Kathie in VA Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I'm looking for ways to encourage my kids to get up early and get started on time this year. I'm thinking of starting with subjects they like .... such as reading history or lit together. We've also started with Bible for awhile, but this year they are using different things. My hubby thinks I should get them exercising right away to pump the blood... but dd (13yo) hates that.. (she's in the moody years so I'd like to start the day without attitude if possible). Math is always a good idea to start with because they are fresh... but it's not too exciting to get them out of bed, thru morn routines and ready to start. I'd rather not use food as a reward and I really don't have extra money around to use as rewards. So any ideas to get the day started on a good note, for those of us who have kids that aren't thrilled about school? BTW: my kids are rising 8th dd, 7th ds, 3rd ds and a 3 year old dd. TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Around here, it's just one of those "have to do it, so might as well do it with a good attitude" things. No special incentives. Dd doesn't need an incentive, Ds starts pretty late (big changes a-coming for that puppy this year, tho!), and other son, not homeschooled, has to leave the house at 6:40 am to catch the bus, so there's not much better incentive than missing your ride. I do think a day started with a nice breakfast can help. I also like to start with our devotion--even if they are different, do they have devotions (as opposed to study) that they could take to their rooms? Starting the day with the Lord seems like a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacy in NJ Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I actually agree with your dh. Exercise gets the blood pumping and everyone wide awake around our house. We run in the a.m, but walking would be good, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda...inOwasso Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 an air horn? :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KYHokiemom Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I plan to take a mile or so walk in the morning with the kids. It will help me to be ready to get to work and the kids will get out their morning wiggles. Then, the kids are ready to sit and do their bible copywork before devotions. And, yes, I'm a big believer in good old fashioned fresh air! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennyt Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Hi, My kids are younger but we go for a ride every morning before we start school. Then we start with our foreign language - we play a wide variety of board games and only speak in Japanese. They really look forward to this and we all have fun. We do Latin next every second day and then it's down to the nitty gritty. I'm an ex-highschool teacher, and I did much the same thing with my school kids - start with a revision game or a challenging activity or something and then "get out the books". It works really well now that I can start with whatever subject I want to, so that our game because our foreign language(s) time. I probably put a bit more time into what games and how to develop their language skills for this activity than any other subject that we do, but I think it makes for a positive feeling in our "learning time". Jenny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Having survived the teen years of my two dds, I will tell you that my best advice is: make them sweat hard & regularly!!! :D I agree with your dh - you may find that your teen is a whole lot easier to get along with if she exercises first! Of course she's not going to want to do it - *I* don't want to exercise either!!! But everybody's happier when I do!!! Anne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaKim Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 We get up, eat breakfast, and take the dogs for a brisk walk, a little over a mile. Then they are actually "awake" when we get back and start school. :) Oh, and bad attitudes are simply not allowed, hormones or not. Life is full of things we don't really "like," and we can't constantly go around using those as excuses to make everyone around us miserable with our attitudes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 My kids like getting up early b/c when they get up, they finish earlier and have more time to do their own thing. Looking at the ages of your kids, I would have the 8th and 7th grader up an hour+ before the younger 2 doing in-depth teaching without interruption. A typical schedule for our family if we had kids those ages would be: 530--me up. Coffee and email. 600--oldest 2 up and working 1 on 1 with me on either writing, math, or lit discussion 730-younger crew up. Older 2 get breakfast break (ie serve breakfast to younger 2) and I would be starting laundry, etc. and after breakfast, we would move into a full blown typical day. When we follow a schedule like above, our days our finished by 1 or 2 and that includes a 45 min workout. Everyone in the household is happier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathie in VA Posted July 31, 2008 Author Share Posted July 31, 2008 These ideas are great, keep them coming! But I just have to say :lol:, Linda I've thought of an air horn (or fog horn)!! