Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Learning Environments Homeschooling woes...already.

I second MoN's advice.

We homeschooled (I mean-- PURE homeschooling) for almost 2y, and honestly, the best results were always when I gave my DD a daily list.

I used mini-memo pads to do this, and listed specific things that I wanted her to work on-- and then more fun/open-ended things. I was always here to help or engage with her-- but much of this was stuff that I did expect that she would do independently. So she did.

For example (I still have the records from this time-- all those mini-lists are taped into composition books!!)


The latter three headings there refer to workbooks. The Complete Book of Maps and Geography-- isbn 978-1561895038-- which is sadly out of print now-- these were a great bargain and my DD LOVED that series of workbooks very, very much.

The Language Arts workbook was a Spectrum one-- probably 2nd or 3rd grade, given the date.


Anyway. This is an example from when my daughter was 5.2 yo. This would have been a rather typical day-- another average day might have her do an art project, play a computer game (she was very fond of Magic Schoolbus, and I used those for times when I needed to take her to work with me) or free read during the rest of the day.

The point is that she is VERY oppositional-- I still get way more out of her if I don't get "in her face" about what I want her to do. If I write it down and give her the list, it's like MAGIC. It just happens.

Oh my-- how sweet and funny-- as I'm flipping these memo notes over to look at the ones below them, I see that on the back side my then 5yo DD had written in BIG block letters:


Shows what SHE was thinking about. LOL Some things never change. Seeing her five year old printing kind of melts my heart a little now that she's a nearly grown teen.

Enjoy these years when they are little. It really goes by awfully fast.