Let's share some ideas for dealing with babies and toddlers while we try to teach older children!

Christine

I'm not sure I can remember back that far! Let's see, some things I do remember -- when we were working on school at the table, I'd put my baby/toddler in the high chair next to us. She could have a snack, play with math manipulatives, or whatever else she could do on her high chair tray, and she liked being close to us (and I liked knowing that she wasn't getting into anything when I couldn't see her). For a while I kept special "school toys" for my youngest. She was only allowed to play with them while we were doing school, so it kept them fun and interesting. She had a couple of coloring books that she called her school books, and she would color in them while the older girls did their workbooks. I know some people take advantage of baby's nap time to do school with older children, but that never really worked for me. I did better finding ways to include our toddlers in our school time, and then using nap time to take a break, catch up on house work, or take a nap myself.

Hi, I need help in this area myself! I have a 5 year old who will be in kindergarden, a 3 1/2 year old in preschool (who really isn't all that interested in school yet, and would rather play most of the time anyways) and a 1 year old little boy who is into everything! My oldest isn't ready for a lot of individual work yet, she is auditory, and distracted by EVERYTHING, my second is happy to do some crafts and a few pages of her "workbook" but after that, she just wants to play and eat snacks. My youngest wants attention from me, so some days are pretty crazy!

So what do people do with 3 kids 5 and under? I am planning on using 5 in a row next fall, and hope that goes well. But I could use any suggestions anyone could offer!

Thanks,

Heidi,
I've been there! It is a challenge, but definitely do-able. When my oldest was in kindergarten I also had a 3-yr-old and a 1-yr-old. My 4th child was born a month after he finished K, so for 1st grade I had a 4-yr-old, 2-yr-old and a baby. Some days were crazy, but I suspect they'd have been that way even if we weren't homeschooling

First, kindergarten shouldn't take a lot of time, and it doesn't have to be done all at once. If you're using Five in a Row, I'd try to include your 3-yr-old in the stories, at least. You could even read to them while they're eating a snack, building with Legos, or coloring a picture. Sometimes little ones listen better when their hands are busy. You could let your 1-yr-old sit on your lap while you read so he feels included, too. If the activities you want to do are too hard to include the younger ones, you could do some while the baby naps. Or let your 3-yr-old do something she can do alone for a short time while you work with your kindergartener. I used to spread "school" out through the day instead of trying to do one long school time. We usually didn't do more than 10-20 minutes at a time, maybe 30 minutes at the most. Then we'd switch gears and do chores, play outside, have a snack, etc. before going back to school again.

I hope some of that helps a little. Good luck!

Lori, thanks. I hadn't really thought about doing school in chunks throughout the day. I might try that. Did you find it easier or more difficult getting things done like chores, paying bills, etc. when you did that? I have a hard time finding time to get everything done. (I'm guessing that I'm not alone with that problem!) Let me know what you think.

Getting things done has always been a challenge! From the time we started homeschooling (with preK with my oldest) we always did it in small doses throughout the day, so I can't really say if it was easier or harder than if we'd done it all at once. My dh took care of paying the bills in the evenings or on the weekends. I did chores pretty much the same way we did school, a little at a time spread out throughout the day. For a while I had an arrangement with a friend of mine where I took her kids for a few hours one Friday and she took mine for a few hours the next, so every-other Friday I had a few hours uninterrupted to get the house clean (all at the same time). But I only was able to do that for one school year, I think it was my sons' 1st grade year. Then it was back to fitting things in however I could. I would take the kids with me to do grocery shopping (and call it Home Ec or Life Skills), and as soon as they were old enough to help with chores, they did. And, thankfully, my dh was willing to help me get caught up on things on the weekends. Our routine changed from year to year, or even month to month, as the kids got older. I think a big key is to be very flexible!! Good luck in finding out what works for you.