Welcome!
It sounds as though you may be experiencing considerable "scope creep" in your job duties... from nanny to tutor to almost sole teacher.
My first thoughts are that you may need more information. Questions come to mind such as:
- How much of a partner do the parents want you to be, regarding their children's education?
- Do the children have an IEP/504 in school?
- Can assessments be done to determine whether an official dylexia/dysgraphia diagnosis is warranted?
- A child who is 11 in the 4th grade seems to be older than the average student in that grade. Was he held back a year? For example, some child are held back to gain a year of "maturity", to be one of oldest in the grade rather than one of the youngest, to work on remediation skills, or may be redshirted for sports.
- What is the overall goal of you tutoring these children? For example, light homework help? ... to provide academic enrichment activities? ... to keep them from falling behind? ... if they are known to be behind, to help them catch up? etc. Having an agreement on the goal(s) may help you clarify your role and choose curriculum/projects/activities.
Because you asked specifically about science projects, here are some potential sources:
- Gifted Homeschoolers Forum,
List of Favorites - Davidson Database, Resources, Browse by Subject,
Science- Hoagies' Gifted Education Page,
Natural Science- Hoagies' Gifted Education Page,
Hot Topics! Science Sleuths- Hoagies' Gifted Education Page,
list of free online classes- Old thread on this Discussion Forum,
Science Fair
