You’ve just settled down into a good rhythm for the day, and the inevitable happens: the phone rings, the baby cries, or someone knocks on the door. Interruptions! They may be a natural part of life, but they can be annoying, especially when you are trying to get through that all-important lesson on fractions!
How To Plan for Interruptions
Interruptions are a funny thing. You know they’re coming because they always do, yet they are still unexpected. After all, if you expected the interruptions, then you’d either plan for them or try to find a way to eliminate them, right?
While we can’t specifically work interruptions into our plans or completely eliminate interruptions, there is actually a way to structure your planning so that you limit them, prepare for them, and minimize their impact on your day.
Are you ready to learn the secret?
Protect Your Time
While homeschooling can be flexible, try to set aside a certain time during the day for uninterrupted school work. Inform family and friends of this ahead of time, and ask them not to call you or stop by during those hours.
Not everyone will respond well to this, and that can be challenging. But setting boundaries is essential for homeschool success in many areas, not just related to interruptions. So don’t be afraid to stick to your boundaries!
Turn It Off
At the beginning of school time, turn off your phone ringer and shut down Facebook. You can call or text people back during your next break.
If certain people, like your spouse or an older child, need to be able to reach you during the school day, consider using the Do Not Disturb feature that comes on many phones these days. Set those few people as “favorites” so that only their calls or texts notify you.
Hang a Sign
Hang a “School in Session” sign on the door during school hours. When neighborhood friends knock on the door, let them know that your children will be ready to play when the sign is gone.
Having a set play time will help, too! If you have other homeschoolers in the neighborhood, consider coordinating with their parents for “recess” time or coordinating break times.
Independent Time
If you have a baby or young child, keep independent work on hand to give to your older children. Teach them how to easily switch from a parent-directed activity to an independent one when baby needs attention.
Remember that this is only a season, and soon your baby will be old enough to join in.
Say No
Learn to say no. Some people equate homeschooling with staying at home doing nothing and will ask you to babysit, run the MOPS group, or participate in any number of other activities.
As mentioned before, stick to those firm boundaries that you create around your homeschooling schedule, and remember that it is more than okay to say no to things that regularly challenge those boundaries.
Say Yes!
Even while working to protect boundaries and maintain structure in your school day, week, month, semester, and year, remember that a rigid adherence to schedule can often be more harmful than helpful.
Maintain the health and sanity of your whole family by paying more attention to the rhythm of your routine than to your schedule. That means that sometimes you can and should just go ahead and say yes to those interruptions!
Interruptions are an inevitable part of life, and therefore an inevitable part of homeschooling. But by removing as many distractions as you can and learning to flow within the rhythm of your family’s needs, you will find that interruptions become much less of a problem than you might once have thought!
Different personalities handle interruptions differently. Take our Planner Personality Quiz to discover other aspects of your planner personality and resources for making the most of how you are wired.
Comments (216)
Having a schedule but allowing for flexibility it so true. I homeschool while working, so teaching the skills for transition to supported to independent learning are key.
I am so excited to have found this page!
Just beginning our homeschool journey and this site has helped so much already! Looking forward to exploring more!
Me too! Such helpful advice!
Thank you !
I an excited to learn more things about homeschooling, and getting supplies that my family will need this upcoming fall!
Absolutely happy with the discovery of this page. I’ve been struggling with being organized. Especially as a mama with adhd.
I hear you there! With a son that has ADHD and the fact that I, too, have ADHD, the organization issue is real!!
I need to do better at paying attention and following our own family rhythm and not comparing with others
This is great advice! Thank you!
Definitely. It’s a hard to shut our regular distractions. Especially when doing lessons with a preschooler
Great tips and information thank you!
We’ve thrown out the schedule. We school when it fits. We usually get it done in the afternoon, but sometimes it works out to do it in the morning or early evening.
This is really helpful, especially since we are about to embark on our first year of homeschooling!!
Beginning my research to homeschool. Lots of helpful tips!
We have a loose schedule to provide structure in our routine, but we don’t do anything by times. Times were too rigid for our needs.
The flexibility is one of the nice things about homeschooling for me.
