Give Your Child Permission to Leave Class For This Reason!

As Dr. Phil acknowledges on his television show and in his book, Life Code, times have changed so much that new rules have to be applied in order to get through life. 

For decades, we have been teaching our children to respect their parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, teachers, religious leaders, and police officers, but situations now require us to teach our children that people need to earn their respect. Children also need to learn how to recognize deceit and trust their instincts.

How do we teach children to recognize deceit and trust their instincts? By educating ourselves! The first place to start is by reading Dr. Phil's Life Code (to read my review of Dr. Phil's book, please click the link for One Book Everybody Should Own, Read, and Absorb.

Before you read the book and while you read the book, instruct your kids on how to follow their instincts. For instance, if the words somebody speaks don't match the body language or the facial expressions, be suspicious of the message.

Experiment with your children. Smile while you say, "I really don't like what you're doing." And then discuss how your smile didn't match your words. Clench your fist, squint your eyes, and grit your teeth while you say, "I love (pick something you hate – for me that would be liver)." Mixed messages should practically scream to the child that what you are saying is wrong or confusing.

The experiment will show obvious dissimilarities between facial expressions and words, and once children learn the obvious contrast, subtle "micro-expressions" (discovered and elaborated upon by Paul Ekman) may be easier to detect.

After you've introduced the concept of deceit, let your children try to trick you into believing their words while behaving differently – the point of the exercise – behavior is supposed to match spoken words, but with deceitful people, they don't.

Your child should begin to recognize that when he or she is confused by mixed messages, something is wrong and needs to be addressed. Subtle sneers and signs of disgust while someone is forcing a smile should confuse a child enough to prompt him or her to question the message. Experiment with the subtleties as well.

Sarcasm is another subject that needs to be discussed. Children often cannot recognize or understand sarcasm. The younger they are the more children pick up on body language and facial expressions, but as they get older they rely more on words, and when those words don't match the physical expression on the face or body, the child won't know how to respond, because they won't understand the intention of the words being spoken.

If children learn how to recognize deceit while they are still young, the subtle expressions that defy the words will be easily recognized by them when they get older.

Discuss with your children disparity between words and actions so that scenarios like the one above (Mr. Pennington's article) don't occur to your child. What should have happened in that class was that if the students had the information Dr. Phil talks about, and if they had the necessary skills for recognizing an irrational (and perhaps psychologically defective) teacher, the students would have refused to do the assignment, they would have walked directly to the principal's office, and they would have gotten positive media attention for standing up for themselves instead of succumbing to the perverted behavior of their "teacher".

We have to instill in our young people the message that they can stand up for themselves, they can speak up for themselves, and they can think for themselves. And if it takes giving them permission to do so, then that's what we must do.

I learned a great deal about body language and facial expressions from watching an excellent television program, Lie to Me, that for some reason lasted only three seasons. I was so fascinated by the program, I wrote about it in the article, "Lie to Me" and Paul Ekman:

Physiognomy and Phrenology Exposed. We could all benefit from understanding how to read people, and I was sorry to see the program go. 

The world has changed. People are becoming more and more adept in the art of lying. We need to arm ourselves with knowledge and protect our children from victimizers. The best thing we can do to help our children is to educate ourselves and talk to our children about body language and facial expressions. If you don't already know the subtleties of lying, watch the following videos and educate yourself more about body language and facial expressions. Books on phrenology and physiognomy should help too.

Here are the videos (the second one is long, but well worth watching):

Lie to Me - Reading Emotions and Deceit through Facial Expressions 

History Channel Secrets of body language 720p

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How to Give Your Child a Choice and a Voice and Still Maintain Control

When it comes to raising children, we can all use a little (and in some cases a lot of) help. Parents play only a small part today in influencing their children, because today's children rely on the media, their peers, other family members, and even various organizations to inform them about the world and their place in it.

