4 Strategies for Homeschooling with Babies and Toddlers

When young children are in the home, it is a full-time job just to meet basic needs, much less actually educate someone. There’s no doubt that homeschooling would be much easier if everyone were old enough to maintain attention, read independently, and stay on task.

What does a homeschool mom do until little ones are old enough to read and write on their own? Try these four strategies.

1. Arrange homeschooling schedules creatively

Homeschool does not have to look like public school! A homeschool schedule should fit the needs of the family; the family should not be slaves to the schedule.

When babies and toddlers are in the home, “school time” will often work best if it is scheduled around times when the young ones are either asleep, in a good mood, or likely to be happily occupied on their own.

Some specific suggestions include:

• Do the most challenging work with older students (and the work that requires the most teaching on your part) during the little ones’ naps.
• Save some work for older children for when younger siblings go to bed for the night.
• Prepare food for younger children and do some teaching with older kids while the younger ones are occupied with eating.
• Do some school on the weekends or evenings when dad is home to keep the young ones occupied.
• Capitalize on nursing time as reading time or time to review.
• Do subjects (such as devotion time, music, or science) in which young kids can participate during the times little ones are awake, and save tabletop work for times little ones are asleep.
• Give toddlers one-on-one attention before you start school with older children to help them get their needs met so they will more likely be happy when Mom has to work with older siblings.

2. Include the little ones

As much as possible, let younger siblings join in school! Young children love to “do school”, and enjoy being able to participate with older siblings in academics. It’s the “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” approach – only this time it’s more about letting them join!

Some subjects naturally lend themselves to being done effectively with multiple ages, and others can be adapted so that toddlers and preschoolers can feel like they are a part.

Letting them participate as much as possible will help prepare young children for being able to do school on their own, will give them a positive perception about academic work, and will help them feel like an important part of the family. Some ideas:

• Let toddlers and preschoolers help with science experiments by gathering materials, pouring items, stirring, and touching as appropriate.
• Use unit studies, which include activities and learning objectives for multiple ages.
• Have young ones join in for reading time, or have older siblings read to the youngest ones while Mom reads to the middle children.
• Have preschoolers color a picture of whatever you are teaching to older kids.
• Let little hands play with math manipulatives as older kids learn math concepts.
• Give simple work for preschoolers that corresponds to what older kids are learning. For example, let them practice making letters during an older sibling’s English lesson, or count beads on an abacus during a Math lesson on addition.
• Let little ones dress up in costumes related to the story or time period being discussed in history. Then, have them act out whatever is being taught.

3. Have someone watch the younger children

Sometimes the best way to get school done is to get some help from others. If family members are around, try recruiting them once a week or so, to spend some special time with young siblings during older siblings’ school time.

This can be a wonderful chance for grandparents to get one-on-one time with grandchildren, when they normally only get to experience them “en masse”. But family members aren’t the only options:

• Hire a babysitter. Even twice a week for an hour or so, having someone take care of the younger children can make all the difference in completing the “can’t be disturbed during this part” academics.
• Hire a responsible 9-12-year old neighbor to spend an hour or two with the little ones during school time. This gives the babysitter a great experience (with Mom still at home in case of any major need), and usually, pre-teen kids really enjoy taking care of young children. They are often willing to help for very little money – some might even be willing to do it just for the experience if they are given some homemade cookies or treats for their efforts!
• Have an older sibling take care of babies and toddlers while Mom works with pre-readers (the most intensive and time-consuming age for homeschooling). Then, mom can teach the oldest child during the little ones’ naps.
• Swap childcare with another family. Once a week, agree to watch younger siblings for a homeschooling friend, while she teaches all of the older children. Then swap, and have her watch all of the young children on another day while you teach the older ones.
• Consider elderly neighbors. Elderly adults who are still able-bodied often enjoy the opportunity to read to or play with young children. This especially works well when the senior citizen is able to babysit while Mom is still at home, homeschooling because he or she does not have to worry about physical limitations in being able to care for the kids. Even an hour or two once or twice a week of “reading time” with a senior citizen can give mom much-needed time to do academic work with older children. In exchange, the family can help the senior citizen take care of his or her yard or do other tasks that might be physically challenging.

4. Keep younger kids occupied during school time

One of the best ways to “get school done” is to have some special activities that the little ones are allowed to do only during school time. It also helps to let little kids do things that feel like school, so they get the sense that they are “doing school” too.

The key is to make whatever the activities are unique – resources or options that are not used at any other time but school time. Changing up the options is also very helpful so that they stay fresh and interesting. The more interested little ones are, the longer they will stay occupied!

Some suggestions for preschoolers:

• Keep a “school activity box” filled with special items that are only used at school time, such as scented markers, stickers, colored pencils, coloring books, a paper punch and paper, a magic slate, or puzzles.
• Lacing beads
• Scissors and blank paper
• Books on CD
• String pasta onto yarn
• Styrofoam packing peanuts
• Play dough and cookie cutters
• Paint with shaving cream in the bathtub
• Lacing cards
• Make a writing tray by putting rice in a cookie sheet – use fingers to write or draw
• Bucket of water and paintbrush for outside painting
• Throw bean bags into a bucket
• Letter magnets on the refrigerator door
• Put pennies or buttons into a plastic bottle
• Special dress-up box (only brought out at school time)
• Play with several large boxes and some blankets
• If all else fails, stream an educational show!