|
 I
am a fairly typical homeschool mom. I am currently
homeschooling four children, all at multiple grade levels and
all at different ability levels.
This can present a real challenge to homeschooling parents.
As a stay at home mom you have a variety of responsibilities
beyond simply educating your children. You still need to make
sure the laundry is done, groceries are bought, food is served,
bills are paid and kids are shuffled about. It can be
overwhelming. Add to that the idea that you can’t teach all of
your kids the exact same thing and it can seem overwhelming to
the outsider. However, homeschooling multiple ages can actually
be really enjoyable and rewarding not only for the homeschooling
teacher, but the kids as well. |
In our house there are four girls at multiple grade levels. The
oldest is in fifth grade, the youngest is in Kindergarten. In that mix I
have a self-starter, a gifted dreamer, a special needs daughter with
speech delays and hearing loss and the youngest. Most people that look
at me say “I could never do that” but it really isn’t as overwhelming as
it seems.
Remember, when you homeschool
the school day may end at three but the learning is constant. I have
my seven year old read a story to the five year old while the nine year
old writes my grocery list and the eight year old helps me sort colors.
 They
don’t realize it but one is learning how to read, one is working on
pronunciation, the oldest is doing penmanship and spelling while my
eight year old, the one with speech delays, is naming off each item of
clothing and its color.
This creativity extends to the
classroom. Since I use curriculum much of the work of planning my
day has already been done for me but I continue to make small
adjustments as I go throughout the day. When you realize the seven year
old is drifting you can ask her to walk the dog for you. If you’re
working with the eight year old on math then the five year old can read
her letter sounds to the oldest.
Truly, the key to homeschooling
multiples is breaking out of the “school building” mindset
where you have “English” then you have “Math” followed by “Phys Ed” and
realizing that homeschoolers learn to apply textbooks to the real world
and see learning all around them.
So relax, multiple grade moms. You’re
doing a great job!
See our
Complete Curriculum pages for more support on teaching multiple
grade levels.
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