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Erin
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| Posted: Oct 12 2013 at 1:41am | IP Logged
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Currently I have dd9 and ds7 still needing me to listen to them read daily. They are close to being independent readers but need consistent practice (they have been at this stage for months and months..)
I should also begin teaching ds5 his sounds, was hoping to have the older two 'off and running' but thinking I shouldn't wait.
As you would know this all takes time. I'm trying to work out when/how to fit it all in. Currently I listen to the 9 & 7 year olds during our lesson hours but it a big time chunk that perhaps I could be doing at another time. And poor ds5 doesn't have any time devoted to him alone.
We don't do any formal academic work after lunch, so perhaps I could listen to them sometime in the afternoon (though I'm quite tired then), perhaps at bedtime, or before breakfast, ds7 is up often at 5.30am and we don't start our formal learning until 8.30am.
When do you listen to your new/emerging/beginner readers? I'd love to know your logistics or any suggestions.
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Erin
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Becky Parker
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| Posted: Oct 12 2013 at 6:34am | IP Logged
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I have a similar situation here, Erin. Mine isn't specifically for reading but having 3 that need me, a lot, throughout the day makes it hard. I've tried various things, including finding time in the afternoon or before bed. That just didn't work for us. We are so packed with other things at those times and by bedtime I am too exhausted and short of temper. So are my kids.
So, I make a point to try to get to all 3 of them, but keep it on a rotating schedule so whoever doesn't read for me on Monday is first on Tuesday. If we get through all 3 it's great, but if we don't, at least they are reading for me several times a week.
I know that's not a perfect situation, but I feel better that my younger child, who is so enthused about learning to read right now, isn't having to wait.
Another option is to set a timer and be super strict about it. When the timer goes off, book is closed and next child takes his turn. I tried that too but I ended up having to look for the next child, or decided to throw in a load of laundry (real quick), or remembered I needed to defrost something for dinner .... I was the one that got distracted.  So we do the best we can and I do see progress with this other method.
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Becky
Wife to Wes, Mom to 6 wonderful kids on Earth and 4 in Heaven!
Academy Of The Good Shepherd
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Angel
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| Posted: Oct 17 2013 at 5:25pm | IP Logged
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Well, I'm just coming off having 4 kids learning to read at once... Here's what I have done in the past. But I have to tell you, any way you look at it, it's just hard.
I tried to spend most of the morning with the younger kids and pushed time with the older kids to the afternoon. This wasn't optimal, but I've just never had enough time. (We do get going later for formal work, though.) After our prayers/morning time, I would start working on reading. I tried to have the ones who weren't reading do something that didn't require me -- like handwriting or entertaining the toddler -- but that didn't always work. In the end we shifted reading instruction to the computer for my dyslexic child (Easy Read) which worked very well and was how he finally learned to read. Then he could do that in the afternoon and I could listen to him and/or help him then. Also, I am somewhat embarassed to admit to you how much Starfall my 6 yo has done, but in the end, he does know his letter sounds pretty well and we're working on it more formally now that his older brothers are reading independently. (Starfall also has apps for the iPad now  ).
Something else that we've done is to shift listening to the boys read to the evening before bedtime, when Andy could be the listener (not me). The boys have gone through many phases when they were much happier to have Dad listen to them than Mom. He also spent a few months doing ten minutes of phonics with them on a white board before reading to them at night. He would sit in the rocking chair in their room while they were in their beds and they would call out words, letters, etc.
When the boys could read but still needed help -- when they were picking up speed -- what I did was to tell them they needed to spend 30 minutes with a book of their choice (whatever they wanted) every afternoon. I didn't listen to them because I wanted them to enjoy it. (Instead of thinking of it as "school". I know that sounds funny, but I wanted them to be able to pick up a Lego book and not worry if they had to skip words so much. More of a frustration issue.) I also tried really hard to find them books I thought they would like and be motivated to read on their own. My 10 yo bought a book in Cressida Cowell's How to Train Your Dragon series, which is great for late-reading boys, and would bring it out into the family room and read it aloud there so he could spell out loud when he hit a word he couldn't figure out (which were many at first). Then any reader in the vicinity could help him; it didn't have to be me. My twins also tended to read out loud whenever they wanted to read. So I didn't really have to schedule them at that point; I could be making dinner, etc, and offer help when asked for.
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Angela
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Three Plus Two
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Christine
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| Posted: Oct 18 2013 at 8:22am | IP Logged
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My eight-year-old son is most likely dyslexic. He cannot work on his own or without me next to him. I work with this son and his six-year-old brother first thing in the morning. If a child wakes at 6:00, I will have him eat breakfast and get dressed, and then I will work with him. Everyone is required to be in the living room at 8:00 for morning prayers and then start their lessons for the day. I try to have one child work somewhat independently while I work with the other. If one of the boys finishes his independent work before I am ready to help him, then I send that child to work with an older sibling. This does sometimes mean that one of the boys is reading with an older sibling instead of me. I assign whichever son finishes his work first the job of playing with my youngest child. When the next one finishes, he has to take over playing with his little brother.
At some point during the morning, my five-year-old daughter rolls out of bed (thankfully, she is a late riser). Once she has eaten breakfast and is dressed, I start teaching her too. Once again, I try to have her work independently until I can work with her. This sometimes means that I need to assign her a picture to color or draw, or the job of playing with her younger brother until I am ready to sit down with her. I am doing all of the reading instruction for her, as I am finding that she is more responsive to a Montessori approach than she is to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. Occasionally, my daughter will say, "It should be ladies first." I simply remind her that if she waits, then I can give her more attention.
The older children (11 and up) work independently, coming to me or one of their siblings with questions, until I am finished working with their younger siblings.
We all break for lunch from 11:30 to 12:30. The children are required to eat and do their chores at this time. After they have done so, they are free to do whatever they want to do until I call them back to work on their lessons at 12:30. The 8-and-under crowd is usually finished with their lessons before lunch and the toddler typically falls asleep while eating his lunch. I try to get a few things done around the house during our lunch break. However, if a child or children ask me to read a book, I will forgo my short cleaning time to read to him/her/them. I work with the older children until 3:00 (some of them finish earlier).
It sounds a little hectic, but it is really working. By the Grace of God, so far, we are having one of the best years we have had in a long time. Hopefully, once this baby is born in February things will continue to go smoothly.
I hope that you find the right schedule for your family.
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Christine
Mommy to 4 girls, 5 boys, & 2 in God's care
Memories of a Catholic Wife and Mother
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4Real Forums : Language Arts Come Alive
Topic: Teaching Reading Logistics
