Ultimate List of Homeschooling Tips for Parents

When it comes to home education, you’re probably after all the help and advice you can get. After all, it’s a big commitment, but it might also be one of the best choices that you make as a family. 

Whether you’re a complete newbie looking for guidance from the start or just need some extra words of wisdom to help make things easier, these homeschooling tips are especially for you—the parents. This is the ultimate list of homeschooling tips, including tips for learning, staying organised, homeschooling multiple children, managing stress, and more!

Homeschooling Tips for Busy Parents

• Create time blocks throughout the day for homeschooling, work, and personal time.
• Outsource where possible, whether it’s hiring a tutor or getting meal subscriptions.
• Use flexible homeschooling methods.
• Incorporate learning into your daily activities. 
• Collaborate with other homeschooling parents and take turns hosting learning sessions.
• Be flexible with your schedule.
• Plan ahead and work in batches.
• Get help from friends and family and delegate tasks.
• Encourage spontaneous learning.
• Focus on short learning bursts.
• Join a homeschool group and an online community.
• Schedule time for self-care.
• Use educational apps for learning.
• Create time for a ‘power hour’ where you focus solely on homeschooling.
• Invest in learning packs, which are a real time-saver!
• Set aside a specific time each week to plan out lessons and gather materials.
• Create a ‘learning on the go’ kit.
• Use audiobooks or educational podcasts to engage your kids.
• Keep homeschooling simple.
• Schedule a flexible catch-up day.

Homeschooling Tips for Learning

• Encourage learning through play and use games to teach lessons.
• Set up learning stations for different subjects.
• Create a learning lucky dip and get your kids to pick out a topic or idea each day.
• Get your child to teach something back to you.
• Teach your child life skills.
• Do some project-based learning and do collaborative projects together.
• Learn with household objects and get creative.
• Put together a mystery box filled with items related to a topic you’re learning about.
• Do monthly or weekly learning themes.
• Do some interactive learning.
• Create a learning portfolio.
• Follow your child’s interests and personalise their learning.
• Go on a weekly field trip.
• Use a curriculum or create your own to suit your child’s needs and learning style.
• Create a learning basket for each subject.
• Tie learning to the seasons or holidays to make it more relevant.
• Embrace failure.
• Set up rotating learning stations around the house.
• Teach through songs and dance.
• Tie learning to current events.
• Ask open-ended questions to encourage exploration.
• Teach your child to view their mistakes as a valuable part of the learning process.
• Use visual tools like mind maps, charts, and diagrams.
• Keep a learning journal to record what your child learns and any ideas they discover.

Homeschooling Tips for Staying Organised

• Have a dedicated learning space at home.
• Keep all of your homeschooling stuff in one place.
• Organise your child’s learning and have folders for different subjects.
• Plan specific days or times for particular subjects or activities.
• Get a homeschool planner to help you stay on track.
• Create checklists and to-do lists for things you need to get done, learning, and goals.
• Use a physical or digital calendar to plan your days.
• Have a regular declutter and reorganise your homeschooling space.
• Create a folder for each week containing everything you need, like learning materials, books, and printables. 
• Create a rotation system for learning ideas and activities.
• Create lesson plan templates.
• Have a monthly homeschool review and see what’s working and what’s not.
• Create a homeschool inventory list.
• Prepare the night before and plan what you’re going to do.
• Assign each child and subject a specific colour, and use colour-coded folders, binders, and notebooks to organise materials.

Homeschooling Tips for Multiple Kids

• Have a schedule that is adaptable and which works for all your children.
• Encourage your older kids to help with their younger siblings.
• Use resources that are suitable for different age groups or that are age-appropriate.
• Go to flexible group activities.
• Dedicate equal amounts of time to each child.
• Celebrate their individual achievements.
• Get everyone involved, no matter the task.
• Set up independent activities for your children to work on.
• Get your friends and family involved with either homeschooling or helping out. 
• Prepare activity kits or learning bundles that fit each child’s individual needs or interests.
• Plan projects that all the kids can work on together.
• Assign different responsibilities according to age.
• Have each child keep a personal journal where they reflect on their day, write about what they’ve learnt, or set goals for the next day. 
• Plan for days where everyone focuses on the same theme or project, but at different levels.
• Collaborate on long-term projects together.

