Homeschooling during early pregnancy

[Kidlit]

I am approximately 10 weeks pregnant and sick, tired, and unmotivated to do ANYTHING. I have one in K and one in pre-K (?--really just tagging along at just-turned-4 but immensely interested in whatever big sis is doing). I know this year is really "extra" (in a sense), but I have a hard time convincing myself of that, since 'most everybody sends their children to K here where we live.

 

I guess what I'm looking for is advice or commiseration. :confused:

 

I was anxious about homeschooling with a baby/toddler/preschooler (again), but now I'm just trying to make it through the pregnancy without our learning at home fizzling out altogether.

[MissKNG]

Gosh!! I hope you get some responses because we are thinking about baby #3 and I have no idea how to continue homeschooling while pregnant then with a newborn!!!

[Narrow Gate Academy]

Homeschooling in early pregnancy is no fun, so first :grouphug: and I hope you feel better soon. In your case I would do one of two things...

 

1. Take a break until the morning sickness is over around 12 weeks or so hopefully just a couple of more weeks.

 

or

 

2. Look at what you're doing for school and decide what you consider to be the most important. Just focus on your priorities and let the rest slide for a while until you're feeling better. (I would probably chose phonics and read alouds, but feel free to disagree with me.) HTH

[Kidlit]

Thanks for the responses. It helps to know others are rooting for me, as well as to know that obviously others have BTDT.

 

Unfortunately, we're already doing what I consider the minimum for K--OPGTTR for phonics, RightStart math, and HWOT for handwriting. We have a chapter book going at all times, as well as doing other picture book read-alouds, etc.

 

Really, it's more a question of my lack of motivation than anything, even the nausea/sickness. I can grin and bear it through that (it's bad, but not severe), but I can't make myself want to do anything. I keep just trying to tell myself that "this too will pass."

[razorbackmama]

Homeschooling in early pregnancy is no fun, so first :grouphug: and I hope you feel better soon. In your case I would do one of two things...

 

1. Take a break until the morning sickness is over around 12 weeks or so hopefully just a couple of more weeks.

 

or

 

2. Look at what you're doing for school and decide what you consider to be the most important. Just focus on your priorities and let the rest slide for a while until you're feeling better. (I would probably chose phonics and read alouds, but feel free to disagree with me.) HTH

:iagree:

I have gotten pregnant 3 times since we started homeschooling, and ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh. I have done a mixture of the above, and how much (if anything!) we did really varied depending on how I felt a particular day. In fact, you can pretty much look at my attendance records and tell just when I was dealing with morning sickness LOL!

 

Unless you're one of those unfortunate women who deal with m/s their entire pregnancy (I don't know how they do it!!!!!), know that eventually it will get better, and you WILL get some school done. Until then, don't beat yourself up and just do what you can.:grouphug:

[Kidlit]

I just keep telling myself that I REALLY need to be consistent since who knows how things will go (as in when we'll get back into the groove) once the baby gets here next summer. I'm kind of perfectionistic, and I tend to have "all or nothing" thinking too much if I'm not careful.

 

Breathe, breathe, breathe. It will be okay.:tongue_smilie:

[CarynB]

I have 6 kids all aged 8 and under so I have been in your spot MANY times!!! In fact, I have a newborn right now (he's 5 weeks old)! My kids are 8 (3rd), 6 (K), 4 (Pre-K), 3, 2, and the new baby. During this last pregnancy I REALLY did the minimum! For the Pre-K kids I just read (and only when I felt good enough too!) otherwise they played. I bought the R&S workbook series and started it with my 4 year old once I got past the nausea/sickness feeling and then stopped it again shortly before the birth (when I was tired/cranky/miserable - AND ended up going 2 weeks OVERDUE to boot!) we didn't start up again until 3 weeks after the baby was born and I had re-gained some sanity! 8-)

 

For my K girl we did Singapore Math which is very straight forward without all the manipulatives which (during times of exhaustion and fatigue) become overwhelming for me to try and teach with. She did a handwriting page each day and we work on a short reading lesson. That's it. She is doing fine. Total time each day was about 20 min. If I couldn't do it, I didn't do it and we would just talk about the baby and how Mommy feels and why. Those are lessons too! We also took the same breaks to work around the really bad parts of the pregnancy.

 

For my 3rd grader we switched to CLE Math which could be done much more independently by her. We are also now using their LA which is excellent! We skipped history and science until I felt better, unless she had a book she could read independently and narrate from. We do Bible as a family for all the kids at night and our memory work is Bible verses that we do as a family as well. My husband leads that so I don't have to worry about anything. 8-)

 

The younger 2 kids basically ran around being loud, making messes with toys etc. while the bigger kids did school - then the big kids would help them clean up so Mommy could rest once school was done. I also relied heavily on DVD's and PBS kids shows to occupy the children during this time. I'm not particularly happy about that, but it was needed for a season.

