Preparing your child for group activities/co-op learning situations

[HS Mom in NC]

1. What kinds of preparation have you done with your children at home so they can transition smoothly to group activities and co-op learning situations?

 

2. What kinds of problems have you had, have you witnessed, and have you had to deal with in group activities and/or co-op learning situations because some parents have not adequately prepared their children?

[dirty ethel rackham]

I didn't really do anything to prepare my kids other than instruct them to answer when questioned since they were shy. The only children I see that are "unprepared" are simply "underparented." They aren't taught manners and that there are times to sit quietly, that you keep your hands to yourself and that you wait your turn. Unless you live in isolation, just living life in the community will teach a child how to behave in a group situation. Or maybe I just have weird kids or maybe, as I have been teasingly accused of in the passed, I just drugged them. <that was tongue in cheek - don't call the authorities!>

[Whereneverever]

My kids are weekly in group settings from preschool on. Sunday school, library programs, ect.

 

Is that enough prep for co-ops or other group settings? I don't know. I do know that we work on a lot of the issues as we do any other issues- prep and then look at what worked and what didn't.

 

My kids know how to sit quietly and listen to other people speak, raise their hands when they have something to say, and how to respect other people and their opinions.

 

We are working on the whole deadline thing, as well as study skills and outlining.

 

Wait, does any of this answer the question?:confused::lol:

[Mommyof4ks]

We did not do anything to prepare them. The biggest things we found that our co-op was looking for were sitting quietly, raising their hands to answer, following directions, and respecting everyone else. My kids did not know to raise their hands, because we don't do that at home, but they picked it up quickly from classmates.

[chepyl]

My kids have been in dance class since they were 2. DS also does musical theatre and has done gymnastics. We are now in a co-op. So far so good.

 

We practice doing at least some of our schoolwork at a desk each day. (For my son, a lot of content learning is done laying on the floor. ;))

[Maeintx]

Well, we did our first co-op classes last week.

 

I quickly found out I forgot to remind my boys not to interrupt the teacher/speaker.

 

We discuss so much and while I know they are quiet during church, it never ocurred to me to teach them about raising their hands, waiting for open discussion, etc. They were just super excited and enthused but it came off as a bit annoying. We're prepared for this week!

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

Well, we did our first co-op classes last week.

 

I quickly found out I forgot to remind my boys not to interrupt the teacher/speaker.

 

We discuss so much and while I know they are quiet during church, it never ocurred to me to teach them about raising their hands, waiting for open discussion, etc. They were just super excited and enthused but it came off as a bit annoying. We're prepared for this week!

 

:iagree:Ds4.75 just started AWANAs and all the other kids knew about raising your hand to answer or ask a question. He also had a hard time focusing on his leader (and it was a 1-3 leader to kid ratio!) I know most kids in the class have been in preschool and kindergarten and were taught that, but it never came up at home. At least he stayed seated, though.

[nowimscrappin]

I have always taught my kids from really little when its appropriate to sit quietly and listen. In our CC classes, she still needs to be reminded from time to time when to sit quietly but she does pretty good.

 

I'm reminded of our Christmas Eve service at church - its a family service instead of having the kids in their church classes. We were there with my parents and kids last year - Emma was 5 1/2 years old and sat quietly most of the time and listened with a few reminders.

 

We had a mom and two kids behind me - the kids were probably 8 and 10. They were constantly rattling papers, playing with electronic toys, fighting over toys, crayons, etc. I couldn't believe it. I swear I gave mom the evil eye a number of times. It was actually very difficult for me to focus on the message because of the distraction behind me. I mentioned something to my father later who absolutely agreed with me.

 

I get so frustrated when I work so hard to get my kids to behave in public / group situations and others don't feel like thats important, even when their decision has a direct impact on me.

[rcom]

I think the most helpful thing is to keep an open dialog with the teacher/group leader. Don't expect the teacher to tell you if something is going on. Be up front and tell the teacher to let you know if your child is doing something that is getting under their skin. Most teachers are volunteering their time and they may think that their little annoyances should be overlooked. But then pair that up with a stressful week and you have a very frustrated teacher and an equally frustrated child. Building a relationship is key.

 

You can also role play a bit, depending on the age of the child.

[Pretty in Pink]

I've never done anything aside from generally reminding them to behave themselves. They know what I mean.

[texasmama]

1. What kinds of preparation have you done with your children at home so they can transition smoothly to group activities and co-op learning situations?

 

I really have not done anything to prepare my kids for co op. They were already in Sunday School, sports teams and have attended preschool. My oldest son attended private school in K and 1st. They have done very well in the classroom setting of co op.

 

2. What kinds of problems have you had, have you witnessed, and have you had to deal with in group activities and/or co-op learning situations because some parents have not adequately prepared their children?

 

I don't attribute the issues I have seen to lack of preparation but rather to other issues which would be present no matter what school environment the kids were in. Our co op has rules for behavior, and the kids follow them or they are asked to leave class. One mom in co op has four adopted kids who all have ADHD and some other issues. She volunteers as a helper in the science class to make sure her three boys are on task and not disruptive.

[Samiam]

I didn't realize there was something that had to be done to "prepare". I mean, I guess if a child is older, say 10 or something, and had NEVER EVER EVER been in a group setting, okay, I guess some prep work might be in order.

 

But all of my children, even the youngest two, had been in some sort of group setting since a very young age. Usually not alone, I was probably in the room when they were younger. But really, I don't think there's much prep to it. Most children would just "follow the crowd" so to speak. Most teachers/class leaders would give more direction to younger crowds, just because you generally do have to be more verbal with younger crowds. Ie, "everyone line up at the sink to take turns to to wash hands", vs "everyone wash hands".

[Denisemomof4]

I have never prepared my kids. I have had them involved at some level since preschool. It may only be play dates and Sunday school initially, when we went to church, but I always had them involved with SOMETHING, Boy Scouts, sports, etc.

 

I don't prepare for classroom settings. But again, I have had my kids involved with homeschool group. co-op from the beginning.

 

The biggest issue I see is sheltered kids who don't know how to socialize. They look scared and don't know what to do with a bunch of kids. :sad: In a classroom setting, sometimes I've seen kids who answer all the questions and talk too much. I can see how this can be normal when mom is your teacher, but it can't happen with a room full of kids.

[veggiegal]

If your child is NT (neurologically typical), then little prep need be done beyond what you would for a child starting school: listen to the teacher, don't interrupt, raise your hand, be respectful, etc. For an older child I would quickly go over these and remind them that a generally helpful strategy is to observe what the other kids are doing. For a non-NT child though, such as one 'on the spectrum', I'd advise far more prep (including role playing various situations) and discussing with the teacher ahead of time that you are "on the same team" and want to have good dialogue about any issues. You'd also need to advise the teacher of strategies ('X does not pick up social cues easily, so if you want him to do something you will need to be direct, almost blunt. Telling him to imitate others or hinting about "how nicely Y is sitting with hands holded" does not work; 'X finds large groups overwhelming at times. Can he be allowed to get a drink or go to the bathroom for a 'breather' to recollect himself?' etc.). But if your kids are NT, I would not worry about it much. They'll naturally pick up the cues from others as they should.