Bringing home books and baby
September 25, 2012
For a single mother, raising an infant may feel like an impediment to going back to school. On the contrary, this is a great opportunity to get your education started, especially while your baby is still small. Once your little one starts walking, you may face a different set of challenges for finding time to sit and study.
Making the time
When your newborn first comes home, it may not be practicable to find a babysitter or leave him or her with a friend. An infant that small should be with mom, and that can be seen as an obstacle to receiving scholarships for moms and getting into college. On the contrary, taking online classes will give mothers the flexibility to study and participate in online discussion, message board posts and complete interactive modules while being readily on-hand to care for baby.
Finding ways to integrate child care with education can be achieved as well. Reading to infants is a soothing way to lull them to sleep, but under 10 months, a baby doesn't know what he's being read. For a change of pace' try reading a textbook out loud instead of a baby book. You may find your baby drops off to sleep even faster than usual - it works on most students, too.
Full-time and part-time
If staying at home isn't an option, there is no need to be a full-time matriculated student, especially if you're working a job on the side. Scholarships for moms don't pay all the bills, and between diapers, formula, clothes and other new expenses added on to the usual total, some moms have to keep working to stay afloat.
Don't feel pressured into taking a full load of courses from the very start. A minimum workload will vary between two to three per semester, while some financial aid for mothers will require a certain number of classes to remain eligible. Balancing a full-time job with part-time school and full-time motherhood is hard enough, so find a schedule that works for you, and don't feel bad if you have to drop a class to maintain a good academic standing.
