Scheduling transitions/breaks between subjects (day-to-day)?

[alisoncooks]

I'm curious what others do when transitioning from 1 subject to the next in your daily line-up.

Right now, DD & I are hitting math and reading fairly fairly hard (for her) -- we did a very relaxed K year (read: little to no formal schooling) -- and now we're up to around 30 min. for both math & phonics/reading times. Our other subjects are less structured and mostly after lunch.

 

I've scheduled reading and math in the morning, first thing ... though I'm torn as to which subject to schedule first, since she seems to be good for about only one of them (seems tired/out of sorts when I pull out subject #2).

 

SO....I'm thinking I need to schedule some "down time" or breaks between math & reading. What do you do? For how long? Do you have a hard time getting your children "back to school" if you let them "go" in the middle of school time? (Or maybe I shouldn't just let her go play, but maybe give her 10-15 min. scheduled computer play time -- which she loves -- or scheduled hands-on learning toy type play time between subjects).

 

I hope this all makes sense....

I'd appreciate any tips/feedback from those that have BTDT! THANKS! :)

[MrsH]

We call them "body-breaks" and try to do something short and physical, with a very clear endpoint.

 

• water the vegetable garden
  
• around the block once
  
• dance to one song
  
• race up and down the stairs 3 times
  
• etc.
  

When she's in the middle of something and getting cranky, I have her do something like 20 jumping jacks, or something related to the subject that's more hands-on. For example:

 

• math - messing around with manipulates
  
• erase the dry erase board, or wash it clean w/ a wet cloth
  
• spelling - my daughter is older now, but we used to put letters on post-it notes and hang them all over the wall, then I'd tell her words and she'd have to spell them. A great way to get more active
  
• reading -I let her twiddle with something in her hands, or color if she's just listening.
  
• reading - change where you are. Maybe go to a different room, a different chair/couch
  

Good luck! I find transitions to be really difficult, and have a hard time managing the line between "you're tired but please suck it up" and "ok, you're tired, let's drop this for now."

[desiraejb]

Your day sounds a lot like ours. We start with Math and Reading, since those are the most important to us, and seem to be the most difficult to get through sometimes. Some days I do let him have a break between, just so I can prep something on the whiteboard (5-10 minutes). Other days, we just jump right in. I think if I 'scheduled' time I'd end up regretting it, say if we were trying to hurry to finish or the lessons were really simple. I like the idea of a hands on activity (like a puzzle or game). I will have to try that on days he is easily distracted. Some days I need the break just to get away from him for a few, though. :-D. I do always give him a snack break/recess after those lessons, before we head into language arts and science/history (30 min to 1 hour if we have lunch during that time).

[janainaz]

It depends for us on a daily basis with ds7. I can tell when he needs a break, and I can tell when 'I' need a break.

 

I will go with as many subjects back-to-back as long as he is engaged and listening. When I see that he's standing on his head - we take a break!

 

:)

[Alice]

We do well defined breaks. If the weather is nice, generally I’ll send them outside and call it recess. I’ll make it clear about how long it is. Or I’ll have one of them take a break to play with their sister while I work one on one with the other. I also will alternate harder subjects with easier lighter subjects instead of doing a true break. We often have teatime or snacktime and sometimes I read to them but it is still sort of a break for them.

 

I have found the worse kind of breaks for us are anything electronic, even if it is something educational. Something about screens makes it much harder for them to break away and come back to work.

[angelmama1209]

right now we pretty much just go from subject to subject. but I have "brain breaks" prepared in case we need them. just popsicle sticks with activities attached to them- dance the macarena/chicken dance/chacha slide, do 10 jumping jacks/push ups/sit ups/ windmills, sing a song, etc. you can google or search pinterest for "brain breaks" and should have stuff come up.

[Chrysalis Academy]

Breaks are really, really necessary at our house. We do a solid hour of math first thing in the morning ( this is with a 9 yo, you will obviously not work on anything that long!) and then a 20 min break. Nothing works for the whole rest of the day if we don't have a good break after math. It's good for both of us: refreshing, liberating. Then she can come back and focus on her writing and git 'er done. These are our two most intensive subjects, so getting them out of the way first thing is really huge, but without the break between, it would never happen.

 

We use the kitchen timer. That way, it takes me out of the equation: finish math, set the timer for 20, then it's time to start up again. It's not mean mom saying it's time to start, it's the timer . . . subtle difference, but important!

[Targhee]

Perhaps inserting a different, less-intensive subject in the middle (a read-aloud, a science lab, a history project, etc)?

