Nervous about Homeschooling an active Boy

amother

Chartreuse

Mon, Jul 20 2015, 1:23 pm

My son is about to enter Kindergarten. I am incredibly anxious about starting to homeschool him. I have no other options for school for him. We even gave him an extra year of preschool to push off kindergarten. He is a very smart, and very active boy, and homeschooling doesn't feel like it's a good option for him. He can't sit still for even a second! I'm becoming so worried and overwhelmed by the thought of him home all day. The curriculum options I have used with my other children will not work with him. I've looked into others, but nothing seems like a good fit. A friend recommended just buying workbooks for basic skill, but he will become bored very fast. We were supposed to have a backyard playground put in this summer, but that has gotten delayed and who knows if it will happen before the fall....

I found a gym program for late mornings for him 2-3 times a week for 1 hour, but that's only 2-3 hours of a long week!

Plus, I have 6 other children being homeschooled!

Any advice, curriculum ideas....basically anything that might help?!?! Thank you!

Rutabaga

Mon, Jul 20 2015, 1:39 pm

Disclaimer: I have no experience with homeschooling.

Can you make stations around your home? In other words, have him complete the usual curriculum but move around during the day.

Can you incorporate physical activities into the lesson plans? For example, if you're teaching him letters have him move his body to form the shape of each letter.

Dolly Welsh

Mon, Jul 20 2015, 1:40 pm

His dislike of sitting still wouldn't be so great in a regular school setting, either.

Leave learning materials right where he can see them, without saying anything. He may glance at them, absorb the material much faster than another child would have, run out the door, with the information already in his head. And you didn't see it happen.

But when you try to read him a story, he will correct your errors. In fact, ask him to read YOU a story, in the nicest way, appreciating and asking how and why? Being very gentle about his mistakes.

YOU seem to be the learning one. Show him something written, and ask what it means. It should have pictures.

Ask an older child "to just show so-and-so this". Never use the word "teach". Don't say "please teach so-and-so this". In short have the other children teach him. He may be able to learn from them better than from you. Maybe. He will probably learn just fine from you, soon. In shorter sessions than the others. He will need frequent breaks.

Have your husband show him how to build things.

He needs a climbing structure. If your husband builds one with him, that would show him the usefulness of knowing how to measure wood, and the numbers on the tape measure. Your husband could ask him to measure and count his toes and fingers, using the tape measure.

He needs to use his hands productively.

Give him materials to draw with, lots. That will keep him in one place, a little.

Iymnok

Mon, Jul 20 2015, 2:26 pm

What kind of gross motor skills does he like best? Can you incorporate them into his daily routine?
Is there something other than a regular gym, such as martial arts, sports, gymnastics? Gardening and building may be good.
Get the Boy Scout handbooks. They have great boy projects and skill building exercises.

HappytoHS

Mon, Jul 20 2015, 3:38 pm

Deep breath. Homeschooling this child may be a new challenge for you but you probably know that school is not the better option for a child who "can't sit still for a second."

Are you a member of the JOH yahoo group? You'll get lots of support and suggestions from the trenches at JOH.

I wouldn't start with curricula just yet. Let your son take the lead and teach you what he needs. Keep him physically stimulated with gross and fine motor activities, make sure he gets lots of outdoor play, water play, sensory play. This is not just a waste of time. Gross and fine motor practice actually create the neural pathways that are used for later learning so this is the best investment you can make at this age and stage to facilitate his cognitive development and something he definitely won't get in a school. There will be plenty of time to get to learning the 3 R's once his brain is primed and you know more about how he learns best. You don't need to rush into academics with a kindergartner, and when you do get there, remember that you don't have to recreate school-at-home.

yaelinIN

Mon, Jul 20 2015, 9:26 pm

JOH is Jewish, Orthodox, and Homeschooling, the YahooGroup that I administer. It has over 450 families on it who love to help current or potential homeschoolers!

OP, I would certainly homeschool such a child, because unless the school is really amazing, they will recommend interventions you may not approve (medication, therapy).

Is his activeness disrupting your regular homeschool day with the other children? If not, I would strew learning material around him (like Dolly said). Even the most academic type of homeschool need only take an hour or two (at the very most). This child does need short lessons (even 5-10 minutes is plenty) that can be taught by others (using the other children is a great idea!) as well as yourself. A loose schedule for him (activity, lesson, chore, chessed - repeat) would help him understand his place in your homeschool. Let him wiggle, even during lessons - it's OK. There are products for fidgeting children - bitesticks, wobble chairs, swings, etc. Also you might try having him listen to audio books (if he isn't doing that now) - start short then get great boy-literature that is longer (Mouse and the Motorcycle). He can do Lego, draw, swing while he is listening. It's a smaller investment than school tuition! Smile

Good luck with your wiggly guy!