on combining kids

[iona]

what do you combine your kids for, or do you find it easier to not combine at all?

i'd love to hear your experiences. :bigear:

[Verity]

I have three boys, 6th, 3rd and pre-K. We combine Bible, memory work, history, science and music/art appreciation. The boys do their own math, writing, language arts and Latin. I've tried doing it more separately but it's just too hard. Both boys need alot of hands-on (my oldest has Aspergers and my middle son is mildly dyslexic and hyperactive) and I don't have enough hours in the day to do all of their work separately.

 

We start out the day (most of the time) with Bible and History together. Then I usually have them each do their Math U See, Writing with Ease/First Language Lessons...I get one doing a dictation while the other starts math, and vice versa. We kinda shuffle around so that I can sit nearby while they work "independently". I'm training the boys to check their work with the teacher manual (and my supervision).

 

After recess for the younger two (while I do any work needed with eldest), we usually regroup for our combined science and music/art. They both listen to any read alouds, though each boy has their own reading assignments and discussions about those separately. Latin is currently kinda separate but I'm having my oldest son listen in on the youngers latin since that is a good review (he just completed LfCA last year).

[brownie]

We combine history and science. We also have combined memory work and discussion of literary devices this year. I have ds10 and ds8. DS5 tags along when interested. Brownie

[mathmom]

We combine music, art, history, and science for Bacon and Peanut. The topics we cover are the same, but my expectations for Bacon are higher given her age.

[OregonNative]

I have a 9 yo and a 6.5 yo-we combine History(SOTW), Bible (BSFAA), Science (ES), Read Alouds, Evan Moor History Pockets and Caldecott Medal Pockets.

[rafiki]

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[Karen in CO]

I used to dream of being able to combine my kids. I always assumed it would be easier that way. Now, I cross-pollinate instead. One can pick up from what I teach to the other, but I don't aim for it.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

My kids are so close in age that we combine for everything except reading.

[robsiew]

Well, I'm in the midst of a major change in our house. We've always done Bible, history, science, art/music and memory work together.

 

Now, for various reasons, my 6 y/o needs to be independent with most of his work. It is not working for him to be in a group situation with the other kids.

 

On top of this, I've been wanting to have my 10 y/o work toward more independence as he moves into Logic stage...

 

Then, my 3rd grade dd decides she wants to do science and history by herself as well...

 

So... after Christmas I will move to having everyone be independent. Most of them will do roughly the same things, just on their own. I've decided to get the audio for SOTW3 and we'll listen to that together at lunch. Then, each will do some additional history reading at their own level. For science I'll start adding in some Logic stage stuff for my 10 y/o, but the rest of the kids will do similar things. I'll keep them all on the same science topic and period in history to make it easier on me.

 

I tried to get some feedback from people who do this in a thread, but I didn't get much response. Not sure if that's because people don't really have their kids all work independently or if people just weren't into responding.

 

The only 2 things I will keep together for this year are Bible and art/music. 3 out of my 4 will do memory work together.

 

I have never attempted this so we'll just see how it goes... in one respect I think it will be better for my k'er. He's always just had to get pulled along with whatever we do. Now I can tailor history and science a bit to his level as well as bump up my 10 y/o who is ready for much more than he's been doing.

[alpidarkomama]

We combine everyone for...

 

davening/praying, torah stories, Hebrew songs, Hebrew puppet shows, science, history, and our readalouds. Also, the two middles do their Hebrew together, and the oldest reads to the youngest while I work with #2 on reading/writing/math.

[farmwife]

I combine my 6yod & 8yo for math and SWR. The only reason is because my 8yo has some learning delays, so it works well for them. They still do reading apart, since they are at different places

 

My 9yo does most of her work independent.

 

We do our Bible/history/geography/science together. It is our 'fun' school! ;)

[Mandy in TN]

what do you combine your kids for, or do you find it easier to not combine at all?

i'd love to hear your experiences. :bigear:

 

The long story with the short version in bold.

 

My two big boys are two and a half years apart. Other than pre-high school science and some religious studies, I was never able to combine them.

They are just so different. The oldest is a history and lit guy and the second is a math and science guy. There was just nothing they enjoyed together. OTOH, they are similar in that they are both slow as Christmas. Teaching one of them is like dragging a boulder through mud. Teaching them together tended to leave me needing to give myself a time out.

It just never worked, but maybe I was new to home education and now I could figure out a way. I say this because I now have a bonus student who is two and a half years older than my little guy. I combine them even though she is a social sue, right-brain learner and ds is a left brain learner who does just as well with audio, visual, or tactile teaching.

However, of Cathy Duffy's learning styles the little man is the least like social sue. Bonus student remembers best when remembering stories. Ds often prefers to just have the facts. She loves coloring pencils and construction paper. He just doesn't really see the point in making things pretty. They are very different in their strengths and in what they enjoy, but I am able to do a lot with the two of them together.

