How do I Homeschool If. . .

[MamaPepper]

. . . I am a totally unstructured person?

So. . . I started my oldest son in K this year but he did not adjust and I took him out with the thought of homeschooling him for 1 year until he was more ready. . well my state just passed some ridiculous truancy laws and I am pretty much to the point where ps is not an option, but I'm realizing that I'm REALLY not equipped to school him. . . I'm not sure what I need to be doing, what sort of curriculum I should use (if any) and how to motivate MYSELF to want to stop my own thing to teach my son. . .

:help

[mommylove]

Could you join a homeschool group where you'd have local accountability & support?

Welcome back!!!!!

[MamaPepper]

Thank you :heart

I know there are local homeschool groups, but I haven't looked into them yet. Up until recently I've still been on the fence about it, and still haven't totally decided.

So, another question. . . Does a recently 6 year old really need super structured homeschooling, or would I be ok waiting to actually start the schooling until next years school year?

ETA: The reason I'm still on the fence, is that I'm still trying to figure out a way for him to go to a local Montessori school that is on a farm outside of town and goes K-12. . if I could possibly figure out a way to afford that, I'd seriously consider that over homeschooling, but if that isn't an option then I will definitely be homeschooling.

[StumblinMama]

I'm pretty relaxed with E. She turned 6 in October. She did go to a fairly advanced preschool for one year, so that may color my choices a bit.

We use Progressive Phonics (free! just google it :yes), she listens along to her sister's lessons from SOTW and Elemental Science as well as read alouds of good literature.

For math we are doing Singapore 1A and 1B this year. We are very, very relaxed with it, though. If she gets the least bit stuck or frustrated with it, we stop for the day. It's worked well for us.

[Codi]

I had such big plans of doing all this great stuff with my newly 6 yo this year. I planned all these awesome activities, and plans, made goals, yada, yada, yada....then that all went out the window.... :shifty Being SO PREGNANT and having a newly 3yo too...it just WASN'T WORKING.

But you know what IS working for us? Letting him do what he wants to do! Daily he is making books where he is always practicing writing (with our help to spell things). He is learning math through regular life skills and his own questions that just come up. These last few month's have really made *me* feel more comfortable with a more relaxed style of homeschooling. I don't have a full plan yet for how school will look for us in the future, but the great thing is, you don't have to stick with one way of doing things. :tu

Try something out and see how it works for you guys. If it doesn't work, switch it up. Just focus on the main things (reading, writing, math) and have fun around those subjects. 6 is still so young in the grand scheme of school.

What is compulsory school age in your state?

[ShangriLewis]

Can you start with just one thing?

Like for Math. You could try Singapore. It is expensive, colorful, and easy to use. Just do that three times a week. Come back next month and we can tell you what to do next:giggle

[sweetpeas]

I'm of the Better Late Than Early mindset (though my kids don't always go along with that, I still don't know where my 2 yr old learned to count to like 8 or 9 LOL), and we're very relaxed.

Honestly at that age I'd make sure I was documenting whatever your state requires you to document and then just follow his interests. If he wants to learn about dinosaurs help him choose books from the library. If he LOVES all things arts and crafts (like my girls) provide him with a variety of art supplies, etc. But I wouldn't push a formal curriculum on him so young.

You could also find quite a few Montessori style homeschooling resources and blogs and such if you hunt online and do some Montessori type learning with him.

[BriansLovie]

There is so much on the internet, you do not even need a curriculum. We use Heart of Dakata's Little Hearts for His Glory (5 to 7 yrs) for Kindergarten, and it is really easy to follow and fun :yes He will need to work on basic math, handwriting his letters and numbers, and reading. But you dont need a curriculum for that. And reading lots of books helps with learning to read :D

---------- Post added at 10:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:47 AM ----------

Most of all, the important thing is to make his learning FUN. At this age, you want to instill the love of learning, not drilling things into the child. If he's not ready for something, try again later.

[Katigre]

IMO at age 6 you don't have to be structured, but you do have to be *intentional* to create a learning-rich environment for your child. That means making reading aloud to them a priority, talking with them in dialogue about their question about the world, introducing them to math and how to think mathematically, showing them how to use a library and select books, making sure they've got basic phonetic understanding and are moving toward reading (if they're not there already).

None of those things necessarily require a structured setting or workbooks :no. (Some kids enjoy them and that's great, other kids don't and that's ok too).

