When folks ask me how I do school at home with four kids, ages 1 through 8, my simple answer is that I ignore the inevitable messes made by the preschoolers. Oh, and I lock myself in my bedroom with soft music and a bubble bath.
I'm kidding.
So, here are some tips for making homeschooling work with multiple children (without scented soaps and Andrea Bocelli.)
- Always start with a clean room. Clean the schoolroom the night before.
- Assign organizational and filing tasks to older kids while setting younger ones up with activities.
- Make special activity sets and containers of educational goodies for the preschoolers, that come out specifically during school time.
- Work with one child while another is reading or writing independently.
- Let the little ones play at a shallow sink full of bubbly water in the bathroom.
- Make your own connect the dot sheets, depending on how many numbers the toddler knows, and make copies.
- Schedule snack times, and teach the little ones not to ask until that time.
- Invest in quality audio books
and music. Audio Bibles for kids are also engaging...in another room for the little ones.
- Include the toddlers in chants, phonics, and jingles.
- Pray with your kids at the start of the day. Let them hear you pray for the right attitude in them and in yourself.
and music. By no means is this a comprehensive list. So much could be said of how the Lord molds and shapes us as parents as we educate our children at home. Please share your tips and insights!