I think it is amazing to have resources for homeschooling
With 4 going on 5 kids planning is life lol
Really looking into homeschooling for my kids. All this is really great advice.
This is great advice. Thank you.
My biggest interruption is my youngest kid. She is seven and has gotten it in her head that it’s ok to interrupt me with temper tantrums and disagreements over whether or not she should have to do her assignments. Also, my 11 year old is constantly interrupting lessons to micromanage my other kids. What I have started doing to work on these issues is offer something from the treasure box (a little crate filled with various fidget toys/dollar store items) if they can get through an entire school day exhibiting the self-control needed to overcome these weaknesses. So far so good…we will see…
Boundaries on your schedule! No means no. Saying yes when it’s beneficial is one thing.
It is ok to say no – especially towards a bigger yes..
learned (the hard way) how critical it is to define our unique non-negotiables a la a first things first, what matters most, longer-range planning approach. Then much easier to say no to the less important things, which in turn ends up opening up more wiggle room to enable saying yes to the unexpected bonus opportunities (that usually also align better with our overall needs & goals!)
Trying to learn a family rhythm. Just getting started and full-time rv living.
Thank you for all the great advice! We will be incorporating it into school. Interruptions are one of the hardest things in my option with homeschooling whether its because of a toddler or my phone going off.
Thank you!
I struggle to find a good balance of every day life and homeschool. Going to try some of these tips and see.
Before we moved to the country, we had a sign we put on our front door for the neighbor kids to know when we were doing school, they didn’t always pay attention to it, so sometimes they were told my kids out later and sometimes the neighbor kids would come in and finish school with us. Now if we are dong something that my older kids (22 & 24) can listen in on when they call I will answer and they can listen to me read aloud, do creative writing with us, or whatever (I do find out if they need anything too).
Thank you for the helpful information!
Thanks for the information!
I often tell the other child who is interrupting my work with their sibling to skip the problem they are struggling with and that Ill come help them with it when I am done.
So helpful!
Thank you for all your resources!
So grateful for all the helpful suggestions. I have found so much great information and have been able to implement a few suggestions.
Interruptions are a part of life. Having some strategies and plans helps the flow of the day so much! Turning it off is key and I liked the idea of using Do Not Disturb as I have older children who are driving to and from work and community college. Also, I’m still learning the balance of “yes” and “no” after 13 years of homeschooling.
I needed to hear this and leaning into the family rythyms. I definitely try to make something ideal and come up to opposition in every time block.
That’s always a good reminder, we struggle with allowing too many interruptions and as much as I hate to be rigorous, I think a more rigorous schedule is what we need.
Such great advice!
Good reminder to say no at times and yes at others. Helpful!
These have been hard lessons to learn. Im so thankful for these specific boundaries mentioned. They are up to protect our calling and our time. I’m so thankful for the reminders.
Thank you for the information to help us organize our time.
I’ve been Homeschooling for 26 years and would have loved to have these resources back when my kids were babies! Thank you for providing so many great helps for new homeschoolers!
Very nice
Great reminders to minimize traditional day to day interruptions that could pop up.
Great tips! Thanks for the post!
Thank you! It is nice to be reminded of these things!
I have a hard time remembering to just focus on homeschool and not everything else. These are some great tips!
A sign is genius! I never thought of that. Definitely something I want to implement
Teaching the older kids to take the lead for a few minutes while the inevitable comes up (after, of course, you’ve already silenced the phone and communicated to others that you’re not available). Also, teaching the younger ones to be patient and learn to cope with boredom while you’re away for a bit. ALWAYS step back into the school scene with grace! There may be a mess that wouldn’t have been made had you stayed in the room, but it’s part of the learning adventure. Embrace it!
I learned early on that I had to do what worked for our family. If we had to do some school work on Saturday will dad was home to help out with the Little’s, that was okay!
This is such good advice. Having a schedule or rhythm is great, but also knowing what to do when interruptions happen is necessary. Thanks for the tips!
Having flexibility yet following a schedule can be challenging. Thank you for your ideas and support in this homeschooling journey.
Even though I’ve been homeschooling for over 13 years, finding balance between a good schedule and flexibility is very difficult. Thank you for your reminders and tips!