But what is important is to make sure that your child is engaged in learning opportunities and isn't spending their day on screens or with lots of beeping toys - give them creative toys to play with (trains, legos, snap circuits, etc...) that require them to think and make to play with well. Give lots of outside time for bike riding, exploration, etc... Visit forest preserves and nature centers to learn about the outdoors. Do art projects with paint or crafts with things you find outside.

Basically, make sure that your home environment is conducive to open-ended learning :yes. [Note: You don't have to do all the things listed above every day - that's recipe for burnout! Pick one or two things to have available each day or week or month instead. Ex. I do lots of art projects in the spring - a few a week - but not many the rest of the year.]

[Castle On A Cloud]

It is totally fine to be way laid back at this point:yes DS turned 6 last April, and I am still just letting him do what he is interested in, with no real structure... and it works for us:yes

[mamacat]

I would also read,read,read to him and ask questions about what you have read and to also be able to identify alphabet from text and then do some simple math things with him like playing board games and rolling dice and saying one spot + 3 spots is 4 spots and then asking him how many spots the next time and having him count allowed as he moves his piece.he can also have 2 piles of toys - cars animals whatever and then you can pay with him like that - if we take 2 cars from this group and 2 from this how many are there altogether?

[Firebird Rising]

Awesome suggestions so far.

The one thing I'm learning to say to my kids right now is......Yes! When they ask questions that I don't feel like answering, I have a tendency to say, "I don't know. I have other things I'm doing right now.". Or if they ask to get a learning toy out that I have to supervise...and I don't WANT to supervise, I kick myself in the behind and just do it with them. All within reason, of course, but I need to learn to say yes more, and the phrase, "Oooh, let's find the answer to that!"

[mamacat]

The biggest words of wisdom I have ever heard about the Learning process is that obviously one person cant and neednt know everything and that it is more about knowing how to find answers that they want or need to know

[allisonintx]

How would you feel about a web based curriculum?

[mom2afew]

I went and bought a curiculum, and i kinda regret it now, it's sooo structured, and it's the same thing with every lesson, it is like drilling it into them instead of learning, and it's not really the angle i wanted to go. I kinda wish i could send it back, but i can't. the stuff came recommend from friends, and it was cheaper then what i was considering. but i'm gona look at this free stuff you guys are talking about, i like the idea of more fun stuff.

[MamaPepper]

How would you feel about a web based curriculum?

I'm not opposed to that. I do feel I would need a curriculum because otherwise I know myself and I would find myself not doing anything. . . ever. I'm learning that with my adhd, I really do need things to be structured for me. I can't structure them myself. I would need something that basically spells out for me, "Monday - do exactly this, Tuesday - do that", etc. . . kwim?

Also, I have tried a few things with N, and he's usually fine at first but when the novelty wears off, it's really just a struggle to get him to do anything. . . then it's an argument and then learnings not fun, ya know?

It seems VERY overwhelming for me, tbh.

[allisonintx]

Evelyn & I both rock the ADD with hyperfocus and inattentive type.

We have a few curriculae and a list of websites for when things get boring or we're in a rut. Today we bought a month at always iceceam for Evelyn because she and i are both SO burned out of everything we've been doing.

As long as we hit all of the scope and sequence....or most of it, in a given year, we call it good.

One month that will be a unit study, the next workbooks, the next web based.....there's always a plan, though. When it starts to get monotonous for either of us, we move along.

My other kids do best with a single curriculum done all the way through.

It's never a dull moment, and Murphy's Law of Homeschooling often applies (if you hate a curriculum, one or more of your kids is sure to thrive on it) :shifty

[ShangriLewis]

Or if you love it, they won't!

They don't need much at this age. Just spend time having fun and instilling good hanits.

[MamaPepper]

Allison. . would you share the websites that you use?

[allisonintx]

When im on my regular comp, i'll pull the list

[hopeforchange]

:popcorn

[curlymopmom]

Great thread! My dd goes to speech at the local PS so I have all sorts of anxiety about everything I'm NOT doing right now. Trying to get a hold of my own health issues right now and refocus on some 'discipline' areas I was lax in... That takes up so much of my time and mental energy.

I'm learning that with my adhd, I really do need things to be structured for me. I can't structure them myself.

Oh wow. Do I ever relate to that one! :hug

[lenswyf]

For me, the solution was using Sonlight, which eliminates the planning, and doing homeschooling first thing every day so that I wasn't distracted by my stuff. Once we got into a routine, it wasn't that difficult. But not starting my stuff until school was done was critical. I treated it the same as I would a WOH job.

