I home school my kindergarten and first grade boys. My kindergartner doesn't want to do the work.?

Question

I try to make it fun, my first grader does wonderful and he thinks it's fun most of the time, but the kindergartener is giving me the attitude like "I don't like this and I will only do the parts I want to do" Granted I understand that is unacceptable and he doesn't get away with it. I don't want to fight with him, I also don't want to give him a bad impression of school, but he needs to learn these things. How do I go about teaching aa child that has absolutely no intrest in being taught?

Answer 1

This is one of the major downsides of "Home schooling". No peer pressure and no social interaction! Send him to School!!!

Answer 2

Kindergarten is still young to be expecting a lot from.  My son can only focus for so long before he is just done.  The older he gets the more he gets into it.  I would suggest doing some things with him for short periods of time.  And when you see the first signs of him being done with that then stop. You will find that he will be able to handle more and more.  Also I don't know if it is sit down work or not, but if you put things in the forms of games...card games...hangman...something where he is up and moving and doesn't really seem like work he may tend to focus longer and have the want to for longer.

Know also that no two kids will take things in the same or can be taught the same. How your first grader responds wonderfully to one thing you may need a totally differant approach for your kindergartener.

Good Luck!!

Answer 3

I apologize for all the "send him to public school" answers. Saddens me to see so many ignorant answers.

He will not get the education he deserves if you send him to public school.

He's probably only been in school a few weeks, if I'm correct? Give it time. He's probably not used to it yet. Once he gets in the groove it'll get easier to teach him.

Here's my opinion. It may not be help--it's just my opinion. Kids his age won't learn if you sit them down and try to teach them. Kids at this age learn by playing, experimenting, and doing hands-on things. If you make his learning fun he will want to do it. As he gets older, you can start taking the playing out and he will get used to sitting and doing his work. For now, he's what 5 yrs. old? Yeah...5 yr. olds don't sit and do work! :-)

I can remember 1st grade and from what I remember it was pretty much just review of kindergarten. As long as he somewhat gets a grasp of the things he needs to learn now, he will do just fine in 1st grade.

Now I'm not saying it should be all fun and games. What I am saying is that it should be a combination of orginization and fun. It can't be all strict sit down work. That's just not reasonable for a kindergartner.

Answer 4

tough one but I'd say the time has come to look into putting  him in school. along with learning   he won't be as sheltered and I don't mean to insult I'm just saying that learning with people in school prepares you to deal with life. peace!

Answer 5

U should give him options, ask him wat he is interested in and then try to work around that. trust me i used 2 b like that

Answer 6

First, it is hard to really analyze the situation without more details, but there are some things that stand out. First, boys take longer to mature and he may not be ready for a structured program.  Second, you may need to develop a different approach for your K child. Learning should be something they WANT to do, not be forced to do. I promise, you can force him to do an assignment but you cannot force him to learn.  Destroy his willingness to learn at this point and he will be resistant for many years to come.  You need his cooperation. So how do you go about getting cooperation? Discipline is always a yes, but there is more to the picture here..  Maybe he isn't a book learner and prefers hands on or audible or .. instead of a lot of writing.. maybe oral review might be the way to go. Much of Kindergarten should be SHORT, short lessons. I say.. probably no more than 10-15 minutes of sit down time without a break for 'energy release' Lots of reading, curl up with the boys... have your K child pick out words (sight words) in a story...  repetitive stories ( Dr. Seuss for example) are helpful in picking out a word.. have him say it whenever he sees it (like the word and or the).  Do nature walks, have him draw the leaves or build a collection and identify them. Have him do math with pretzels or candy pieces.. have him help in the kitchen for measuring. Painting and crafts should be a great hands-on.. let him be different and creative.

My favorite book about learning styles is "The Way They Learn" by Cynthia Ulrich Tobias. See if your library has this book.  As she was a 'stubborn child' herself, she gives us an interesting inside look into how to deal with these kids.

Most of all.. relax. He has 13 years of education and I know he will learn ALL the things he needs to know.  Just re-evaluate what you are doing to fit your son, even if it isn't what makes you tick... which is the hardest part about teaching the desire to learn.

The websites below are great articles.. I pray that it is helpful.

As for the other comments: What make people think that a child will automatically be an angelic and compliant child in the hands of the public school?  Do you honestly think that this mother keeps their child from other people and doesn't allow them to interact with other people?    She didn't ask about providing social time, but handling academics.

Answer 7

I take a different stance on kindergarten requirements. I just don't see that a kindergartener needs to actually sit down and do 'work'. Kindergarten classes in our schools here are primarily centre time (play), with a story time each day, maybe singing the alphabet while pointing out the letters, a little bit of literacy time (focusing on a sound for the day, as a group), maybe a bit of math time (counting and recognizing numbers 1-10) and then, here and there, actual sit-down, colouring or practising writing their name and age. That's it. Kindergarten is not a requirement where I live--its focus is to get kids used to being in such an environment. It's also introducing a very small amount of work, which will be built upon the following year in gr. 1, then built upon even more throughout the years.

