.

If you have young children that require a lot of hands-on education time, you may feel completely overwhelmed trying to find the time for housework and other mundane tasks during the day.

That is why independent learning times are essential for successful household management!

Handwriting practice, coloring sheets, and fun manipulative learning tools are all wonderful examples of independent learning times.

Schedule these moments or let them come naturally, either way, use this time to complete simple household tasks throughout your homeschool day!

I’m actually a huge planner and prefer to lean on a homeschool block schedule which allows me to plan and complete certain household tasks during specific homeschool hours.

For example, a typical handwriting time in our house lasts around 10-15 minutes and I always use that time to start my first load of laundry for the day.

It’s a constant that I can depend on every single homeschool day.

Plus, it helps us all have fresh underwear on a daily basis.

Which is definitely important, you guys!

Other simple things I lean on for my little ones so that I can focus on important tasks such as meal prep, bathroom breaks, and phone calls are simple learning manipulative items and hands-on kindergarten activities.

Take some time to think about what independent learning times you can incorporate into your daily homeschool routine and go from there.

• Schedule Free Time

Yes, yes, yes!

Planning free time for the kiddos each day can give you just the time you need to regroup and tackle a few important household tasks.

Our morning free time is placed strategically in between language arts & math.

I do this simply because at that point in our morning, I need just a few quiet moments to myself.

After all, the kids have already been learning for over an hour and our hardest subject is on the horizon.

With that said, this free time is as much for the kiddos as it is for me.

I typically take this free time to catch up on tasks I didn’t get completed before we started school, or if I’m caught up and things are in order, I use it to freshen up by throwing on a little makeup or running a brush through my hair.

The point is simple, I use this time to be productive in some sense of the word.

After all, house management truly is anything and everything that involves keeping the house running smoothly — which includes taking care of yourself.

Sometimes I utilize our free time for simple self-care so that I can refresh and be motivated to tackle larger tasks and other times it’s for tossing a second load of laundry in or meal planning for the upcoming week.

Each task is incredibly essential, you guys!

2 Tips for a Successful Free Time:

#1 Plan Multiple Free Times

We actually have multiple free times incorporated into our daily homeschool schedule.

While the first one is simple and its purpose is clear, our second free time serves multiple purposes.

In our homeschool, we utilize a simple quiet time routine for the little one and a fun looping schedule full of afternoon extras for the big kids.

This is a 45-minute chunk of time where I can get a handful of important tasks completed.

It’s just so good, you guys!

#2 Don’t overthink it

While planning multiple free times is a great idea, overplanning those periods can consume excess time and make the task of household management even more overwhelming!

Think simple.

Send the kid to ride bikes with their walkie-talkies or set up a simple table inside for hands-on play.

With that said, there is one final secret to getting all the things done. The secret is, there is no secret! 

Using your time wisely is the best you can do, Mama!

• Have a Daily Quiet Time

As I briefly mentioned above, I lean on a simple quiet time routine for my youngest and it has forever changed the flow of our homeschool.

I was stressed the max when I first implemented quiet time as a part of our daily homeschool routine.

My daughter was at the age most would still consider ‘napping age’, however, she hadn’t actually taken a daily nap for years.

This kiddo definitely kept me on my toes by fighting her daily nap from the beginning and then completely weaning herself off of them before the age of 2!

To say I needed this quiet time to work on household tasks is a total understatement, you guys!

If you have a little one that still needs to rest in the afternoons but fights naptime like it’s the devil, starting an afternoon quiet time routine is a must.

It can be a total game-changer, you guys!

• Create a Looping Schedule

While quiet time is great for the little ones, sometimes you need something a little more structured and planned out when it comes to keeping the big kids busy.

As I briefly mentioned above, our quiet time routine and homeschool loop schedule both take place during our afternoon free time period.

With that said, creating a loop schedule full of fun homeschool activities and educational projects is ideal for keeping big kids busy so Mom can focus on household management while homeschooling.

The beautiful part of utilizing this type of free time for your kiddos is that you can easily turn it into an extra period of independent learning – and your kids may not even realize it!

The key is to make this time engaging and fun, focusing on subjects and activities your kiddos enjoy.

• Go With the Flow

If your child is enjoying a task or project, let them extend it!

After all, homeschooling is all about flexibility, right??

I’ll be the first to admit that this was super difficult for me at first.

I thrive on schedule and routine.

However, once I started to let go and allow my flexibility to increase, I was completely shocked at how much more actually got accomplished during our homeschool day.

If my 5-year-old daughter is playing quietly with her math manipulates 15 minutes after our math lesson is over and I have an article I need to polish up or a bathroom that needs a good solid cleaning, you better believe I roll with it and let the girl play on!

When my 11-year-old son wants to extend his lesson in geography and study it further instead of immediately moving on to our next task together, I take hold of that moment and throw in a second load of laundry.

This totally works, you guys!

Being flexible and stealing little moments throughout the day when my kids are busy will always be my number-one go-to for staying on top of household management!

Plus, there will always, always be time to catch up on lessons later.

• Stay Up Late or Get Up Early

Okay, I’m definitely not a fan of this option.

With that said, it is definitely a valid alternative and one that you may need to lean on from time to time.

If you are struggling with finding those extra moments throughout the day due to a colicky baby, hyperactive/special needs child, or even other unexpected interruptions, this might just be the best option for you.

As a busy homeschool mom, this is definitely my reality sometimes!

I’m not an early bird whatsoever.

So, if I have extra tasks that creep up throughout my day, I definitely opt for the late evening hours instead.

While I typically try to set aside most of my evenings for relaxing and a little self-care, there are some evenings that absolutely have to be set aside for working.

If they weren’t, I would get so far behind on the hectic days that I would absolutely never catch up!

While I hate to admit it, staying up late or getting up early is sometimes a must for the homeschool mom who is struggling with household management!

Just try not to make it an everyday occurrence, or you will find yourself suffering from constant burnout.

Try scheduling once or twice a week where you are up before the kids, or work on things for the first hour after they are in bed.

Small changes sometimes make the largest impact!

• Take a Day Off

While this may sound counterproductive, I’m totally serious.

If you truly need help getting a handle on household management while homeschooling, taking a day off from all home and school responsibilities might be just what the doctor ordered.

Give yourself a day to take time to assess your current situation while allowing yourself to rest and reset.

Taking the day off to refresh and plan can be the encouraging motivator you need to keep pushing forward.

Start your day off with a little me time.

Then, if necessary, quickly proceed to planning your catch-up day.

I always plan my catch-up day with coffee and a notebook.

Which allows me to tackle this day off like a pro.

Find some time during your day off to refresh and do something for yourself, but also make sure you use your day off wisely.

Be proactive and plan how you will get back into gear once your day off is over.

Just make sure to keep it light and simple.

Household Management While homeschooling

Final inspiration for the mom struggling with household management while homeschooling.

It’s hard wearing all the hats, but know you aren’t alone in this struggle!

Don’t be afraid to ask for help, let certain things go, and take time off.

Give yourself a little grace, mama!

The days are long but the years are short.

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