Afterschooling more than one

[LibrarianMom]

Our two children are several years apart in school (dd2nd grade; ds preK). I'm trying to work with both of them but never feel like I'm quite succeeding. Although it's quite exciting to see ds sit in on chapter book read-alouds with dd I know I haven't read nearly as many picture books to him as I did dd. Yet when I try to do some one on one with ds, I worry that I need to be helping correct bad habits dd is learning in math. Help! How do you handle afterschooling multiple children? This is also complicated by the fact we don't usually get home until 5:30 pm or later which means supper is 6:15ish and the golden time is between about 7-8 p.m. if there is nothing else scheduled. :glare:

[LibrarianMom]

Any suggestions?

[EmilyK]

Well, we do pretty relaxed homeschooling, but--

-- I get my husband if he's home to take one while I work with the other

-- My older son does a lot of books on tape before bed as his wind down while I read to his brother

--Older son does in depth independent reading or work (or watches documentaries) while I work with brother in the next room

--I figure younger absorbs some of what I do with older -- when they were littler, the younger guy played while we read

--I have let go of the idea (most of the time) that they should have the same experiences, read the same favorite books etc

My current situation is easier given that they are 7 and 1/2 and 11. The younger one got the short end of the stick when he was younger, I'm afraid, though I guess he was the beneficiary of having an involved older brother (despite having less of my undivided attention).

Hang in there!

[outdoorgirls]

When my two were that young I tried to include the youngest in on the chapter books but realized that she was not getting as much out of it. I finally separated my reading time. I read to each of them separately for about 15-30 minutes each night. Now that the oldest is 12 this is also a good chance for the 2 of us to talk about "things" without her younger sister interrupting.

For the youngest you could read pictures type books that have a math, letter recognition, simple science picture books (see Sonlight list for ideas). Other Pre-K teaching can take place at random times.

For your older with math I would set aside time in the evening to work with her on math. The younger can unwind and play by himself for the short time or have your husband do something with him. I do SM with my youngest, now 7; but, we have been doing it since summer before K so a routine for her. We do up to 30 minutes 4 times a week but usually less. One of these days is Saturday morning.

Once you develop a routine things will become easier. One thing I keep in mind is being flexible and realizing that the time is getting late, she has been in school all day and they need some time on their own each day as well.

Carolyn

[BabyBre]

It is kind of tricky to seperate dc during afterschooling because there's so little time as it is. In a perfect world, they'd both get what they each needed out of each lesson.

I seperate dd9 and ds7 during math in this way: Ds7 sits in on dd9's Saxon Math 4 lessons (2 days/week, 15 min. facts practice, 30 min. lesson, skip the Meetings), participating as he can. Sometimes it's too far over his head and I'll have him work independently (on his Saxon 3 worksheet from his last lesson). Dd9 completed Saxon 3 last year, so she always works independently (on her Saxon 4 worksheet from her last lesson) during ds7's math lesson (same time pattern as above).

I've found that it helps with scheduling if I can highlight those subjects that each child can work independently on and plug them in during the subjects the other one needs me for. If your dd is using bad habits when she does her math, I wouldn't consider her independent in that activity. Your younger one can also benefit hugely from sitting at the table during your dd's lesson and playing with pattern blocks, tangrams, or other such material. I'm convinced they do learn through osmosis.

I have a great Excell spreadsheet I use to fit in all the subjects you see in my signature in about 1.5 hours a day. I'd be happy to send it you.

[ack25]

I would love to see that excel schedule! My kids are 10 and 8 and I currently incorporate math(Saxon, RS), Building Thinking Skills, read-alouds, and hw help into our schedule. This summer, I would like to add WWE for the 8year old and GWG for both.