Of curiosity and chaos

[Squawky Acres]

Sometimes I think I am a classical homeschooling mom trapped in an unschooling family.  I have a schedule.  We have a very classical curriculum, which I try to get through with my three school-aged kids (3rd, 2nd and K/1st-ish), but it requires so much from me at this point.  I can't keep the other two at the table with us the entire time during each other's lessons.  So they run off and get involved in all kinds of messy, creative, and involved projects that somehow seem to involve me as well.  The 8-year-old is writing a novel (and needs help spelling every fourth word or so), they are building an empire in the basement (requiring materials and instruction to make sure I can still get to the laundry room), adopting "pets" from outdoors (requiring aquariums, jars with holes, frog food, and instructions on not killing the poor creature), starting up a business, adopting a new monetary system for their imaginary world (involving votes and intrigue and arguments), making weapons out of sticks and strings and glue, and painting water colors.  I love that they are interested and engaged, and do try to foster curiosity and make materials available, but sometimes they are too intense for my quiet and calm-loving self.  I am also torn when I have to take them away from their very engaging and educational projects to make them do a spelling lesson.  With so many interruptions, our school stretches into mid-afternoon and I am exhausted and increasingly un-fun, and just want to hide in my room.

 

Am I just conflicted in what I want?  Not using my schedule correctly? Maybe not fostering enough independence?  How do you balance the chaos of creative children with the discipline of a well-run school day?  

[ExcitedMama]

I just wanted to say your children sound amazing! What about having them stick to your schedule a little more? No world domination until after the spelling lesson? If you are hands on with one child have a scheduled recess or reading time for the other children to play together?

[Arcadia]

Embrace the chaos :lol:

 

We did spelling during car rides and meal times.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

Sometimes I think I am a classical homeschooling mom trapped in an unschooling family.  I have a schedule.  We have a very classical curriculum, which I try to get through with my three school-aged kids (3rd, 2nd and K/1st-ish), but it requires so much from me at this point.  I can't keep the other two at the table with us the entire time during each other's lessons.  So they run off and get involved in all kinds of messy, creative, and involved projects that somehow seem to involve me as well.  The 8-year-old is writing a novel (and needs help spelling every fourth word or so), they are building an empire in the basement (requiring materials and instruction to make sure I can still get to the laundry room), adopting "pets" from outdoors (requiring aquariums, jars with holes, frog food, and instructions on not killing the poor creature), starting up a business, adopting a new monetary system for their imaginary world (involving votes and intrigue and arguments), making weapons out of sticks and strings and glue, and painting water colors.  I love that they are interested and engaged, and do try to foster curiosity and make materials available, but sometimes they are too intense for my quiet and calm-loving self.  I am also torn when I have to take them away from their very engaging and educational projects to make them do a spelling lesson.  With so many interruptions, our school stretches into mid-afternoon and I am exhausted and increasingly un-fun, and just want to hide in my room.

 

Am I just conflicted in what I want?  Not using my schedule correctly? Maybe not fostering enough independence?  How do you balance the chaos of creative children with the discipline of a well-run school day?  

 

Nope, you're not doing anything wrong. This is homeschooling. :D You just described the last 15 to 18 years of my life with my four boys...

 

Take breaks when you need them. Enforce quiet time after lunch and make sure bedtime is ON time, hide out in the bathroom, make sure your home and backyard are childproof so you can have some down time while they play, whatever it takes, because you're doing a great job and so are your kids.

 

The more they explore and create on THEIR time while being privileged to enjoy a classical education on YOUR time, the more one half will feed the other. They will thrive.

 

[lllll]

nm

[abba12]

Your kids are awesome! I want them to come inspire mine!

 

As for advice.... I try to not let them leave the table until they're done. So, while DD2 is getting my attention, DD1 can be working on handwriting, or math practice, or drawing, or my reading app, or some logic work. While DD1 is getting my attention, DD2 can be working on fine motor skill stuff, cutting and tracing and stickers (she actually refuses to finish 'school' before my eldest does, even though she's only preK). They also have some subjects I passively teach, rather than active or independent, so I can have them both working on Explode the Code at the same time, by starting them at their individual levels on the pages and having them work semi-independently while I supervise both. It's not as important in my case, we spend no more than an hour a day at the table. But I'm trying to instill the habit and routine that there's always something to be done while waiting, and that we don't leave the school table until the end of school. 

 

So, I would try work hard on finding independent work for them, and on multitasking the students so they all remain on-task with something and don't leave until finished school for the day. It should help with efficiency, so they can be finished faster, and run off to build their imaginary city free of responsibilities by lunchtime. Easier said than done though, especially if you don't have a multi-tasking personality (my husband has no idea how I bounce between the kids the way I do, and be confident about adding more. He can only do ONE book and one child at a time.)

[Farrar]

Your kids sound super cool.

 

It's a balance. I totally agree with Tibbie that I think homeschooling is just like that. You're looking for the right line to walk. Sometimes you should let their world domination efforts give you a break while you hide with a book in your room. Other times pull them away from it without guilt. And in families where the kids are that creative and driven, sometimes they need their chaos broken up with a spelling lesson. And they need a spelling lesson to fuel their confidence with writing those novels down the road.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

Your kids are awesome! I want them to come inspire mine!

 

As for advice.... I try to not let them leave the table until they're done. So, while DD2 is getting my attention, DD1 can be working on handwriting, or math practice, or drawing, or my reading app, or some logic work. While DD1 is getting my attention, DD2 can be working on fine motor skill stuff, cutting and tracing and stickers (she actually refuses to finish 'school' before my eldest does, even though she's only preK). They also have some subjects I passively teach, rather than active or independent, so I can have them both working on Explode the Code at the same time, by starting them at their individual levels on the pages and having them work semi-independently while I supervise both. It's not as important in my case, we spend no more than an hour a day at the table. But I'm trying to instill the habit and routine that there's always something to be done while waiting, and that we don't leave the school table until the end of school. 

 

So, I would try work hard on finding independent work for them, and on multitasking the students so they all remain on-task with something and don't leave until finished school for the day. It should help with efficiency, so they can be finished faster, and run off to build their imaginary city free of responsibilities by lunchtime. Easier said than done though, especially if you don't have a multi-tasking personality (my husband has no idea how I bounce between the kids the way I do, and be confident about adding more. He can only do ONE book and one child at a time.)

 

Just a bit of perspective from further down the road: It's not developmentally appropriate or even physically possible for most children to sit at the school table all day. This one hour for little ones, yes, that can certainly be done as long as little hands have something to do. But a general principle of having everyone stay at the table until the school day is done -- if a family can manage, as the Swanns did their Calvert lessons all morning, year round, then fine. But most children can't and shouldn't be seated for that long without mental and physical breaks.

[abba12]

Just a bit of perspective from further down the road: It's not developmentally appropriate or even physically possible for most children to sit at the school table all day. This one hour for little ones, yes, that can certainly be done as long as little hands have something to do. But a general principle of having everyone stay at the table until the school day is done -- if a family can manage, as the Swanns did their Calvert lessons all morning, year round, then fine. But most children can't and shouldn't be seated for that long without mental and physical breaks.

 

Of course this isn't including a scheduled break for snack, or a 10 minute break time. Those move away from the table. And when I say 'at the table' I don't necessarily mean in that chair without movement, silent reading on the couch would count for example. I'm simply referring to, we don't finish our math lesson then go play for 15 minutes, then come back to do reading then play for an hour, then come back to do spelling then play for 30 minutes. School time is school time, and aside from proper breaks, we do school. And when we finish school by lunchtime, we have all afternoon to play uninterrupted.

 

Also, we were discussing breaks on another thread just this week, and it seems a fair number of families don't to breaks, or only do very short ones, so I would disagree with the idea it's 'developmentally inappropriate' to have a child sit at the table for three hours, with varying subjects and a short break. I'm not referring to high schoolers here, I'm talking about elementary students doing 2-4 hours of work a day. 

