You’ve have made it through most of the school holidays but now those pesky inset days are here – how can you manage your time when the kids are off school?
Just as the kids are ready for routine you are too, so a good place to start is to ease back in gently with some planning – so you can all still be smiling at the end of the day.
Let’s break down some tips for getting through those final few days.
Set realistic expectations
Don’t expect to full workdays, this is where you can set yourself up to fail if you think that the kids are going to sit quietly and entertain themselves from 9-5 so you can get a full day of work done!
Aim for productivity blocks rather than a long stretches of uninterrupted time; achievable tasks in each block so you still feel like you are getting things done.
Explain to your children what the day is going to be like, that you will be working but not all day and what your plans are. Depending on the age of your children you could set a timer so they can see how long you need to work for and when you will be free to spend time with them. You could draw up a schedule on a white board or large piece of paper so they can see that the day is going to look like.
Create a flexible schedule for your day
The activities throughout the day will vary depending on the age of your children and their natural tendencies but setting up a schedule with activities you know they like or that keeps them entertained will hopefully mean you can get on with some work.
Morning – screen time/independent play whilst you set the day for up for work, this can be your time to respond to emails that have come in, check in with your team, do the priority tasks that must get done today – just in case the rest of the day does not go to plan.
Late morning/lunch – take a break, go out for a walk and eat lunch together. Getting a change of scenery and fresh will have all the benefits of a reset for everyone and mean that the afternoon should not seem like a chore having got through the morning.
Afternoon – set the children up with independent play – this can be activities that they can do in the same room as you such as doing puzzles, drawing, colouring. This way your children can see you and know you’re there but you can still be working. Or they may be just as happy knowing you are in the house but they can do their own thing. This time you can spend on a particular task or project that you need to move forward and do what you can in the time you have allowed,
Evening – an exception to the rule as here at Slice we don’t usually condone evening work but we get it that to keep you sane you might need to wrap up emails once kids are in bed and finalise the day. Just keep it to that so that you have a clear mind ready to wind down yourself for the evening.
The keys thing is to prioritise, what tasks can you realistically achieve in the time blocks you have given yourself.
Leverage help where childcare where you can
Do you have other working parents in the same situation – can you club together and take it in turns to have the children for an activity whilst the other works?
Can any family come in for a few hours – no need for the full day, but for a walk to the park whilst you do a 1 hour zoom meeting?
It’s all about balance – you may not need to get childcare for the full day, it’s both expensive (with average summer camps costing up to £1076 per child!) and you can feel that you are putting on others and not spending time with your children.
Be kind to yourself and take a break
It won’t be the same as a normal working day so celebrate the wins. Both in work but also praise the kids if they have allowed you to work and helped you out. Create balance so that parent guilt doesn’t kick in. But remember you are also teaching your children valuable skills.
Use a VA
And finally; this is the perfect situation where you can make use of a VA – tasks you can off load but don’t need someone permanently. You may have it all under control in term time but there may be some days where if someone could pick up a project temporarily or sending some chasing emails on your behalf it would buy you back some hours in the day so that you can look after your children.
Whatever your situation, the school holidays are tough when you have childcare to contend with too. It is all about balance, prioritising and asking for help when you need it.