 

Take a break for 10 minutes of play. Set a timer, or start a 1 minute song playing when there is 1 minute left so she knows she has to wrap up her play and be ready to go again.

 

Have a few independent things for her to do between reading and math with you - perhaps just having something to do on her own will be a good change of pace and she will be ready to go again. Things like math games, color/cut/paste, puzzles/other fine motor activities, etc.

 

We have two blocks in the morning with a break in between. The first block has three 20-min slots of either work with mom on math, play with the baby, or work independently. This helps a lot with getting to each child and giving them a change of pace. Second block is after a 20 minute break (and the baby is put down for a nap) and it is four 20-minute slots of work with mom on LA, computer activity, or independent work. The K'er has one slot for play time too. Then there is lunch and clean up that's about 40 minutes break. Kids play for a little bit while I attend to things, and we are back to work on bigger projects (need more time) or attend classes outside of the house.

[Chelli]

We do well defined breaks. If the weather is nice, generally I’ll send them outside and call it recess. I’ll make it clear about how long it is. Or I’ll have one of them take a break to play with their sister while I work one on one with the other. I also will alternate harder subjects with easier lighter subjects instead of doing a true break. We often have teatime or snacktime and sometimes I read to them but it is still sort of a break for them.

 

I have found the worse kind of breaks for us are anything electronic, even if it is something educational. Something about screens makes it much harder for them to break away and come back to work.

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree: I definitely agree about nothing electronic or with screens during their breaks. My dc do not get screen time until after all of school is finished. It just starts shutting their brain down or something.

 

Breaks are really, really necessary at our house. We do a solid hour of math first thing in the morning ( this is with a 9 yo, you will obviously not work on anything that long!) and then a 20 min break. Nothing works for the whole rest of the day if we don't have a good break after math. It's good for both of us: refreshing, liberating. Then she can come back and focus on her writing and git 'er done. These are our two most intensive subjects, so getting them out of the way first thing is really huge, but without the break between, it would never happen.

 

We use the kitchen timer. That way, it takes me out of the equation: finish math, set the timer for 20, then it's time to start up again. It's not mean mom saying it's time to start, it's the timer . . . subtle difference, but important!

 

:iagree: I basically do this as well. My dd8 gives me a solid hour of work, then she gets a 30 minute break while I work with dd5 who gives me 30 minutes of work. We just alternate this rotation back and forth all day until we are finished. Timer training does take some investment, but it is sooooo worth it. I also do like a pp mentioned and alternate subjects between more brain intensive subjects and less intense ones.

[2_girls_mommy]

We call them "body-breaks" and try to do something short and physical, with a very clear endpoint.

 

• water the vegetable garden
  
• around the block once
  
• dance to one song
  
• race up and down the stairs 3 times
  
• etc.
  

When she's in the middle of something and getting cranky, I have her do something like 20 jumping jacks, or something related to the subject that's more hands-on. For example:

 

• math - messing around with manipulates
  
• erase the dry erase board, or wash it clean w/ a wet cloth
  
• spelling - my daughter is older now, but we used to put letters on post-it notes and hang them all over the wall, then I'd tell her words and she'd have to spell them. A great way to get more active
  
• reading -I let her twiddle with something in her hands, or color if she's just listening.
  
• reading - change where you are. Maybe go to a different room, a different chair/couch
  

Good luck! I find transitions to be really difficult, and have a hard time managing the line between "you're tired but please suck it up" and "ok, you're tired, let's drop this for now."

 

We did things like this (and still do sometimes with my 8 yr old.) If I gave a 10 or 15 min. break to go play then usually it was tougher to reign them back in. But if I said I needed to hang the laundry or water the garden, little one could follow me out and swing for a couple of minutes while I did the chores, then come back in with me.

 

If I am not needing to do a chore and I need to move on, I find little changes like described above the best.

[boscopup]

I don't do two â€hard†subjects in a row for my little one. I alternate hard and easy, or writing with non-writing, etc. We might do reading first, then go read aloud (me), then come back and do math. Sometimes I'll send him out to run laps around the backyard, or we'll fold laundry together.

 

I agree with PPs that screen time of any sort is the end of our good school day, no matter how educational. :tongue_smilie:

[jujsky]

I'm curious what others do when transitioning from 1 subject to the next in your daily line-up.

Right now, DD & I are hitting math and reading fairly fairly hard (for her) -- we did a very relaxed K year (read: little to no formal schooling) -- and now we're up to around 30 min. for both math & phonics/reading times. Our other subjects are less structured and mostly after lunch.