 

Every family is different, we'll see what happens I suppose. But both my family and my husbands family, with our combined 12 children, all managed to keep the same standards I am setting for my own kids, as did most homeschoolers in our area back then. 

[Lang Syne Boardie]

Of course this isn't including a scheduled break for snack, or a 10 minute break time. Those move away from the table. And when I say 'at the table' I don't necessarily mean in that chair without movement, silent reading on the couch would count for example. I'm simply referring to, we don't finish our math lesson then go play for 15 minutes, then come back to do reading then play for an hour, then come back to do spelling then play for 30 minutes. School time is school time, and aside from proper breaks, we do school. And when we finish school by lunchtime, we have all afternoon to play uninterrupted.

 

Also, we were discussing breaks on another thread just this week, and it seems a fair number of families don't to breaks, or only do very short ones, so I would disagree with the idea it's 'developmentally inappropriate' to have a child sit at the table for three hours, with varying subjects and a short break. I'm not referring to high schoolers here, I'm talking about elementary students doing 2-4 hours of work a day. 

 

Every family is different, we'll see what happens I suppose. But both my family and my husbands family, with our combined 12 children, all managed to keep the same standards I am setting for my own kids, as did most homeschoolers in our area back then. 

 

If you had mentioned the breaks and the moving around the first time, I wouldn't have expressed my very mild disagreement. :)

 

The fact that some people don't allow their children breaks doesn't make it alright, but as you say, that's a different discussion.

 

[Squawky Acres]

This is all very helpful.  I agree that a classical foundation can provide the materials and inspiration for creativity.  I am working hard to try to give them those tools -- for example, providing more spelling instruction and teaching the proper punctuation and conventions of dialogue for my little writer, or teaching my son musical notation so that I do not have to scribe his compositions.  Their history studies, especially, fuel their imaginative play.  I just feel that they are all two steps ahead of me, as they have so many interests and I am being pulled in so many different directions.  Most likely, we would descend into complete chaos if I tried to unschool and actively follow all of their interests without sticking doggedly to my classical agenda -- at least for part of the day.

 

I like the idea of trying to segment the day, and perhaps try to keep the three older children on task for most of the morning -- not necessarily at the table, but doing some sort of school or other assigned task.  The chaos creeps in when I try to sit down for an intense 30 minutes of language arts with one of them, then lose track of the other two who might be up a tree by the time I realize they are gone.  It is very difficult for me to balance the idea of "This is school time.  We all need to sit down together this morning and work on SCHOOL," with how distractible they are, the unpredictability of having a 2 and a 3-year-old underfoot, and at least my son's inability to sit and focus for long periods of time without a break.  

[Squawky Acres]

Of course this isn't including a scheduled break for snack, or a 10 minute break time. Those move away from the table. And when I say 'at the table' I don't necessarily mean in that chair without movement, silent reading on the couch would count for example. I'm simply referring to, we don't finish our math lesson then go play for 15 minutes, then come back to do reading then play for an hour, then come back to do spelling then play for 30 minutes. School time is school time, and aside from proper breaks, we do school. And when we finish school by lunchtime, we have all afternoon to play uninterrupted.

 

Oh, I think the thing you say you do not do is *exactly* what we do, and why I am feeling so disorganized.  A particular child would finish a math lesson, go play for 15 minutes, do some reading, play for an hour, then do spelling and then play for 30 minutes.

 

When I said I had a schedule, I meant we begin school at a set time, and I have a plan for what we accomplish each day.  I do not have a detailed schedule of exactly what each child is supposed to be doing in each 30-minute segment, for example.  One idea I have tried recently is to group all of the with-Mom work into a set chunk for each kid.  If we are organized and work at a good pace, I can do math, writing, spelling, grammar, and questions that came up during independent work in about 45 minutes to one hour for each of the oldest, and reading, writing, math and handwriting for the Kindergartener (and then AAR and Kate's preschool math for the 3-year-old if he feels like doing school).  I try to have independent work scheduled to keep the others at the table during that time, but it doesn't always work out, and I certainly don't have two hours of independent work for them to do -- so they tend to wander off.  

