These days, staying at home with C, it's a bit more difficult to fit the news in between the latest Peppa Peg episode and making sure C doesn't eat her finger-paint. The other day during C's nap, I spent nearly two hours reading up on recent world events because I don't want to end up looking like an ignoramus on Jimmy Kimmel sometime.
So, out of curiosity, I checked my News IQ. You can check it here, if you're curious, too. I scored 11 of 13, but that's thanks in large part to my recent profession as teacher. Part of my job was to be au courant in world affairs. One of the highlights of my day was scrolling through the Atlantic and NPR, and I savored my time with Morning Edition on my daily commute. I even lingered behind the steering wheel most mornings just to finish hearing Marketplace or sniffle through StoryCorp.
So, out of curiosity, I checked my News IQ. You can check it here, if you're curious, too. I scored 11 of 13, but that's thanks in large part to my recent profession as teacher. Part of my job was to be au courant in world affairs. One of the highlights of my day was scrolling through the Atlantic and NPR, and I savored my time with Morning Edition on my daily commute. I even lingered behind the steering wheel most mornings just to finish hearing Marketplace or sniffle through StoryCorp.
I'm actually quite grateful to have dropped the daily grind of daycare drop-off and pick-up, but I do miss the ability to make time for reading the news. I had childcare, so I had the luxury of reading multiple articles, looking for balanced views, and searching multiple media outlets. Now that I'm at home, I'm on call from 6:30 am to 7:30 pm, and I don't always have the mental capacity for digesting news after wrangling my toddler all day!
So what's a busy mom to do? Here are some ways I'm attempting to maintain a little global awareness in my new role as stay-at-home mom.
None of these tips is particularly brilliant, so I'd love to hear your tips for staying news-savvy!
So what's a busy mom to do? Here are some ways I'm attempting to maintain a little global awareness in my new role as stay-at-home mom.
- Subscribe to your favorite news outlets on Twitter and Facebook. My current favorites are NPR, The Atlantic, Reuters, and the New York Times. The more popular articles will populate your newsfeed, and on Twitter you can read the headlines to quickly check on recent events. I think The Atlantic has some of the best writing on the internet, and if you're friends with me on Facebook, you probably get sick of me re-posting Atlantic articles!
- Listen to NPR in the car. I know NPR can be quite niche in some of its stories, but they offer global headlines on the hour and half-hour, and you can listen to their Morning Edition podcast or use the app. NPR also offers great book recommendations that are slightly more intellectually stimulating than Corduroy.
- Watch PBS Newshour either on TV or online.
- Have the news on in the background while you're getting dressed each morning.
- Designate independent reading time for you and your child. C and I sit in the den, and for about 20 minutes she reads her books while I trawl Twitter and FB for noteworthy news articles. If C fusses about reading on her own, I tell her it's reading time, and eventually she settles down in her pile of books. This works for me because C loves reading, but I realize not all moms have this option.
None of these tips is particularly brilliant, so I'd love to hear your tips for staying news-savvy!