momtolgd Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 Our youngest ds will turn 2 near the end of November. I'm guessing he is going to want to be more involved during school time this year than he was last year. What things do you do with your toddlers to keep them busy and feeling like they are part of the school day? He likes to scribble a bit, but needs to be contained in his high chair for that so he doesn't draw on the walls again! :tongue_smilie: What other things have worked for your little ones? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 :lurk5: Ooh, I want to hear suggestions form those who've been there, done that. When my dd turns two my ds will be starting first grade. Here are some of my book ideas: Montessori Play and Learn The Toddlers' Busy Book (create a busy box as mentioned in that book) Create activity centers around my house where she can explore, paint, and dress up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweetpeach Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 Funny, it didn't matter how many play centres or activities I had around my home . . . as soon as my then two year old dd heard the word "school" she wanted to be nowhere except on my lap. It made me crazy, but it was a short season. At three, she'd play playdoh and stampers for a few minutes, but wanted a chair right beside me. During that season, I thought I'd lost my mind, but now I look back on those days now with fondness -- in the fall, she starts primary. Good luck. T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarita Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 Last year, we did most of our school during A's naptime, so this will be my first year trying to homeschool with a toddler underfoot. But I'm trying to stock my home with activities that will keep him busy and out of our hair! These are some websites that I've run across that you might find helpful. Let me know what you think! http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/preschool_activities.htm http://thesunnypatch.blogspot.com/2007/09/activity-bags-for-preschoolers.html Sarita Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmallChanges Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I made a recent post on my blog about keeping my toddler busy. There are also some additional website posted too that may help!:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland_Mom Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 My two year old wanted to be with us or near us during "school". He loved to play with play-doh at our school table. I kept a box of "special stuff" to pull out during school time only. I big buttons and other "sortable" objects in containers and let him put them in pots, pans, and other small boxes/containers. He loved opening and closing things and just messing in all that stuff. He had a couple of fun leap frog toys to play with. He loved building blocks. It's hard to school with a two year old. Short bursts of school and then play time worked well for us. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aletheia Academy Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 This one I've heard from those with this kind of experience: When your 2 yo wants to be near you, get a special blankie or patch of carpet on which he must stay and play with his special activities. This one from me: Train your young children to have Quiet Time in their rooms every day, alone, quietly. This has been a life saver for me with 2 young dc so close together. They have special toys that live only in their rooms. They have lots of music and books on CD. They may sleep, or not. But every afternoon, I get a few hours to have my own quiet time, do some chores, start dinner, make phone calls...My children have learned to entertain themselves independently, which, I think, is a priceless skill. It's a good thing for everyone. We have been doing this from the beginning. Lastly, I might suggest that you spend 20-30 min one-on-one with your 2 yo, so he has some special time with you, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricaB Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I heard a lady at a convention say to put them in one of those hiking backpacks. I didn't really attempt this, but took the advice of someone else. I had five boxes filled with various hands-on activities. My DD was fairly responsible with small objects, so some of the items might not work for a mouthy kiddo. I rotated each box everyday that I needed focus time with my son at the table. This allowed my DD to stay at the table with us, and the rotation of boxes allowed a steady stream of variety and I didn't need to think about what to put in her hands next. The less time I spent scrambling to satisfy the toddler, the more time I had with the preschooler. Items included Anything that can be dumped from one container to the other -counting bears -buttons (you can get a colorful variety tub at Walmart) -wooden stringing beads (these were from when my sis and I were kids, so I don't know if they sell these anymore -Various Flash cards - Not for cognition, but rather for spreading all over the table and throwing on the floor LOL Stacking/Sorting -blocks that are small enough not to cause harm when thrown across the table -Learning Resources has some fun things like a tub of sorting plastic bugs. These were a big hit -Large stringing cards -Peg Board - I think this was a Learning Resources -Puzzles -Parquetry blocks -Letters for the Fridge - not too attractive if you are auditioning for Better Homes and