teaching children to work well & to be prompt

[SaintJude7]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

VA Mom,
Remember that you will set whatever hours work for your particular situation. But once they are set, there is no negotiation. Figure out how many hours it should take your second grader to accomplish the full workload and time for study. It may be the case that everything can be done, and done well, in a few hours. A lot of this depends on your nap schedule for the other two and what your second grader is able to do without direct supervision. The important thing is that, if you say school is from 8:00 to 12:00, they don't think they can rush through it in two hours and then have two hours to play.
My seven year old has to make his bed, clean his part of his bedroom, pick up the living room and anything left on the stairs, put away his toys, dust the bookshelves, and fold towels. (He's ready to do more, but some of the other things he could do are taken by DD 10 and DD 5.)
Blessings,
Jude

DD 20, DS 17, DS 14, DS 12, DD 10, DS 7, DD 5

[SaintJude7]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

Well most days at home find me in cargo shorts and ribbed tank top so I would say you look pretty put together! Really though those pockets come in handy do you know how many pencils and books I can fit in there!?


It is funny I loved the uniforms in my schools growing up. Even in high-school it was one of my favorite parts the school year...not having to pick an outfit...it was never really about the formal look for me just easy, uncomplicated. When I do go out my clothes do suspiciously look like my old high school uniform if you swap the skirt for my shorts right down to the lands end sweater...I love those ha!

I pretty much have a daily uniform, and I always have a Lands End cardigan with me, even in summer. I wear various skirts that come down past my knees. I own a particular LL Bean boatneck, heavy cotton top in at least eight different colors. (The fabric is so soft, DS 12 asked if I can make him a quilt from them when they wear out.) I don't like to think about what I am going to wear in the morning. This combination is appropriate for pretty much everywhere that I go during the week.
Blessings,
Jude

DD 20, DS 17, DS 14, DS 12, DD 10, DS 7, DD 5

[serendipitous journey]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

I pretty much have a daily uniform, and I always have a Lands End cardigan with me, even in summer. I wear various skirts that come down past my knees. I own a particular LL Bean boatneck, heavy cotton top in at least eight different colors. (The fabric is so soft, DS 12 asked if I can make him a quilt from them when they wear out.) I don't like to think about what I am going to wear in the morning. This combination is appropriate for pretty much everywhere that I go during the week.
Blessings,
Jude

DD 20, DS 17, DS 14, DS 12, DD 10, DS 7, DD 5

Thanks for this uniform rundown! My boys have a uniform of polo shirts + khaki pants/shorts (though this year's shorts are grey or navy b/c that was what was on sale) and, though they have polos in a few different colors, they don't get any days off their uniforms: that's what they wear on weekends too. With plain t-shirts for layering.

But my uniform needs work. This year it was black shirt + jeans + scarf, and I want to do something better than the jeans. So glad to see what you do and have a sense of what a nicer "mama/teacher uniform" might be. When the little was smaller I had to have a uniform that enabled me to scootch down a hill on my rear end (we live at the end of a narrow road and on the side of a hill, so what with road closings and other occasional excitement I really had to do this sometimes, carrying the child). But now he can totally walk everywhere in all weather! I can upgrade!

[VAmom]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

VA Mom,
Remember that you will set whatever hours work for your particular situation. But once they are set, there is no negotiation. Figure out how many hours it should take your second grader to accomplish the full workload and time for study. It may be the case that everything can be done, and done well, in a few hours. A lot of this depends on your nap schedule for the other two and what your second grader is able to do without direct supervision. The important thing is that, if you say school is from 8:00 to 12:00, they don't think they can rush through it in two hours and then have two hours to play.
My seven year old has to make his bed, clean his part of his bedroom, pick up the living room and anything left on the stairs, put away his toys, dust the bookshelves, and fold towels. (He's ready to do more, but some of the other things he could do are taken by DD 10 and DD 5.)
Blessings,
Jude

DD 20, DS 17, DS 14, DS 12, DD 10, DS 7, DD 5

Jude,

Thank you for your help. And I'm glad to know that I'm not expecting way more or less chores of my 7 year old. So how long does your ds7 do school?

Thanks,
Heidi

[SaintJude7]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

Jude,

Thank you for your help. And I'm glad to know that I'm not expecting way more or less chores of my 7 year old. So how long does your ds7 do school?

Thanks,
Heidi

He pretty much needs the full school day. He is very slow at writing. He has a lot of memory work to keep him busy. He was going through First Communion preparation this year, so he also had to memorize all of the answers to the First Communion Catechism. If he finishes before 3:00, he has extra assigned reading as well. And he occasionally listens in to what I read to DD 5.

Blessings,
Jude

DD 20, DS 17, DS 14, DS12, DD 10, DS 7, DD5

[bean]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

Love the uniform suggestion- not necessarily to have an out-and-out uniform for dd (school jumpers for a class of one?) but because she likes to dress nicely. She's at an age with it is really hard to find modest (her words) and well made clothes because she would be a juniors size- or a hard-to-find girls 16. This thread gave me an ah-ha moment. School uniforms go up to size 20! They come in solid colors with easy care fabrics! Easy to match! More modest that the usual offerings. This could make fall much easier. She's tried to wear my dress blouses, but always has to layer another shirt underneath. French Toast has some just the style she wants.

I have had good luck finding dress slacks for me in a somewhat stretchy fabric in petite lengths at - surprisingly- Walmart. I need to wear dress slacks at work (skirts would not work at all!), and these are super comfy. I can just get dressed in the morning and look "together" all day. I'd like to upgrade my sweaters and blouses a bit, though.

[howiecram]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

I have had good luck finding dress slacks for me in a somewhat stretchy fabric in petite lengths at - surprisingly- Walmart. I need to wear dress slacks at work (skirts would not work at all!), and these are super comfy. I can just get dressed in the morning and look "together" all day. I'd like to upgrade my sweaters and blouses a bit, though.

This sounds promising!! I'm pretty much a "yoga" mom! But not because we are fitness fanatics. I generally don't like clothes! LOL I like the comfy clothes!! However, I want to look like it is 2017, but with modesty.

[bean]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

This sounds promising!! I'm pretty much a "yoga" mom! But not because we are fitness fanatics. I generally don't like clothes! LOL I like the comfy clothes!! However, I want to look like it is 2017, but with modesty.

My only caveat is that they do need to air dry or they temporarily "shrink" in the legs until I wash them again. I just hang them by the bottom hem from a clip hanger on the shower rod as they come out of the washer.

[VAmom]

Re: teaching children to work well & to be prompt

[QUOTE=SaintJude7;59403]He pretty much needs the full school day. He is very slow at writing. He has a lot of memory work to keep him busy. He was going through First Communion preparation this year, so he also had to memorize all of the answers to the First Communion Catechism. If he finishes before 3:00, he has extra assigned reading as well. And he occasionally listens in to what I read to DD 5.


Thank you Jude! It is helpful to know that school for this age might take more than 2 hours.