Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

[Meadowlark]

Hi,

So, I'm on the fence about ordering R&S but think I'm tipping over to "buy it" land. Here is what may make or break it though: how to teach it to 3 kids. Next year, I'll have a K, 1st and 2nd grader. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with the amount of "elbow time" homeschooling 3 little ones will be, and I'd like to know if I can possibly teach math together. As in, would it work at all to have all 3 come to the kitchen table and somehow get math done all at once? From what I know of the teacher's manual, it looks like there is a "before lesson" part and also some drill type things that I'd have to do with each child, which makes me think this may not work. Does anyone have any advice for IF this would work, and if so, HOW to do it? Thanks!

[ljallen44]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

We only have a few lessons left in the R&S 1, which is used for both K and 1st grade. It is very easy to teach due to the amount of repeated work the kids do. Here's what I've learned after nearly 2 years working through it:

--The teacher's guide includes WAY more than you will do. I normally do some quick flashcard review, then glance through the before/after activities and go over what I think she needs the most. Total "mom" time for us at these grades has been 5-10 minutes daily. She is then able to complete the workbook independently, then I check after. I usually stay near her if I can but I am working on something else or with another kid.

--New content is introduced in the "after" activities, then the "before" activities, then the workbook. So the assigned daily workbook can be completed before or after the "mom" time. There is never new content introduced by mom and the workbook on the same day. This makes it really flexible for me to work in my mom time whenever I can. Normally new material has been covered for at least a few days before it is in the student workbook.

--Blacklines are really just extra practice. I have not yet felt like we needed to seek out extra work because she needs more time to master something. It's covered so well in the workbooks. I do use them, but more as a replacement if there is a day I need to leave her something to do independently or for practice during summer or winter break.

--Because K and 1 use the 1st grade book over 2 years, you will not have to do a lesson everyday. Some days are just the assigned blacklines, so very minimal mom time on those days.

ETA: Yes, I think you should go with Rod and Staff. It's scheduled in the MP guides, mastery based and very easy to teach.

-Laura

[Colomama]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

I honestly think that Rod and Staff math is one of the least mom-intensive math programs out there for just what the above reply mentioned. Nothing introduced in the before time is on that days workbook pages. It appears in before time for at least 3 days before it appears on their page.

I honestly never do after time.

I spend 5 minutes on flashcards. 10-15 minutes on lesson presentation. I work through at least one problem in each section of their workbook pages so they know what to do and then the child completes the lesson.

Is this your first year for MP and Rod and Staff? Being able to stick with a guide is nice.

Also, new users are often very concerned about combining kids in order to save time. Combine your kids in one grade level enrichment and leave everything else separated out by grade as much as possible. Remember, school is their job (and yours too). You shouldn't feel rushed to be done by mid-morning or lunch. School takes time and dedication. It's a marathon, not a Sprint.

[alihuyoung]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

Last year I tried to combine my K and 1st girls in R&S 1. The first week was adorable, but by week 2 little sister was mad that her numbers were “ugly” compared to big sister’s and big sister was frustrated by having to wait for little sister to grasp something. By week 3 I had separated them.

Fast forward to TODAY when I tried again for the first time in a long while to combine math. I didn’t combine them so much as have them work nearby at the same time. It looked like this:

9am: please get your iPods and headphones and come to the table for math. “Squeal! We get to use our headphones?!”
9-9:10 Work with both kids on clocks, place value and skip counting
9:10 Little sister, please put on your headphones and do your math lesson. Big sister, let’s talk some more about the thousands place.
9:15 Big sister, put on your headphones and do your math lesson. Little sister, pause your song and come help me count these nickels. Now go back to your lesson.
9:30 Both girls done!

