Short Lessons?

This is the time for a lesson.  This would include any time spent on the lesson and narration.  If he’s almost done and his attention is still sharp, let him finish.  If he is “almost done” but dawdling, switch to another lesson and return to it later.

Ah.  We’ve mostly all had them!  In that case, yes, stick to your lesson times.  If you set a reasonable amount of work and it is not completed in the set time, then move on to the next activity. Later, when your child would have  had some free time, he may return and finish the set work.  The loss of the free time is a natural consequence to help him focus his attention.  But drawing out each lesson to a very long time is counterproductive to developing good attention.  IN fact, I often watch carefully and when they start that blank stare, fidgeting and doodling on the paper, go ahead and stop the lesson then.  Set them a chore or another period of work and then come back to the lesson later.  Letting them space out reinforces and sets up a pattern.  You want to nip the pattern in the bud.  However, they also need to know that goofing won’t get them out of the work completely!  So do come back to it if you set a reasonable amount that he should have been able to accomplish.

I 2nd the loss of free time for dawdling. Nipping the pattern in the bud is *extremely* important. If I’m not consistently enforcing NO dawdling/loss of free time, the problem presents itself more often. It becomes harder, the more children you have actually ‘schooling’ … but being consistent helps the Olders learn to be diligent, allowing us to focus on teaching the Habit to the Youngers.

Well, it is habit training (for Mom too). For us, it works best to gradually work it. So I might do the first 1/3 of lessons paying close attention to time for a few days. Once that goes well, you could move up to 1/2 and then 3/4 until your whole day is running smoother. I do not have our day down like I’d like yet, but our first 1/3 is good.