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafiki Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenKitty Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I'm looking for ways to encourage my kids to get up early and get started on time this year. I'm thinking of starting with subjects they like .... such as reading history or lit together. We've also started with Bible for awhile, but this year they are using different things. My hubby thinks I should get them exercising right away to pump the blood... but dd (13yo) hates that.. (she's in the moody years so I'd like to start the day without attitude if possible). Math is always a good idea to start with because they are fresh... but it's not too exciting to get them out of bed, thru morn routines and ready to start. I'd rather not use food as a reward and I really don't have extra money around to use as rewards. So any ideas to get the day started on a good note, for those of us who have kids that aren't thrilled about school? BTW: my kids are rising 8th dd, 7th ds, 3rd ds and a 3 year old dd. TIA Eat Breakfast and then take the dog for a walk. Sometimes they ride their bikes. While I walk or scooter with the dog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I get up first and get myself ready, have my alone time etc- so by the time it's time for them to get up, I am ready with a good attitude (i.e. I am not grumpy- but I am a morning person anyway, I crash mid afternoon and need a nap. ) We have a routine- dh and I both feel that early mornings are a good habit and sleeping in is not- and it just helps so much to get started. So we treat it like school, they have to be at their desks by 8.30. 7am - up, shower (for dd14- she needs a shower, she is my not-a-morning-person one and a shower helps her transition), dress, chores and breakfast. 8am musical instrument practice 8.30am maths then on Finish early afternoon. However, some things I do to keep things happy: Lately, I have had a cooked breakfast ready for the kids when they get up. They like that. Don't know why I never did it before- it only takes me 10-15 minutes and they are really grateful to get up to a hot meal (it is winter here though). I also have some music on, and some incense or essences burning, and the kitchen warmed up, so its a homely feel. Sometimes we start with a read aloud instead of maths just for a change, but usually it's maths. The incentive for my kids is to get their work done- hence ds12 often starts earlier so he can finish earlier. My dd14 is my challenge for mornings, as she loves to sleep in- so she is allowed to sleep in on Saturday mornings. Sundays we do family things (garage sales are a family thing here) and so it's another early morning, so Saturdays are her luxury mornings. That makes the rest of the week bearable for her. They have a fairly early bedtime- 8pm- for their age- however they read till about 9pm. That's still 10 hours sleep. Without enough sleep, it's really hard to get up in the morning. I guess the main incentive around here though is just not to get disciplined for not being ready in the morning on time! I run it this way because I am fresh in the mornings- if I was not a morning person I would start later and somehow make that work for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacey in MA Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 We were managing to be seated for school work by 8:30am last year. But there was a lot of mommy-marching-them-around to make it happen. I got lax at the end of the year, and DD6 was starting later - maybe around 9am or 9:30. It always messed us up. This fall I am going to try a few tricks. I might try the family walk thing....where we must all be up and out together for our walk. Another idea is that I am going to readings - Bible and History - during breakfast. They love to hear me read, and much prefer it to independent reading. So if they miss out on my reading, they will have to do those readings independently later in the day (a.k.a. play time!). The only way this ever works in my house is if they see I'm serious by actually missing out a time or two (and me enforcing the consequence of reading it on their own). After that, they will get the idea soon enough! GL! I know it's hard. I am not an early bird myself.... :-) Stacey in MA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gretchen in NJ Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 If my girls get up, dressed, make ther bed, and have their bedroom clean by 7:30, they get 1/2 hour bike riding time. The earlier they get up and ready the more time they have on their bikes. If they are cooperating with me, I might let the time slide up to 7:40, but bike riding time is over at 8:00 sharp. They are addicted to bike riding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmeliaBinMO Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Thank you for posting this, Peela! Mornings sound like such a pleasant experience at your home! I'll be trying to incorporate some of your ideas when we head back to school next week! Thanks again! AmeliaB in MO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proudmamma Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I like the idea of walking in the am, but what do you do when it is raining, snowing (winter), or the time changes and it is all of a sudden dark out that early now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amber Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 We plan to start walking too. DD has a hard time getting up but she is a night person. DS is up and ready but he is only 7. Exercise! Amber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meljoy Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 My older two boys were early risers no problem (as I am)- the baby (10YO DS ) would sleep till noon if I let him. He is just NOT a morning person. When he finally drags out of bed he wants to cuddle and maybe me read to him first thing. This is hard to turn down with older ones (I realize well they don’t want to cuddle on the couch and read with mom for ever) I think I will try the walking (after the cuddling -the teen years are coming soon). