OT: Homeschool--Need Kindergarten Help!

[disneymom3]

As those of you on the homeschool thread know, this has been a year of challenge for me and my kindergartener. He is just soooo negative about anything related to learning, I am about to throw him out the window. I do as much hands on stuff as I can think of, but even that he objects to. I have tried not calling it school and playing a game, but he sees through it. He hangs upside down off his chair or sprawls on the floor or whatever. Yesterday, he was supposed to be reading 6 sentences with me and he was upside down on the couch not even looking at the book. He just frowns and whines all the time.

The things he likes to do are Leapster, Starfall.com and watch TV. He does also like to play pretend and use Legos, magnetix etc.

I have tried giving him a snack while we are doing table work, I have tried having him working with playdough. We used to have great success with writing his letters and numbers in oatmeal or rice or whatever, but he just fights everything I come up with lately.

We tried Five in A Row and the 4 year old loves it, but the K'er thinks it is dumb to read the same book everyday. (He has a point.)

I don't think he has to be happy about everything that we do, but I am so tired of constantly battling him. I need help because I am about to throw in the towel. I don't know what I would do though because no way could this child handle traditional school as ours is full day and I know he would fall apart.

What he loves are big picture types of things. We just started studying astronomy yesterday and he is already picking stuff up. Last year we studied volcanoes and he loved it and can identify types of rocks and talk about Pompeii for an hour. He even remembers some stuff about the Gold Rush that we studied when he was three. But can I get him to sit and do math manipulatives or phonics???? No!

So, what do I do with him?

 

[PlaneJoy1]

I know it's tough. Especially at that age. I don't have any advice but want to let you know that there is a homeschool board at sonlight.com under resources. It is a Christian curriculum, but you don't have to use it to use the boards. Some of the more experienced homeschooler might could help though.

Good luck!

 

[OceanAnnie]

Hi Julie,

Can you stand one more website from me?
I don't know the answers. I guess you know I research a lot. I thought this site had some interesting suggestions.

I hope this helps in some small way.

http://www.leapingfromthebox.com/art/kmg/kindergarten.html

 

[tinkerbell6]

Done!

 

[TNKBELL]

Julie.. sounds like you are doing a great job already, some of the things my boys liked in K were pattern blocks or tanagrams and cuisinaire rods, these are both math related activities. I have also read that K is really to start the process of concentration and learning to sit still through short instructional lessons, not more than 15 minutes per session. It will get better, my Grandma is famous for her sage advice..." This too shall pass, my dears." I have had to set the timer for Ds9 many many times to get something done. If you feel he is being disobediant, discipline may be an option for you. In K with my 1st Ds, I frequently had to send him to his room until he was ready to participate or restrict his favorite activities like legos or tv or whatever he was into at the time. It was a rough year with lots of tears, but once we got through K it has been much better and he listens and does his work when he's told...now dawdling through it is another story, but I still have to use the timer! Hs is wonderful but it takes sacrifice from the parents for sure, I assure you that it is worth it and I honestly think that your Ds couldn't have a better Mother than you to teach him!!! God Bless you and hang in there!!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Kindergarten is supposed to be a fun year--let him play starfall for reading and purchase a math cartridge for the leapster.

For later on--I know several who use Switched on schoolhouse b/c it is on the computer and the kids like it that way.

Additionally--swap out times...20 minutes school time = 20 minutes leapster time for example.

I spend 2 hours or less per day on school with the girls. The attention span of a child can't really hold that much more. And in the Classical approach--it is actually only 1 hour Monday-Thursday. We include breaks which is why we are stretched out to two. I'm not sure how you are homeschooling--but you might want to evaulate how much time you spend each day with him in "official" homeschooling capacity and consider swapping out some times for just fun relaxed time where he is learning, but doesn't realize it.

And lastly--there are studies that show that delayed learning isn't a bad thing. By about 8 or so...everyone is caught up to one another. I'm not familiar too much with this concept and not sure I called it hte right thing--but you may look into some of that just to make you feel more comfortable with where he is right now.

This was our first week in a LONG time where we did school Monday through Thursday. I hope we finish before her kindergarten "graduation" with our homeschool group in May.

