Little Hands Help

[scampbell2003]

I'm in unit 8 of LHTH. My son just turned 4 in December. He is liking it but I feel I have a hard time getting him to say the letter sounds as he does the masking tape box. He loves when I read to him and I tell him made up stories all the time. He really enjoys that. But when I'm reading him the Bible stories he just doesn't seem to understand or make any connection. He is my most challenging child and marches to his own drum. I find myself rushing through the stories to just get through it. Which I feel really guilty about. I need to keep him busy and occupied he does not play well by himself for very long so I have added things for him to do but it is a struggle to keep him busy and he is a very physically active boy. How do I make a heart connection with him? It's a juggling act in the house with 4 kids ages 10,8,4, and almost 2. My 8 year old is dyslexic so I spend a lot more teaching time with him. What should I be looking for as I teach my 4 yr old to make sure he is getting the most out of LHTH? I do the motions and everything with him. The only thing we didn't enjoy was the singing bible but I'm not worried about that we will play it in the car this summer. Thank you in advance!

[Jennymommy]

Samantha, peace to you My youngest was/is the same...he wants to do everything as a team and hates to work alone. Your son is young and may not be ready for the formal work of the 3 "R's" yet. We actually did LHTH two years in a row as he just didn't engage the first time. He did really like workbooks and projects, so I added lots of those, but it was hard to keep him busy and not wear me out As well, we didn't have money for many outside activities. Hopefully someone else has great suggestions for you, and I will pray for wisdom.

[Rice]

If it was me, I would slow down to half speed, or even drop it all together for a few months! If I dropped it I would still try to give him some of his own time where I just read a story & Bible verse each day and maybe do a fun thing (suited to his interests: counting game, play doh, coloring, physical game, making a snack for everyone, etc. - or even rotate, one per day), but he's so young my advice is to not stress about it and just try again next year (or in a few months, at the very least). Any extra time that leaves in your day (IF it does, lol) you can use to concentrate on your 8 yo. I know my late reader is the one that makes the whole school day take longer because she can't be in the same guide as a brother.

My 4yo (5 in 6 weeks) isn't getting Little Hands this year. I have 4 others in 4 different guides so he's lucky if he gets time to snuggle while I read to someone else, but my plan is to start it with him in the fall. For him, we'll call that Kindergarten and if it's really easy for him by then, then I can go more quickly until he finds some challenge in it.

HTH.
Blessings,

[sweetgrace]

My 4yo was the same way! He just was not interested in "school". I put it on the shelf and only brought it down when he specifically asked for it. He will be 5yo in April. Recently he has been asking to do school and has expressed his desire to learn to write and read. We will start back up here soon and I may go ahead and add in phonics, math and writing. It's amazing what they pick up and learn even without formal instruction! I was shocked to find out that he knows how to blend words even though he still does not know all of his letter sounds. Whaaaat?! I'm guessing he has been listening to me teach our 6yo how to read for awhile now.
As for keeping out of the way and playing independently, I ran across this idea http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.net/2013/ ... ool-boxes/. ( I hope it's ok to post a link). This is working marvelously. He only gets to play with them during school time. The rule is that he has to play quietly and by himself with these boxes. I just put in and rotate toys/books/puzzles that we have. I did purchase a couple of her suggestions for toys/puzzles for Christmas so that there are some "new" things to explore. He really loves the idea of having something special that he gets to play with. This has really helped so I have quiet one on one time with the 6yo with little to no interruptions. I hope you can find something that can work for you. HTH's

[scampbell2003]

He is doing pretty well in LHTH. We are moving slowly through it. It is imperative I do school with him which is why I choose HOD. He needs my one on one attention and it doesn't take long to do. He also has a work box drawer with hands on things to work through as he desires. I don't push and sometimes we just play and read together. I guess my question is more of a spiritual one vs. educational. What kind of connection should he be making from our bible time? Should I look for him to have understanding in this area? He needs lots of discipline and I feel I'm lacking in this area with him. My older two were more complient and played by themselves for longer periods of time. Thank you ladies!