Images of violence and voices of disrespect garner lots of media attention with glorified coverage of such things as grisly murders, violent drug busts, and frightening abductions. If a child sees a brother beat up his sister on TV, he might remember that kind of behavior the next time his sister takes one of his electronic devices, because a child's world view is limited only to his or her own few years of experiences. Children are more likely to handle anger and rage with short-term solutions that will cause them to suffer long-term consequences (bringing a gun to school to shoot bullies, for example).

As a result of their children's limited understanding, parents have to ask themselves, what exactly are my child's experiences? How much time does my child devote to gaming or watching cartoons compared to other activities? What does my child think about what he or she sees and hears on our television or computer screen? 

Children may be frightened by some of the things they see and hear, and parents need to engage them in discussions about those terrifying situations when they arise.  If you notice your daughter staring at the television with mouth agape after witnessing a particularly horrifying beating, talk to her about it. What are her thoughts and opinions?

If you admit that your child spends an inordinate amount of time playing with electronic devices, balance that time with movies you can watch together, board games you can play together, healthy outdoor or even indoor physical activities, and fun family events. Because if all children do day in and day out is sit in front of gaming devices, your child's life experiences equate to garbage in – garbage out.  

Children also need positive role models, because they often see news reports showing wayward kids high on meth, pregnant teenage moms who get their own television programs, wealthy beauties throwing temper tantrums, violent video games, screaming parents, chaos, manipulation, and more. Those are the types of people who appear to children to be successful because they've made it on TV.

Why don't more local television programs showcase kids who excel in school or other activities and ask the parents of those children to share their secrets for raising responsible and conscientious children – or highlight individuals who coordinate monetary collections for victims of the most recent worldly disaster? 

Why don't they? Because that kind of coverage is not sensational. Media highlight the weird and the aberrant – and sports – and kids think that in order to be accepted and in order to be noticed, they must fit into one of the aforementioned categories. 

What children don't understand is that media cover outrageous events, not because it is normal, but because it is ABnormal. We might want to see a feel-good movie where the protagonist beats all odds, but in real-life we are more likely to feel our hearts beat faster and our blood rush more with exciting entertainment, and if that "entertainment" includes mass murder, car chases, bank robberies, or arson, we are all the more glued to our sets.

Who wants to see some kid we've never met win an award for some local achievement we've never heard about when the most important people are obviously either criminals, sports champions, wayward politicians, contestants who fight with each other to win fame or money, or drug-addicted actors?

With all our children have to compete with, how can parents influence their children – our children – to behave in ways that will provide a roadmap to success? 

Despite media and other influences, we must learn to overcome the many challenges that face us as parents, even when, many times, we fail to live up to our own expectations. One of the problems is that we often raise our children the same way our parents raised us. And sometimes those methods just don't work. Our world has changed significantly since we were children, no matter which decade we were born in prior to this new century. 

If your child doesn't respond to your type of parenting, you run into brick walls as you try to force that type of parenting on your child. Again and again we ask ourselves, WHY is this child so difficult? When what we should be asking is WHY is what I'm doing not working?

Whether the following definition was spoken by Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, or somebody else, I think we've all heard the phrase, "insanity is doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results." 

Look around. The mother who berates her child in front of customers at the local grocery store, the father who beats his kid in full view of a public arena, and the teacher who singles out the learning disabled child to belittle continue to "solve" the "problem" by using the same techniques over and over without giving any thought whatsoever to changing strategies, without giving the child an opportunity to explain why he or she is upset, without giving the child an opportunity to choose a different behavior, and without giving the child the option to voice his or her opinions.

And the reason parents give to explain why they continue to raise children in ways that prove to be unsuccessful? – "That's how my parents raised me and I turned out all right."

I once babysat three children whose mother abdicated her role as mom when the father decided to take over the parenting role, because Mom was a drug addict and alcoholic. She walked the neighborhood caring a beer in one hand after popping whatever pills she could find into her mouth, and holding in her other hand for all the neighbors to see, her weed. One day after Mom moved out, the kids came over with shoulders slumped and tears streaked down their faces. 

