Is it possible to homeschool and/or unschool when both parents work (one full time/one part time)?

[Nightswimming]

Hi,
I have a 22 month old, my husband works full time and I work 3 days a week. I have been thinking about the concept of homeschooling and unschooling for the past few months and am wondering if it is possible to do either of these if both parents work outside the home. I am also hoping to have at least one more child.

Does anyone work outside the house and homeschool or unschool?

Thanks.

[annethcz]

There are lots of ways to make it work. I know of homeschooling families who use all sorts of child-care arrangements. I also know of families where the parents work opposite shifts.

We're going to be homeschooling again next year, and I'm currently trying to decide if it's worth it to keep my part time job. If I do, DH will work from home on the 3 mornings/week that I am working outside the home. We're lucky that DH has the option to telecommute some days for his full time job.

[mom2ponygirl]

That's been our situation. I actually found it a bit easier when dd was younger. I've now cut-down my part-time work to just 1/4 time. It is hard with a tween/teen to get them to different activities/classes with my work. We're struggling through though!

[Kerimommyof2]

I totally think it can be done !
Especially early on..it doesnt take that much time..my dd is in 2 nd grade and we do about 1-2 hrs a day 3 days a week...
plus you do have weekends with dh right?

[alegna]

Yep. I work (very) part time (2-3 days a week, 10ish hours a week) and dh works full time. We homeschool. Dd stays with my parents when I work (ds comes with me)

We have several other homeschooling families in our co-op who have two working parents. Some work opposite schedules, one has a nanny. There are definitely ways to make it work

-Angela

[Magelet]

subbing to learn more. in the future we plan to homeschool, and I know we may both have to work for periods of time (or want to.)

[Airmid03]

I certainly hope that it's possible, we both work full time and are planning to start homeschooling dd in 1st grade in the fall. We work on (mostly) different days and will be tag teaming the school work. Right now, we're trying to work through what type of curriculum will give us what we want but not require too much prep time. The big issue is what to do with dd on the two days that we both work - I work from home on those days so we have some flexibility.

[Fairy4tmama]

We do! Dh works 40 a week and I work 20. It can be a done. DH works mostly daytime hours and I work 5:15 to 10:15 m,t,w and five hours on Saturday. He catches up on late night work or out of town trips on Th and F. Generally speaking we still have to utilize a baby sitter for about five hours a week because I have to attend meetings out side of my "shifts" or because DH has class(he's a fulltime grad student as well) That said I can't wait for a time to come when I don't have to work (and I have my dream job ). There are weeks where I feel so torn and like I am spread so thin that I can't give my best anywhere. Also because of our tight schedules we don't participate in many HS groups or fun classes.

[Madame Pomfrey]

Not only can this be done but I recommend it. I love the balance I get from working part-time away from the kids. It actually makes me a better mom - focusing my time better - and a more effective homeschooler. Some moms can stay home all the time (and I did it for years) but my self-esteem and my confidence started to suffer.

As I mentioned in an earlier thread we went through a difficult year when I had to work full-time. That was too much for me. Now I work 15 hours per week in a low stress job and it's a perfect fit.

I imagine that the home/work scale balances differently for every family. Just try to err on the lighter side if you can. Once commitments are made it is harder to cut back hours at a company that is dependent upon you than it is to pick up a few extra hours. Every job has those extra time-stealers: meetings outside of work hours, someone's birthday party after work, the client that needs a late appointment, etc. Just leave a bit of extra time in the schedule for those.

One other note: remember that your part-time job isn't "you." So many of us had a lot of our self-image tied up in careers before parenting. Part-time can be different. My role as Mom is primary and the job is something that needs to complement the Mom job. The job that works part-time for me has less status and lower pay than my previous career, but I'm happier and a tad bit wealthier for it - good match.

Best of luck to you,

Lucie

[bobandjess99]

yep.....most homeschooling instruction takes only 2-3 hours 3-5 days per week....so 6-15 hours total time, which is morethan doable for a working family. Most homeschoolers "educte" in ways other than just sit-down type instruction.

[mama2annabelle]

We do it. DH works full time and I work part time. I work 2 days a week, (about 18-20 hours total) on DH's days off. We do miss out on any family days where we are all together though, which is tough sometimes. But it works for our family right now and I really appreciate the time away from the home. I love my job and feel like going to work is my time "off". =-)

[raelize]

i have a good friend who teaches at college three mornings a week and her dp works fulltime. she takes her kids to a dear friend who has an in home daycare and also hs. she did take this semester off cause her friend moved and they haven't settled on a daycare/babysitter plan yet.

i plan to start teaching part-time at college and my dh works fulltime. ideally i would teach two classes at night/online, but we'll see what happens. i don't think i would want to teach more than one class during the day cause i just don't want that much time away from my kids, but i plan on using a good at home daycare or in house babysitter/mmother's helper (ideally an older hs kid who lives in the neighborhood).

[ewp11100]

I'm doing it. Sometimes it makes my life crazy but it's doable. I was when I was working 15-20 hours a week at a job I could take my kids with me then 3 hours a week I couldn't. Now I work 50-60 hours a week from home and my husband is a full time student. I won't lie it's really HARD. We have looked into the local charter school in our county but it's by lottery, if a space becomes available, we will probably (and unfortunately) take it. I was very dedicated to homeschooling but I just don't think I can keep up anymore. Ok that was my break for the day, got to go!