I have two dds, ages 5 1/2 and almost 4. The 5 year old is homeschooling K right now, and things are going well. My 3-almost-4 year old (in Nov.) is driving me to distraction, though. She is a very bright little thing and LOVES to do just about anything related to school/learning/books. However, since she will not officially be K age for two more years, I've tried to hold off a little. That is not to say that I don't prepare things for her to do; I do, but it's just not exactly what her older sis is doing. I usually alternate working with the girls--I'll work with DD1 and give DD2 something to do in the mean time, and then switch. Activities I've tried include everything from playing with Wedgits to drawing/coloring/writing (which she LOVES to do) to looking at books to playing with some of the fun educational games/puzzles we have (and which we spent a small fortune on :tongue_smilie: but are really quite good) to just playing ANYTHING. She just wants to be in the middle of what DD1 and I are doing. She starts whining and crying when she can't just do what we're doing, and as a last resort I threaten to send her out of the room. Things are not going well. :blink::001_unsure: I keep thinking that DD1 would be better off in traditional school due to the distractions, but then DH disabuses me of that idea rather quickly. (Obviously, with more students there are even more distractions!) Really, though, this is all more about me than about DD1 being distracted--I'M distracted. So what would you do? DD2 is obviously not up to DD1's ability level in terms of motor skills, etc., but she can read cvc words and LOVES to practice. I have workbooks/activities for her, but she's never as interested in those as she is what I'm doing with DD1. Basically, she wants my undivided attention. And yes, I have tried giving her attention first. It's funny, because of the two girls, she's the one who is most likely, willing, and able to entertain herself. I guess I'm just looking for some BTDT consolation or some ideas on what to do.:bigear:

I think Richard Peck's novels (at least the ones I've read) are hilarious! Ten might be a little on the youngish side (depending on your ds, of course), but I'd definitely keep Peck in reserve!

Both my girls have enjoyed Rocket Phonics. We also use Right Start math, and I've noted a few similarities, mainly that RP uses games like Go Fish and Bingo. I reviewed it on my blog this past weekend. Hope this helps!

I was really inspired by the book A Mother's Heart by Jean Fleming. I reviewed it here on my blog. HTH!:001_smile:

I'm sure I'm duplicating (I haven't read all the responses), but I would definitely include Charlotte's Web, Black Beauty, and Where the Red Fern Grows, among many others. I'm :lurk5:! ETA: Thought of a few more--A Girl of the Limberlost and Heidi.

Thanks for you help and suggestions, everyone. We have baskets, but I suppose the problem is that she wants to stuff every purse she owns (quite a few) with paper, and it eventually makes it onto the floor, etc. Another part of my problem is that I'm overwhelmed and overrun with books right now. That's another thread entirely, though. . . .:D

What I'm talking about here is actually just the kid-type mess that I'm sure everyone must deal with, but I'm thinking about how it must be magnified by homeschooling. My eldest dd, who just turned 5, LOVES paper. Give her come paper and a pen or pencil, and she can entertain herself for a while. However, she wants to keep every. piece. of. paper. Every one. Sometimes it borders on the ridiculous. I have laughed and laughed about how much she loved the little mini books we put inside a lapbook we made last week. She wants me to make more minibooks for her, and when I asked her where she'd put them, of course she said she would HAVE to keep them with her (i.e. in her purse). I'm hoping to set up a dedicated art center for the girls, with drawers for them to put their treasures in. Does anybody else have any btdt experience, or anything general about taming (or coping with) the mess that homeschooling must create?

I'm not sure what the actual reading levels of the My Father's Dragon books are, but they are short chapter books that I would imagine a 6-8 year old would find enjoyable. I read them to my girls (ages 3 and 4 at the time), and they enjoyed them immensely. You can read my reviews of them here and here on my blog. (I review many of our read-alouds on my blog.)

I haven't read all the responses, so forgive me if I duplicate. ;) I think the hs diploma is still valued today, but I don't think it means what it used to to the graduate (and possibly to his/her future employers). In other words, I DO think education has been "dumbed down." I've taught college freshmen for about five years now, and believe me, many of them do not have the requisite skills to graduate from high school. However, they obviously did graduate, so something is lacking in the expectations/standards dept.

Thanks for sharing this encouraging story!:D

Would this be for independent reading or read-alouds?