Garden's Kitchens, but it keeps hands busy. Art Projects and play-doh were done together. It might not be completed gracefully by the 2 year old, but at least she didn't feel left out. We always had a healthy stack of art supplies. I throw scraps from various projects into a small box for collage making. Not direction needed, just glue and create. Stickers are also a big hit. We have sticker books, but I found that a sheet of stickers and a piece of construction paper worked better since not direction was needed. If you lift up the end of each sticker, a 2 year old can easily lift it off and place it randomly on paper. There are a few toddler websites that are good including one by Fisher Price. I can't think of all of then now, but you can Google "free online toddler games" and find a ton. They usually only involve a click of a mouse or a hit of any key to play. When DD wanted to get down, she was required to play with her toys. I don't think it is too young to teach independent play especially since she was held for so long for her own safety. We have 2 large dogs and my DS was 21 months when she was born. Needless to say, the safest place for her was in our arms. This was fine until she needed to be taught to play on her own for short periods of time. It didn't take her long to figure it our knowing that her time with mommy was coming after I finished with her brother. Good Luck to you. It is a challenge, but everyone told me that it gets easier. I didn't believe them at the time, but they were all right. Relax and have fun with your kiddos. This is what is most important! Everyone will eventually learn to read and count......:D Erica Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue G in PA Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 Duct tape worked well at our house. :lol: Okay, just kidding. Seriously, my dd2 always wants in on the action. As soon as we announce school, she is at the table w/ a sheet of paper and pencil, "writing" her schoolwork. Lauri toys are also a favorite. I had a list at home of some great ideas that I got from some website or maybe even from the old board. When I get home, I'll look for it. It had some neat PreK/toddler ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Targhee Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 Nap. Honestly, this is when we were most productive when DS was 2. I will have another 2yo this year, and I plan on doing the most teacher-involved schooling during her nap. Occasionally Elmo works, too. Or The Letter Factory. I have also found that if I give her direct-involvement time (me reading to her, or playing with her toys with her) for at least 20-30 minutes, then she will be content to play by herself for at least the same amount of time. Otherwise, just get used to having her on your lap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweetpeach Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 It's hard to school with a two year old. This is the true thing. I guess for me it became a choice of my attitude -- embrace the crazy of a toddler and school, or let it get the best of me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted July 23, 2008 Share Posted July 23, 2008 I am doing a swap with some other momma's of activity bags from this book http://www.activitybags.com/ We are each making 15 of the same activity, and then sending 14 to the swap organizer (keeping one for ourselves), and then the swap organizer will send us 14 different bags. I have no idea if this will actually work, but I plan on bringing out a bag for my 2yo and one for my 3yo when I do school with my 5yo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muffinmom Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Funny, it didn't matter how many play centres or activities I had around my home . . . as soon as my then two year old dd heard the word "school" she wanted to be nowhere except on my lap. It made me crazy, but it was a short season. Ah yes, this was my experience last year--dd was almost 2 then. I had visions of her playing with the special things I'd bought for her to do, while ds and I did school. Ha! She would climb all over me and want to insert herself in everything we were doing. What occasionally worked: If I interested her in the toys in her room, she would stay distracted there longer. I had bought Colorforms for ds, but dd loved them more and would play with them for a good while. She would carry the shapes all over the house, but it was a small price to pay for some peace and quiet. And then of course, sometimes we would just save the things that required more concentration for when dd went down for a nap. One thing that I didn't try but that might work: have a special chair or place for your child to sit and have "school" time. Maybe that would entice him or her to sit and do activities for a longer period of time. Also, be sure to set aside some time for just that child, so they get some of your one-on-one attention too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muffinmom Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I had five boxes filled with various hands-on activities. My DD was fairly responsible with small objects, so some of the items might not work for a mouthy kiddo. I rotated each box everyday that I needed focus time with my son at the table. This allowed my DD to stay at the table with us, and the rotation of boxes allowed a steady stream of variety and I didn't need to think about what to put in her hands next. Oh I love this idea! You could name them by the days of the week: "This is your Monday box, your Tuesday box..." etc. Label them as such and you're creating interest in the boxes and at the same time teaching the days of the week. Looks like I'll be making some boxes this week!