My youngest and my bonus student do history, science, poetry, Sentence Island, lapbooks, and crafts together. They have their own grammar workbooks, handwriting workbooks, reading and math. We actually get much, much more accomplished on the 2 days she is here than we do on the two days she is not. (On Fridays, the little guy and the bonus student both go to art and drama from 9:30 to 12:30.)

However, it could be that these two work well together, because, even though they are very different in their subject area strengths, they are very similar in their ability to focus. They can both stay on topic and boogie through some work- even when it isn’t work they like. They are quick to pick up on things and quick to work through whatever they are given. If they are confused or don’t understand, they are both quick to verbalize the problem and are eager to find a solution.

Of course, my little man and my bonus student may also work well together, because they aren't both boys or because they aren't siblings.:tongue_smilie:

Mandy

[KathleenL]

I have a 9 yo dd and 7 yo ds.

 

They work independently for math, spelling, grammar, music and writing.

 

They do memory work, art, geography and history together.

 

They have different science curricula (chemistry for dd; natural world/biology for ds) but they participate in each others' projects - so they are really each doing both kinds of science.

 

Cheers, Kathleen

[NanceXToo]

My kids are pretty far apart so I don't combine them for anything. (They are 10 and 5). Other than that I sign them both up for some of the same extracurricular activities, like homeschool bowling league or soccer at the Y. Occasionally if one is doing a craft the other likes to join in, but that's about it.

[LisaKinVA]

I have 5... for the past several years, they have only been combined for Bible. However, things are changing in 2011!

 

In order for me to be able to give my 4yo the attention she needs, I have to find more time -- and the only way I can do that is to combine.

 

My oldest is 11, he'll pretty much still do his own thing, although he'll be in some of the same history and art as the others.

 

My 8yo and 7yo will be doing almost everything combined (except reading & some math). MCT language arts Island level, spelling (my older daughter needs more work in this area, my younger son gets it)., history, Latin, Science, Art, Music... and math drills. I plan to continue their working together until my older daughter enters 7th grade (we'll see how it goes after a couple of years).

 

My 4yo will have her own reading/math time, but will join the olders for everything else.

[coffeegal]

what do you combine your kids for, or do you find it easier to not combine at all?

i'd love to hear your experiences. :bigear:

 

For several years I combined the children and really enjoyed doing so. However, I've found we're more likely to stay on track by NOT combining and having each child working independently. :001_huh: So, we no longer combine.

[Mommyfaithe]

We combine everyone (except my oldest this year) in Bible, History, Read-Alouds, Art Appreciation/history/ picture study, Music Appreciation/Composer study. They all were involved in swim team until this year. This year just my 16 y/o is swimming and not as competitively as before due to illness.

 

I combine my 2 little boys in science, older dd and ds do their own.

 

 

We do Math, LA, Reading Lessons separately.

 

Faithe

[ChandlerMom]

I'm new to combining as I've just got grades 2, K, and a toddler, so :bigear:

 

For us it's a balance: both are motivated by "private learning time" with me, esp for math and reading, so they need their private time. Other things I've always included both -- the younger one has always listened to the history story and science from the older one's curriculum. They do crafts and music together (I just don't expect as much from the K'r).

 

I find the pp comment on different learners/personalities interesting. I think it cuts both ways. My older 2 are like day and night in personality, but best of friends. Working together has helped them appreciate other ways of thinking/being and exposed them to different thoughts/styles. DD#1 is hard-working and disciplined, loves to "teach" her sis (sigh) and helps her sis be more focussed and motivated to learn (keep up with DD#1). DD#2 is wildly creative and social, and brings her sis into her vivid imaginary world and silliness. So far DS(3rd dc) seems to be a perfect blend of his older sibs.

 

So for us, combining makes planning easier, but sometimes application harder. I do value the experience and different perspectives/styles they bring to each other when they work together (even if it's sometimes like herding cats). Sometimes we'll do part of a subject together (like a science exp), then I'll discuss it with DD#1 while DD#2 goes off to draw a pic about the experiment (and/or bunnies :tongue_smilie: ).

 

Again it's early for us. I think this is very much a YMMV topic, and it may depend on the WHY you are combining whether it will work for you.

Edited December 12, 2010 by ChandlerMom

[Mallory]

My three are in 10th, 5th, and 4th. They do art history together, or rather the oldest teaches the other two. She researches an artist and then plans a lesson and activity that she does with the other two.

 

They also are working through a drawing book together. Or at least we started the year all doing it together in one group, but now they usually work at it independantly.

 

All three are also doing biology together.

 

The 5th and 4th grader have a couple more things they do together. Spanish, history, and fun math on mondays!

 

On the whole I have also found it easier not to combine. My oldest two boys are so close in age I though they would be together in most subjects, but it just doesn't work out. And even in subjects I consider us all doing together, such as biology, it almost works better if I plan three different assignments. Not the lesson part so much as what ever will need to be completed on thier own.

