ALove Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 My DS is 6.5... And most of the time it seems that he's in a fog. Example: Me: What is 39-9? Him: Vacantly staring. Slumping. Yawning.Groaning. Me: c'mon, this is easy for you. 39-9 Him: uuuggghhh. Oh! chuckle, 30! If he just listened to the question the first time it's easy for him. He's just not paying attention. He does this especially in math, science, religion. And he wears out in the other subjects that he likes more (literature, language arts and history) before the end of the lesson. It's hard for me to discern whether he is actually tired (he does stay up reading at night longer then I would like), whether the material is too challenging or the work is too long, whether he is lazy,whether this is the second week of school and so things will improve, or maybe this is what 6.5 year olds do? There are a lot of options so I don't know what direction to seek out the solution in...he's my oldest so this will probably seem simple to me in a couple years but right now it's making this whole thing seem like a miserable drudgery and/or failure. Any insights and solutions are welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 In my house, it's navel-gazing. The 6.5 yos are simply choosing to not engage. They seem to have no issue when there's perceived competition or when they for some other reason are wanting to do the (exact same) work. We also found that setting time limits worked. There is a time limit for how long I will go over problems. I go over fewer of them I they fool around. Likewise, there is a time limit for how long they are given for their independent work. If it's not finished, they do it during their play time. Shockingly, most days they stay on task (for the most part... They are young still, after all). But some of that is having a twin... That ship has sailed for you. :D It's improving with consistency and as they approach 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 In my house, it's navel-gazing. The 6.5 yos are simply choosing to not engage. They seem to have no issue when there's perceived competition or when they for some other reason are wanting to do the (exact same) work. We also found that setting time limits worked. There is a time limit for how long I will go over problems. I go over fewer of them I they fool around. Likewise, there is a time limit for how long they are given for their independent work. If it's not finished, they do it during their play time. Shockingly, most days they stay on task (for the most part... They are young still, after all). But some of that is having a twin... That ship has sailed for you. :D It's improving with consistency and as they approach 7. I have two boys very close in age, and the competition thing does help sometimes. The "I'm not gonna let him finish his math page before I do" mentality speeds things along. The rest of it I'd just chalk up to the age. It is really hard for them to be attentive to things that just don't hold their interest. I've found that letting them get up and walk around while they are supposed to be working has actually helped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasmama Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Depending on how long he is staying up reading, he truly may not be getting enough sleep. I'd declare lights out early for a week and see if it makes a difference before assuming anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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