I'm back in blogging? Maybe. But I'm writing as I accompany Edmund with his online classes today. I'm starting to get sleepy, and we have a few minutes left before his classes are over. 

Who would have thought the baby I used to blog about was already in Grade 1! 

We have 2 years of experience in online learning, and I know by this time, I have summed and mastered how to monitor your toddler during his online class and NOT lose my mind. 

When I say lots of patience, I mean A LOT! Toddlers have a short attention span. While teachers are doing their best by giving kids different modalities to learn, like videos, games, and activities, we cannot really get the 100% attention of the kids. 

Learning face-to-face is far different from being at home because our kids are already used to our house environment, and since they're used to seeing what's inside the house, they can easily maneuver where to go and what to get. 

I can't count how often Edmund would leave in the middle of the class to get his toy or eat or just roam around the room because he felt "bored."

If you don't bring enough patience with you, most likely, your day will be spent telling your toddler what to do and how to behave. 

I know that since we're in our house, we often set their eating schedule with our household meal schedule. So their lunchtime will depend on your lunchtime, and their break time/recess will typically be spent in front of the television or using a mobile phone. 

While I know this scenario depends on your household, I just left it here just in case. 

By giving them enough food and snacks and filling their tummies, their minds will stay alert and motivated to learn every day. 

Edmund has a 10-minute break for every subject, so we typically spend it eating biscuits, drinking juices, or if he feels complete, we just lounge and listen to music- no mobile phones, no television. 

Even though your kids are at home, learning, it's essential for them to have a routine, so their minds are already programmed to be in the zone whenever it's learning time, doing homework, or reviewing their past lessons. 

This is something that we are trying to master; I am guilty of setting a proper schedule because of my work and time schedule. So if you're like me, working in a different time zone, stay with me because, in my following blogs, I'll give you tips on how to ACE your responsibilities. 

Not everyone is privileged to have a spare room and convert it into a classroom. Like in our family, we have two rooms- 1 is where we sleep, and the other is supposed to be our office and Edmund's study area. 

Unfortunately, we're swamped, so we haven't finished furnishing and cleaning the other room. So we set his study area in our room, and he's using my computer for his online classes. 

What we did is make my workspace as clean as possible. I refrain from other unnecessary stuff on my table that will avoid him being distracted. 

The common denominator is making online learning fun, effective and productive. You don't have to stress yourself out to get everything done because we don't want our kids to be stressed, right? So take it easy, we're doing OK. We can do this!