What to do with our kids while everyone is home [Archive]

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AustenFan

03-13-2020, 08:45 PM

Rather than hijack another thread, I thought I'd start a new one specifically about how to occupy kids and keep sane right now!

So a lot of my non-homeschooling, not-usually SAH friends have been asking me for ideas to keep kids and parents happy while everyone is on top of each other at home. Here are some of the things that work well for our family (five kids, toddler through teen, I homeschool the oldest four, and DH was on adoption paternity leave this fall, so we had to do the whole adjusting to the all-seven-of-us-being-together thing just a few months ago).

We thrive on routine. Although I would prefer that my teen sleep in more because he's short of sleep, we do get up and get dressed and have breakfast in a timely fashion every day. (We have occasional pajama days, but I notice that the kids' behavior takes a nose dive when we do it days in a row.) We are at our best and brightest in the mornings, so that's when we do our main schoolwork. I do give an outside brain break from 10:30-11. Fresh air and exercise (my teen runs around the block, training for a 5K, my little girls jump rope or play with sidewalk chalk or ride bikes) helps us come back and hit things hard for another hour. We have a designated lunchtime, and after that my teen does his online classes and my middle schooler finishes up her schoolwork while the little ones go nap or sit quietly on beds or couches and read or listen to audiobooks. Sit down school-->real lunch-->quiet rest time. Every single day. Usually the TV has not even been turned on yet, unless the toddler is being too disruptive mid morning and needs to go watch The Wiggles on youtube for a bit. (Thank you, Emma Watkins, for all you do to save my sanity.) After all schoolwork is done, that's when we do our fun baking, craft, and art activities, often while I'm reading aloud or they're listening to an audiobook. That can keep them occupied until 4 or 5. The kids do a major clean up of shared living spaces and the dining room table while I'm getting dinner. (DH cooks more on the weekends, so we have a different routine then.) After dinner, DH usually reads a chapter or two aloud to the kids (My school day read alouds are usually school-related--we're doing Mara, Daughter of the Nile right now in conjunction with our study of Ancient Egypt--while his are usually just great books that we love--he's going through The Chronicles of Narnia with the kids again). Obviously we are flexible if things change or someone is invited to a play date (although that won't be happening with us for a while since our youngest is medically fragile), but the kids all know what comes next. It really helps all of our attitudes if we know what comes next.

I'm sure most schools are sending home homework packets or something, but if this is the chance you've been waiting for to solidify math facts with your grade schooler, I love, love, love the "Facts that Stick (https://welltrainedmind.com/c/math/facts-mastery/)" series from Well-Trained Mind Press. They're scripted, short, easy lessons to help kids actually understand the concept behind their addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts, with lots of fun games (today we did a couple of the 8s multiplication facts with M&Ms as counters) and then facts practice sheets. Available in pdf, so you can print off just what you think your kid might be stuck on! We use a traditional textbook math program through pre-Algebra, but the kids love getting on Beast Academy Online (https://beastacademy.com/online) for their supplementary practice. Math taught by little monsters, in comic book form, with a silly math teacher doing extra videos for tough subjects. So fun. There's a free demo if you want to try it out, but we own all the hard copy books as well as doing the online annual subscription. Whenever I need to change things up, I send a kid to do some BA Online!

But one of the most fun aspects of homeschooling, whether short term or long term, is when the core subjects get done quickly so we can spend more time on fun extras. We have found some really great subscription boxes with activities that our kids love:

For the preschool-2nd grade crowd, I can't rave enough about Ivy Kids (https://ivy-kids.com/) boxes. It's a whole ton of art, craft, math, science, preliteracy projects all planned around a great children's book (book and all necessary supplies, down to markers and glue, included). There are great lesson plans for every activity, and many of the fun math manipulatives get played with again and again.

For the elementary crowd, we love Raddish Kids (https://www.raddishkids.com/), monthly boxes with three kid-friendly recipes around a theme (food of Greece, or summer camp, etc). The food is not included, but the recipes are easy for kids to follow, each includes a kitchen tool and gives well-illustrated instructions on some kitchen technique like whisking or kneading or chopping, and my kids have been willing to try SO MANY new foods that I never would have thought to introduce. There's an iron-on patch for each month, which really appeals to my 8 year old, in particular. My 8, 10, and 13 year old can now all prepare a full family meal with minimal adult supervision.

For mid-elementary and up, we've just discovered Let's Make Art (https://www.letsmakeart.com/) this year and have fallen in love with watercolor painting. The kits (available as a subscription or just a la carte) contain the paints and special paper to create four painting projects each month; tutorials are on youtube, and you can buy their recommended brushes and palate on their website if you don't already have quality ones. I have extra watercolor paper and supplies so that all four of my big kids and I can do each project together. It's a little tough for my 1st grader, but she enjoys it. My older kids and I are super surprised at how happy we've been with our results. Once we have built up a stock of supplies, we'll be going back and doing some of the older youtube tutorials, too. I am the most unartistic person you'll ever know, but I find it really soothing and fun to do with my kids.

We do a lot of audiobooks and coloring in Dover historical coloring books (https://amzn.to/2U5GNyR) when we have inside days. We get most of our audiobooks on hoopla (we have a separate account with each of the kids' library cards, so we have plenty of checkouts per month) as well as an increasingly large audible library thanks to lots of gifts. My kids listen to audiobooks seven days a week: we use them on all car trips, they all listen to them in bed for an hour before lights out, and I use them in afternoons when I need to be getting other things accomplished or don't feel like reading aloud for hours. I find that giving the kids something to do with their hands (in addition to coloring books, they also will knit, do perler beads, or weave in little lap looms (https://www.novanatural.com/peg-loom)) helps them sit still and listen longer. And even my littlest ones will listen to books way above their reading level if the story is thrilling.

Our favorite elementary audiobooks:

The Boxcar Children (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/boxcar-children/1981/titles) series--the first 19 are great; after that, they're ghost written and the writing quality goes way down
The Wizard of Oz (https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Wonderful-Wizard-of-Oz-Audiobook/B007BR5KZA?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B007BR5KZA&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=GGDSVG5RFQQS0BR503AS), read by Anne Hathaway
All-of-a-Kind Family (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/allofakind-family/4415263787/titles)
Basil of Baker Street (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/basil-of-baker-street/2307114985/titles)
The Paddingto (https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/11588382)n series
Miracles on Maple Hill (https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/11143854)
The Sarah, Plain and Tall (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/sarah,-plain-and-tall/1617279485/titles) series
All things Beverly Cleary (https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/11588738)
The Princess and the Goblin (https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/11653879) (this reader, Alison Larkin, is one of our all-time favorites!)
The Melendy Family (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/melendy-family/2563084202/titles) series
The Chronicles of Narnia (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/chronicles-of-narnia/1980/titles)
A Cricket in Times Square (https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/11801486)
The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street (https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Vanderbeekers-of-141st-Street-Audiobook/B07BZLVKN2?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B07BZLVKN2&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=864838JAXVJBCGBANY09)
The Cottage at Bantry Bay (https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Cottage-at-Bantry-Bay-Audiobook/B00NMVQOY0?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B00NMVQOY0&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=864838JAXVJBCGBANY09)
Theater Shoes (https://www.audible.com/pd/Theater-Shoes-Audiobook/B002V1LMIU?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B002V1LMIU&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=Y56T5KBNS34HAQHWV555)
Homer Price (https://www.audible.com/pd/Homer-Price-Audiobook/B079VFKGJ2?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B079VFKGJ2&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=Y56T5KBNS34HAQHWV555)
Ballet Shoes (https://www.audible.com/pd/Ballet-Shoes-BBC-Childrens-Classics-Audiobook/B002VA9STQ?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B002VA9STQ&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=Y56T5KBNS34HAQHWV555)
Five For Victory: The Mitchells (https://www.audible.com/pd/Five-for-Victory-Audiobook/B01HQO3DLK?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B01HQO3DLK&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=GGDSVG5RFQQS0BR503AS)
Five Children and It (https://www.audible.com/pd/Five-Children-and-It-Audiobook/B00BAWSJOQ?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B00BAWSJOQ&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=GGDSVG5RFQQS0BR503AS)
Sweet Home Alaska (https://www.audible.com/pd/Sweet-Home-Alaska-Audiobook/B019QZUGOE?qid=1584144153&sr=1-1&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=e81b7c27-6880-467a-b5a7-13cef5d729fe&pf_rd_r=K6HNKR5KKA4M6N9B2F2F)

Our favorite middle school audiobooks:
Esperanza Rising (https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/12132271)
The Little Britches (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/little-britches/2192/titles) series
The Outlaws of Time (https://www.hoopladigital.com/series/outlaws-of-time/2057586840/titles) series
Just William (https://www.audible.com/pd/Just-William-Audiobook/B002V1A5BU?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B002V1A5BU&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=864838JAXVJBCGBANY09) series
Stella By Starlight (https://www.audible.com/pd/Stella-by-Starlight-Audiobook/B00QW0LOJ8?ref=a_pd_The-Va_c5_adblp13npsbx_1_4&pf_rd_p=10be84a5-3a35-458a-8529-0c4e5c3dcd9c&pf_rd_r=81JNHV58XWZ4TBA3KKBF)
Little Women (https://www.audible.com/pd/Little-Women-Audiobook/B002V57RH6?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B002V57RH6&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=Y56T5KBNS34HAQHWV555)
Tom Sawyer (https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Adventures-of-Tom-Sawyer-Audiobook/B01HQMQLWK?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B01HQMQLWK&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=GGDSVG5RFQQS0BR503AS), read by Nick Offerman!
The Children's Homer (https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Childrens-Homer-Audiobook/B002V8NB2S?ref=a_lib_c4_libItem_B002V8NB2S&pf_rd_p=6a5ce8e4-798e-4a64-8bc5-71dcf66d673f&pf_rd_r=GGDSVG5RFQQS0BR503AS)
The Winged Watchman (https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Winged-Watchman-Audiobook/B00V6KGJM6?qid=1584143972&sr=1-1&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=e81b7c27-6880-467a-b5a7-13cef5d729fe&pf_rd_r=6597YC9ZNJ5PH2AES6EN)
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (https://www.audible.com/pd/Roll-of-Thunder-Hear-My-Cry-Audiobook/B002V8L9ZE?qid=1584144118&sr=1-1&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=e81b7c27-6880-467a-b5a7-13cef5d729fe&pf_rd_r=EN88209EWYMP4SS4BPCS)
Al Capone Does My Shirts (https://www.audible.com/pd/Al-Capone-Does-My-Shirts-Audiobook/B002V8HN5E?qid=1584146056&sr=1-1&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=e81b7c27-6880-467a-b5a7-13cef5d729fe&pf_rd_r=79PHA2N0J0H9K3BEB1DP)

Hope this helps someone! And I would love to hear what is working for other families!

sf333

03-13-2020, 08:57 PM

Wow! What a fabulously helpful thread. I’ve felt anxious about the long days ahead but this gives me some great ideas. Thank you so much for sharing. My kids are 5, 9, and 12 so it can be difficult to find activities that appeal to all and hold everyone’s interest.

Kestrel

03-14-2020, 02:24 PM

As I said in another thread, we are working on learning to cook while we don't have the time pressure of homework/activities. DS is also helping DH build a new workbench in the shop.

The local boy scout troop in our very small community is doing a pinewood derby in late May, and has invited all the elementary kids to participate - I think we're going to build and decorate a car.

Strange as it sounds, DS has also decided to save/collect newspaper with front pages about the virus. He thinks this is a unique thing that happened while he was a kid, and they may be worth something someday. I think he's doing it because I did the same thing as a kid - I was in 4th or 5th grade when Mt Saint Helens erupted and I have newspapers and photos of that, still... the ash falling and making the streetlights come on, ect. We have containers of ash we got from the front yard when I was a kid.

KpbS

03-14-2020, 11:49 PM

Great advice and tips, AustenFan!

We are fellow homeschoolers and I totally agree with your advice about routines and flow for your days. Homeschooling is very different than "doing school at home." There is a different rhythm required and parents and kids alike will have an adjustment period--not only to figure out new technologies, assignments, responsibilities, etc but also issues like workspaces, keeping organized at home, working efficiently, etc. There is a learning curve for sure! But it can be done and be done well. :)

umsh

03-15-2020, 12:51 AM

petesgirl

03-15-2020, 12:10 PM

AustenFan

03-15-2020, 09:13 PM

Thank you for taking the time to write all this out and share all the links too! I’ve been thinking this is the perfect time to test out homeschooling...but I wasn’t sure where to start. This gives me a good starting point. Any tips on managing a very active baby/toddler while trying to do this with older kids (I have 3 older kids, ages 8-11)? Things just feel so out of control post-baby.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I think there's a difference between trying to complete assigned homework from a teacher and actually doing more of a DIY homeschool thing, and I didn't want to overload my advice post with details on homeschooling. For folks in the first group, as a former classroom teacher, I would try to complete packets/assignments sent home from teachers if your kids have that work to do so that if they get to go back to school this semester, they won't be behind. One really cool thing is that there are a ton of homeschool bloggers out there sharing plans and advice for parents who are in the latter camp. Well-Trained Mind Press, the publisher of the Facts that Stick math supplements I mentioned above, shared on facebook (https://www.facebook.com/welltrainedmind/posts/10156984422927647) that they're offering free downloads of a bunch of homeschooling how-to lectures that their founders, Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer, have done over the years. Susan Wise Bauer is my homeschool hero (a college professor, homeschool graduate, and homeschooling mom of four) and is really practical and smart. So I'd definitely download some of those for some general direction if you're interested in trying it out yourself.

So juggling toddlers is definitely the trickiest part of homeschooling for me, too. I always try to start the day by investing in my littlest ones first--starting with the toddler. I can set the big kids to doing math facts practice after breakfast while I sit down and read a book or two to my youngest two. We used to live on a college campus, and I hired babysitters to come play with her for a couple hours in the morning twice a week last fall, and that was wonderful. If I don't have the babysitter coming to play with her, I usually give each of the big kids 20-30 minute slots of playing with her in a room that is not the kitchen/school room--duplos, magformers, play kitchen, reading books. This is a real life skill that I want each of them to excel in--since she has special needs, I want them to be very comfortable and compassionate about interacting with special kids like her, and doing it one on one helps them to be more purposeful. She is not developmentally ready to pretend play with her sisters yet, but a few years ago, I had this wonderful year when #3 and 4 weren't doing school yet, and they played with each other all morning while I knocked things out with the big kids. Two little kids can entertain each other better than one, even if you do have to referee fights. When sibling babysitting fails, I resort to The Wiggles, which she loves but everyone else hates, so it's not as much of a distraction over in the other room.=) She goes outside for recess with the other kids and gets some energy out. When they come back in, I let her sit in her high chair up at the table and color with us when I'm doing the history or science read alouds (we do those subjects all together, adjusting assignments based on age), and she will sometimes play with puzzles or eat a snack or have a tea party with herself in the high chair for a few more minutes. Her quiet rest time is when I make sure to finish up the harder hitting subjects (Latin, grammar) with the big kids. When she takes a good, long nap, that's when we do watercolors or bigger school projects (like mummifying a chicken!). Oh, and I will totally wear her in my pikkolo carrier if she just wants to snuggle with me but the kids are doing something with little pieces that she can't get into!

I think the biggest part of juggling the toddler and homeschooling is making sure that everyone knows the routine. She knows that as soon as she's done with her lunchtime g-tube feed, it's her naptime, so I can move that to 11 if I need her to go down early while we do a messy school project, and she doesn't protest, or I can stretch her out longer if we want the toddler-free time to be later in the afternoon.

elbenn

03-15-2020, 09:50 PM

Thanks for your tips, OP, especially the math recommendations.

bisous

03-16-2020, 12:47 AM

Wow. Just catching up! Great thread! Love the idea of having audio books going often. Gonna use that this week!

Melaine

03-16-2020, 06:13 AM

Audio books are a huge part of my survival kit as a homeschooler. And one of the reasons I think that DS’s vocabulary is so phenomenal.

klwa

03-16-2020, 07:41 AM

NCGrandma

03-16-2020, 09:47 AM

Our PTA (okay, me) has been linking to lots of different activities that are available: https://www.facebook.com/BunnElementarySchoolPTA/

Also, my old high school will have students and alum reading to kids at least three times a day https://www.facebook.com/NCSSMReads/

NCSSM Reads was featured on the news here yesterday—very cool! (A family member is an alum, too.)

Sent from my iPad using Baby Bargains (http://r.tapatalk.com/byo?rid=87652)

TwinFoxes

03-16-2020, 03:46 PM

The Kennedy Center is doing 20 minute live streams every day with Mo Willems. When I tried to get on the stream, there were more than 10,000 people ahead of me! But, they record the sessions so even if you can't get on while it's live you can participate:

https://www.facebook.com/events/2544781839094130/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmzjCPQv3y8&fbclid=IwAR39VT4K-oUCJ83JlI9cqOhTXD7Mz2sAH0CQtQxGEoa3iw0A48ru2z1rBrg

ScienceMom, who I had never heard of, is holding a TWO HOUR live-streamed science lesson. My kids watched part of it today and enjoyed it. She was very engaging, and the content was good. The age range is 7-12.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=science+mom

AustenFan

03-16-2020, 05:20 PM

Just got an email from Art of Problem Solving, the parent company of Beast Academy, which I recommended in my original post:

Greetings to the AoPS community,

As an online learning company, Art of Problem Solving is in a unique position to help families educate their children at home while so many schools are closed. For our youngest students, we’re offering a free month of access to Beast Academy, our online program for students ages 8-13.

For the rest of March, parents can use the coupon code FlattenTheCurve to receive $15 off any new Monthly or Yearly subscription to Beast Academy Online. Additional details for both the coupon and the curriculum can be found on the Beast Academy homepage (https://beastacademy.com/online).

So monthly subscriptions are $15, and with the coupon code, your first month is free! It's very easy to navigate between multiple kids' accounts, and as a parent, I can see their exact progress and what topics they studied. I really do highly recommend them for the grade school crew!

jgenie

03-16-2020, 06:39 PM

Just got an email from Art of Problem Solving, the parent company of Beast Academy, which I recommended in my original post:

So monthly subscriptions are $15, and with the coupon code, your first month is free! It's very easy to navigate between multiple kids' accounts, and as a parent, I can see their exact progress and what topics they studied. I really do highly recommend them for the grade school crew!

Thank you! I was going to order when you originally posted but didn’t get around to it. Just signed us up.