 

For kids as young as yours I would advise doing things as SIMPLY as possible. Focus on what matters. You don't need an elaborate math lesson for a K or pre-K kid (which I don't know if yours are or not, but I've heard that RS is pretty involved....) let them practice writing their numbers on paper and counting their toys - simple things until you're feeling better. Or just let them help with dinner/lunch counting ingredients, timing how long it takes to cook, measuring ingredients etc. That's still important learning and it's something you're doing anyway so it wouldn't take extra time out of your day. Try to keep the reading lessons going, but just do one a day. If you're not up to reading aloud (which I REALLY struggled with too!) can you check out books on cd/tape from your library and just have the kids on the couch with you while you listen together?

 

The kids will be fine and will not be behind in anyway following the pregnancy. Like I've said I've been through this MULTIPLE times and the most important thing for you is to try and rest so you and the baby can be healthy - don't worry about what everyone else is doing (which I know is hard) just focus on what's best for YOU and YOUR family for this season of life. 8-)

 

Blessings and congratulations!

Caryn

[LittleIzumi]

I was planning an early pregnancy bare schedule of 3 subjects a day (changing daily). Any more would be gravy. So everything would be done at least weekly, but not daily. And reading every day.

[Kidlit]

Thanks, everyone. I have lots of support--my dh tells me that everything is going fine (and he works in public schools, so he has an idea of how things go there--this is always in the back of my mind since I used to teach ps). My K-er is reading fairly well for her age (I think), and my just- turned-4-year-old is reading, too. I'm trying to look at this year as the year to just focus on reading and basic math. If we make progress in these two things, I think we've accomplished our goal.

 

It's just that I feel sooo YUCKY.

 

Thanks for listening to me whine.:tongue_smilie:

[razorbackmama]

Since none of my kids have read before age 7, I'd say you are doing awesome and can rest some if you need to.:001_smile:

[JMDRAD]

I am approximately 10 weeks pregnant and sick, tired, and unmotivated to do ANYTHING. I have one in K and one in pre-K (?--really just tagging along at just-turned-4 but immensely interested in whatever big sis is doing). I know this year is really "extra" (in a sense), but I have a hard time convincing myself of that, since 'most everybody sends their children to K here where we live.

 

I guess what I'm looking for is advice or commiseration. :confused:

 

I was anxious about homeschooling with a baby/toddler/preschooler (again), but now I'm just trying to make it through the pregnancy without our learning at home fizzling out altogether.

 

I spent all of last school year prego with my third child while trying to homeschool my dd5 in K. I tried to mostly focus on reading and a little math. I was using Sonlight's core K, OPGTR, and MUS Primer. It took a while to get through Core K and we did not finish all the read alouds. On days when I felt good we got a lot of work done. On the bad days (some lasting for weeks) I would focus just on phonics. We often did this in bed. Keep it simple and get your rest. I often felt guilty about not doing "enough". But I've decided that the early elementary years are for teaching her to read well, laying down a solid foundation for math, and encouraging a love for learning in her.

 

Good luck with your pregnancy :001_smile:

[mommyto3]

I am in the same boat! I am 12 weeks pregnant with baby #4 - which was a surprise and totally not planned. Since some time in September I have been suffering with severe GERD, acid reflux, heartburn, etc. and all that comes along with it. I've been dehydrated, not able to eat, no energy, etc. I'm HSing a 3rd grader, 1st grader, and a preK. We took about a month off because I was physically unable to do anything, I couldn't even get any lesson plans together. The past few weeks I've been starting to do more, but only like one subject a day - and usually in my bed while I writhe in pain. :D We're just now getting back to where we're able to do more than one thing a day, but even so we're not back up on our regular schedule. I feel bad, especially for taking so long without doing anything, but I know that in the end it won't make that much of a difference. I know that I can get done in an hour more than they would be doing if they were at school. So I make the hour count. We focus on math, reading, writing, grammar, and do history and science as much as we can. Latin has been put on the back burner. I refuse to make myself feel guilty about it.

 

I did see a GI dr today, since my OB hasn't done enough to solve the issue, and am hoping to get some relief. Once that happens, I know I'll be able to get back on track. And we'll be able to work harder and "catch up" on what we haven't done yet.