The oldest, a boy, looked particularly upset. His little sisters were crying. I tried to make light of the situation by saying, "Somebody got in trouble, huh?"

And that's when the boy unleashed all of his emotions. I don't know what prompted the father to focus his anger on his son, but it wouldn't matter what it was – his reaction to whatever it was his son did, was wrong. The father had taken his son under the chin by his shirt, twisted the collar, and then picked up his son and threw him against the wall. These children did not even have a voice to use. They were so terrified of their father, they couldn't speak. *

And that's a problem. Some parents believe that when children are afraid of them, children respect their parents. However, fear ≠ respect.

After reading Nancy Tracy's article, How to Use Child Rearing Methods on Husbands, I decided to write the blog you are now reading. 

One book Nancy mentions is quite old, written in 1964, by Adlerian psychologist Rudolf Dreikurs, entitled Children: The Challenge, a book that discusses logical consequences. If children understand a direct link between action and consequence, they are more likely to choose behaviors consistent with the rewards that most appeal to them.

Another helpful book, and one I find invaluable, is Dr. Phil's Life Code (to read my evaluation of the book, please click One Book Everybody Should Own, Read, and Absorb). 

My children are grown, but I know that when somebody suggested something that would improve my parenting skills, I took advantage of whatever constructive advice was given to me. We can all use help, and we should all avail ourselves of any help we can get.

However, if you're the type of parent who throws his children against the wall, you will probably deny that you are abusive and you will continue to behave the way your parents behaved. If your children think they have no choice but to act as you acted and no voice because fear deprived them of learning to speak for themselves, your grandchildren will suffer the consequences. Slamming a child against the wall is NOT OK! Abusing a child in any way is NOT OK! 

Prepare your children for new life experiences. Teach your children to speak up for themselves. Allow them to voice their opinions without criticism. Teach them to back up their opinions with facts. Have family discussions. Engage your children in age-appropriate conversations.

Too many parents sit at the dinner table with tablet or phone in hand and engage only in text-talk. Tune in to your kids while they are young so they won't tune you out when they become teenagers.

* Out of love for his children, I reported that dad to his kids' school.

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Marriage Contract vs. Divorce Contract

Anyone who has ever been married and divorced knows how easy it is to get married and how difficult it is to get divorced. Spouses run through their divorce papers with fine-tooth combs, sometimes over and over again to refine it while quibbling about major issues, such as who will be getting the kids, to more mundane items, like who will be taking the toothbrush holders.

My feeling is that if the courts and the churches made getting married as difficult as getting divorced, we might have fewer marriages and, as a result, fewer divorces. Why not draw up a marriage contract – written and signed – that includes how potential spouses will handle all major and even some minor concerns, such as:

Money

One of you may be a spender while the other is a saver. One of you might gamble everything while using credit cards to obtain money for gambling night. You HAVE to discuss money, and you HAVE to draw up a budget you both can agree upon. If one of you is bringing thousands of dollars worth of debt into the relationship, you'll need to know how to get rid of the albatross before it strangles you. When you agree on allowances and savings, WRITE IT DOWN! 

Religion

Decide which church, if any, you and your spouse will attend. Decide in advance which church, if any, your children will attend. Maybe you want to introduce your children to all types of religions and let him or her decide whether or not to belong to any of them, but if one of you is Catholic and the other Jewish, don't wait until after the children are born to decide. Your children will be the ones who suffer over your arguments.

Politics

If you can discuss politics without harming your spouse, decide to either agree or disagree, maturely, about your political affiliations. If you have two completely different philosophies, and you can't find common ground together, decide to never discuss politics.

Relatives

You may not like all of your relatives and having some of them around may be stressful. Be compassionate. Those relatives belong to you or your significant other. Discuss before you get married how you will handle long distant relatives who arrive for the holidays or interfering in-laws who want to run your lives.