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamnkats Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 One of the reasons we never did school was the horrid schedule. HAVING to get up at an awful hour to shuttle the kids - gives me shivers just thinking about it. My DH and I get up around 8-9am, the 8yo around 10am, the 6yo between 10am-noon and the 12yo and 14yo are getting up early these days - they are trying for 2pm. I read to the 8 and 6yo when they get up for 30 minutes or so and then we get breakfast (I'm usually starving by this time as I've had nothing but coffee since I woke) around noon or 1pm. After breakfast the girls help cleanup or play. By 3pm we head out to the beach and snorkel or go to the pool and check the turtle nests on the beach. We spend much of the day between 1pm until 5pm or so inside because of the heat. The boys start their "school" day around 6pm or so and usually go to bed around 3am or so. In the winter, when it dips to the 70F's, we'll come back to more daytime activity. So, the boys will generally eat, have some outside time and exercise and then head inside to "work" and have no enforced schedule. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallory Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I have two that are hard to get up and different things work for both of them. For the 12yo, who likes to stay up later, part of being able to have her lights on or a movie going when I go to bed is being up and, well not cheerful, but at least not grumpy in the morning. So her biggest reason to get up early, and be nice, is so she can stay up an extra hour or so at night. But it also helps when she has helped plan our schedule and has decided that she would rather have most of her school done before lunch so that most of the afternoon is free (or is "easy" subjects like guitar practice and reading). For my 8yo, who is the worst in the morning, what works is him setting his alarm to get an hour of video game time in first thing. He lays in bed and plays his DS for a while, and is much better when it is actually time to get up and deal with everyone. But I am also so glad when the bus goes by at 6:25 (on the rare day I am awake in bed and can hear it) that we didn't have to be ready for that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T Baer Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I plan to take a mile or so walk in the morning with the kids. It will help me to be ready to get to work and the kids will get out their morning wiggles. Then, the kids are ready to sit and do their bible copywork before devotions. And, yes, I'm a big believer in good old fashioned fresh air! I'd like to start doing this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novafan Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 We are going to do something similar every morning to wake us all up. I plan to take a mile or so walk in the morning with the kids. It will help me to be ready to get to work and the kids will get out their morning wiggles. Then, the kids are ready to sit and do their bible copywork before devotions. And, yes, I'm a big believer in good old fashioned fresh air! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadiegirl Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I have found a couple of solutions that help---not solve- with the morning slowpokes. First, they are allowed to go outside for a few minutes with the dog. They love this in most seasons--snow, they get to sled, fall-they pick leaves for pressing and watch as the season changes our lake, and spring, they watch for things to come alive, and start fishing! It's amazing how 15-25 minutes outside with nature can make a couple of boys come alive! Plus, it gives me time to get their breakfast ready and then we head up to our classroom. Second, we start by reading our daily mail...emails that my father sends with interesting forwards, stories, or any other messages that they would be interested in. We also each have a daily calendar(one is You might be a Redneck, one is Twister Whiskers and one is Ripley's Believe it or not!) and we share the daily post of each of these for a couple of good laughs. Last, we start off with a subject that we enjoy...our read-a-loud. They draw, or work on a craft while I read or listen to the audio version. I have found these things really help with all of our attitudes and remind how lucky we are to be in our sock-feet, casual, comfy clothes with a warm cup of cocoa etc. and learning in a positive atmosphere. It doesn't always go perfect and I do remind them that school is a fact of life just like work for adults...something we must do so do it with a smile!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanmeterk4 Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I love this idea of taking a walk in the morning to get things moving. Last year we would start our schoolwork relatively late, though my daughter, who goes to PS, has to leave the house at 8:15. I'm thinking that if I get my son up and we walk her to school together, we'll be much more invigorated to get our schoolwork started earlier. My son is starting 5th grade next month, and I anticipate increased work load this year and needing more time to get things done. And since my daughter is at PS, we pull the plug on schoolwork at 3:00, when she's done. My son loves to sleep in.... -Kim in Iowa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free Indeed Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 http://www.miraclemusic.com This works around here, but I guess it would depend on the ages of your children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neesek Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Well, it takes at least two cups of coffee and plenty of quiet time here... Oh wait, you're talking about the kids!!! Honestly, it is not my kids that have the problem, it is me. I am NOT a morning person! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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