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricaB Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Oh I love this idea! You could name them by the days of the week: "This is your Monday box, your Tuesday box..." etc. Label them as such and you're creating interest in the boxes and at the same time teaching the days of the week. Looks like I'll be making some boxes this week!! Yes, that is the idea. I never gave them names since we don't do a "normal" school week. The key to the boxes, is that they are not allowed to play with the toys in the boxes unless it is the box for that day. This keeps the toys fresh. I forgot to mention that in my original post. Erica Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Never too early to start with one of my uttmost favorite DVDs - "Leapfrog Letter Factory." :) Also, maybe schedule school near nap or quiet time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 The only thing that has worked so far is doing school outside with toddler in swing, in pool, or crawling around. I feel bad making Emily do schoolwork instead of swinging or playing though. And... this won't work in the winter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim in SouthGa Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 We are trying something new this year. My dh wants to work with the boys on their golf game, and my dd is taking horseback riding lessons. So we will do our activities in the morning, be home by 10:15, give everyone a good snack while I read aloud, then put the my 16 month old down for a nap. We'll get all the "hard" stuff done while she is napping, and then they'll do their independent work after she wakes up. She loves to look at books, so she will have a special basket in the school room with books in it, and if I get brave I will let her scribble (contained in a high chair, of course!). She still takes a good long nap right now, but as we get closer to the end of the year and her second birthday, we may have to make some adjustments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacey in MA Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 But my expectations have been put in their place, that's for sure. First of all, nap is no longer "mommy time" - it is "hurry, get your Latin book!!" time!! hee hee! Secondly, all little ones are different. My #2 loved to read and look at books from about 18mo on. She could sit for an hour and do that. It made it seem easy on me, then along came #3. She didn't want to read books at a young age, so 18mo-2.5 was tough. I relied on the pack n play heavily during that time. It was right next to us while doing school, and she learned to be content in there for a while. Didn't last too long though, since she learned to climb out eventually! ha! So in her 2's somewhere, she learned to sit in the high chair and scribble, do stickers, etc. That would buy us about 1 or 1.5 hrs. I did have to prolong getting her out, and tolerate a bit of fussing, but over time, she learned to expect a certain amount of time in there. By age 3, my #3 was ready to do a activity books - dot to dots and such. She learned t enjoy looking at library books for 20 min. at a time too. She really preferred blocks thouh, so that was another "station" for her - some farm block and some castle blocks on the floor nearby (still all in the same room). She also learned to do cutting and glue stick in her 3's (high chair only), so yet another activity to rotate in. Oh, also, at age 3 she was wanting to listen to music, so I let her use my CD player with headphones to put on any CD she wanted (still in the same room with us), as long as she was quiet about it (no singing at the top of her lungs!) This went on for a long while, and often bought us 20 min. at a time..... Last year my #2 was 5 and my #3 was 3, so when DD-then-5 finished her 1st grade work, I'd send DD5 and DD3 off to their room to play while I had some time with DS8 (now 9). I trusted them in there w/out supervision as long as the 5yo was with the 3yo - she would always "tell" is DD3 was misbehaving. Someone mentioned this to me last year, and not sure why it never occured to me, but I started putting my oldest (at the time DS8) in charge of someone to entertain (a.k.a. play with) while I worked with another. So if DS8 was with DD3, playing or reading, I could have 10 or 15 minutes with DD6 to finish math or something. My DS sometimes didn't like this, but sometimes DID welcome the break in his own work. I like the PP's idea of the 5 boxes. I think I'm going to try this! If I totally got flustered, I turn on United Streaming, and that often entertained ALL 3 of them while I recollected my thoughts and plans for the morning. This year, my #3 is 4yo, so although she's not officially a K'er, she is willing and able to do some table work. I also trust her to go off and play when she's done doing work with us. My issue now is my #4, who's 18mo. He is a MONKEY! Doesn't like to look at books. Wants attention all the time. Fusses a LOT. Not sure how this is giong to play out. I think the pack n play will be used much. I might try carrying him in the backpack (the side sling hurt my bad back). I might also try sending my DS9 off to watch/play with him. My DD6 isn't reliable with him, so I can't use that. I will then race at nap time to get DS9's work done with him. It's SUCH