Teaching a mixed-age co-op class

[happypamama]

If you've taught a co-op class of mixed-age, say about ten kids from ages 7-12, mostly around age 10, do you have any tips for me re: keeping the 10yos gently challenged and not bored, while not intimidating the 7 and 8yos? I don't expect that the two younger children will complete the work that the older kids will, but I don't want them to feel frustrated either.

[NorthwestMom]

Differentiate the activities. What are you teaching? For example, if you are teaching writing, perhaps the older kids need to write 3 poems of at least 10 lines, while the younger kids write 2 poems of at least 5 lines. Or, if you are teaching science, have a label-the-human-body worksheet appropriate for even the youngest kids, but have additional worksheets, covering more details at a higher level, for the older kids.

[Rebel Yell]

It depends on what you're teaching, and what the purpose of the co-op is.

 

Some 12yos are ready for nearly high-school level work, some 7yos can't read.

 

agreed with the poster who said different activities. Just make sure the oldest kids are also challenged. SweetChild and BabyBaby are in a co-op to do labs for general science, but it;s a lot of younger kids and mine are slightly bored.

 

editing to add: what was the stated age level? Are the 7yos part of the original plan, or little sibling tagalongs? If the class is supposed to be for ages 9-12, and a 7yo is tagging along, I personally would not make major accommodations.

[Rosy]

Bring things to do for the younger kids if they finish early, or enrichment for the older kids if the younger ones need help. Discovery Education has a free puzzlemaker (google it) that has come in handy for me in co-op classes. I teach an art class where some kids finish within 10 minutes and some take the entire hour. I bring playdough and games for those who finish early. Do you have a TA? Maybe she/he can work with one group while you work with the other.

[KungFuPanda]

Can you get a co-teacher and split the group? I know homeschoolers balk a "tearing the family apart," but 7-12 is a really wide developmental span. It would be sooo much easier if you could do 7-9 and 10-12. Maybe rotate stations?

[happypamama]

The class is Renaissance history. The stated age range was approximately 8-12, independent readers and writers, but even within that, there's a big range. I did not know the ages of all of the children beforehand, but I knew there were several 10yo's, including my own 10yo DD. My DD requested specifically that I teach this class, so I geared it toward her, and her buddies who are in the class. My DD is also not a particularly quiet child; if she's bored, we'll know it, so I really didn't want it to be below her. The 7yo in the class does have a 10yo sibling in it, but I think the 7yo just wanted to be in the class, even though her mom told her she might not be able to do all of the writing. I'd rather have an interested student who needs a little extra (I do have a helper who helped the 7 and 8 yo's some yesterday) than have that child be bored in a different class.

 

This is what we did yesterday (we are a portfolio state, so I wanted them to have stuff that would go easily into a portfolio):

 

-I wasn't sure whether any of the kids besides DD had studied the middle ages at all, so I wrote a couple of paragraphs that highlighted feudal society and the church's role. I read/talked about that, and then I read a bit from SOTW about the start of the Renaissance and the printing press. I also read/discussed a couple of paragraphs that I wrote about Luther, the start of the Reformation, and Henry VIII (six wives and two beheadings got some dropped jaws!). I felt that they needed some background to see just why the Renaissance was such a big deal. I emailed the paragraphs I wrote to the parents afterward so they could go over the info again with their children.

 

-I wrote a worksheet with about 20 statements on it, and I asked the students to read them and decide whether they applied to the middle ages or the Renaissance, as a reinforcement from what I'd read. I gave them some time to work on it, and then we went over the answers. The younger children did not finish but wrote the answers anyway.

 

-I gave them a map of Renaissance Europe. We labeled several countries and four cities. I also showed them a map from the Renaissance era, and we talked about what was missing from it and what was distorted, so they could see what was gained with the new discoveries in the Renaissance.

 

-I gave everyone a copy of the Greek alphabet, along with its sounds, and they wrote their names according to the Greek sounds. That was a hit. All of the kids needed a little help with that, and my helper made it easy for everyone to participate.

 

-I gave them a wordsearch with 15 clues, more reinforcement from the lesson. I did not give them a wordbank, because I wanted the older kids to try to recall the answers themselves. We ended up going over the answers, and I wrote them on the board (which I didn't know I would have, so that was nice) and then emailed them to the parents as well. The 10yo's were able to figure out the answers to the clues, though the wordsearch itself turned out to be pretty tricky for everyone.

 

-I had a bunch of printouts of Renaissance dress and handed those around. This was just for fun so they could see the crazy hats and such. Everyone seemed to enjoy giggling at the outfits.

 

-I assigned a research project, due at the last class (there are four classes, all two weeks apart), a report on a person from the Renaissance (I gave some examples but said they're not limited to those). My guidelines suggested at least a 5-sentence paragraph, with at least two sources, and a basic bibliography (I included some examples from MLA). The email to the parents said that they can determine what is appropriate for their children; they can insist on a longer report or not. I also handed out a notebook page with some blanks to fill in (name, birth and death dates, country, contributions to the rebirth of learning, interesting facts). For the older kids, I thought that could serve as an outline, and for the younger kids, that may be sufficient, no report needed. (My own 7yo, who is not in the class, could handle the notebook page, with some help from me, but I probably wouldn't have him do the report unless he really wanted to.) I suggested that they choose the person by the second class, do the notebook page for the third class, and the report by the fourth class. I really think the older kids are ready for a longer-term project with defined goals, and some research/citation practice.

 

The following weeks will probably not have as much writing. We'll look at some art and architecture, discuss some scientific stuff (haven't quite gotten all of those plans nailed down yet), talk about some literature.

 

I just want the younger kids to be interested -- it's not going to offend me if they don't write a single thing, but I don't want them to be turned off of history!

[Angel]

I teach a mixed age co-op class. In fact all the teachers in our laid back co-op do. We have 1st thru 6th and then 7th thru 12th classes. Our science and choir and devotions are for everyone. We all do what we would do if teaching more than one at home. We teach to the olders (most of the time) and let the youngers pick up what they can/will. I've learned from my own homeschool experience (there are six years between my girls) that the youngers will pick up much more than you realize/anticipate. If the teachers hand out assignments (some do and some don't), the youngers have a smaller/different assignment.

 

I teach art, so it is a little different. I pick my art lessons from all over that grade range. If it is something more difficult, then I am prepared to help the younger ones. I also have one with fine motor difficulties, so I am used to thinking about that as well.

[happypamama]

We all do what we would do if teaching more than one at home. We teach to the olders (most of the time) and let the youngers pick up what they can/will. I've learned from my own homeschool experience (there are six years between my girls) that the youngers will pick up much more than you realize/anticipate. If the teachers hand out assignments (some do and some don't), the youngers have a smaller/different assignment.

 

 

Thank you for that reassurance -- that's what I do at home as well. I teach to the older ones and supplement with picture books for the littler ones. I'd rather stop and explain something to the youngers, or have them do a smaller assignment, than have the olders be bored.

[hsbaby]

I run a tutorial for 2-6 graders. However, we have K-1 and 7th grade siblings that attend. I teach nature studies and geography. I usually teach to the older kids. It's amazing what the younger kids pick up! In fact, my 1-3 graders work a lot harder than my older kids! I teach the same lesson to all of the kids, but modify the assignment to some degree. For example, when we learned about birds eye view maps, the younger kids did colorful drawings of their bedroom while the older kids did a more detailed floor plan of their entire home. So, same basic lesson. I love seeing the older kids jump in to help the younger kids! It would be easier to separate them (for me), but I think they get a lot out of helping the younger kids. Think about how much we learn by teaching our kids:)