Children

Don't wait until after you're married to discuss whether or not you want children. You may find that your spouse doesn't want any while you want at least 3. Going into a marriage thinking you will change the mind of your spouse is not going to help your situation and that form of manipulation never works.

Discipline

Discuss and agree upon the parenting style you will use when you raise your children. If you don't agree upon this situation prior to giving birth to your children, you will end up arguing in front of them. Figure out your positions on drugs, alcohol, dating, makeup, sports, education, etc. Keep in mind that each child is different. Take his or her personality into consideration when you decide how to parent each child. Every new generation brings with it new problems. New problems require new strategies. Discuss discipline with your spouse when the children are not present. Write down rewards and consequences so your children will know what to expect.

School

Discuss and agree upon where you will send your children to school and how that child will get back and forth from school. Also decide who will pick up the child when the child gets sick. If one of you is working out of the home, your choice may be obvious, but if both of you work outside the home or one of you has deadlines to meet in your home, you'll need to choose in advance who will take care of a sick child.

Chores

Some husbands expect their wives to attend to all of the children's needs and all of the interior household chores, such as getting the kids up and ready for school, cooking, washing dishes, dusting, washing floors, vacuuming, laundering, making beds, bathing children, putting them to bed, while they attend to the outside chores like lawn care and snow shoveling. If you live in an area where outside chores take a considerable amount of time, you might agree that this arrangement is fair, but if you live in an apartment, you'll want to reconsider your arrangement. Writing everything down puts everything in perspective.

Alcohol or Drug Abuse

Don't think that just because you're married your souse will quit drinking or doing drugs. If his or her drinking or drug use is bothering you now, that concern will grow. She won't stop using drugs and he won't quit drinking just because you're married. Discuss your concerns before you tie the knot or that knot will end up choking you. 

Date Night

Find a reliable responsible babysitter. Allow your children to spend time with him or her prior to leaving them with the babysitter. Purchase a hidden camera – just to be safe – and enjoy some time with your spouse. Even if you do this once a month, you'll be able to reconnect with your loved one. Can't afford a sitter? Find another couple who wants to have a date night and offer to sit for their children one weekend while they watch your children another weekend. Or barter with someone who doesn't have children but loves your baked lasagna. 

Family Time

Once a week, schedule family time. Make a giant breakfast, stay in your PJs, don't allow anybody else to come over, and just BE with your family. Play games together. Have fun! Later, make a bowl of popcorn, plop down in front of the TV with pillows and blankets and watch a movie together – as a family.

Alone Time

Whether you want to get away by yourself or spend time with friends, you need to discuss this arrangement with your spouse. Some people believe that once you get married, you must spend every second with your spouse. If you had friends before you got married, you shouldn't have to argue about seeing them after you get married. And if you just want to get away by yourself, you need to let your spouse know that alone time is important to you. Sometimes you don't need to actually leave the home, but if you have a man cave or a woman's retreat within the home, your spouse should honor your alone time and take care of the kiddies so you can relax and enjoy your time alone. And do the same for your spouse.

Other Situations

Learn to be empathetic, sympathetic, compassionate, and loving. When your child gets sick, will you go to the doctor together? Will you attend school functions together? What if one spouse smokes and the child develops a lung disease? How will you handle smoking? Be prepared to discuss and resolve any problem when you notice it becoming a problem, not after it has disrupted the entire household. Be proactive in your approach to your marriage, so you won't have to go through the trauma of a divorce.

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Helping Children Who Suffer From Asthma

As a child who suffered from asthma, I wasn't aware of my physical limitations – I relied on my mother to tell me not to run, to sit still, and to take my meds. 

But even as a young child, I understood the power of this disease when I saw the panic in my parents' eyes every time I had an attack. Asthma IS scary – for adults, for children, and for people watching loved ones in the throes of an attack.

