Newbie here

[funmomma]

The task of home schooling is one I excited about and scared at the same time! My oldest is now 9 and I have a 6yr old and a 4yr old, all boys. My oldest was diagnosed with Autism pdd nos. I started homeschooling him in first grade pulling him out of public school because several times his faced was grabbed by the teachers assistant and I was there in the classroom as a classroom parent. Pulling him out was for me a safety issue. It worked well too because my then middle child took naps with my 1 yr old. My son and I had lots of time. I did think it was overwhelming for the us. My school day started 8a and ended at 4p. We did lots of fun stuff but I felt always pressed to "finish things".

After re-locating to a new state we ended up being stuck in a hotel for 6 mos and I ended up putting him into public school. Last year my middle boy went to K.

That all being said I want some ideas as to HOW do I home school three kids of such different stages of development and very active too. Keep the little guy busy, be there for the oldest and get the 6 yr old to do ANYTHING?! Another thing is how do you get a balance and cover everything?

[hscoach]

I think it is hard but you can do it! Your 9 year old should be able to do some work on his own. Your 6 year old should be able to complete his assignments within an hour or so. The rest of the day he could do fun educational activities with his younger brother (while you have one-on-one time with your oldest). Some ideas would be educational videos, learning games on the computer, crafts, educational board games, building toys like Legos, play dough, drawing, etc. Maybe you could type up a list of options for them and put it on the refrigerator. Then they could go to the list to find things to fill their day.

You may not cover everything but that's okay! There are many gaps even in traditional school. Your kids will learrn more than you realize! Reading books is the best way for them to be well-educated. The classics are especially good.

Here is an article that might be helpful to you.

http://smarttutor.com/home/Homeschoolin ... Levels.asp

[Jill]

Do you know about unit studies? You take a topic and study it in depth with children of varying ages. Older and younger kids will have slightly different tasks based on their abilities.
You can make your own or buy them "premade." There are even some free online...just search free unit studies. Some well known ones available for purchase are by Valerie Bendt and KONOS.
Best wishes!