Homeschooling Tips for Keeping Kids Motivated

• Follow your child’s passions and interests.
• Create goals and set achievements for milestones.
• Switch up your learning style and make it fun.
• Let your child choose what to do for the day.
• Praise their efforts and not just results.
• Switch up the environment and learn somewhere different.
• Turn lessons into fun competitions. 
• Create a ‘success jar’ where your child writes down even small accomplishments on pieces of paper and adds them to the jar.
• Break up the day with fun activities.
• Make a large, colourful map or visual goal tracker that shows the journey of their education. 
• Give them creative projects to work on.
• Arrange group learning sessions with friends or other homeschool families. 
• Link lessons to their dreams and aspirations.
• Make a visual timeline that shows the steps your child needs to take to complete a project or topic.

Homeschooling Tips for Balancing Life and Work

• Set boundaries for work, homeschooling, and personal life and dedicate specific times to them.
• Set realistic expectations with your employer about your availability.
• Work in short bursts to stay productive.
• Be flexible in your schedule in case plans change at any time.
• Homeschool in the hours when you are the most productive or around your working schedule.
• Try not to ‘do it all’ and instead prioritise the tasks you need to.
• Use pre-recorded lessons or worksheets so that your child can work independently.
• Set realistic goals for work and homeschooling.
• Prepare meals in bulk to save time.
• Set up ‘work-free zones’ and ‘homeschool-free zones.’
• Prioritise self-care and downtime. 

Homeschooling Tips for Managing Stress

• Practise self-care together when it’s needed most, but also make it a part of your routine.
• Don’t expect perfection—every day is different.
• Create a slow morning routine.
• Connect with other homeschooling families who can offer you advice and support.
• Get your friends and family to help out when they can and share responsibilities with your partner.
• Take breaks regularly and know when it’s time to stop what you’re doing and recharge as a family.
• Use breathing techniques and meditation to help you in your most stressful moments.
• Keep things in perspective and remember that it’s okay to make mistakes and have bad days.
• Create a stress-free zone at home.
• Try stress-relieving activities together.
• Create a positivity or accomplishments jar to make yourselves feel better.
• Be realistic with your expectations.
• Start a gratitude journal.
• Use music to de-stress. 
• Give yourself and your child a break by designating one day a week as a ‘no-work’ day.

Homeschooling Tips for Socialisation

• Join a homeschool group and get to know other homeschooling families.
• Schedule regular meet-ups and group activities.
• Get out and about as much as you can.
• Let your children sign up for different clubs and extracurricular activities.
• Join an online community or get a penpal.
• Homeschool together with other families.
• Attend different events and perhaps volunteer somewhere.
• Create a socialisation calendar.
• Get together with other homeschooling families to work on a group project. 
• Organise social gatherings with other homeschooling families where each time has a different theme.
• Create a ‘skill swap’ with other families.
• Encourage your child to interact with children of different ages.
• Set up social time for parents too.

Homeschooling Tips for Managing Screen Time

• Make your boundaries clear about screen time and set limits for both educational and entertainment purposes.
• Use apps that are educational as well as fun.
• Find the right balance between screen time and hands-on activities.
• Be the role model and limit your own use of technology.
• Create spaces at home which are technology-free.
• Have regular screen-free days and do a digital detox.
• Encourage other activities and suggest trying new things.
• Host a ‘screen-free challenge.’
• Turn screen time into family time by watching educational content or documentaries together.
• Involve your child in creating a screen time agreement that includes clear rules on when and how long screen time will be allowed.
• Set alarms or use screen time apps to remind your child when it’s time to switch from digital activities to offline ones. 
• Regularly track how much time your child spends on screens.

Homeschooling Tips for Hands-On Learning

• Set up activity stations at home.
• Create sensory bins for different themes.
• Get crafty for every subject.
• Get outdoors and use nature for learning.
• Involve your children in daily activities like cooking.
• Use everyday items to help with learning.
• Do science experiments both indoors and outdoors.
• Let your children get messy and have fun.
• Encourage them to try new things and use their hands to explore.
• Create weekly STEM challenges.
• Use music and movement for educational purposes.
• Start a gardening project.
• Do weekly scavenger hunts for different themes.