 

[mjh8955]

My "wriggle butt" son is 14 now, in high school and an honor roll student. From the beginning he could not sit still while doing schoolwork, unless it was something that totally engaged his mind or he could move at least some of his body parts while doing it. I remember reviewing latin verbs with him while he was upside down behind the couch with his feet up in the air. I battled and battled him to "sit still and learn!" but he had to do it his way. The thing that helped me alot (I changed my view point and let him learn the way God intended) was listening to a tape called "No Two Alike" by Cynthia Tobias. It was a Focus on the Family tape, there's probably a book out there somehwere, maybe you could check the Focus on the Family website or Amazon.com. She talked about the different learning styles of childen and how you have to let them learn the way they can and it eliminates the struggles. We eliminated the possibility of ADD early on, although there were times that I thought drugs would surely help this kid, or maybe I was the one that needed them to cope!! He is still a wriggly kid, but he has many interests, is an avid reader, loves to work on custom car models, great imagination, loves to create things, plays bass guitar, is active in youth group and wants to go to college and study engineering. He has been in private school since kindergarten and we haven't encountered a teacher yet that didn't think he was a great kid and they have all appreciated his quirky humor and style. He just does the school thing his way not my way and so far it's working. Good luck!

 

[laceemouse]

Going out on a limb here, maybe he is just not ready to do "seat work." Very common at this age, particularly with boys. Some of the pioneers of the hs movement, the Moores, wrote several books about this. I also recommend any book by Christine Field, Ruth Beechick, Sally Clarkson, and my favorite ANYTHING about Charlotte Mason. I am currently reading a book called "50 Things Veteran Homeschoolers Wish They Had Known." It is incredible! Pretty much ALL of them say they started out doing "school at home" with a packaged curriculum, desks, chalkboard and lots of workbooks/seat work. After getting frustated they all went to a "lifestyle of learning" mode. School does not just happen between the hours of 8 and 3, children are learning all day long, and it sounds as if you have a bright little guy who is learning a lot! If he is not ready for phonics workbooks, will he just let you read to him? He will read when he is ready, I guarantee it! I love the sonlight boards, and I love their books. The main reason we pulled our kids out of ps a year ago is because there is no room there to be an individual. If Suzi is reading Harry Potter at age 6 and Johnny is not does that make Johnny dumb? No way. All 4 of my kids are smart, the older 3 have all tested very high IQ wise, but they all have their strenths and weaknesses. Math in k should be little more than counting, sorting, learning shapes, ect....Legos should be fine for this! Just be glad you don't have some teacher telling you to put him on Ritalin!!!

 

[disneymom3]

Thanks for the encouragement and support guys. I think I just have gotten into a rut or something. I need to get more of the get messy have fun stuff going these days. I also am struggling to balance the stay at home time I need to do all of DDs school work appropriately and the need to go do fun stuff. By the end of this month, the kids will all be taking a community ed class each and they are also in gymnastics once a week.

Annie--I did read a lot on that link and I clicked from there to many other pages. Very interesting reading and a good perspective. I don't think I could ever be a total unschooler, but it is good to take that step back sometimes and refocus what the point of all this is.

Mjh--I have a few of the Cynthia Tobias books on request from the library as of this morning.

 

[disneymom3]

Just thought I would update how things are going for me and my Ker. I have really stepped out of my learning style box with DS and it seems to be working wonders. I now have a big Rubbermaid bin and in the bin are all sorts of learning based activities--unifix cubes, pattern blocks, write on wipe off boards, alphabet puzzles, various manipulatives like counting bears and Discovery Toy items. A really cool series of activity books I found at the bookstore by Kumon--my table averse 5 yo actually chose THREE cutting pages in a row a while back! So, what we are doing is from 9:30 to 11:00 is Choice Time. During that time they are free to choose anything out of the box and they can do it anywhere--at the table, in the family room in their bedroom wherever. But they cannot be playing Rescue Heroes or anything else during that time. If they are having trouble making a choice, I will also offer to play a game with them or read to them or the other choice they can make is to have book time in the living room.

It is working great!! They are still playing and I feel like the activities they are doing are of total value. DD was bummed out though because she thought their school looked a lot more fun than hers, so I created a box for her too. Now, once she finishes spelling, math and whatever other specific assignment I have for her each day, she gets to choose out of her box with the time that is left.

So, like I said, I really appreciated all the encouragement and words of wisdom and wanted to let you all know that I am moving forward and things overall are going better.