Thanks to everyone who responded! I agree that it might help to eat breakfast right away, but we've sort of gotten into the routine of reading books when we first wake up (which obviously includes snuggling either in the rocking chair or on the sofa). I'll have to try that, though. I'm trying to remember to pull them to me when they're grumpy instead of pushing them away, which I must admit is my tendency.

Thanks for the replies, everyone. I really like the idea of the "5 Gratefuls" and the reminder to "run them ragged." :D Specifically, our problem just has to do with the general mully-grubs about 'most anything I suggest--"I don't wanna" or "I don't like that." I hope it's a phase my eldest is going through, but it tends to rub off on little sis, too.

Thanks, squirtymomma! My girls still have rest time of at least an hour every afternoon, but the time after that is still pretty tough. They usually both listen to audiobooks, but my eldest is usually grumpy when it's all over. She probably could still use a nap, but then that pushes the time she will go to sleep back to way too late. I need to work on the not showing emotion myself, though. :tongue_smilie:

Some of you veteran moms, help me out with ideas on how to teach my 3 and almost 5 year old contentment and how to be happy. I believe it's a habit that can be taught, really, so I'm all :bigear:. Our problems really center around morning time (i.e. breakfast particularly) routines, so I've started a Good Morning Breakfast Club with a chart/accountability and the possibility of rewards (bribes, I know--but whatever works, right?) with a few consecutive days' "membership." I'd really just like some ideas on how to incorporate cheerfulness into our daily lives.

Thank you, thank you, thank you all for your encouragement and advice!!! I had a mini-epiphany while in the shower and thought I'd try what ElizabethB (I think) suggested and just play around with the white board. We haven't done that in a while. I still think we might start in on MFW K this summer, just for fun. I think they'll both enjoy it. I think I want them to succeed sooooo much that I have a hard time reining myself in. They're both listening to LIW audiobooks right now for rest time. :)

I've been doing OPGTTR with my girls since roughly the beginning of the year. Eldest daughter will be 5 next week, and we have advanced up to lesson 34. She can read cvc words with just a little help, but is she interested in doing this? No. Once in a blue moon she will say she wants to read, and generally after we've done a lesson she is proud of it and wants to show dad later, etc., but she never initiates it. My question, then, is what to do? Do I continue doing OPGTTR during the summer (which is what I had intended to do, but after today, I don't know. . .), or do I pick up with a curriculum (I'm thinking MFW K) that would essentially be a review but would be more fun? Honestly, it's really like pulling teeth most of the time to do the lessons. I am having a difficult time distinguishing between "this is too hard for me right now" and "I'm being extremely obstinate and just plain old don't want to do this." She is a very bright child who LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to be read to and to act out what we've read. (She and little sis have been acting out Laura Ingalls Wilder and Almanzo "Ingalls" Wilder getting married while I'm typing this.) I guess what I'm really doing is second guessing my ability to figure this whole homeschooling thing out without making it too much for my little girls. I don't want to burn them out before they're ten, but I also want them to learn. Help!!:confused::tongue_smilie:

Okay, I'm just about convinced that this is the way we want to go. . . Do you think coupling MFW K with some FIAR books for fun would be too much? Does MFW K cover math, and if so, to what extent?

Thanks for all the great ideas! I guess my question now is this: is MFW K too much for a 3 1/2 year old? She knows most of her consonant sounds, all the short vowel sounds, and she recognizes most letters. She's not so great in the fine motor skills dept., of course, but she has always done school with older sis. She has a fairly long attention span, too.

Thanks for all the great advice and input. I'm thinking now of starting in the fall, but I could be convinced to start sooner. We already have learning time almost every day, so I guess you could say we're already homeschooling. I actually have given serious consideration of schooling year 'round, though, and beginning official K this summer. The other part of the equation is that I also have a 3 year old dd who will be along for the ride.

I'm thinking of using MFW for dd's K program next year. However, we've already been working on phonics using OPGTTR. We are up to about lesson 33 in it. Will going back to the K MFW program be too repetitious, or will it just be a nice reinforcement?

I looked over MFW at a conference this weekend and was intrigued. I've had some of the same questions, though, about how to make it truly classical. I'm :lurk5:!

:grouphug::grouphug:

I'm Amy and I've been (mostly) a lurker for a while. See my signature for all my info! My eldest dd is starting K at home this upcoming school year, and we're still pondering our choices (and reading too many catalogs and going to too many conferences!).:tongue_smilie:

Me, me, me!:tongue_smilie: