UnsinkableKristen Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 For those of you that have been at the end of your pregnancy during the school year, at what point do you stop school? Do you wait until you actually HAVE the baby, or do you stop earlier than that? I'm due in 4 weeks but I've never gone past 38 weeks. I'm starting to have contractions nightly and am nesting like a son of a gun. I had planned to school right up until the baby got here (we started at the beginning of July), but now I'm thinking that I would really, really like to stop now and focus on spending time with the kids and getting the house and everything in order (those nesting instincts are hitting me HARD this week). What are your experiences with this and what do you recommend?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 No previous experiences, but my intention is to keep things as normal as possible until baby is born. Wolf will take over hsing if need be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom in High Heels Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Han Solo was born April 4th, which was a Monday. We homeschooled up until the Friday before (he was born at 37w) and took that week off. We started back up the following Monday. We were at week 28 of school and I wanted to get it DONE. It was easy to homeschool when he was a newborn because he slept most of the time. He's 4 months now, and while he still sleeps a lot, I have to do a lot of schooling with him on my lap. I can't imagine what I'm going to do when he's a toddler! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink Fairy Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Based on the ages of your kids, I think it's totally reasonable and a great idea to take a break now. Maybe keep up with reading (snuggling on the couch) if you can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I was only doing preK/K with mine at the time and we schooled up until the time and then took about 1 month off or so- I had her at Thanksgiving and then we started back on New Years and we just went through the summer. I guess next pregnancy it will depend on when I'm due. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I'll be watching this thread! I'm 31 weeks and due near the end of October. I've been wondering how other families work it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnsinkableKristen Posted August 23, 2011 Author Share Posted August 23, 2011 Thanks! I think we've decided to stop school for now (well, formal school anyway) and take some time together before the baby gets here. We're going to listen to our history CD's in the car, watch lots of science DVD's, play math games, and do a LOT of reading, but our workbooks will take a back seat until Baby arrives. I think it will do all the kids well to have my attention on doing some "fun" things instead of pushing crankily through my own schedule. I'll let you know how it works out :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indigomama Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I've got three weeks to go, and as we haven't started yet, I've decided to just wait until after the baby. My last one was born March '10 and my oldest was in Kinder. We took two weeks off. I found schooling with a newborn wasn't that hard. Now schooling with toddlers, that's a whole other ball game:tongue_smilie:! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 (edited) My original plan, with this baby, was to do school right until the end of the pregnancy, and then take off about two months after. So, basically, we'd school through July, and then take off August and September. That did not work out AT ALL. I was so cranky and uncomfortable at the end of the pregnancy--and the fact that it was such a hot summer didn't help--that we stopped at the end of June and took all of July off. But, I ended up feeling much better after the baby than I thought I would. I thought I'd need 6-8 weeks off. The baby was 3 weeks old on Sunday, and we started school yesterday. I felt ready and eager to get back to a routine and start doing school much earlier than I expected. And I think DS really needed that structure and that time with me. He's had a lot of changes in the last couple of years--going from being an only child for almost 6 years to having two siblings within 16 months of each other--and I think returning him to a recognizable routine as soon as possible was good for him. And, at this point, the baby still sleeps for long stretches during the day and is happy just to be either held or sitting in a seat near us when he's up, so he's no problem with school. It's my 17mo DD who makes things difficult. Edited August 23, 2011 by twoforjoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janie Grace Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 (edited) Here's a little tip for you. :) Do your read-alouds sitting (rolling in circles and figure 8s) on an exercise ball. It got my babe right into position (he wasn't pressing on my cervix, so I wasn't dilating, even though all signs were there that he was ready to come). I smile when I look back on reading Johnny Tremain as I did figure 8s and pausing in the story to breathe through my contractions (this was the day little man was born -- JT at 11:00, baby born by 4:30!). Happy nesting! Edited August 23, 2011 by Janie Grace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kipling Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 My youngest was born in March 2009. I was schooling the older two, but I can't remember exactly what we did with regard to ending schooling. I suspect it just kind of fizzled out as I became more tired and trips to the midwife became weekly field trips. I think the kids basically missed 3-4 weeks total, maybe 2 weeks on the front end and two weeks after the baby was born as we readjusted. I would never plan on stopping school as early as 36 or 37 weeks, but then again, my babies are always late, with said March baby coming at 42 weeks exactly. (I said I wouldn't plan on it, but I might very well do it.) I say go with whatever you're feeling. The last month of pregnancy can be so miserable that I would suggest doing whatever keeps you most sane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RahRah Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I started to lighten the load with DS about two weeks before the baby was born at the end of January....after the baby was born we took a couple of weeks off, then started back up with a light schedule that ramped up again about a month after the baby was born. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty in Pink Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I'm due in 4 weeks but I've never gone past 38 weeks. I'm starting to have contractions nightly and am nesting like a son of a gun. I had planned to school right up until the baby got here (we started at the beginning of July), but now I'm thinking that I would really, really like to stop now and focus on spending time with the kids and getting the house and everything in order (those nesting instincts are hitting me HARD this week). There's your answer. It doesn't matter what we all do. Do what you feel like you need to do right now and do not feel badly about it. I always school right up until delivery, but that's because I like to take a few weeks off afterwards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Jessica* Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 My original plan, with this baby, was to do school right until the end of the pregnancy, and then take off about two months after. So, basically, we'd school through July, and then take off August and September. That did not work out AT ALL. I was so cranky and uncomfortable at the end of the pregnancy--and the fact that it was such a hot summer didn't help--that we stopped at the end of June and took all of July off. But, I ended up feeling much better after the baby than I thought I would. I thought I'd need 6-8 weeks off. The baby was 3 weeks old on Sunday, and we started school yesterday. I felt ready and eager to get back to a routine and start doing school much earlier than I expected. This is exactly how it's working out for me, too! I had prodromal labor for a month before Olivia was born. There was no way I could manage school while I was basically in early labor every other day. She was born 6 days ago and we're already falling into a routine again and I'm thinking that we'll start school much, much sooner than I had planned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajudy Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Based on the ages of your kids, I think it's totally reasonable and a great idea to take a break now. Maybe keep up with reading (snuggling on the couch) if you can. :iagree:We did school work right up until I was in labor. But I agree that it would be nice to relax and enjoy your time with the other children now. I think your plan sounds like a good one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinivanMom Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I planned to homeschool right until delivery and then take 2 months off with my last baby. It did not work out that way at all. I was having contractions at night for nearly two months before delivery, so I wasn't getting any sleep. At 37 weeks I finally decided it was time for a break. I didn't have him until 41 wks, so we took a full month off before he was born. It worked out fine. I felt so much better and full of energy after he was born that I was ready to jump back into homeschooling right away. I think we only waited until he was 5 or 6 weeks old to start back, but we only did the basics (math, lang.arts, reading) until the end of that year. We started a full load of work in the fall when the baby was 4 months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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