[AdrienneQW]

But you know what IS working for us? Letting him do what he wants to do! Daily he is making books where he is always practicing writing (with our help to spell things). He is learning math through regular life skills and his own questions that just come up. These last few month's have really made *me* feel more comfortable with a more relaxed style of homeschooling. I don't have a full plan yet for how school will look for us in the future, but the great thing is, you don't have to stick with one way of doing things. :tu

:yes

IMO at age 6 you don't have to be structured, but you do have to be *intentional* to create a learning-rich environment for your child. (snip) Basically, make sure that your home environment is conducive to open-ended learning.

:yes

The one thing I'm learning to say to my kids right now is......Yes! When they ask questions that I don't feel like answering, I have a tendency to say, "I don't know. I have other things I'm doing right now.". Or if they ask to get a learning toy out that I have to supervise...and I don't WANT to supervise, I kick myself in the behind and just do it with them. All within reason, of course, but I need to learn to say yes more, and the phrase, "Oooh, let's find the answer to that!"

:yes When Dexter was younger, I decided that our "curriculum" would be for me to read to him every day, and do my best to answer his questions with intention. Seriously, that was my entire kindergarten and first grade homeschool plan.

And it worked.

Because I truly couldn't drop everything at any given moment of any day, we created The Great Big Book Of Things We Don't Know Yet - a binder where we would write those questions that popped into his little mind when we didn't have the time or ability to research right then. And on those "bored" days, one of his favorite things to do was to go get The Great Big Book and spend a couple of hours learning the answers to those questions (many of which we'd forgotten we were once curious about).

I'm firmly in the Better Late Than Early camp; we didn't start structured lessons/assignments with Dexter until he turned 8yo. (Celeste started earlier because she wanted to.)

There is nothing you can teach your child, no lesson you can deliver, no information you can impart, that could ever be more valuable than nurturing the child's innate curiosity and love of learning. IMO, that is almost exclusively what the early years of homeschooling should be about. Create and foster a learning-rich environment, read to your kids daily, and I'd call that a highly successful homeschooling experience. :amen

[Rabbit]

I am unmedicated for ADHD. Samantha's impulse control, and Simon's many issues, indicate I'm HS'ing two ADHD'ers, too. And with a toddler underfoot who just obliterates my ability to focus, plan, or stick to anything.

I'm listening for Allison's web curriculums.

[allisonintx]

Today, Evelyn used http://always-icecream.com the boy's version is this one http://clever-dragons.com...yes, that part makes me a little crazy. They did just add dragons to the girls side, but the colors make me nuts.

What I learned, today from always-icecream is that Evelyn knows all fifty states by shape and I was surprised by that....and she banged out the first 15 levels of Bible questions....I'm always amazed at what she has learned in spite of her dyslexia, and my challenges at keeping her challenged without discouraging her.

www.funbrain.com

www.starfall.com

http://www.radicalparenting.com/2009/10/08/10-best-educational-online-games-for-students/ This site lists a lot of great sites.

http://www.explodethecode.com/ again, it's a paid site, but you pay for the full year at once, so you only take the hit, once.

BBC Schools has a good site http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/ we use the typing, but they offer other stuff, too.

[CelticJourney]

I was blessed to be a part of a small homeschool group from the time my oldest was 3, so I had a lot of time to listen to the btdt advice they offered.

For kindergarten and a little into elementry, I had a calendar with ample space for each day. I would then write down what we did that day that I felt was educational - books read, trip to the zoo, planted seeds. I didn't, at their advice, decide I had to do x, y and z each day and then make my self and my kids crazy trying to push academics (I'm type A and it was a real temptation). A real benefit of this is that you see what you have been doing all along and/or where you might want to step it up if you have listed Sponge Bob or something as educational material more than x times a month.:shifty

[Rabbit]

We signed up for the subscription PBS kids site, and that is going well. Mostly K stuff, but it is still good foundational games.

[MamaPepper]

For me, the solution was using Sonlight, which eliminates the planning, and doing homeschooling first thing every day so that I wasn't distracted by my stuff. Once we got into a routine, it wasn't that difficult. But not starting my stuff until school was done was critical. I treated it the same as I would a WOH job.

I think the bolded is what makes it so so hard for me. I think because I work from home, and it's with a creative medium, I find that I want to do my things in the morning when I have the most energy to create. . . but then it does make it extremely difficult to stop what I'm doing to work with Noah. . . and if the other 2 boys are home from preschool, then it's literally impossible to get Noah to focus on anything.