 

The little ones also jump in from time to time, but I don't require or plan any formal lessons until 6 or 7 ;)

[mbeaser]

I combine my 3rd and 5th graders for many subjects; basically, if you look at my siggy they are combined for everything not in parenthesis next to their name (although with Bible they are in the same level but one is in OT and the other in NT so they have different books). This works for us mostly because my 3rd grader is able to keep up with DS (she's strongest in LAs, he's a science nut). Next year I will have to split them up for science, though, but I'll just have the 4yo sit in on science with big sister instead, so her science will still be shared (I think that helps with her comprehension), at least for a while. And, I'll have the 4yo sit in on history with both too. Science is really the only other thing I see us splitting off for the older 2 (she'll even do logic with him, since I think she's capable), but of course if I need to split them then I will :001_smile:

[Closeacademy]

I tried to combine my dds several times in the past. We had various topics such as history & science together but it never works out. I've found that the best thing for my family is to work with my oldest first and while she works on her independent work, I work with my youngest. They both finish up around the same time and we are all happy with the results.

 

But you need to figure out what works best for you and your family. Every family has different wants, needs and goals.:001_smile:

[iquilt]

This year we are combining art lessons (each done at his/her own pace but started together), science, Bible, and history. Everything else is geared to each individual child. When we read together on the couch each gets to pick a favorite book for me to read to everyone along with our sonlight readers and other library books. My oldest will be working fairly independently soon and my youngers will continue to combine for awhile since they are so close. I think in the early school years it's easier to combine. I'm seeing that the future may be more difficult to combine individual subjects.

[momto2Cs]

I have a 9.5 yo (4th grade) and a 7.5 yo (2nd grade) who are combined for history, science, most read-alouds, and art/music appreciation. Thinking about it, they're only seperated in math and language arts! I personally find it much easier and less time consuming to combine their studies, and it is always interesting to hear their differing viewpoints on what they are learning. They also pursue a lot of interests on their own, but then they share with each other to a degree in that too.

[angela in ohio]

Because my second is freaky smart ;), I have ended up combining the older two, who are 25 months apart. They are doing freshman year together, though we are calling it eighth grade for the younger. They have been combined most of the way through their homeschool years. I am a very hands-on teacher, so this is how I survive what might otherwise be a crushing work load. :D

[KathyBC]

I combine them as much as possible, based on their individual aptitudes. So my dyslexic 10yo ds and eager-beaver 8yo dd have been working together in language arts for a few years now. They were doing art and science together, but recently ds has been following his interest in sketching with Mark Kistler's Draw Squad, while dd loves doing crafts and Storybook Art; I'm pretty sure they won't be doing science together for much longer either as he seems a little bored. They also work on the written portion of history together - we should be able to keep going with that.

 

10yo has strong insight and comprehension where his 14yo brother is weaker, so they listen to our history read-alouds together. They could probably work on Rainbow Science together but this makes the 14yo "feel dumb" so they don't.

 

We're all working together for Bible and Grammar this year, which has been fun. I don't anticipate Grammar will continue that way next year, though.

[SilverMoon]

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Edited July 12, 2022 by SilverMoon

[Quiver0f10]

I combine all my kids in bible, then I combine my 7th, 9th and 10th graders in latin and english. My 9th and 10th graders are in the same courses for just about everything else because they are close in ability. My 4th and 2nd graders are in the same level history, science and read alouds.

[Mom22ns]

I combine history and parts of LA.

 

The thing I would never combine is math. I don't combine science because my kids are older, but I see nothing wrong with it if they are all elementary. My kids do some separated reading to make sure they get books appropriate to their levels and do Grammar and Vocab separately because they are in different places there.

[Hedgehog]

I have an 11yo 6th grader, a 9yo 4th grader, and a 5yo Kindy. And a nearly 3yo who thinks she's doing lots of important schoolwork too.

 

I've combined Math for my 11yo and 9yo because of their ability level, and this year they've started doing the L'art de Lire French program. They also do R&S English 3 together, and then I do English 4 with my 11yo for extension.

 

The following are done separately: Spelling, Remedial phonics, WWE, and Handwriting. DS5 does his Math and Reading one-on-one with me.

 

All three of them do Song School Latin, Science, and History together. When I started out, I tried to do History separately and it was a no-go. In another couple years, my now nearly 3yo will just join in with wherever we've got to in Science and History, and I'll see about Latin at the time.

[iona]

ds1(6) and ds2(4) are less than two years apart and ds2(4) and ds3(2) are 2+ years apart...still planning.

 

for now ds 2 will just be in and out for for what ds1 does.

[MerryAtHope]

History, Bible, and Grammar right now, oh and Lit and readers (using some SL books). In the past I've combined Science, and one year general LA (when we used SL LA with core 3). Combining has worked well for us. Merry :-)