I’m new to homeschooling, but I love the resources I’ve found here. I love the thought of planning for interruptions!
This is fantastic advice.
Still learning daily
It is so smart to protect your homeschooling time! I don’t answer my phone or look at my computer during the time set aside for school.
Great reminders of how to take the day into your own hands and while we plan for the best, we must roll with nature throws at us at any particular moment. Continued expectations help bring about routine.
Good Information
I have had to tell our postal worker that we homeschool and appreciate it if we weren’t interrupted. Just as families whom go to work and children go to school (outside of the home) would not be home, during ‘normal’ business hours, I politely asked that she treat our situation with similar respect. We are unavailable during most of our day; we have so much more to do than just homeschool and our time is just as precious.
I have honestly turned off the ringer on my phone and/or turned on Do Not Disturb (allowing grown children & hubby through) each for certain parts of the day. Surprisingly people have not figured out these times at all over the past year. Even if I tell them, they still think that they will get through because “I thought it was only for that one day”. I now have a phone that only allows certain people through or is on silent 24/7/365 and it has been amazing for our schedule and rhythm. We may not be able to avoid interruptions but we can limit them.
Good advice!
I love all the suggestions of rules, with so the emphasis on flexibility!
Would like more info on facilitating independent work for preschool age. Thanks!
Such a beautiful bundle and so many informative ways to effectively homeschool. I highly recommend for any parent.
As easy as this should be, it helps to have more advice for interruptions.
Having a routine in the morning have help me with the “set a specific time for school”. Other times I decide to start at a certain time of day but feel guilty if we are not done with morning chores. So having that routine help me
The struggle is real.
I needed this. Ending our third year of homeschooling (one previous non consecutive year before that), and I am terrible at setting the boundaries needed. This was a better year, but I am still learning. Neighbor kids have been a struggle as well as they are also homeschooled but don’t follow much of a schedule so they pop in all the time when I am trying to teach. It takes so much to reel mine back in after they have stopped by.
Great advice, I’m trying to get back in the swing of things with my 9th grader since having my son. He’s cute but loves to interrupt lol.
Great advice! Thank you
With 5 kids there are SO many interruptions and distractions. It’s great to plan but hold those plans loosely.
Thanks for the resources. As a newbie I’m always looking for ways to better this experience.
It’s a delicate balance between adhering to a plan and allowing for rabbit trails and natural rhythms. Some days we rock it and some days we don’t. And that’s ok.
Good advice. I really appreciated the planner personality quite that was linked. It helped me a lot to see my strengths and weaknesses in planning and how to help myself more.
I love planners!!!
Fantastic tips! I am always looking for ways to better structure our homeschool day and will definitely utilize some of these. Thank you!
Saying no has always been hard for me so I totally understand that point@
Thank you for the helpful info! It took me a few years of homeschooling to realize how important it is to protect your schooling time. Another key way to do this is to be purposeful on scheduling haircut, doctor, dentist, orthodontist, etc appointments in the afternoon or outside of your school time. When all of my kids were still at home, I found that became a major interruption at times. Also, saying no, even to good things like church volunteer jobs, unless you can incorporate your kids, is necessary to maintain your ability to do a good job at home and with educating. Most people do tend to think homeschool/homemaker moms have more free time, but that is definitely not the case!
For independent pre-school activity ideas, when my kids were that age they enjoyed playing with legos while listening to an audio book, forming letters with honey- peanut butter play dough or finger drawing them in a tray of sand, or for girls, having an age- appropriate workbook or coloring book to work along side us at the table.
Great ideas!
I love these ideas! I use many of the ideas but learned how to use the ideas more efficiently. I also learned many new ideas!
Awesome tips! Wish I’d had some of these when mine were little!
This looks awesome
Yes! Thank you! Such great reminders
I appreciate all the information and tips in the post. I look forward to implementing some in the way we homeschool!!
I agree with going with the rhythm rather than forcing a routine. I notice that I can get more accomplished that way.
Thank you for this advice. We are struggling to find the balance in things right now. We are a military family, so our schedules are ever changing, plus I work on top of it. Hopefully we can put to good use your advice as we find our balance.