 

That takes me from 8:30 - 11:30, when we break for lunch.  For some reason, prepping, eating and cleaning up from lunch takes a long time around here (my husband works from home, so he joins us for lunch, which is usually an actual meal and not just the sandwiches or assorted snacks I would feed to the kids if I didn't have to cook for another adult), so I can't get back to school until around 1:30, when I try to do our extras -- Latin and read alouds (daily), Science/History (alternating), and a "special" (poetry tea, nature walk, art, violin lessons or swim lessons).  The afternoons are when I sometimes give up and just let them play, or put on a DVD because I can't deal with the chaos anymore.

[abba12]

When I said I had a schedule, I meant we begin school at a set time, and I have a plan for what we accomplish each day.  I do not have a detailed schedule of exactly what each child is supposed to be doing in each 30-minute segment, for example.  One idea I have tried recently is to group all of the with-Mom work into a set chunk for each kid.  If we are organized and work at a good pace, I can do math, writing, spelling, grammar, and questions that came up during independent work in about 45 minutes to one hour for each of the oldest, and reading, writing, math and handwriting for the Kindergartener (and then AAR and Kate's preschool math for the 3-year-old if he feels like doing school).  I try to have independent work scheduled to keep the others at the table during that time, but it doesn't always work out, and I certainly don't have two hours of independent work for them to do -- so they tend to wander off.  

 

Do you need to be actively watching both of the older ones during grammar, or writing? Or could you have them both working on grammar at the same time, bouncing between them every couple of minutes. Do your olders need your constant attention with math? Or could you start the 3rd grader on math by introducing the lesson, then have the kindergartener do handwriting beside you and glance between them? Some subjects need complete attention, AAR, some forms of spelling, the first 10 or 15 minutes of math etc. But, if you can manage actively working with two students on slightly less intensive work you'll save a fair bit of time. With children as close in age as yours I would also, personally, look for semi-independent curriculums. Ones set up for you to 'check in and check out' (check in, introduce the lesson, go over the concept, maybe watch them work through the first section, then leave them to work the lesson independently. Check out, after they finish, go over it, answer any questions, review any issues. It sounds like a lot but this is how I handle explode the code with my eldest already, I show her the lesson, explain the concept/instructions, look over her shoulder a couple of times as she does it since she is still young, then check it as soon as she finishes, but while she's working on it I am able to devote almost full attention to DD2)

 

Also perhaps consider ways you might change up your schedule. Lunchtime... would it be at all possible to ask your husband to be responsible for lunch prep? Or could you plan lunch meals that don't require much prep (slow cooker, or soup that you put on at breakfast?) Could you leave the lunch dishes and cleaning until after school (my mum always did the breakfast/lunch cleaning before starting dinner). Could you do read alouds or history/science over breakfast or lunch instead of the afternoon? I'm assuming at this age there's a lot of reading aloud involved in science/history, so reading aloud over a meal could be feasable. Think about other ways you could change up your routine to make things fit better. 

[wintermom]

I'm looking at that long list of curriculum in your siggy and thinking that if you are trying to implement all that, then perhaps it's just not the best fit for them at their ages and personalities/learning styles.

 

Maybe make a list of the desired educational goals, and see how you can check off some of these items with the projects your dc are choosing to do. For example, spelling could be covered in the writing project, as can handwriting; science can be researching the critters they find and discover how to look after them; arts and crafts is child-led. 

 

You can still provide a classical education for your dc, but you may have to be more creative in your approach for your dc. I really don't believe that "classical curriculum" is the essential factor in reaching your goals.

 

 

[Soror]

OP I agree with most of PP, your kids are rocking it your building the base and foundation and that is well and good but give them time and space to create and keep in mind that their play is worthwhile and whatever we add to the day takes away something else.

