How do you know when what you are doing isn't enough?

[Once]

I am always knocking against what my kids seem available to do. They show signs of shutting down by 2 or 3 o'clock on a regular school dayand although I would go on they cannot. We start around 9 or 10 but we do not always get everything done. By the end of the day they have activities, such as piano, TKD and swim team. My husband says these are important parts of their day as well and should not be dropped.

 

My daughter (6th grade) is slightly behind in Math and Spelling due to some sensory issues we had to work out early on, but she is doing fine in Grammar, History and Word Roots. She manages in writing but she struggles sometimes. We are doing IEW with her and just finished SWI A. We will do the Medieval book next year. She hates Science but is doing it willingly now and I think knows more than she lets on.

 

My son (3rd grade) is doing OK in everything but is not excelling the way I thought he would. He appeared soooo smart at first but his smarts are unfocused and I fear that that is my fault. He can keep himself entertained for hours looking over encyclopedias but it struck me today that he does not know how to narrate well and does not reach for fictional books.

 

My last son is five, but his birthday is late September. I will start Kindergarten with him next fall. He picks up things in our read alouds, but does not put pencil to paper willingly. He knows more that the other two did at the same age but he does not write or color anything including his letters.

 

When do you know that you need to do more even if they protest? I enjoyed this year since each of them were willing to actually do their work without too many protests but I'm panicing now because perhaps I should have pushed still more.

 

Anyone out there with experience that can give me some wisdom?

[Rosie_0801]

From my completely unexperienced position, I would imagine that it doesn't matter if you are doing enough or not because when their brains have shut down, that's the end of productive time. Can't get blood out of a stone, and all that.

 

It sounds pretty normal for a third grade boy to prefer to read non-fiction and it sounds just as normal for a 5 year old not to want to write. Have you tried audiobooks for your third grader? Some things are more palatable when someone else is doing the reading.

 

Rosie

[Once]

From my completely unexperienced position, I would imagine that it doesn't matter if you are doing enough or not because when their brains have shut down, that's the end of productive time. Can't get blood out of a stone, and all that.

 

It sounds pretty normal for a third grade boy to prefer to read non-fiction and it sounds just as normal for a 5 year old not to want to write. Have you tried audiobooks for your third grader? Some things are more palatable when someone else is doing the reading.

 

Rosie

 

 

This is the position I have been taking this year. Happy learning is better than forced learning but reading some comments here about what people are doing I start to feel like somehow I may be able to get more out of them if I approached it better or differently more organized maybe.

 

Maybe it is the end of the year insecurities.......I should test them and strengthen the weaknesses after I know what they really are. But then I start thinking that some weaknesses would not show up on the standardised tests....like writing, spelling and really Science because I would do a core test with them.

 

I have not thought of more audiboosk but we are doing some stuff by audio......Cats of Bubastes, What in the World, MOH. He loved to listen to them in the morning when I am getting up for the day, but he has stopped lately. Maybe he has listened too much, and needs new audibooks.

 

If anyone else is interested in being helpful.....I posted an example of my daughter's writing on the K-8 subforum Writers Workshop. (?)

[Jean in Newcastle]

It looks to me like you are doing plenty. I agree with your dh about the activities being important.

[justasque]

I am always knocking against what my kids seem available to do. They show signs of shutting down by 2 or 3 o'clock on a regular school dayand although I would go on they cannot. We start around 9 or 10 but we do not always get everything done. By the end of the day they have activities, such as piano, TKD and swim team. My husband says these are important parts of their day as well and should not be dropped.

 

I agree with your husband. Your school day sounds plenty long. Other activities are important too, as is family time in the evening. For your 6th grader, you might want to give a little "homework" to be done later in the day, but if there are other activities in the evening, that may be enough.

 

Your boys sound like, well, normal boys. :D

 

From my completely unexperienced position, I would imagine that it doesn't matter if you are doing enough or not because when their brains have shut down, that's the end of productive time. Can't get blood out of a stone, and all that.

 

 

:iagree: Growing minds need time to process everything that they've learned. A certain amount of down time is just as important for learning as time-on-task.

 

Happy learning is better than forced learning but reading some comments here about what people are doing I start to feel like somehow I may be able to get more out of them if I approached it better or differently more organized maybe.

 

It's so easy to read five or six posts about what various kids are doing, and then get worried that your kids aren't doing ALL of those things. Really, kid A is doing thing A, and kid B is doing thing B, and so on, and no one kid is doing all of A B C D and E! You need to do what is right for YOUR kids, and pace things according to THEIR needs.

 

It looks to me like you are doing plenty. I agree with your dh about the activities being important.

 

:iagree:

[Once]

It looks to me like you are doing plenty. I agree with your dh about the activities being important.

 

Thank you. I am feeling very insecure these days and really do not feel like I am helping my kids much. There is so much I do not know and my daughter is starting to become independent on some subjects which makes my lack of knowledge that much more obvious when she asks for help. Writing is real worry for me, especially the mechanics like punctuation.

 

I have always felt behind with her because of our rocky start and now that she is happy to do school I am not sure I can help guide her well. Math is a never ending catch up. I finally bought TT7 for her and she is doing it but then I saw a whole bunch of people on these boards that think it is behind. I mean she is behind so it isn't going to make a problem but I still feel like it is not helpful if she is happy to use it. Odd, I know. I should know better after all this time.

 

Have you looked at her writing on the other forum? Would you say that it is close to grade level?

[Guest Dulcimeramy]

I just read your other thread, "Critique this please...." and here is what I think about your dd's writing and about what you've said in this thread:

 

I think you have a good grasp of your weak areas. We only get in trouble when we don't see what we need to change.

 

You already know you need to work on spelling and punctuation. You know that she is improving in grammar, and anyone can see that she has had grammar instruction. She just hasn't completed it. She will get there.

 

I thought her sentence structure was consistently good. Also, her writing was joyful and interesting! I think she has natural ability and just needs to work on the formalities.

 

Your little boys sound normal and adorable. :)

 

Many of us don't approve of Teaching Textbooks, but if you go to the Sonlight boards (where they are no slouches) you will find TT to be very popular. Sonlight recommends TT above other programs. So feel free to ignore us TT haters.

 

I always second-guess myself in late winter, too. Maybe I set the bar too high in the first place and think we should be farther along by this point in the year. More likely, the kids are doing fine and we're all just tired.

Edited March 4, 2011 by Dulcimeramy