I am getting better at letting their interests dictate our activities, but I am far from perfect. When it comes to letting them learn at their own pace with the curriculum we use, however, I always felt like we were on the right track. First of all, we only spend about an hour a day on it or less. Second, they can repeat any sections or activities that they have trouble with. Third, they can work ahead whenever they want. Finally, my kids happen to be ahead of their peers at this point. This could always change of course, but it does give me some added comfort right now.
Unfortunately, C is too far ahead in math. She finished kindergarten, but isn't ready for first grade math at all. There is a big jump between two levels, at least in math. You would think that this wouldn't be too much of a problem because we could either take a break or she could repeat some of the kindergarten activities. However, since I have always let them go ahead when they finish something, she wants to proceed. We have done the first lesson multiple times, and I added some customized activities with Mom in between. Over time, the pace will moderate with adding these hands-on activities and slowing down by repeating, but will she get frustrated in the meantime? Will I get frustrated at designing extra activities that we might not have needed if she tried it older? Only time will tell.
Has this happened to you? How did you handle it? How did it turn out?
Super good post...a post that almost every single homeschool parent could have written!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
You are welcome! It is good to know I am not alone.
DeleteGreat post. It is a very hard mental switch, I think, for those of us who attended traditional public or private school.
ReplyDeleteAs far as what to do now, could you maybe find some fun math activities? I remember doing "Never Bored" books with my daughter a couple of summers and she loved those. There are usually math workbooks in dollar stores near us, too. Maybe that would allow you to let her keep going without jumping into something a bit too advanced (and frustrating) for her.
I will look for those. I have tried to make math fun by just counting together and having her jump in at different double digit numbers when we swim. So far it is fun for her, but we still haven't quite mastered counting to 100 which is one of the first first grade activities in her curriculum. Thanks for your help!
DeleteI've had that with oldest son sometimes, where the gap between things seems to large. I tend to abandon whatever curriculum at that point and come back to it later. We jump around in curriculum a lot though.
ReplyDeleteWhen my four year old wants to keep going in schoolwork that is too hard for him its normally a sign that he feels I'm spending too much time doing schoolwork with his older brother and not enough time with him. I'm trying to get myself into the mindset to focus more on him and his schooling.