Wonderful information and tips! Thank you!
Awesome tips. Will definitely be implementing some of them in the future!
I need to do better at turning my phone off first thing in the morning.
I recently switched from morning schooling to afternoon schooling so we wouldn’t get interrupted as much by baby. Now we get a lot more done!
Like someone said above, having a 4 year old with a 1 year old, I just might have to do some school work with the preschooler on the weekends when dad is home. Right now I’m still learning the ins and outs of getting started to homeschool my preschooler. Im buying masterbooks curriculum at the end of the month.
I work from home as well as homeschool, and these tips are great for both ventures!
I love the fact that you included that rigid schedule adherence can be harmful. I 100% agree to this. I am working to find my sweet spot between over and under planning since my days are hit or miss. I know with time it will work out!
Keeping a set time is something I struggle with. It would probably help to set a very specific block so distractions can be better set around that time instead of working around the interruptions.
I need to say no more often!
Great tips! Looking forward to implementing them!
As an educator who left the public & private classroom to homeschool her own, I would add that you should embrace the notion that homeschooling allows for more freedom and flexibility and less rigidity in planning. Embrace it wholly and completely! Savor it. Grow with it. Flow with the ebb and tide of your children.
I definitely need to turn it off more! Great tips!
Definitely need to work on the independent time for my youngest while I school the oldest. Great tips!
These are great ideas! It was tough but I have tried to let family members know when we generally do our sit down work to try to minimize distractions. I have a hard time setting boundaries
After many years of homeschooling, I have learned that saying yes can be just as hard as saying no.
I definitely need to abide to a lot of these most definitely good advice
As a new homeschooling mom, this was super helpful. Thank you!
Love the tips this gives! Will definitely be putting these into action!
We just made our move to homeschooling. I have been a teacher for over 15 years. So,there are many adjustments I amhaving to make this blog is great and I never thought to plan for interpretation. Thank you, I will be referring to your blog a great deal.
Loving this Blog! Thank you for the time and effort you put into helping others, like myself, that sometimes struggle with homeschooling. I’m homeschooling three with a toddler, so there’s many interruptions daily.
Great advice!
Loving all the tips as I begin this journey!
Making it a tech free time is so helpful! Notifications can be a huge distraction as well as the numerous topics I want to research. But staying focused on school during “school time” usually means we get efficiently get more done than just winging it.
Great info! Thank you!
This is so helpful with time management and so much of the reason I want to homeschool. Between work and the business of home responsibilities I feel like I spend no time pouring into my kids when it comes to Jesus and moral compass lessons.
Coming from a teaching background I think my biggest challenge is realizing the flexibility that homeschooling brings to my child’s education and that it’s okay if it isn’t a rigid schedule every single day. That’s the beauty of homeschooling and it’s something I have to remind myself a lot of the time!
Love this post!
Knowing ahead of time that the plan doesn’t alway go as planned is good.
I need to not try to keep to a rigorous schedule
Love the sign! Great ideas
These are great ideas! I’m just starting my family’s homeschool journey and need good resources like this!
Great advice. I’ll be starting kindergarten with my oldest, but I have three other younger kids.
Thank you for the tips! We always have a “power hour” where we get the most important stuff done!
Such helpful info! Even something as simple as a sign!
This is amazing thank you for sharing.
I’m having a hard time coping with the last two years, and it has nothing to do with homeschooling. As a matter of fact, the silver lining in this all is the fact I’m with my beloved littles as we all journey through the tough stuff.
Awesome advise
I cant wait to get my order too. Your organizational skills are amazing and I need all the help I can get. I k ow were just schooling a preschooler but boy is it hard to keep focused. The both of us . Amazing interruption advice. Thank you
This is so amazing and a bunch of very helpful info.
What a great blog post! New to homeschooling. This info helped. Never thought of a sign on the door.
I’ve been homeschooling for 14 years. I think these are definitely helpful ideas.
I absolutely needed this!! With 6 kids at home!!
Ĺoved the article! Definitely things to take into account
I wish I could turn things off to do school work with my kids but I can’t because of health reasons. I do love this post recommendations and reminders.
