How to Handle School Breaks Without the Chaos

School’s out! Children get excited. Teachers breathe sighs of relief. Parents…well, parents let out a collective groan. Whether it be for a single day or the entire summer break, school not being in session means parents have to either find someone to care for their kids or do it themselves. As a nanny, no school means I go from entertaining one child most of the day to four. It can get overwhelming. So here are a few ways I’ve learned to keep the chaos mostly under control.

Planned Breaks

Days off that are marked on the school calendar means you can make a plan. Vacation, day trips, fun activities. If money is an issue, just do an Internet search for “free things to do with kids near me.” Parks, story times and kids’ shows at the library, and exploring nature are just a few ideas. Many child-friendly places will also offer discounts on some holidays.

Being able to plan ahead lessens the headache of deciding what to do with extra kiddos in the moment. You have time to change your daily routine to encompass the older children. You know how many days or weeks they will be out of school. While I’m not saying it will be easy, you won’t have to make as many spur-of-the-moment decisions while handling the pandemonium that is the children we love.

Unplanned Breaks

Unfortunately, not all days off from school are planned. In Oklahoma, the most common reason for last minute cancellations is usually due to the weather. Snow days, severe and tornadic storms, and in the last several years even the temperature have led to the dreaded message that parents have to find alternate placements for their kids. And with some closures, it could be for only one day or an entire week. Just four years ago, we all faced a massive shutdown of schools and even daycares that ended up lasting for months because of one virus.

So how can we as parents and caregivers keep any semblance of calm during these times?

Plan For Them

Yes, you can plan for unexpected days off just as you do for the days written on a calendar. Here are a few tips to help:

Routine

The daily schedule I use during the school year is different from the one I use during the summer. During spring and winter breaks, I have a list of places to take the kids. We eat lunch and snack at the same time every day, except when day trips – that I lovingly call field trips – change timing. The youngest kiddos still take their naps at the same time. We still do story time and learning time every day we can.

Notice that I have a quiet time for the older kids while the youngest are sleeping. This ensures that the little ones are able to get the rest they need. On the days that they need it, even those too old for a nap can do activities that let their bodies take a break. Some ideas for quiet activities include:

Watch a movie

Read a book

Puzzles

Color or draw a picture

Work on any homework

You can also give them a project to work on. At one point during a multi-day break, I dumped a box full of recyclables on the floor and told the girls to do something with it. That’s all the directions I gave them. They took three days, working only during the boys’ naptime, and created all kinds of things. A drum, two rockets, rain sticks, and many more ideas they came up with on their own. It worked their creativity and kept them mostly quiet and busy while their brothers rested.

Learning Time

While working on homework or worksheets to keep up with skills learned at school can be a quiet naptime activity, the younger kiddos need to keep learning as well. I keep a workbook for each grade level on hand for days with all four of them. Even the youngster not yet in school has a workbook that he uses to prepare for Pre-K next year.

At the beginning of the school year and in some places throughout the year, you can find workbooks for grade levels up to sixth. There are even dry-erase books that help 2–4-year-olds handle a marker, learn the shapes of letters and numbers, and many other academics that can set them ahead when they start school. We use these workbooks once or twice per week during the summer as a way to keep their brains active and help them not forget everything they learned the year before.

I also set a time in our daily schedule for lessons. Sometimes it can be difficult to find activities that all four kids can learn from. Sometimes I have to have the girls do a completely different lesson that they can do themselves while I help the boys. And sometimes, I simply let the girls be my helpers.

My girls have always been mature and responsible for their age. And they love to help. So when I have an activity for their brothers that needs to be set up, I have the girls be my assistants. They gather materials, mix ingredients, and even helped me bury foam letters in the sandbox. It’s fun for them, and they learn on a deeper level than the boys are ready for. They find out the how and why of what I’m teaching their brothers. They get to pretend to be teachers, themselves. They get to help. And I don’t have to worry about any of them being bored or unsupervised!

Comment Below!

If you know of any other ideas to control the chaos when school’s out, post them in the comment section below. We could all use more ideas before spring or summer break arrives!