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Setting Time Limits
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Hi there,
I’m just wondering if anyone could give me feedback on this issue. My son is 6 going on 7 so currently in first grade. Each day we do a little copywork and some spelling before we move on to history, art, science…whatever we’ve got going on. He really struggles to focus on the copywork and phonics and I’m wondering if I’m expecting too much of him.
What I’m thinking of doing is setting a time limit (as suggested by CM) and what he gets done in that time he gets done. I really struggle with this as I worry we are not ‘achieving’ enough, this is silly I know but it does bother me. Does anyone else do this? How much time do you spend on your schooling in grade 1?
Any feedback greatly appreciated
For your son’s age, I would have him doing copywork no more than five minutes. If copywork is a struggle for him, try to plan it so that his favorite subject follows copywork so that he has something to look forward to. I would also suggest not doing formal spelling practice with him right now and wait until he is a bit older. Our children are almost 7 and 8, and we still have not begun formal spelling, although both children are excellent spellers. We plan to begin Spelling Wisdom with ds8 next school year. It is wise to set a timer so that he (and you) have something to look forward to. If he doesn’t complete the assignment in the allotted time, save it for the next day or come back to it after doing a few other subjects first.
Blessings,
Lindsey
My boys are age 7 (gr2) and 8 (gr3). We’ve been trying the shorter lessons and it’s working beautifullly. I marvel at the truth to the CM belief that the will learn MORE if the lessons are short. But your concern is valid: how short is too short? My belief is that you go a max of 15 minutes on a subject, but shorter if they’ve stopped concentrating and you’ve lost their attention. Otherwise they are feeding a bad habit of low-concentration during school.
In total, we are spending about 60 minutes on seatwork and another 60-90 minutes off and on throughout the day on our readings for other subjects. (each subject not more than a 15 min session). Perhaps for grade one that 60 minute seatwork expectation might be adjusted to 35-45 minutes? But I think the bigger thing is keeping each “session” or “subject” to only 10-15 minutes and then switch to something else.
What I am also finding is that when I use the digital timer, they do better. When they see the 15 minutes set, they know there is an end in sight and that makes them relax more. For my boys, it’s made all the difference in their willingnes and work ethic — AND concentration. I always “keep the promise” and stop when the timer ends. If they are really struggling in a subject while the timer is still running, I will change gears to avoid a sour attitude shift. i.e. if one story during oral reading is really giving trouble, if we are pulling apart every word to figure it out, I will put down that particular book, and pick up a different book or reader for what’s left on the timer. This seems to have avoided my sons “feeling down on themselves” about whatever they struggled with, and the whole day goes better.
For what it’s worth, the other thing I’m doing is moving around a bit more. We start at the dining room table for math, but then move to a kid table I have in the living room for copywork and then to the couch for the child to do oral reading for me. Then I have him stand up after the oral reading couch time to deliver the narration. All the moving around seems to be working nicely.
I’m also keeping track of when the very dramatic hand-rubbing begins during copywork to be able to observe how long I should/can make that important part of our CM education (making my own copywork and doing a word count so that the sheet is truly matched to what each of my sons can do before the work begins to get sloppy). My 7 year old starts to get sloppy after about a 40 word count. Maybe I am a detail nut but I just find attention to expectations and keeping them positive really has made a difference for us.
Good luck!
Andi
My dd is also 6.5 and in ‘first grade’. We have been taking a slow-but-steady approach to her school work since the beginning of last year and I have been extremely pleased with the progress we’ve been making. I am completely sold on the concept of short, focused lessons. It may seem like you aren’t doing ‘enough’ but when you look back over how far you’ve come after a few months or a year of this approach, you will be amazed. (At least, I have been.)
When we first started doing copywork dd hated it. It was the one subject she completely balked at. There were days when I would only ask her to write 2 words. I also scheduled it last so it was right before snack break, which helped as a motivator (and also didn’t ruin the rest of our school-morning if she decided to be…well, let’s say DRAMATIC about it…) Now, a bit over a year later, she has beautiful print writing, easily copies 1-2 sentences at a time, often chooses to write things by her own choice, and we are learning cursive at her request.
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I also posted this on another thread last week which may be helpful to you as well:
As far as time goes….we spend about 1-1/2 hours eMy dd is also 6 and in “first grade” right now. She is easily reading the 2nd grade level Pathway Readers.
If your dd is reading at a 3rd grade level, I don’t think it’s necessary to have formal reading lessons anymore. I would have her read out loud to you regularly, however, and you can address any “gaps” in her knowledge on an as-needed basis. This is what I do with my dd.
For spelling, it depends on what you want to accomplish and what you think your dd needs. I am using All About Spelling with my dd now. It isn’t very CM, but I happen to prefer a little more direct instruction in this area (one small area where I depart from a pure CM approach.) My dd was wanting to write more (letters to grandma, lists, etc) and constantly asking how to spell this or that so I felt like it was a good time to start giving her the “tools” needed to do this for herself. We had also not used a strict phonics approach to reading and so I wanted to reinforce this. I have seen an increase in confidence in both spelling and reading since we started this program, so it’s working well for us. We also do copywork, so she is getting ‘pictures in her mind of good spelling’ ala CM as well. My plan is to continue with AAS until 4th grade and then switch over to a CM-style Dictation approach. (Obviously we’ll re-evaluate that as we go along depending on what her continuing needs are.) I don’t think it is recommended to try dictation before age 9 even with a strong reader, just because it is so many skills that need to come together (spelling, writing, remembering, etc.). If you don’t think she needs a direct approach to spelling right now, then you can just stick with copywork until then.
As far as time goes….we do about 1-1/2hrs of “formal” learning on any given day. This includes poetry, calendar, Aesop, history, math, cursive, spelling, copywork (all of these daily) and one of these: art, character development, nature study, or geography. This does NOT include chores Bible, literature, reading practice, or French as these items are spread out throughout the day and continue even when we are taking a “break” from school. They are such a part of our daily routine we don’t really think of them as “school” even though really they are.
HTH,
Jen
Thanks for all the great information Mamas! This does confirm to me that I am expecting too much I think. I have switched to shorter time slots and less ‘seat work’ and that seems to be moving us in the right direction. Thanks a lot for all the great ideas, lots of things to store in my brain!
Emma
We, too, do very short time slots for the kids that young. My 5yo and 7yo both do just a few letters at a time, 6 or 8 letters, and it rarely takes more than 3-4 minutes. My oldest, dd9, does mostly the same. They get free time if they get done before the others. The last person is the one without any free time and it’s time to move on to the next subject. This gives them incentive, but I also expect them to be very careful and as “perfect” as they can get for their age. So if they don’t do it right, they have to do it over again, and it cuts in on their time. 🙂 Since I switched to this method about a month or so ago, it’s been pretty awesome. 😉
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