Question for those that have children close together

[Kims]

But not close enough to combine. My 6yo is 1st grade this year and his 4yo brother will be K next year.
So my 6yo is doing beyond now and will continue into next year. My youngest will be doing LHFHG next year.
I keep reading about how it's not good to do the real aloud stuff with both but how do you keep from it? It's not like either of mine can be independent and my now 4yo loves to sit and listen. I can't (and don't want to) send him off when I am reading just because he will hear it again in a few years. Plus I am sure when I am reading the Thornton Burgess books again my older son will want to hear them again.

So how is it possible when they are this close in age and they can't work independently?

[Tidbits of Learning]

I rotate my boys by doing the read aloud parts of the lessons while the other is doing an educational game on the pc. My 3rd grader does typing while I am doing LHFHG's history, science, storytime, Bible...on the couch in the living room with my kindergartener. While I am doing the left side of BHFHG and science with ds9, my ds5 is doing Reading Eggs or Jump Start kindergarten on the pc. My boys see the computer as a treat and enjoy their independent time on it.
I did this with the girls as well before they could go off and do independent work.

[KristinBeth]

KimS, I've been fretting about the same thing after I read the previous thread! My daughters are the same age difference and love to be together. Maybe a year from now my little one will not be as interested in big sister's activities (she's sort of too young to play on the computer by herself at 3 - she can't use the mouse).

[Tidbits of Learning]

KimS, I've been fretting about the same thing after I read the previous thread! My daughters are the same age difference and love to be together. Maybe a year from now my little one will not be as interested in big sister's activities (she's sort of too young to play on the computer by herself at 3 - she can't use the mouse).

At 3, my ds would play with the cans in my pantry on the floor and such. Can you set up some Montessori trays? Pouring activities...there is a good book called, "Teach Me to Do It Myself". It has easy ways to make cheap montessori activities to keep your little ones busy and learning.
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/teach-m ... +it+myself

[Kims]

I just don't think my younger one will do something alone in another room without his brother. I could try I guess. I like though that he likes to sit and listen to me read. I don't really think at this age he will even remember the books in 2 years or he will probably remember but not the narration. In all reality he is the one (the 4yo) that can narrate them to me, my 6yo struggles with this.
My daughter is gone in the mornings working and doesn't get home until 2 something so she is not an option to entertain him at this time.
If I put him on the computer he would be asking for help constantly.
I really am not trying to make an excuse for it I just can't see it happening in our tiny house. Plus I like the fact that they are so close and want to be close and together.
I am though afraid that I am going to be overwhelmed with doing more than one guide. :-/

[MelInKansas]

Personally, I would just read to both of them and not worry about it. Now, what I find difficult about the fact that my 5YO is "tagging along" and listening in on Beyond is when they are supposed to narrate or answer questions. Especially if you think your younger one catches on to this and can do it better than the older. Right now, I will ask the younger a question or two, just to see if/what she understood. But I don't have high expectations of her, and I don't ask her all the questions in the guide or at the end of the history reading. Because it is school for the 7YO, I expect her to answer the questions, or we talk through it if she can't. It will be interesting because my 5YO will start LHFHG this summer/fall and then she WILL be expected to answer the questions, though I am still not sure what my oldest will do while I read the LHFHG readings. Maybe I will give the oldest a choice to listen or not.

My 5YO went through LHFHG with her older sister when she was 3.5 so she has heard the readings before. I personally don't think there will be ANY problem with her remembering anything that will make it "too easy." She's ready for it now, she wasn't before, so I think she'll do great and I'm really looking forward to seeing how she will grow.

It may be a little bit more of an issue A) as they get older and therefore have better memories B) if your kids are only one guide apart, meaning you are doing a guide with the older one year and then the same guide with the next one the next year. By the time they are older they will have independent work that can be done during read-aloud time, so hopefully that would be less of a problem.

I guess if I wanted to make it fresh for my middle, I could do different storytime selections for her once she's in Beyond. I kind of have this far-off dream of combining them someday, as their skill sets start to get close enough together, and also in the older guides I think there is a wider range that they can participate in. If I sped up (full speed, 5 days a week) with my middle and kept my oldest going at 4 days a week or so, I could have them together in a couple of years.

[Homeschooling6]

If my dc want to sit in on each others read aloud time, I let them. My 6yr. Little Hearts guy did 10 Units of Beyond with his older brother this year before I put him back a guide. I still plan to use Beyond with him. My 9yr. old who is in Beyond will sit in (not all the time) with my 10 and 11 year old Preparing boys. Because my dc don't always sit in on all the read aloud times I don't see it as a problem. Plus my 13yr. old son will still sit in on a read aloud that I read to him when he was in 1st grade.

If it will be two years before your child will use that guide, I think it will be okay, like I said, my dc love when I read a reread a book.

[Kims]

I have decided to not stress about it. They both love to listen when I read and honestly I think the more I read to them the better off they are.
I will tackle this a year at a time and then see where we are.

[mrsrandolph]

My kids are 9, 8, 6, and 4. The 9 & 8 year old are in Beyond. The 6 year old is in LHFHG and the 4 year old is in LHTH. I rotate mine as well. I will work with the biggers then send them off to play while I work with the 6 year old. Then she is off to play when I work with my little one. It wasn't until Beyond that mine did much independently. And I still am with them most of the time. : )

Best of luck!!