 

I honestly don't think my kids are suffering. I worry some about my 7yr not having enough structure, but than I tell myself he is still young.

 

Hugs for you! you're not alone!!

[Mama Anna]

I'm schooling a 1st/2nd grader (she's in between) with a preschooler and a 10 week old. We started up again when the baby was 3 weeks old. That wasn't my smartest move, but we managed. I had planned to go back to light school - grammar, math, and discipleship. I found that time management wasn't my biggest problem - the distraction of the baby was. Dd6 couldn't do math to save her life that first week. I thought it was because it's not her strong subject and we'd had 4 weeks off without even any review. Then we were able to do a whole morning's school without me holding the baby. Everything went like clockwork! It has turned into a series of "on" days and "off" days. If the baby doesn't happen to nap while we can school, I just know that it's going to be difficult. (Unfortunately, she doesn't tend to nap much in the mornings . . .)

 

I don't have any advice to help with it, just be forewarned in case it hits you, too!

 

Mama Anna

[Pata]

I'm currently 15 weeks pregnant with #2 and early pregnancy was alot rougher than I remembered it being, but then again I also had my appendix removed when I was only 4 weeks along. I am one of those super organized, school must be done kinda people, but I've given myself a whole lot of grace in the last weeks. This week is the first week in the last two months that we have acutally gotten everything on my schedule done :). Some days, we didn't do school at all, some days we did it after my afternoon nap, some days we only did half and some days I handed it over to my dh when he got home (probably the hardest one to do!). The great thing about homeschooling is that you can have a flexible schedule, so you have plenty of time to make up for a few sick days :)! Just wanted to let you know that your not alone and it will get better in a few weeks.

[TKDmom]

Last year I pulled my dd (who was in 2nd grade) out of ps the same week I found out I was pregnant. A few weeks later, I was thinking, "What have I done!?!" It was hard. I kept reminding myself that it would have been even harder to get her up, dressed, and out the door by 7:15 every morning. Neither one of us is a morning person.

 

I felt like I was only schooling about 2 days a week. But I survived. And I don't think dd suffered for the time off. Homeschoolers can be so much more efficient with their learning that a few months off--or 9 months at half pace probably doesn't make much difference. Especially if you school year-round.

 

Make sure you limit your outside activities. For me, going on expeditions outside the home are what totally drained me during pregnancy--I couldn't do anything else for the rest of the day. Being at home also gives you the opportunity to work on things at the time of day when you have the most energy.

 

One thing that is helping me now to get our schoolwork done: I went to Wal-Mart and bought a canvas bin for each child. At night, I fill their bins with whatever I feel like we might be able to get done that day. For books, I mark the page that we're on with a sticky note, so I don't have to spend any time searching for our place. Then, when the kids see what's in their bins, they can be semi-independent about getting it done. My pre-K'er has HWOT, Singapore Earlybird math, and a Developing the Early Learner workbook in his bin. More often than not, he can pull it out, ask me what he's supposed to do, and get it done with minimal supervision from me. I'm still there, but I could be laying on the couch, half-asleep chanting, "Big line, little curve..." If I needed to.

 

And personally, I think that anything is easier than being pregnant. I have a 3-month-old now. She tends to sleep in her swing during school time. Or I nurse her while my 8yo holds up a book for me to read. Things have been going so much better now that I am simply sleep-deprived, rather than pregnant, sick, exhausted, and sleep-deprived. :D

 

It'll get better, I promise. ;)

Edited November 19, 2009 by bonniebeth4

[StephanieZ]

I am approximately 10 weeks pregnant and sick, tired, and unmotivated to do ANYTHING. I have one in K and one in pre-K (?--really just tagging along at just-turned-4 but immensely interested in whatever big sis is doing). I know this year is really "extra" (in a sense), but I have a hard time convincing myself of that, since 'most everybody sends their children to K here where we live.

 

I guess what I'm looking for is advice or commiseration. :confused:

 

I was anxious about homeschooling with a baby/toddler/preschooler (again), but now I'm just trying to make it through the pregnancy without our learning at home fizzling out altogether.

 

IMHO, the only important things to master in K are 1) well behaved, loving, happy child 2) learning to read -- or at least getting started on it.

 

So, if I were you, I'd prioritize those two things. #1 for both dc. #2 for the Ker. So, spend your energies and time on having a happy home with mindful children and add 15 min each day to do reading instruction for your Ker. That's IT that counts.

 

So, just be a mom for the next year or so. Read to them, let them play with art supplies, help you cook, help you fold laundry, read to them some more. . . 15 min a day on reading instruction, and your Ker will be reading at or above grade level and likely reading well in a year or so, unless s/he has a learning disability, which is a whole 'nother issue.