Good reminders! Any tips for interruptions from your own kids, such as toddlers or negative attitudes from the kids being schooled? 😉
Actually, yes!! We’ve all been through the various stages of chaos and interruption because of “life,” and you’ll find a lot of our tricks and tips in the Tackling section of the blog. Here’s the direct link to that section: https://wellplannedgal.com/category/achieve/tackle-achieve/
Love the article! Amazing ideas
This is good stuff
Distraction is inevitable especially with multiples. Gotta try and stay focused and keep a great Plan
I am new to homeschooling but this is very helpful and makes me so excited to start. I hope I can follow this and stick to it! Thank you for all the great advice.
As a former teacher, it has taken some time to get away from so much structure and timing. We homeschool with rhythm rather than a schedule and it’s saved my sanity. I prioritize the things we need to do first then go from there and never pay much kind to deadlines or clocks. This post is great advice!
I struggle with boundaries. This is an amazing blog.
I plan to utilize this to help my ADHD self and my ADHD child as well. This may help save my family and homeschooling journey!
I’m still learning how our family schedule and homeschooling can flow together. This blog is very helpful! We’re about to wrap up kindergarten and I’m excited to implement some now things into next school year.
Great tips! We are new to homeschooling- planning on starting this fall!
Need to try some of these tips.
I really like the tips and I need to try to do some.
Thank you
There were great, helpful tips here!
Great tips! Happy to find this page! Starting our homeschooling journey with our oldest this fall
Definitely using the do not disturb tip from now on! I have been struggling to stay on task lately, which ultimately affects my kids…
Greats tips!
Saying “no” has always been a struggle for me, but homeschooling is teaching me that it is necessary to set clear boundaries & an expectation of respect. Flexibility in a schedule makes things so much easier. Thank you for the wonderful strategies.
I’m definitely guilty of being on my phone during school hours! I need to learn to put it down and focus on homeschool and nothing else.
I love the Do Not Disturb tip! Thank you!
So much great advice in this post. Thanks!
Great advice! Thank you!
Lots of resources
Saying no is the hardest part for me
Thank you for all the wonderful information
Im so interested in this to help me along my journey as a new homeschooling mom.
I’m excited to learn more.
These are all great tips!
Making and keeping boundaries has been one of my biggest struggles every year! Definitely need to work on this…
This is something I struggle with massively. Enjoying the freedom that homeschooling allows while not letting the freedom take over the actual school time.
Having a schedule but allowing for freedom and flexibility has been so helpful in our homeschool. I have young kids that cause interruptions sometimes, so I try to do my best by giving the toddler something fun to do unsupervised while I school and school while the infant is napping.
This is perfect timing for a read!!! We’re just starting homeschool this year and we have 3!!! How to structure out time for learning has me a bit frazzled. We haven’t started yet but these tips are so helpful.
Learning to say “no.” Why is that small, one-syllable word so hard to say…and so powerful?
I am excited to have found this blog. We’re new to homeschooling and I am excited to start.
What an awesome giveaway! Still searching for the perfect planner!
This was super informational. Thanks!
This is great! It is good to have boundaries and a plan. I love the tip on putting up a “school in session” sign!
I’m constantly disappointed in myself for my lack of consistency and frustrated with the constant distractions. These tips are so helpful. I’m also comforted in reading these comments that I’m not alone in the struggle.
I’m so glad you’re finding comfort in this! You’re right — you are VERY MUCH not alone. Sometimes grace for ourselves is the biggest gift we can give our children, because when they see us giving ourselves grace, they know the grace we give them is genuine. (My teenage son has had to remind me of this a few times this past year.)
⁹Teaching independent time is challenging, but SO important! Especially with four boys 7 and under
I’m new to homeschool this year and never even thought about these things! I’m so glad to have come across this page. Definitely some helpful tips. There’s so much to learn!!
So happy to have found this page. So much helpful info for me as I’m just starting to homeschool our middle and high schoolers.
Thanks for the ideas!
As someone who’s just starting our Homeschool journey, I needed to read this. I love the idea of having a school in session sign.
Great tips! I especially love the sign idea!
So excited for this!