 

The more they explore and create on THEIR time while being privileged to enjoy a classical education on YOUR time, the more one half will feed the other. They will thrive.
 

In between unschooling and accountability threads we were talking about the fact that creativity needs to be fed, I love the way you phrased this, it really captures the idea. For awhile my girls were devouring every art project I could pull up for them and then they chilled for a bit and they wanted their space to create on their own for awhile, it seems that is the way it is with most things around here. We keep solid with the basics and we ebb and flow with the rest. 

 

Just a bit of perspective from further down the road: It's not developmentally appropriate or even physically possible for most children to sit at the school table all day. This one hour for little ones, yes, that can certainly be done as long as little hands have something to do. But a general principle of having everyone stay at the table until the school day is done -- if a family can manage, as the Swanns did their Calvert lessons all morning, year round, then fine. But most children can't and shouldn't be seated for that long without mental and physical breaks.

Yep, why we would want to replicate the worst of ps environment is lost on me. 

[Squawky Acres]

Do you need to be actively watching both of the older ones during grammar, or writing? Or could you have them both working on grammar at the same time, bouncing between them every couple of minutes. Do your olders need your constant attention with math? Or could you start the 3rd grader on math by introducing the lesson, then have the kindergartener do handwriting beside you and glance between them? Some subjects need complete attention, AAR, some forms of spelling, the first 10 or 15 minutes of math etc. But, if you can manage actively working with two students on slightly less intensive work you'll save a fair bit of time. With children as close in age as yours I would also, personally, look for semi-independent curriculums. Ones set up for you to 'check in and check out' (check in, introduce the lesson, go over the concept, maybe watch them work through the first section, then leave them to work the lesson independently. Check out, after they finish, go over it, answer any questions, review any issues. It sounds like a lot but this is how I handle explode the code with my eldest already, I show her the lesson, explain the concept/instructions, look over her shoulder a couple of times as she does it since she is still young, then check it as soon as she finishes, but while she's working on it I am able to devote almost full attention to DD2)

 

Also perhaps consider ways you might change up your schedule. Lunchtime... would it be at all possible to ask your husband to be responsible for lunch prep? Or could you plan lunch meals that don't require much prep (slow cooker, or soup that you put on at breakfast?) Could you leave the lunch dishes and cleaning until after school (my mum always did the breakfast/lunch cleaning before starting dinner). Could you do read alouds or history/science over breakfast or lunch instead of the afternoon? I'm assuming at this age there's a lot of reading aloud involved in science/history, so reading aloud over a meal could be feasable. Think about other ways you could change up your routine to make things fit better. 

 

I am doing FLL2/WWE2/CAP Fable with my 3rd grader (we got started late on the WTM curriculum), and FL2L/WWE2 with my 2nd grader -- so none of this is even semi-independent yet.  I was thinking of looking into R&S for grammar, as I have heard it is more independent, so that may help.  I am only doing AAR with the 5-year-old, as the older two are advanced readers and don't seem to need any more instruction (I did buy AAR 4 for them, but it looks like a lot of work, and I may not get around to doing it).  I am hoping to transition the older two to Phonetic Zoo after they finish AAS 3, but we are not there yet.  We use RS for math now, which is not independent at al, but does not take very long per kid.  DD8 also does Beast Academy, which can be semi-independent as she works through the problems, and DS7 does some Singapore workbooks semi-independently.  

 

Hmm, yes, lunch is a problem.  Maybe I am just not a very efficient chef.  Even sandwiches for all seem to take me about 30 minutes to get on the table.  I think it would help to simplify here, and maybe leave the dishes for later.  That is a very good suggestion.

 

I would love to be able to read aloud at meals, but I have found it does not work at this stage of life with my littles to help and supervise.  Sometimes it is even difficult of me to eat during meals, so I can't imagine trying to read as well.  But I have heard that some homeschool moms are able to accomplish this.  I'm just not there yet.  I can manage to read during a snack -- if I don't plan to eat the snack.