a balancing and juggling act! But we fumble through it and get things done. Oh, FWIW, I find there are certain times of day when DS1 is more willing to entertain himself....For instance, right after breakfast he will sit in his high chair for a while if I give him something to amuse himself with. So I must take advantage of that time by reading to one (or more) of the kids. Also, the morning in general is a good time for him to explore his toys solo. He likes to be in the same room with us, but will more willing play with his toys then versus in the afternoon. In the afternoon, he's more of a wanderer, climber, monkey, fuss pot! ;-p So he needs more supervision then. That's all I can think of now. Hope that helps some! It's always great for me to hear how other moms are handling this too! GL! - Stacey in MA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momtolgd Posted July 24, 2008 Author Share Posted July 24, 2008 Thank you all for the great ideas! I am going to have to copy them down to keep them. I'm worried about how this will go having a toddler wanting to be involved, but glad to see that others have btdt and survived! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
St. Theophan Academy Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 here's a link to a list I wrote the other day on this topic toddler ideas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherryblossom Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I was silently wondering the same thing. Thank you so much for sharing all of your wonderfully creative ideas. I'm excited to implement a lot of them.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HFClassicalAcademy Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 that I keep in my binder. I look at it at least weekly when planning out our week. Here is a link to it on my blog and how I implement it. Homeschooling with Toddlers. HTH!! Liz in NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missouri Mama Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 I always started the school day by doing a "school" activity with my toddler one on one. The direct attn seemed to help with that child being less of a distraction for the rest of the morning. I then set up centers in our school room. Activities that never left the school room were hidden in bins at various locations in the room. I would set a timer for 10 min. & rotate the child through those areas. An activity like play dough could be used for a bit longer. Things in the bins were rotated periodically. I also set up slots (15 min. ea) for my older kids to do 1:1 activities with the toddler & used those opportunities for more intensive teaching times (e.g. phonics/reading) with other children. At other times like during read-alouds for history or science, the toddler sat on my lap or near me with quiet toys. He or she was permitted to move about the room if they were not too noisy or otherwise distracting. Take the time to think through & gather toys/activities to hold your toddler's interest. It will be time well spent in the success of your home school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyomom Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 They always want to be where mom and the older kids are doing what they are doing. Playdough or water works for a short time but I always have to be standing right there because they want that same interaction from mom that the older kids are getting. I think it's an attention thing. UGH! So, I try to schedule the one on one subjects during nap time and I am blessed with two older dd's 12 and 11 who alternate their work around helping with the toddler. It is cute, they will sit at the counter with their books and paper and make sure the little guy has his own "book" and paper and pencil or crayons that look exactly like theirs so he can " do school" with them. This is really the only thing that keeps his attention. He will scribble for awhile and then I try to keep him happy with special snacks he only gets during school. Funny how my kids' are only motivated by FOOD. LOL! I have a 19 month old turning 2 in Dec and another baby due in Jan so we have more toddler years ahead. My dd's also try to do activities with him out of slow and steady get me ready if I am working with my 6 yr old who is learning to read and needs lots of one on one with math. He gets really distracted by the toddler and quits his lesson if we are interrupted. Good luck, it is a challenge but they really are fun. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muffinmom Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Never too early to start with one of my uttmost favorite DVDs - "Leapfrog Letter Factory." :) Also, maybe schedule school near nap or quiet time. I love this DVD too, and the whole series. Because of it my dd knew her letter sounds at 1.5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 I plan to get an Aquadoodle. We have a magnetic fishing game/puzzle, and Jake showed no interest in it until I played with him for a while, and after that, he played with it for at least 20 minutes! I also love these ideas... http://mfwbooks.com/toddler.htm You all really have me planning and thinking. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momtolgd Posted July 25, 2008 Author Share Posted July 25, 2008 I plan to get an Aquadoodle.! That might be a great 2nd birthday gift for ds! And would stop the problem of him drawing on the walls! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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