Homeschooling Tips for Building a Support Network

• Join a local homeschool group as well as an online homeschooling community.
• Find homeschool events and activities in your area.
• Use forums and Facebook groups to connect with likeminded homeschoolers.
• Tell your friends and family about your homeschooling goals and ask for their support.
• Meet up with other homeschooling families.
• Connect with your local library for events and meet-ups.
• Seek out an experienced homeschool family who can serve as a mentor.
• Host regular homeschool hangouts for parents.
• Share resources with other homeschoolers.
• Start a homeschool newsletter or blog.
• Organise a swap with other homeschooling families where you take turns teaching subjects or providing childcare for each other’s children.
• Start a homeschool book club.
• Seek professional advice and help if you need it.

Homeschooling Tips for Schedules and Routines

• Have a consistent schedule which is also flexible when you need it to be.
• Create a solid morning routine to set you up for the day.
• Create an evening routine to help wind down.
• Create a visual schedule so everyone knows what to expect.
• Get your children involved with creating a schedule.
• Have a themed day at least once a week to keep things fun and interesting.
• Let your children make the decisions for a day.
• Set weekly goals.
• Have regular breaks throughout the day.
• Balance fun with homeschooling and downtime.
• Write a list of all your commitments and put them into your schedule.
• Work out how much time you have for homeschooling and dedicate time in your schedule for it.
• Divide your day into sections for different activities and commitments.
• Use blocks of time for independent learning and free time. 
• Review your schedule every week to see what’s working.
• Stay consistent but change things if you need to.

Homeschooling Tips for Creating Customisable Curricula

• Mix and match different resources from other curricula or free printables and worksheets.
• Focus on your child’s interests, hobbies, and passions.
• Use different learning methods like project-based or auditory learning.
• Create a curriculum that reflects your family’s values and priorities.
• Make sure your curriculum can be adjusted based on your child’s preferred learning style.
• Use both online and physical resources.
• Have a talk with your child about what they’d like to include in their curriculum.
• Create themed units for different subjects built into one big project.
• Involve your child in setting their own learning goals.
• Use a personalised timeline so that your child can learn at their own pace.
• Include real-life learning opportunities in your curriculum.
• Offer your child a ‘buffet’ of learning options each week where they can select the subjects or activities they want to focus on.
• Use online learning platforms for ideas and inspiration.
• Add life skills into your curriculum.
• Create a passion project.
• Personalise how you assess your child’s progress.
• Review and adjust your curriculum if needed.

Homeschooling Tips for Family Bonding

• Include family time in your schedule and make it a priority.
• Start a new hobby together.
• Do regular family activities.
• Plan family days out every week.
• Take breaks together and reconnect.
• Have regular family meetings.
• Celebrate achievements together
• Create a new family tradition.
• Go on a family learning adventure.
• Do a family art project.
• Have family reading time.
• Have family teaching time, where each week a different family member can lead a mini-lesson on a topic they love.
• Set a fun family challenge each week.
• Journal together and share entries with each other.
• Create a family time capsule.
• Set aside one day a week for family game time, where everyone plays educational board games, card games, or trivia games together.
• Dedicate 10-15 minutes each day to family meditation, breathing exercises, or stretching.
• Create a family field trip journal to document all the places you visit, the lessons learnt, and your favourite moments. 
• Host a family movie night featuring films that tie into what you’re learning about.
• Make homeschooling a team effort. 

Homeschooling Tips for Overcoming Challenges

• Turn challenges into learning opportunities.
• Tackle one problem at a time.
• Embrace flexibility and don’t be afraid to change things.
• Reduce distractions and create a positive learning environment.
• Listen to your children and any worries or problems that they have.
• Break up overwhelming tasks and take smaller steps.
• Stay patient and calm and model how to self-regulate.
• Let your child have more autonomy and involve them in decision-making.
• Reach out for help, whether from friends, family, other homeschooling families, or even educational professionals.
• Have quick power learning sessions when energy is low.
• If you or your child are feeling overwhelmed by a challenge, take a break.
• Focus on the 20% that makes 80% of the difference.
• Keep a journal where you and your child can write down the challenges you faced and how they were overcome.
• Set up a challenge wall where your kids can post achievements, whether small or large. 
• If a certain learning method or material isn’t working, be open to trying something new.
• Use humour to ease tension.
• Look for patterns and address problems early. 

Hopefully these homeschooling tips have proven useful for you! No matter where you are on your homeschooling journey, you’re doing great!

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