[Squawky Acres]

I'm looking at that long list of curriculum in your siggy and thinking that if you are trying to implement all that, then perhaps it's just not the best fit for them at their ages and personalities/learning styles.

 

Maybe make a list of the desired educational goals, and see how you can check off some of these items with the projects your dc are choosing to do. For example, spelling could be covered in the writing project, as can handwriting; science can be researching the critters they find and discover how to look after them; arts and crafts is child-led. 

 

You can still provide a classical education for your dc, but you may have to be more creative in your approach for your dc. I really don't believe that "classical curriculum" is the essential factor in reaching your goals.

 

I agree that I have quite a bit of mom-intensive curriculum, but I'm not sure how much semi-independent work the kids can do at this age.  Today, I dropped language arts for my oldest, as we went through one of her chapters and corrected the spelling and punctuation together.  Some day, I will bring myself to tell her that "The Call of the Wild" is a title that has already been taken.

 

I might drop art.  They do a lot of art on their own (and some at co-op); and for formal instruction, I could enroll them in a week of art camp this summer.  There are some excellent options for this where I live.

 

NL science is not very time-consuming once I can collect my students.  It is the only science I can manage to do, as it is so scripted and planned for us.  

[MomatHWTK]

How?  LOL, you redefine "well run school day." 

 

 While I do have to be more intentional in maintaining a schedule now that I have a high schooler who will need transcripts, in general I try not to let my teaching interfere with my children's learning.  ;)

 

 

[LMD]

Okay, my Dh is usually with us and we have a main meal for lunch. It could, and often did, eat up a lot of time. Time I don't have spare anymore as we're looking at 6th grade and 4 kids. To cut it down here is what I do - have it prepped in the morning! In winter I'll put a soup or stew on, in summer I'll prep the meat/salad and store it in the fridge. I go for a lot of one pot meals. I try to have lunch prep done by 8am, I've been putting a science video on while the kids eat breakfast. The cleanup side, we all have jobs and we all pitch in. Gosh, that sounds way smoother and more organised than the reality!

[lllll]

nm

[Squawky Acres]

Thanks - this is helpful.  Yes, I do need to simplify lunch, or find a way to prep it earlier.  We love audio books in the car, but haven't tried audio books during meals.  I'm afraid no one would pay attention, but I may be surprised.

[Squawky Acres]

Ah, today is feeling more relaxed already.  I focused like mad this morning and got the three grade-school children through their independent and with-mom work before noon.  The 2 and 3-year-olds made a terrific mess, removing blankets from every room in the house for forts and picnics, and appeared to have a play-dough party in the kitchen, but it wasn't too chaotic.  Now we just have read-alouds and instrument practicing left for the afternoon or evening.  

 

The children are either running around outside or performing puppet shows for each other, and I can let them pursue this for hours as there is no pressing school to do until later this afternoon, when I will call them in for some read-alouds.

 

 

[pehp]

Sometimes I think I am a classical homeschooling mom trapped in an unschooling family.  I have a schedule.  We have a very classical curriculum, which I try to get through with my three school-aged kids (3rd, 2nd and K/1st-ish), but it requires so much from me at this point.  I can't keep the other two at the table with us the entire time during each other's lessons.  So they run off and get involved in all kinds of messy, creative, and involved projects that somehow seem to involve me as well.  The 8-year-old is writing a novel (and needs help spelling every fourth word or so), they are building an empire in the basement (requiring materials and instruction to make sure I can still get to the laundry room), adopting "pets" from outdoors (requiring aquariums, jars with holes, frog food, and instructions on not killing the poor creature), starting up a business, adopting a new monetary system for their imaginary world (involving votes and intrigue and arguments), making weapons out of sticks and strings and glue, and painting water colors.  I love that they are interested and engaged, and do try to foster curiosity and make materials available, but sometimes they are too intense for my quiet and calm-loving self.  I am also torn when I have to take them away from their very engaging and educational projects to make them do a spelling lesson.  With so many interruptions, our school stretches into mid-afternoon and I am exhausted and increasingly un-fun, and just want to hide in my room.

