Hello!
I am new to the teaching side of homeschooling and looking for some tips or information regarding different teaching/learning methods I can try with my stepdaughter! Here is a little info about us:
1. My stepdaughter will be turning 10 yrs old next month and is at about a 3rd grade education level in everything except reading. She is an advanced reader and enjoys reading, especially fictional books.
2. My stepdaughter lives with my husband and I full time and has a history of trauma and abuse
3. My husband decided to take my stepdaughter out of public school last January - this was due mainly to an increase in behavioral issues both at school and in the home. Since January her behaviors have plateaued for the most part.
4. I was homeschooled growing up and was a highly self-motivated student
Back in January my husband tried to design a curriculum that was mainly technology-based, lessons using videos and practice work done on electronic devices, etc. After that I tried putting together paper worksheet packets using material that she had already been exposed to in public school but still needed some practice with. I would give her the worksheet to complete and sit at the table with her to answer any questions she had as she worked. Both of these methods appeared somewhat "successful" in the beginning, meaning my stepdaughter was able to learn/review the material and complete practice activities with pretty good to great scores. However, within about 2 weeks, when it seemed like the "novelty" of the new system/schedule had worn off, then my stepdaughter would stop doing lessons and worksheets entirely. I do not believe the material was too easy or too difficult and she was doing fine initially, I used placement tests to figure out what material to use and I had seen the material she had been covering in public school.
This is actually exactly how everything we do with my stepdaughter goes (chores, self-care, etc.), initially she finds new systems and schedules doable and she has great success, then about 1-2 weeks later she just stops pretty much entirely unless we are walking her through every single step/minute/activity and basically forcing her to do it by standing over her the entire time. She really seems to respond to novelty and is not particularly motivated by negative or positive "consequences." I find the idea of needing to create "novel" systems and schedules every 2 weeks extremely impractical. In public school she had average grades, but her interpersonal issues, which existed from the very beginning of her public education, were very quickly escalating and distracting her and her classmates from lessons and work. I am not familiar with the routines/structure of the public school she attended, but obviously with homeschooling I don't have the ability to change rooms and teachers frequently, especially since bad weather will keep us at home through most of the fall/winter/spring.
I guess I am looking for ideas on how to present material to her so that she is at least somewhat motivated or interested in learning it and then how to help her complete practice work when necessary. I have an almost 3 year old and an 8 month old as well so I do not know how I could possibly sit with her and work through every single question on every single worksheet etc. I also do not know how to get enough work completed in a reasonable amount of time if we have to do all sorts of different and changing techniques all the time.
Thanks for reading!