My first asthma attack occurred when I was 5 years old. Coincidentally, it occurred on the first day my parents went out together as a couple – without kids – since before I was born. Does anyone detect abandonment issues?

When I read about the link between emotions and asthma, I thought about that first time. I lived with my parents my whole life – for five whole years, and now both of them were gone for the first time – ever. The experience may have been frightening to me, even though my parents left my sisters and me in the care of someone we all trusted and adored, our next door neighbor. 

I remember our neighbor placing me in my parents' bed. I was never allowed in my mom's and dad's bed, so that alone elevated whatever it was I had to a mysterious level that created a sense of awe. I remember the doctor coming to our home (yes, doctors actually made home visits back then), and telling my parents I had "asthma." I saw the concerned and curious looks on my parents' faces, and I realized that whatever asthma was, it certainly had a powerful effect just by mere mention of the word. I remember the hospital stay when I was put into a room with four adult women. Curiously, I felt no abandonment issues when I left the home; I actually liked the attention of the hospital staff and the women in my room, but I never liked people leaving me.

Not until I got older did I realize how frightening not being able to breathe was. Not until I was older did I fear dying of this disease. As a child, asthma was a disease I struggled through. As an adult, asthma became a disease I feared.

Since my first asthma attack, I've had numerous asthma attacks, many of which landed me in the hospital. After living an entire lifetime with asthma as my constant companion, I've learned a lot about this disease, and I've written several articles about asthma. If you have children who suffer from asthma, I invite you to read the following articles to help you cope with your asthmatic child:

How to Prevent Colds from Becoming Asthma Attacks

New Home Treatments for Asthma

Asthmatics with Mold Allergies – Beware of Toxic Reaction

Exercising For Asthmatics

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Should You Bribe Your Children?

The discussion on a local radio station last month prompted me to write this blog. A mother was bribing her children by promising them extra Christmas presents if they performed chores around the house. The caller didn't mention the ages of the children, but what ensued as a result of the bribe was that the children were stepping up their chores by finding more and more tasks to complete in order to fill the space beneath the tree.

In my experience, "If … Then …," works only in the computer world. Children tend to take "if-thens" as a challenge, and some kids fold their arms across their chest in defiance at a parent who dares to challenge them in that manner.

When my own children were young, I tried the If-Then approach until I realized it didn't work. Bribes cost too much, for one thing. And if you set your children up to experience a Bribe Only world, they will expect others to offer them bribes to complete tasks too. They will think, "If I do this FOR you, what can I expect FROM you?" Children don't experience the sheer pleasure derived just from "giving" with that type of mindset.

If you prepare them for life in that manner, you set them up to believe that the world will give them whatever they want IF they behave a certain way. IF they don't, who cares?

Much better – and far more effective – is the After-Then approach:

After you put your toys away, we'll go to the park.

After you finish your homework, we'll play that game together.

After you finish your dinner, we'll make your favorite snack together.

The reward is not dependent upon whether or not they perform. It's understood, of course, but not dependent upon it. The wording loses its challenge.

By using the After-Then approach you give your children incentive to complete a task or finish a chore. They know that WHEN (not IF) they finish the task or chore, they will earn their reward.

Once you establish an After-Then situation, don't give in. If you say that AFTER they finish putting their clothes away, you'll take them to the zoo, and their clothes are sill sitting in the laundry basket, don't then take them to the zoo. Because by not following through, you give your children mixed messages and the next time you use the After-Then approach they will remember (they always remember) how easily they got away with NOT finishing the task the last time you suggested it. By not delivering on your promise, you have set your children up to believe that what you say doesn't matter. 

When you state, quite logically, that after such and such comes such and such, you have to be willing to follow through using your own logic. If you're not willing to follow the logic, don't set the premise.

Positive reinforcement for jobs well done does wonders for children, so please don't include bribery.

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Divorce and Fatherhood: Coping With Missing the Kids

Guest Post from Donald Pennington

Divorce is one of the major stressful events in most people's lives. It's been likened to dealing with the death of a close friend or family member – including the usual stages of grief. It might just be my own opinion (but it is an opinion based upon my observations) that we men are actually at a disadvantage during a divorce because, unlike women in general, we don't deal with our feelings well, since our traditional roles rarely allow us to discuss feelings. We often lack a lot of information which would otherwise make the grieving process much easier.

I'm sharing here today to help other men who've found themselves in the same place I once was, struggling with a divorce – especially in the cases where we dads are missing our children. Because - of all the aspects of a divorce - missing the children is perhaps the most painful. I don't have all of the answers to every problem – and believe me when I say I made my own share of mistakes too – but I am here to try and help someone else ease their own pain and hopefully find some measure of relief. My goal is to hopefully bring a fresh perspective to another person's situation as a way of expressing gratitude for those who did the same for me. I hope something here is of some use to someone, somewhere.

It all stems from fear. The biggest portion of the pain we divorced dads feel seems to come from fear. When we see or hear how the kid's hearts are broken by the divorce, we fear their pain and we want to protect them, of course. That's our “job” after all – to be the protector of our offspring. And we fear missing out on the chance to teach and guide our children, to be there for them, to just be their dad, flaws and all. These fears are so powerful and pervasive since, unlike simple anticipated fears, they have a basis in reality. Our children's hearts really are breaking. We really are missing out on being there for them. We truly are missing the milestones of their childhood and it hurts. Occasionally, she ends up with another guy who may not treat them as well as they should. These fears are rational and they hurt like few other things. Face these fears calmly and with a smile. Acknowledge them and
embrace them yourself but never try using them as leverage.

Love is still the answer. We are all unable to control the actions of others. All any of us have (and this includes the ex, their friends, the courts – ANY of us) is the ability to control how we respond to the actions of others. Letting go of some of the need to control things will also release a few of those fears. Acting out of fear often leads to negative consequences. When your actions stem from love you will find good results – and you'll be bolder, calmer and more confident as well. If the only people who you're willing to act from love for is your children, so be it. They deserve to be considered first anyway, right?

Play fair. It's possible that our ex's know keeping us from our children hurts and behave this way as some sort of punishment. Whether the ex-wife, the former in-laws or even the courts seem fair or not - even in situations wherein others are not being fair themselves - we must focus on being fair ourselves, for the children's sakes. It's not about us. It's about them and we are the grown-ups in the room.

To illustrate this point, I'll share with you something my dad and I discussed. I was doing my usual griping and complaining about my ex one day. Looking back, I think I was probably hoping for some sympathy from the old man, seeing that he and my mom had divorced when I was three and he hardly got to see me very often for years himself. I figured he'd understand. Somewhere in the discussion I made a typically self-centered comment of one sort or another and somehow, the words came out sounding like I was thinking of doing something stupid. (I probably was.)

His very loud, somewhat angry response got my attention and has stuck in my mind permanently. He said “Look! You need to watch your dumb a$$ mouth! Don't act like this in front of them! You and her went into the marriage with your eyes wide open but those kids didn't ask to be born!” He was right again. We must play fair, for their sake, whether anyone else does or not. That's even if we “lose” temporarily. The goal is to scar their young minds as little as possible.

Extend the olive branch. It might sound very difficult – and depending on the level of emotions it might even actually be difficult – but you will want to be the first one to extend an olive branch. I'd recommend a simple, hand-written letter to your ex, not “certified” as that will just cause their guard to go up, which reads something to the effect of, “You're perfectly welcome to say anything you want to about me. Just please don't say it to the children.” Be polite, courteous and leave all other commentary out of this letter. In my case, I had to also call her and tell her that I was “done with being an a$$hole about this.” A little bit of humility is powerful stuff. My personal situation might be a little bit different than yours. But I'll bet you dollars to donuts you'll find expressing the willingness to be peaceful effective. *One side-note: Once you make this offer, stick with it. We guys are infamous for saying one thing and doing another. Keeping this arrangement will gain you much ground and might even completely adjust her behavior.

Time factors in too. Right now it might seem hard to believe but eventually, you will adjust. A day will come when you one day look back and realize this was a difficult, painful time – but it wasn't the end. A guy in Florida was talking with me during a particularly difficult day and said, “When I first got divorced, I cried myself to sleep every night because I lost my wife. Now I cry myself to sleep every night because I'm afraid she might someday want me back.” You'll reach this point eventually, too. Just make sure not to screw up permanently because of temporary emotions along the way.

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For more from Donald, please visit Expertspages by clicking the link. You can also find Donald on Yahoo Voices, and you can buy his book, Winging It; 21 Ways to Earn Money Without a Job, by clicking the links.

Homeschooling Tips for Single Parents

by Lyn Lomasi

Homeschooling is a challenging educational choice. When I became a single parent and decided to go back to homeschooling two of my four kids at the same time, many wondered if it was the right choice. Sure, schooling the kids at home can be challenging  -- especially for single parents. But I knew it was the right choice for my kids, so I made it work. 

Relax. This is crucial to remember. If you are calm, things go much smoother. When you stress, so do the kids -- and that isn’t a conducive learning or teaching environment. We like to do yoga together before starting the day. This helps clear the mind for better focus and is also extremely relaxing and energizing at the same time.

Scheduling should make sense. Remember that if you homeschool, you do not have to teach and learn in a strict time period. Just be sure that your child is learning at least the required number of hours in your area. Check with your local educational department for homeschooling regulations. Single parents generally have a work schedule and other things to work around. Keep that in mind when making time for learning. 

Don't forget the fun! We like to take frequent field trips, use games for teaching, and go hiking on the trails with the dogs. Most local venues can double as fun and education. For instance, on a tour in a food factory, children may have fun tasting. But they will also learn how that food was made, which could enhance current lessons. These fun trips can help relieve the stress of doing the school thing on your own. We sometimes meet other homeschooling families, which helps as well. 

Work remotely when possible. If you can, find a job that allows you to work from home. If this isn’t possible in your field, check with your boss to see if there are certain tasks you can do at home to cut down on the hours you need to be at the office. Some parents may not be able to do this. However, working at home has helped me immensely with homeschooling as a single parent. It is much easier to make arrangements the rare times when I do need to go to the office than to do so every day. I somehow feel more comforted knowing that even if I have a large workload, I can still supervise my children with their lessons because we are all in the same place. 

Split up schooling times. If you have other kids who are not homeschooling (like me) or have a job outside the home, this may be the best way to handle things. For instance, if you work a traditional 9-5 job and your child needs 6 hours of school per day, you can teach from 6 a.m. - 8 a.m. and again from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. During the day when you are at work, if the kids are younger, they could attend day camps. If they are older, they could do the same or attend extracurricular classes, such as photography, art, dance, or music. They can also study some of that time if there are things they can do without your assistance. 

Have more than one teacher. Is the other parent available to teach some of the classes? What about a grandparent, nanny, tutor, or daycare provider? Before setting this up, be sure the homeschooling laws in your state allow for this, as some only allow the legal guardian to be the teacher. If you are able to split schooling time with another responsible adult, this can help get around some common scheduling issues single homeschool parents face. 

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Author Blurb

Lyn Lomasi is the Community Advocate at Yahoo! Contributor Network. She's also a freelance web journalist and founder of Write W.A.V.E. Media, parent company to LifeSuccessfully.com and several others. From parenting techniques, to energy usage, to humane animal treatment, homeless aid, reducing waste and more, Lyn is committed to saving the Earth as a whole. For this self-made momtrepreneur, green living and sustainability is not about a few small product choices. It s a way of life and a labor of love. She is currently raising her kids and pets in Colorado.