My question to you would be: Are you expecting too much of this particular child? Especially if he's had the tendency to be 'delayed' compared to your gr. 1 son, or more active or anything like that. My second question would be: What is it that you are trying to teach him and why does he absolutely need to learn this in K? Are there other things that he'd like to learn about? Ways for you to tie in what you'd like him to learn with what he likes to do or learn? Games are usually great--finding games, bingo games, etc. Find him something he wants to do and with which he's still learning and you will find that the attitude disappears.

Answer 8

Why, when you ask about academic things, does the socialization thing come up?  The social atmosphere of a class has very little to do with a 5yo boy wanting to do book work.  The problem isn't that he's at home - far from it - but that he's 5 and doesn't see the point in it yet.

hplss.rmntc - your answer has nothing to do with the question...and how is the home not real life?  In your "real life", are you in a room for 7 hours a day, with people almost exactly your age and from only your neighborhood, being told when you can eat, when you can read, when you can use the bathroom, and when you can sit or stand?  Does your "real life" include being told what you can and can't learn right now, or who you have to play with?  If it does, I feel sorry for you.  I really do.

I'm not saying schools are bad, but they have nothing to do with "real life".  They are the farthest thing from "real life" - they are a pseudo-society all their own, by necessity.  Living within this society while at school is the only way to keep even a percentage of the kids on track - it's not meant to emulate "real life".

Back to the question...

I would really suggest to not make him do a formal curriculum right now.  I know the curriculum providers tout it as the greatest thing, and it is for some kids...but it also earns them an extra $300 for each child that uses those workbooks.

Boys often don't mature to the point where they can do a formal curriculum until they're a little older, and that's fine.  Girls are often chomping at the bit to "play school" and often like doing the work; boys, not so much.

For K, I would say to keep it fun.  You can easily work K skills into his day without making it "work"; have him draw his letters in shaving cream or pudding, practice writing them in sidewalk chalk outside, do math with M&Ms or matchbox cars, and read with both the kids A LOT.  Have your K son draw pictures of what's going on, give him things to hold when he needs to focus (occupying the hands can do wonders), and keep his focus time to 5-15 minutes at a time (unless it's something that he counts as "fun").

I know it can be hard when you start out with a compliant learner to try to take on "Wiggly Willy"; he does want to learn, he's wired to learn, he just learns in a different way.  He might do well with lapbooks or unit studies, but remember to keep it to about 30-45 minutes a day - at this age, he really doesn't need any more "formal" academics than that.  The rest of the day can be educational games, running and playing, read alouds, and the like.

He may be one of the kids that just plain mature into schoolwork a little later, but he'll pick up more than you think.  My son is 9.5, starting 5th grade, and he was ready for a formal curriculum last year.  Now, he's several years above grade level, even though he's only been tackling formal curriculum for a little over a year.  Before that, he really wasn't interested in learning that way, but he still learned.  Kids learn all the time - just not always the way that we think they should :-)

The following site has some fantastic lapbook units for early elementary, they are both skill-based and fun for lots of different learning styles:

http://www.handsofachild.com/2/

You might get some good lesson ideas at the following sites:

http://www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/

http://www.teacherplanet.com/resource/at...

http://www.akidsheart.com/

http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/

http://www.atozteacherstuff.com/Grades_K...

http://www.abcteach.com/

http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/li...

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.ht...

Good luck!

Answer 9

One problem home school teachers have is the one you are experiencing. The child does not differentiate between Mommy and Teacher and is more likely to be defiant. In school, this behavior is not permitted and the students know it.  What is your school setting like at home?  Is it perhaps too casual? Is school at the same time each day?  Consider setting up a separate area or room that looks very much like a classroom, so when it is time for " school", he might be more responsible about getting his work done.

Answer 10

Thank God you have a first grader that does the work.  Allow his brother to earn privelages that are fun.  Do not allow the kindergartener to do it if his work is not done.  Then explain to him, that if he does his work, he will be extended the same privelages.

Answer 11

As a former public school kindergarten teacher, and not against home schooling, I couldn't agree more with Carly. I noticed she has five thumb's down, so far, and I may get the same, but she gave a very good, short and to the point answer, and I agree. Whether at home or in a school classroom, the child must have the feeling that their "school time" is a time for learning...make it fun, but stick with the idea that it is "schooling".

I'm not saying I think Carly has the "best answer", as there are several good answers, and all should be considered.

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Answer 12

try public school, they have the education to teach

good luck!

Answer 13

This is why I would never try to home school children that young. I would send him to a real kindergarten. Part of kindergarten is learning to socialize. No matter how good of a parent and teacher you are you cannot teach him everything he needs to know. Your children need to learn about other people, the good and the bad. Your home is not the real world.

My advice would be to send them to a public school or private school for a few years so that they can get the social aspects of school. If after a few years, you think that they are not getting the academic education that they need, then consider homeschooling them.

I know this is probably not what you want to hear. But your kids need to get out of your comfort zone. Otherwise they will live a very sheltered life and they will not know how to grow up.