 

I've scheduled reading and math in the morning, first thing ... though I'm torn as to which subject to schedule first, since she seems to be good for about only one of them (seems tired/out of sorts when I pull out subject #2).

 

SO....I'm thinking I need to schedule some "down time" or breaks between math & reading. What do you do? For how long? Do you have a hard time getting your children "back to school" if you let them "go" in the middle of school time? (Or maybe I shouldn't just let her go play, but maybe give her 10-15 min. scheduled computer play time -- which she loves -- or scheduled hands-on learning toy type play time between subjects).

 

I hope this all makes sense....

I'd appreciate any tips/feedback from those that have BTDT! THANKS! :)

 

I'll throw out a few options:

 

`1. Keep the schedule as-is, but give her a 15 minute break in between.

2. Start with the subject you always start with, give her a 10-15 minute break, entice her back with something she really enjoys, and then do the subject she dislikes right after (I'd try this option if it's difficult to get her back into school after the 15 minute break).

3. Mix up your schedule. Do one difficult subject in the morning and some easier ones, break for lunch or snack, and do the other difficult subject later in the day with some easier ones.

 

A lot of it depends on your child. She's young, so she might not be ready to do a big chunk of work that requires a lot of attention in one sitting. OTOH, one of my kids was awful about coming back after breaks at that age. Experiment and see what works best.

[brendag]

We use the kitchen timer. That way, it takes me out of the equation: finish math, set the timer for 20, then it's time to start up again. It's not mean mom saying it's time to start, it's the timer . . . subtle difference, but important!

 

I do this as well. It's like having the recess bell go off. :001_smile: For some reason my kids just go along better with the timer going off. My kids listen pretty well, but I would still get a bit of grumbling when it was just me telling them to come in or time to start x. With the timer, it's just "Okay mom, we're coming" just about all the time. Let's hope it lasts! hehe

 

Brenda

 

ETA - I also adjusted our schedule a bit. I wanted to get things done asap, especially phonics and math, but found out that for my kids, it was better if we started school a good hour or more after morning chores were done. They need plenty of time to play, play, play first.

Edited September 11, 2012 by brendag

[blondeviolin]

I agree that the worse breaks are screen-related. My first grader does get breaks between subjects, though, because I have other kids. Typically we begin with the 3yo (read a story, sort colors, something small), then I let Abby choose language or math. She typically chooses math. After that lesson, she plays while I do reading with her brother. She then comes back and completes her other morning subject. Then we do lunch and quiet time before I work into getting into history or science.

[alisoncooks]

Thanks for all the feedback.

I think I'll have to mull over it a bit and do some trial & error... :)

[alisoncooks]

Thanks again for all the comments on this.

I've decided to schedule in "break stations" (logic games, blocks, file folder games -- ya know, all those things I've bought but we never seem to find time to do.... :D)

 

I think we'll do math, first thing as usual. Then schedule in 10-15 minutes of "break stations" (I think I'll set out a math activity, LA game, and something fun, like blocks or playdough....DD can choose what she wants to do).

 

Then we can continue on to reading/phonics together.

 

(This may also solve my current problem with the 4 yr. old who is having a hard time waiting for big sis' to be finished before it's her turn to "do school." While the oldest is at a break station, I can do something quick with the little one, then maybe she'll be fine to go and play alone for another chunk of time...)

[sbgrace]

Thanks again for all the comments on this.

I've decided to schedule in "break stations" (logic games, blocks, file folder games -- ya know, all those things I've bought but we never seem to find time to do.... :D)

 

I think we'll do math, first thing as usual. Then schedule in 10-15 minutes of "break stations" (I think I'll set out a math activity, LA game, and something fun, like blocks or playdough....DD can choose what she wants to do).

 

Then we can continue on to reading/phonics together.

 

(This may also solve my current problem with the 4 yr. old who is having a hard time waiting for big sis' to be finished before it's her turn to "do school." While the oldest is at a break station, I can do something quick with the little one, then maybe she'll be fine to go and play alone for another chunk of time...)

 

I don't know if it will work with your two but I switch off between subjects with my boys. So guy A math, guy B math, guy A language arts, guy B language arts, etc. We do the more interesting/engaging stuff later in the day. I don't plan anything between for the "off" kid and I don't generally have problems with them coming back ok. It may be because we've always done it this way but they seem to realize they are still "on" for school until we get through the subjects. Like others have said screen time between doesn't usually go well.

[Pen]

Break up the academics with something physical and if possible outdoors.