This is great advice that I will be referring back to in the coming school year! I’m currently preparing to homeschool my oldest in kindergarten in the fall, while also having my 3 year old and (at the time of school starting) 3.5 month old. So excited to begin!
Love that you can structure the day go minimize interruptions!
Thanks for this!
Thank you!
These are awesome tips to keep in mind
This is super informative! I’m new to homeschooling but I’m already enjoying it.
I love the “school in session” idea, as an interior decorator, I love incorporating -cute- into functional. And setting boundaries is certainly something I struggle with. Living in the same small town with the majority of my large family makes it hard to be private and protective of our time. Thank you for these tips, I can’t wait to put some into play.
I’ll be honest in saying that I have a hard time getting back in the swing after an interruption, and they happen often with a 2 year old and 8 month old in tow. I needed the reminder that this is just a season and that my big kids can do independent work while I’m tending to the littles! Thank you!
I’m glad I found this blog! My main distraction, as a homeschool mom, can be my phone. I just place it on top of the refrigerator so it’s not easily accessible.
Thanks for the info.
This was so good! I need to be better at navigating this.
Ugh this is such a struggle for me— but great advice!!!
Such great tips! Will definitely be utilizing the independent work since I have an 18 month old and a newborn.
Maintaining a schedule but being flexible to take adventures during the week is what is important to us. We plan our weeks based on what events are happening weekly or monthly. Sometimes we only have school a few days a week, other weeks we work on the weekends to accomplish what needs to be done to keep us on task through the year.
Such a good post!
I’m glad this popped up on my Facebook! I’ve had so many issues with interruptions!
These were good reminders. I have been homeschooling for awhile now and I still struggle with keeping the younger ones busy or with the distraction of my husband being home some days.
Thanks
Hoping to learn more about homeschooling!! It’s our first year!
My biggest issue is I have parents with health issues and our recent school year was full of so many phone calls in need of help or assistance. While I do put my phone on do not disturb, I leave it open for my parents and husband to be able to reach me, which left us with numerous interruptions, not all health related. So I gave up and just school where we can fit it in. I know it won’t be this way forever and I’m grateful to even still have my parents.
Really had to simplify our homeschool this year because for the first part of the year we were traveling. Plus we have 3 that are 4 and under and can take up so much energy. Flexibility is always key.
Love reading any helpful tips!
I cannot wait to start my homeschool journey. My two oldest children have had a tough year losing their dad and then their great grandmother exactly four months apart. I know homeschooling is our best option after feeling like public schools have failed them educational (but chose to keep pushing them on) and they are not where they need to be.
FT homeschooling after working in public schools and I would have never thought about being flexible with time. It’s difficult to break old habits but I’m learning.
Some interesting thoughts and ideas to help. Like that
I love this advice! It’s so easy to give into every interruption that comes our way. I need to be more intentional about shutting most of those off during our main school hours. But also remembering to keep the balance and occasionally welcome interruptions to come up.
Appreciate the pointers, definitely important to make the kids feel important and heard. Like the school is in session sign for the door idea.
Hoping to learn more about homeschooling. This will be our first year.
Great stuff.
This is really helpful advice. I am going to schedule for my phone to be in work mode and only allow for my husband and other important contact to “disrupt” our learning time.
I need to get better at saying no to certain things as well! Thank you for the advice.
Definitely need to teach my kid more about independent time with her having a baby sister!
My daughter and myself both have adhd. Our off topic connecting brains is one of our biggest culprits for interruptions. One of my classroom rules that is hung up is no squirreling. Meaning if it’s not about the topic we are learning bout save it for after class. I will allow her to jot down a quick note to remind her to what she wanted to say.
Good ideas!
Thank you
Awesome ideas! Can’t wait to use them this school year!
I had no idea that there was a blog I’m so excited to find this. I needed to hear all of these things today.
I love these tips. Interruptions come very often as we travel frequently for work as well as just the family dynamic in general. It’s almost always snack time haha. These are going to help me keep it more steady.
Yes! If it’s not my husband calling, I tap an automatic message saying I’ll call back later.
Thanks for the tips-this past year we just fit school in where we could. Next year I’m hoping to be a little more scheduled.
These are great tips even for thos of us homeschooling a fee years already. Thank you!