I am unmedicated for ADHD. Samantha's impulse control, and Simon's many issues, indicate I'm HS'ing two ADHD'ers, too. And with a toddler underfoot who just obliterates my ability to focus, plan, or stick to anything.

I sometimes wonder if Noah and Leo are displaying signs, too :(

I do think that I need to completely unplug Noah, though. Aside from doing some online learning games, I think I need to NEVER let him watch movies or Netflix, because if I do, it seems it's ALL he wants to do, but if I put the computer up and refuse to let him watch, he will throw a tantrum for awhile, but if it's been put away for 1/2 a day or more, then he will move on to playing with other things. . . I unfortunately still depend on it to "babysit" them when I need a break. . . I do think he would be easier to work with if it wasn't ever an option.

---------- Post added at 06:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:39 PM ----------

We signed up for the subscription PBS kids site, and that is going well. Mostly K stuff, but it is still good foundational games.

Does that cost?

[ThreeKids]

We had the PBS pay subscription for about a year. We liked it for the year, but they weren't adding new games and there's more available online for free now.

[Rabbit]

We bought 6 months of it, as it's cheaper than monthly that way.

Simon's access online and to Netflix is severely restricted, in his choices, but not his time. He can only play what is on the queue and what is on the queue is very very tame stuff, because otherwise, he gets too wound up and fixated. I pick things that are closer to social stories, like Thomas and Friends, and Bob the Builder. His games are restricted to no action games at all. Every game is educational. Anything that really gets his pulse pounding is an utter disaster right now.

[MamaPepper]

Is there anyway to have separate queues in Netflix, I wonder? :think

[Rabbit]

Not for instant viewing. And that does frustrate the life out of me.

The first 80% of our queue is child choices, all appropriate for every child from the two year old to the seven year old, though not all equally appealing to them. I even put in documentaries, and I rotate out shows, so that there are only three of each of his favorites at any given time. The last 20% of the queue is adult movies or shows.

Seth, oddly enough, can handle the remote himself, and choose his own movies. He loves Pocoyo and Kipper. Samantha can choose for herself as well, without straying off the queue. I handle the remote for Simon.

Netflix is not available for him on the computer that he uses. He was deleting the movies (his siblings' favorites) he didn't like, and adding junk, and only watching instead of playing games. He also cannot have Netflix on the TV before 4 in the afternoon. If he wants to watch TV before that, PBS is his only option.

It still helps to keep the queue edited for him, so that he never sees that Phineas and Ferb or Mario Brothers are still available. The queue is all he ever sees, and if it's after 4, he can watch any child choice from it.

On his computer, I cleared the history so that he can't navigate through it, and then filled his bookmarks bar with appropriate choices. He chooses what he wants to play, but as he can't type yet, he can't navigate any further than the sites allow. Unfortunately, that means no Nick or Disney, because they allow easy navigation between little kid and big kid stuff, and Simon cannot hack big kid stuff, but wishes he could.

---------- Post added at 11:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:01 PM ----------

Here's the list of bookmarks he has:

PBS Kids (http://pbskids.org/)
PBS Kids Play (http://www.pbskidsplay.org/promo/CKH2222) (paid)
Tumblebooks (http://www.ppld.org/cybershelf, and scroll down a bit)
Starfall (http://www.starfall.com/)
Nick Jr (http://www.nickjr.com/kids/) (must just be Disney I had to take off)
Red Fish (http://www.poissonrouge.com/bowl.php)
Kabongo (https://www.kabongo.com/account/select-child/)
Thomas and Friends (http://www.thomasandfriends.com/usa/Thomas.mvc/Home) (links to many more shows from there, but all tame)
Moshi (I should probably delete this one, as it has no educational value that I can remember)
Dr. Seuss (http://www.seussville.com/)
Jackson Pollock project (http://www.jacksonpollock.org/)
Sesame Street (http://www.sesamestreet.org/)

[tempestjewel]

All these links rock! Thank you! :rockon

[ThreeKids]

Simon cannot hack big kid stuff, but wishes he could.
[/URL]

zoodles filters games and videos by a child's birthday and doesn't allow navigation within a site.

I'm drooling over tumblebooks right now

[doubleblessings]

Is there anyway to have separate queues in Netflix, I wonder? :think

There is a paid subscription service ($10/year) that lets you have more than one queue and swap which one is currently the queue at netflix

http://instantwatcher.com/about_premium
(http://instantwatcher.com/about_premium)

I think you can do a 1 or 2 week (can't remember) free trial of it