I was a bit frazzled from the back and forth but it was manageable. I would still prefer to teach them at separate time but due to time constraints we are going to try this for a week. You could do something similar with 3 kids by staggering the start times by 10 minutes. Since new concepts are taught days in advance, you could have your oldest work on their workbook pages, while you work with your K, then when s/he is ready for the workbook, work with your 1st grader, get them into the workbook. By now your oldest is probably finished with the lesson pages and you can work with them on new concepts or review. It will take some patience from all 4 parties but it could be done Some kids work well at the table with other kids, while some don’t. My oldest really needs an empty room to do her best work. You’ll have to experiment with your kids and see if they can handle the chaos

[KF2000]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

I agree that you don’t need to combine them - I think you can start out the year and see how things go. Second grader will probably be pretty easy to teach since the basics are there you are just building in addition and subtraction skills, and gradually introducing multiplication (if you follow the teacher guide).

But I would also say it might be possible to combine the K and 1; you would just need to see how it goes and then separate if necessary. But it wouldn’t hurt to try. Being out of sync in the curriculum guide in math is probably the easiest of all the subjects. You just do a lesson a day and you are good. So if younger child can manage it, it might be nice to do them together for math as you move forward. But if it is stressful AT ALL (as previous poster mentioned!) then step back and separate immediately.

And lastly, I just want to encourage you. You have found a great curriculum here and a great support system. It is going to feel awkward to step back into homeschooling next year, so take the first couple of weeks slowly. Maybe do half-time for the first two weeks (do one week over the course of two weeks) just to start figuring things out without much pressure. Remember - you get to do this with your kids, and that is priceless. It’s going to be great. The guide holds your hand as you walk through the day. All these questions about combining or not will make a lot more sense once you get a couple of weeks in. And we will still be here for you to shoot questions to. You better let us know how it goes! But for now, read your guides when you get them so you can start to get comfortable with things, and then trust that it’s going to be great. Hugs to you!

AMDG,
Sarah

[Michelle T]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

The advice you have received so far is good. One portion of the lessons K-2 that shouldn’t be skipped and could eventually be done together is an oral recitation of facts. For K-2 it will be skip counting and the add/subtract facts that have been introduced. For 2nd graders it will be the blossom charts they have learned.

HTH,
Michelle T

[Meadowlark]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

I agree that you don’t need to combine them - I think you can start out the year and see how things go. Second grader will probably be pretty easy to teach since the basics are there you are just building in addition and subtraction skills, and gradually introducing multiplication (if you follow the teacher guide).

But I would also say it might be possible to combine the K and 1; you would just need to see how it goes and then separate if necessary. But it wouldn’t hurt to try. Being out of sync in the curriculum guide in math is probably the easiest of all the subjects. You just do a lesson a day and you are good. So if younger child can manage it, it might be nice to do them together for math as you move forward. But if it is stressful AT ALL (as previous poster mentioned!) then step back and separate immediately.

And lastly, I just want to encourage you. You have found a great curriculum here and a great support system. It is going to feel awkward to step back into homeschooling next year, so take the first couple of weeks slowly. Maybe do half-time for the first two weeks (do one week over the course of two weeks) just to start figuring things out without much pressure. Remember - you get to do this with your kids, and that is priceless. It’s going to be great. The guide holds your hand as you walk through the day. All these questions about combining or not will make a lot more sense once you get a couple of weeks in. And we will still be here for you to shoot questions to. You better let us know how it goes! But for now, read your guides when you get them so you can start to get comfortable with things, and then trust that it’s going to be great. Hugs to you!

AMDG,
Sarah

Sarah,
Oh, thank you so much for your kind words. You are all so supportive and answering all of my questions with such patience and grace. I so appreciate that. You're right in detecting that I'm just scared. I ran our old homeschool into a ditch somehow with my older boys, and I just can't do that again. I feel like I have one chance to get this right because I cannot put my kids in school, pull them out, and then put them in the same school again. They need consistency and I need to find a place of calm and peace about the curriculum and where it's headed. Seems like MP could be that for me, but as I'm expressed in previous posts, classical is brand new here and so I'm a bit nervous about all of this. I have scoured the Internet and can't find anything close to what MP seems to offer. It looks just beautiful if only I could trust it! Maybe that will just come as I do it, and that's what I'm praying for. Thanks again! I'm sure I"ll be back soon with more questions once I get the box :-)

[KF2000]

Re: Help with how to teach R&S K, 1, 2

Deep breaths, and strong coffee....that's what works for me!
<
You'll get there!
AMDG,
Sarah