[acts29stl]

My 6yr is in LHFHG and my 4yr in LHTH. I let my 4yr join in on the Burgess books but he's not allowed to answer any questions and has to sit quietly or he loses the priviledge. As far as the history readings go, the 4yr is usually playing with the younger kiddos but occasionally he sits in. Again, he has to be quiet and cannot answer any questions. He'll be doing LHFHG in 2yrs but I'm not concerned about him already hearing the Burgess books. I've come to see that the storytime box is more about beginning to train them to narrate then just giving right answers to questions anyway

[my3sons]

What a great discussion this has been! There are nuggets of wisdom in each post here. A few thoughts came to mind as I read this. First, age makes such a difference when it comes to "listening" in on a sibling's school. When dc are young, listening in on portions of each other's guides may not be such a big deal. However, it is important to keep in mind that "listening in" is not the same as truly being responsible for all that is in that guide. The thought process that seems to follow a year like this is "my younger child listened in on my older child's guide last year and 'tagged along', so this year I'll just combine them because my younger child did most of that guide last year anyway". This line of thinking is one to watch out for - the younger child truly did not do the guide just because they listened to mom read some books. So, if you are going to choose to let your younger child listen in on some of the readings, just be sure that you are both going to be fine doing those readings together again when the child is actually the age where he/she can do that entire guide, each and every box, because it will be at that point that this child truly needs to be responsible for learning those skills himself/herself.

When dc are at an older age, listening in on each other's guides can often cause their school day to be far too long because their guide is already quite meaty. Older dc doing all of their own guide and listening in on much of their younger sibling's guide often do not have the time nor the energy to focus their attention on the work that they should be putting their all into for their own guide. Charlotte Mason advocated dc be responsible for their own reading at the age of 9 yo, or shortly after if they are not quite ready for it at age 9. When older dc are spending a good portion of their day just listening to others read, they do not have the time to truly develop their own skills of reading and comprehending well independently. I will often have my older ds working at a table near my middle ds and me when we are reading his PHFHG's books on the couch. Likewise, both my middle and older sons are working within earshot when I am reading my youngest ds's Thorton Burgess books in LHFHG. I hear them laugh once and awhile at the appropriate places and know they are somewhat listening in, but they are not sitting right by us on the couch - they are continuing with their own guide's work, which leads me to the next thought I had.

The child who is actually supposed to be responsible for the work within the guide needs to be the only one doing the follow-ups with us as teachers. This child should be the only one answering discussion questions, narrating, responding to the readings, etc. When other dc (especially older dc) jump in and answer the questions, this detracts from the learning of the child who really needs to be doing the thinking for that guide. Some of the follow-ups in the guides are based on sharing Godly character traits, and struggles and temptations dc have with those traits. We have found it crucial to discuss these types of follow-up questions alone with each of our dc, even going so far as to be sure other dc are not even within earshot. Sometimes the presence of an older sibling makes a younger sibling feel inadequate, especially when it comes to narrating or answering questions, as they know the older child is probably better at it. So, it is important the child who is doing the guide is responsible for all of the work in the guide - even the oral work - and that this child feels confident and free to share his/her private thoughts or responses to the material. This becomes more and more important as dc grow older and mature.

One last thought is that it is important for dc to develop some independence, and this starts at a young age. Even 2 yo dc should be taught to have some independent activities, even if it is just for 20 minutes. It is healthy for dc to develop some independent times throughout the day, as this teaches many life skills - choosing what to do with free time, working on something on their own, organizing their playtime, cleaning up their play/work area when they are done, etc. This develops interests and hobbies, and it also defrays the constant question "Mom, what do I do next?" Dc that have learned to have some independence early on don't need to constantly be told what to do next - they have things they WANT to do next, that they are dying to have the free time to do next, and they have that thought because they have developed that skill through years of having at least a portion of time in their day they are independent for. So, whether your young dc listen in on portions of your older dc's school or not, having some time where they play independently within their day is good. It is also important to have some time in the day when you are alone with each child, so that child feels special and feels open to share personal things. We have found the Bible devotionals and Bible studies in HOD, as well as the character trait type questions to be excellent times to use for this "special" time.

So, in conclusion, younger dc listening in on older dc's readings when both dc are quite young probably is fine as long as this time is NOT counted as the younger child's school time within that guide, as long as the older child is responsible for the follow-ups, and as long as the older child has some time with you alone to really "shine" or to really feel free to "get personal". I would not personally have older dc listening in on each other's readings, for the reasons already mentioned. HTH as you ponder what you want to do in your home!

In Christ,
Julie

[jenntracy]

I have never read that. . about not letting them hear the read-alouds. I read my son's story-time(he is in Bigger) and my daughter's story-time (she is in Beyond) and i don't make anyone separate. My son enjoys listening to the story-times again if he is around. and my daughter enjoys listening to her brother's. I think the next year when it is read to her she will glean more from it. it is actually good for her, i believe , b/c it is harder for her to focus (gets distracted easily). Yet she remembers stuff when i am reading it aloud when it is "her turn" the next year. some of the books i read to my son will be different that i read to my daughter. At any rate, they don't always hear all the story-times. bits and pieces... just when they happen to be playing in the same room.
Don't know if that helps, but i don't worry if the other kid is listening to the other's stories.

Jenn D.

[my3sons]

I read the original post as dc listening to most/all of what is being read aloud, including the history and science. I need to clarify that my response was in regard to dc listening to the history and science books being read aloud, as opposed to just the Storytime books. If you are reading only the Storytime read alouds to all of your dc, that is done quite often and is absolutely fine to do. Sorry if I misunderstood and you were solely talking about Storytime books! If you were talking about all subject areas, however, Carrie has often said the same thing as I have in my original response. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie