habit training and prepping for school-lots of littles

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  • December 6, 2013 at 7:41 pm
    mama_nickles
    Participant

    I have 5 kids (3 bio and 2 foster-to-adopt). My oldest is in 1st grade, and fortunately very good at learning independently. Prior to adding the two new kids to our family, we did “together time” with Bible, scripture memory, and a science/art/music picture book read aloud. Then at lunchtime we did a chapter book read aloud for a few minutes a day. Obviously we dropped everything when the girls came, and they have been here 2 months now, which I know is not that long, but I am ready to start working on some habits with them, especially working toward doing more school. Not that I will be “doing school” as they are young (5 and 4) but that they will be ok sitting quietly while I do school with my 1st grader. I guess mostly right now I want to get back to doing more chapter book read alouds, and not sure the best way to approach this, especially with my 4 yo. She likes really basic books, board books and short picture books. When I am reading to my 5 yo and other 4 yo, she sits and looks at other books since she isn’t interested in the longer picture books I read to the other 2. When we do our together school stuff I give her a table activity and she generally does a good job with it. I have tried a few days to jump back into our read aloud at lunchtime (The Secret Garden) but I feel torn about it. Part of me feels bad that they missed the beginning, so of course why would they want to listen to the middle of the book? But the other part of me feels bad just abandoning it since the bio kids want to hear how the story ends. So what would you do? In the past I have read at the tail end of lunch, but 4 yo FD was just really resistant. Should I give her another book to look at while I am reading? My 2 yo doesn’t get an activity as it’s really just 5-10 minutes while they are finishing eating.

    I know since they are little (6, 5, 4, 4, and 2) that I should focus on outdoor time, habits and good books. The foster girls are definitely used to reading twaddle books but have started to enjoy some more classic books that we read.

    December 7, 2013 at 1:14 pm
    Tristan
    Participant

    Continue the read aloud at lunch but maybe try doing it WHILE they eat, then you can eat after.  Just to get through this book they came into the middle of.  I would want to finish it for the kids who started it.  Also doing it while they eat is a great way to get the new little ones used to listening or at least being pretty quiet and still.  When they are done you could have coloring materials handy they can use right there at the table.

     

    Do you have a daily quiet time/nap time?  We use audio books during this time, as well as a read aloud or audio book while the children are in bed for bedtime. 

    And it’s okay that the new 4yo isn’t listening so much.  Some don’t.  I’ve had little ones on both ends of the spectrum – loving it and loathing it.  They come around eventually.  😉

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