 

Am I just conflicted in what I want?  Not using my schedule correctly? Maybe not fostering enough independence?  How do you balance the chaos of creative children with the discipline of a well-run school day?  

 

I think we live the exact same life (except I have fewer children).  EXACT SAME.  This morning my children were so engaged in becoming fairies (crazy clothing choices) and watching starlings outside and collecting and cracking walnuts and carefully examining leaves.....we started school after lunch!

 

For me the solution has been to teach language arts and math and either outsource or let them do the rest. (I do have some additional topics we cycle through, but on days when they are truly engaged in their creative work, I let those topics go. Like today!)  My son reads many library books, used his own money to buy an ant farm (after his own attempt at establishing an ant farm failed), is something of an expert on the Titanic and her sister ships, is self-educating on the RMS Lusitania, designing ships out of clay and legos to see what really floats...I'm not going to tear him away from that just so I can check my boxes off each day. He's also 8 and just so full of ideas.  He is writing little books, making jellyfish flashcards, trying to write his own waltz....it's so fascinating.   

 

I really do trust them on enrichment at this point.  SOTW CDs and Jim Weiss are helpful too.  They'll have to get more formal as they get older, but for now, a pretty limited amount of work, primarily focused on building skills, and laying the groundwork for interesting activities/play/creative projects/books....is working for us.  

[RootAnn]

I, personally, wouldn't try to do BOTH WWE2 and CAP W&R Fable with the same child. If you want, you can do one for a week & the other for a week or do one until you are both bored & then do the other for awhile. I wouldn't try to do both (even if I was alternating days). You are double-dipping as they are both writing programs. That means you don't have to get both done this year with this child.

 

I'm with you that although your kids sound amazing, I'd be exhausted if I was their mom. They will be able to do more on their own as they get older, so you just have to buy yourself some time now. :-)

 

I have no other advice that hasn't been given (esp. some quiet time!). I struggle with the lunch thing, which is why my kids sometimes make their own. I also have a designated cleaner-upper after each meal that helps me so it takes less time. I'd love to be able to do crock-pot meals, but it hasn't happened yet. Someday . . . . 

[Squawky Acres]

pehp -- I'm glad to hear I am not alone.  We must have parallel lives.  I'm an attorney as well (but retired for now).

 

RootAnn -- Yes, they are absolutely exhausting.  They are just intense kids, and sometimes I feel inadequate in keeping up with them.  Then I remember my husband's and my own experiences as intense and creative kids in the school system and how absolutely crushing that was for us (especially in the early years), and I know that homeschooling is the right choice for now.  

 

That is an interesting suggestion about not trying to alternate WWE and CAP Fable.  There is some overlap, and I'm liking CAP Fable a little bit better for its novelty, so maybe we will just work through that and come back to WWE when we are done.  It has been a little bit difficult to juggle the two.

[BlsdMama]

Sometimes I think I am a classical homeschooling mom trapped in an unschooling family.  I have a schedule.  We have a very classical curriculum, which I try to get through with my three school-aged kids (3rd, 2nd and K/1st-ish), but it requires so much from me at this point.  I can't keep the other two at the table with us the entire time during each other's lessons.  So they run off and get involved in all kinds of messy, creative, and involved projects that somehow seem to involve me as well.  The 8-year-old is writing a novel (and needs help spelling every fourth word or so), they are building an empire in the basement (requiring materials and instruction to make sure I can still get to the laundry room), adopting "pets" from outdoors (requiring aquariums, jars with holes, frog food, and instructions on not killing the poor creature), starting up a business, adopting a new monetary system for their imaginary world (involving votes and intrigue and arguments), making weapons out of sticks and strings and glue, and painting water colors.  I love that they are interested and engaged, and do try to foster curiosity and make materials available, but sometimes they are too intense for my quiet and calm-loving self.  I am also torn when I have to take them away from their very engaging and educational projects to make them do a spelling lesson.  With so many interruptions, our school stretches into mid-afternoon and I am exhausted and increasingly un-fun, and just want to hide in my room.