 

If you have extra energy or time some days, or at some stages of your pregnancy, then add in some of that other great K "school" stuff if you wish.

[PeterPan]

-Books on tape. Real books, stuff like Charlotte's Web, the Chronicles of Narnia (unabridged), the Little House series, etc.

-set up stations with things they like to do. My dd was very into art at that age (still is as a matter of fact), so she had a table with all sorts of supplies she was allowed to use unsupervised... paper types, crinkley scissors, sculpey, etc.

-computer games. They make some good ones for math, logic, etc. They even have typing programs for littles.

-get things your dh can do with them in the evenings. My dh is artsy, so he did art stuff with her in the evenings. We enjoyed the Judy Press books like Alphabet Art.

-recliner school. Park yourself in that recliner or go to bed and do school from there. You can do read alouds, watch them play, whatever.

 

I had health problems and didn't do as much with dd as I would have liked when she was that age. Books on tape will cover a lot of sins there. As long as they have time to play creatively and books going in the background, I just wouldn't sweat it. You can even get language tapes from the Learnables or a series from the library to play in the background. Nothing says you have to be TEACHING to make things happen. You just create the environment and make it happen around them.

[TKDmom]

Oh, I meant to also say: Remember, they're not doing all this much in ps K at this age either. I think the goals when dd was in K were 1) Learn how to count to 100, 2) learn the sounds of all the letters, and 3) learn some sight words :glare:. I bet you could do that much in about a week (or maybe a few weeks during pregnancy). :D

[AnneC]

My kids watched a lot of educational DVDs earlier this year. After the baby was born we went back to doing school straight away but it was stuff the kids could do independently - reading, piano practice and math worksheets. The baby is 11 weeks old now and we are back on a schedule. TBH I find the baby much easier to deal with than the 3 yo who wants to do school but won't sit still and distracts everyone. It was easier when she napped but that ended a long time ago.

[Kidlit]

Thanks, everyone. I'm feeling better and better about our situation. My girls have an hour rest-time every day during which they listen to an audiobook. They love the Little House on the Prairie series, so that's on frequent rotation, but they've also listened to A Cricket in Times Square; Ginger Pye; a few American Girl books; Ribsy; The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; etc. They have free run of a fair amount of art supplies, as well as access to all the books they could possible look at in a day. I try to remind myself that really, at this age, playing and incidental learning are far more important than anything I can teach them.

 

Chin up!:D

Edited November 19, 2009 by hopeistheword1
I, an English teacher, had to fix a subject/verb disagreement error. The horror!

[Mom-ninja.]

 

1. Take a break until the morning sickness is over around 12 weeks or so hopefully just a couple of more weeks.

 

 

 

During all three of my pregnancies I wished I was one of those women whose sickness went away at 12 weeks. Yeah, not me. :glare:

 

LeapFrog DVDs and Bill Nye DVDs are a wonderful thing.

[PeterPan]

My little boy is a wiggler, climber, etc., but I started him on a booster seat during school time at around 6 months. Just did a few minutes, but used a timer and made a big production of it. Now he'll sit for 45 minutes, no problem! Sounds cruel, but he LOVES school time. I have toys just for it, books, really premium toys that he doesn't get at other times. He gets extra attention from me too, since I can read picture books and supervise math. Just something to consider. It took some effort, but that booster seat time has been the best thing! I got one with a tray, so he can do his little work stuff on it too. Now he likes to dabble with coloring and paper, etc.

[jjcmehl]

When I was pregnant with my last child, I listened to this wonderful podcast from Cindy Rushton. The woman she was interviewing had severe morning sickness seven times and homeschooled...her ideas were so insightful...she also happens to have a website dedicated to morning sickness (www.mymorningsickness.com).

 

I tried looking for it on Cindy's websites, but had no luck finding it or a link to it.

 

However, I have it saved to my hard drive. I will gladly e-mail it to you, just pm me your e-mail address.

 

Christine

 

[pageta]

I am hs'ing with a newborn. I didn't have morning sickness per se, but I was terribly fatigued the entire pregnancy. Now that I am not pregnant, I realize how tired, tired, tired I really was. For me, homeschooling gives us structure to our day that really helps with good behavior and such. The baby either sleeps or sits on my lap while we school. We do homeschool four days a week - the other day we go to storytime at the library and run our errands in town. In fact, I had an appendectomy last weekend but we are still doing school because discipline is so much easier when we do. I don't have the energy to chase a bunch of wild children all day! So that is how it has worked out for us. Hang in there!