Working Mother – August 2019

home front| PRO TIPS

“We have an Amazon Echo at home. If I’m not home while the

kids are doing their homework, I ‘drop in’ through the Echo app

on my phone. I can hear the kids where they hang out, and assist

accordingly. We also have Nest cameras up, so I can visually get

an idea of what’s going on and provide homework guidance.”

—Esti Chazanow, co-founder and brand manager at LIV Watches

“We all grab a

snack and spread out

at the kitchen table.

I send business

emails, and the kids

ask me for help when

needed. It sends the

message: We’re in it

together, and I’d

rather not be doing

my homework either,

but it’s the responsi-

ble thing to do.”

—Kelley Kitley,

psychotherapist

“We minimize distractions—

her siblings—by having my

husband play with them while

I work one on one with my

daughter. If she starts to get

overly frustrated or tired, my

husband and I quickly swap to

reset the energy in the room.”

—Lauren Golden, author of The Free

Mama: How to Work from Home, Control

Your Schedule, and Make More Money

“We use Alexa

to set a timer for

my daughter’s

math problems.

She loves talking to

Alexa and the

challenge of trying

to complete more

and more problems

in two minutes.”

—Katie Coleman, consultant

54 Workingmother.com| AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2019

“My son does everything

he can without me, and he

puts a sticky note on the

things he needs help with

so we can review together

later. It works great and

instills organizational

techniques as well.”

—Julie Cantor, M.D., faculty member at

UCLA School of Law and founder/CEO

of Harlen, a woman’s handbag line

“Have a dedicated homework area that is

NOT centrally located. The kitchen table

might be too distracting with the dog, siblings

and art supplies close by. We keep a small

table in a quiet corner with paper, pencils and

erasers on it. When my daughter sits there,

she knows it’s time to get down to business!”

—Beth Cubbage, software consulting man-

ager and owner of the blog Parent Lightly

“I text my kids daily at around 4 p.m. to

ask about homework in a family group

chat. They’ll send pictures and screen-

shots of their assignments, and my

husband and I walk them through those

problems between meetings at work.”

—Gina Hooks, senior social media marketing manager

Homework

Help

Stubborn student keeping you from enjoying your

post-work evening? Follow these veteran parents’

advice for getting assignments done—without

energy-draining begging or bribing. By Joseph Barberio

“If your kids have a favorite subject, do it last so they are

motivated to complete work on less-enjoyable material.”

—Elizabeth Malson, president and VP of marketing at Amslee Institute, an online technical school for caregivers

Alexa, please

set the timer for

two minutes.

GE

TT

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