 

Am I just conflicted in what I want?  Not using my schedule correctly? Maybe not fostering enough independence?  How do you balance the chaos of creative children with the discipline of a well-run school day?  

 

 

Five babies in eight years, oldest is eight?  Mama, the only problem with you is that someone told you that it shouldn't be chaotic and exhausting and you believed it.

 

;)

 

They are interested, engaged, and curious.  You make materials available.  You put forth effort.  I'll bet you do more than you realize.

Also, frankly, I'd drop the K for everything but a Morning Basket type morning. 

 

Short people are exhausting, they take infusions of care, nurturing, and energy and they are also whirlwinds of chaos. This sounds totally normal to me.... But I have an aquarium on my counter with the last monarch chrysallis in it, I had to chase a toad out earlier with a little girl, and honestly?  My house has been CLEAN twice today and at this moment looks like a tornado hit it even though dinner dishes are done!  And yet they still learn so much, remain eager learners, and grow into fascinating young adults.  It's amazing.  You keep on keeping on.  Oh, and my kids are only really starting to show motivated independence to any degree by 3rd grade.  

[Squawky Acres]

It's funny you should say that about independence in 3rd grade.  My 3rd grader is the one who is able to work independently, and diligently works through her checklist in the morning before taking off.  The 2nd grader is absolutely impossible, and seems incapable of focusing without me right there.

 

I would delay more formal academics for the 5-year-old if I thought it would meet her needs, but she is a very old K (she turns 6 in October), so would be a 1st grader in some states.  She is reading and writing up a storm, and I don't wan't her to develop bad writing habits as my oldest did.  We delayed some writing and spelling instruction for her in K as I was overwhelmed with littles, but she forged ahead anyway and just wrote reams of stories in very bad invented handwriting with very bad invented spelling that took a long time to fix. 

 

 

[Carrousel]

Another "retired" attorney, and my kids' intense interests and play exhaust me as well. I crave quiet, well ordered study time and they need hands on, multi-modal, immersion style lessons. These exhaust me both planning and implementing, so I keep it just to math and language arts for those most of the time. If it's not a screen, and they aren't arguing, I generally leave them to their play so long as math and language arts are done for the day. I'm finding their play rotates thru history, science, and arts pretty naturally, and well placed read alouds, books strewn, or suggestions for play tend to direct their learning indirectly. That's the reality, although pretty far from what my plans were!

 

On a logistical note, would it be possible to start your oldest 2 working on mom led lessons about an hour before your K? Start the K and littles with play or an educational show, so that your K's table time is shorter and staggered? I start with my older and fold in the younger.

 

For what it's worth, my DS is just now as a 3rd grader showing semi independence. I spent the first few weeks of this school year aching the procedure of our checklist, how to complete his independent work, etc. It's paying off, but since he isn't a natural list maker and box checker, needed direct teaching to accomplish.

[lllll]

nm

[Squawky Acres]

I forgot about the above aspect of our dc's play.  I could tell how involved they were in what they were doing in their studies by listening to them chatter as they played.  That's one of the ways I realized I needed to rethink our entire math as a subject - they NEVER chattered about math.  They included everything else, at some point, in their play - even Latin, believe it or not - but never math.   So I redid the math and it eventually showed up in their play and conversations, along with all their other subjects. 

 

Oh, that's so interesting.  Yes, Latin has showed up in their play (dolls sometimes speak in Latin), but not math as much.  What does math play look like?  

 

I did wake up one morning to a howling fight between the oldest two about the properties of zero.  I stumbled down the stairs, squinting because my contacts were not in yet, and had to ask, "Really?  You are fighting about zero????"

[lllll]

nm