Today’s Days of Homeschool 101 topic is Home Management.

In all the homeschool groups I am part of on facebook and other online communities, I think the #1 question asked by new homeschoolers to the veterans is, “How do you homeschool and keep up with the house work, chores, and laundry?”

Well, I am most definitely NOT a veteran homeschooler. I also do not keep a spotless house; as a matter of fact, despite my tendency to feel the need to clean, purge, and declutter all the time there is most undeniably always a box (…or 2) in a corner full of clothes to change out for the season, books to get rid of, things to take to the resale shop, items for donation, stuff to go downstairs, etc. My house is never 100% perfectly put together. Had you walked in 3-4 years ago, it would have been pretty darn close.

Now we homeschool. And have a small farm. And live on dirt roads that make for a dusty house. And I have 4 small children, one being super tiny right now, and therefore cleaning, decluttering, purging, laundry, and daily chores are just piling up a bit until I can get to them a few days a week. That’s why something like the blog at clean home guide can be really helpful in giving me tips on what’s the best approach to clean my house. Sometimes I just can’t be bothered, which I’m sure others feel the same. So these types of blogs are really helpful. I know though that a lot of people prefer to hire professional house cleaners to help them out, as some times there just isn’t enough time in the day.

But, outside of having a newborn, I think it is pretty simple to keep your home managed in most areas.

Home Management = Time Management

Keeping Up With The Daily Stuff

1. First and fore most- DECLUTTER! In our home I am very anti-twaddle everything. I am anti twaddle books, twaddle toys, twaddle stuff. If it isn’t important, educational, or high quality, it gets trashed or given away. I know quite a few people who haven’t adopted this mindset and ended up needing The Junk Pirates to come and help them get rid of all the junk that filled up their home! They had everything from toys to old furniture to get rid of! Sometimes the kids bring in things from somewhere else that really is just junk, and they don’t last long around here before I get rid of them. Life is too short, and our home too small for junk.
2. Make routines for everything! I know being spontaneous is fun and care free (and there is a time and place for that). But it can also contribute to chaos and “noise” in your home that isn’t necessary. By noise I mean distractions- stuff on floors, tables, toys strowed about, etc. It prevents children from focusing during school and while playing; it also distracts mom! So routines- when we transition from breakfast to school time we clear the table, my 5 year old empties the dishwasher, my 3 year old brings me dirty laundry to be washed, and I clean the kitchen while they get ready for the day. Then we begin school or outside time depending on the time of year/temp outside. After school/outside time we clear the table and tidy up, they go play for free time, etc. Before moving on to lunch they clean up anything they have gotten out during that time. After lunch they go outside to play; before coming in for naps they clean up their toys outside and bring in anything they took out. After naps they get a snack and play (or we may run errands), but before moving from one thing to the next they are to clean up and put away anything they have gotten out.
3. Morning and Night Routine- Once you start a morning and night routine life becomes so much easier! Each morning the dish washer has to be emptied in our home, so I can put the dirty dishes away as we go through our day. After each meal I wipe all the counters down. At night, same things; I clean up the kitchen, supper dishes, and put away food. I wipe down counters, clean the sink, and run the dishwasher. It makes my morning so much easier and it is very nice waking up to a clean kitchen.
4. Delegate to the kids– Y’all GET YOUR KIDS CLEANING! My 3 year old empties the waste baskets and brings the dirty laundry to me. My 5 year old empties the dishwasher, cleans up and sorts toys and books, gets food from the freezer for me, and feeds the animals. Some days she make breakfast while I am feeding the baby … They ALL (including the 2 year old) clean up their things and tidy areas
5. If it is on the floor, it goes in the trash- If the kids leave toys or clothes on the floor, they have one chance to pick it up. After that it goes in the trash or giveaway pile. If you get it out, you put it away.

Keeping It Clean

I used to clean a different area of my home each day- dust on Tuesdays, vacuum M, W, F, and as needed, bathrooms on Thursdays, etc.

That didn’t last long! Now I find that my cleaning routine is much simpler- we set aside one morning each week for cleaning. The kids go down stairs or outside and mama cleans.

There is a method here- let’s say cleaning day is Wednesday. We generally clean up and put away as we go through our day and transition from one things to the next; but on Tuesday night everyone picks up their things. Clothes go in the hamper, toys in their baskets/appropriate places, books on shelves and tidied up, closets tidied, bathroom tidied, etc.

The next morning (Wednesday) is cleaning day- after breakfast and daily chores, everyone outside or downstairs while mama cleans. And I just bust it out. I scrub the kitchen, bathrooms, steam the floors, and try to get dusting done. And most importantly, I vacuum. Arguably the most important job of them all, keeping the floors in pristine condition 24/7. You gotta have the right vacuum cleaner for the job though, and you may have to pay a visit to somewhere like https://www.bissell.com/vacuums/stick-and-cordless-vacuums if you feel as if you may need a new vacuum cleaner.

That is the extent of my weekly deep clean routine. Sometimes it is an every 2 weeks routine, but that is what it looks like.

Keeping It Organized

It is very easy to make “piles” around the house (guilty!) of papers, books, resources, etc. But it is also very easy to leave piles unattended and forget what is even in them. If you haven’t gone through it in a few weeks, chances are it can be put away neatly.

Taking a few minutes each day to file papers, pay bills, and sort mail helps keep everything organized. Just a few minutes each day!

How do you manage your home and homeschool?

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