[sahervey]

My son was 4 when we started LHTH last January. We took it slow. Now he's 5 and we've still got about 8 weeks left. They are boys and they are children. Be gentle these first few years. I realize that just because my 5 year old doesn't know all his letter sounds right now doesn't mean he won't learn to read soon. It just means he has better things to do as a 5 year old. We still do school 3-4 days per week and I keep plugging along. Don't worry. He'll pick it up eventually.

[mrsrandolph]

My son was like this with Bible stories at first. I would sit at the homeschool table and sit across from him. I would say his name a lot during the story. I would use a VERY dramatic voice and say lots of WOW's and "you won't believe this part"s. It made a difference. I also asked questions along the way through instead of saving them for the end. HTH

[my3sons]

I just want to encourage you that I think that your ds sounds completely normal for this age! I remember with each of our sons that LHTH was a time to train them to sit still and listen. Many of their answers to the Bible questions were not right at first. One of my sons answered "Jesus loves you" to almost every question at first! (It IS wonderful that he knows about Jesus' love, but when the story was about Egypt and the plagues, it was not the answer I was hoping for. ) These are the skills to be learned through the year. They are not expected to do them all right from the start. Each box of plans in LHTH is meant to be 2-5 minutes long. It is important to stick to those times, as that is about how long little ones' attention spans are at that age.

For reading the Bible, I'd cuddle up on the couch with your ds, putting your arm around him and have the book open across both of your laps as you read. This will 'anchor' him and set up a 'cuddle up and read' time approach. Be sure to have him look at the picture, as he answers. If he doesn't answer right, help him with it and move on. I'm not sure what Bible you have for him, but hopefully it is one of the 2 story Bibles. We especially enjoyed "The New Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes." If you have the younger Bible, maybe it is too young for him, or if you are just reading it from your own adult Bible, maybe it is just too hard for him to follow. What resources you choose do make a difference. For the devotional, I bought both. I found that the "ABC Bible Verses..." was too hard for my sons to understand. They were just too wiggly and couldn't attend that long. Just using "Big Thoughts for Little People" was ideal for them. We used the cuddle up and read, anchor them under my arm, approach for the devotional as well. For the masking tape letter type activities, he just needs to say the sound a handful of times. If he is unable to do so, it helped my ds with speech difficulties if I cupped my hand around his ear and said directly into his ear (not in a super loud voice, of course) the sound a few times, and then had him say them. If your ds is able to say the sounds but won't, that is more of a discipline issue and cannot be allowed (that is a battle you will be fighting over and over otherwise). A timeout in the corner for a few minutes usually does the trick at our house. For the music, I'd not skip it as the day is super short already. Marching around the kitchen as we listened to it made it extra fun for our super active boys!

In reading your post over a few times, it sounds like LHTH is not the primary concern, but more the fact that ds is very active and it is difficult to find things for him to do the rest of the day as you school your other dc. I sure understand that!!! I have 3 boys, and they are ALL very active - though some are off the radar! One thing that really helped is to make sure they get outside every day, no matter what the weather. I took this cue from Charlotte Mason, as this is recommended by her so much that each child in her school had rubber boots to wear on rainy days! Also, having active toys, like little nerf guns and targets to shoot at, plush stuffed indoor bowling ball/pins set, a basketball hoop hanging over an old cupboard/door you don't care about, playdough sets, stuffed balls to throw, KNex/Lego/Lincoln Log type building toys, puzzles to put together, fort building materials (i.e. blankets and card tables), etc. ALL make a huge difference in our boys' day! Playtimes with siblings make a big difference in attitude as well. Having each of your dc have a 30-45 minute playtime with your 4 yo that is somewhat active would really help break up the day and keep him occupied happily!

I hope something here helps, but I just want to encourage you that your ds is totally normal! You are doing a super job of juggling many things as a busy homeschool mom! Just keep moving ahead, making ds be accountable for doing all of his 20-25 minutes of LHTH each day, and planning for him to active times in his day with his siblings and outdoors, and I think you are going to see a big happy change given time! Keep up the good work - one day at a time - and you will see gains galore!!!

In Christ,
Julie