Last night the power kept turning off and on making our
house look like a bright twinkling Christmas ornament. Needless to say the fan
also went on. And off. And on. And off. And on. And off. I would have hunted
down the source of the problem but even thinking about moving made me sweat
even more. The mosquitoes were back with a vengeance after being forced away
with the wind and rain earlier in the day. It was the most miserable night I
have had in Haiti. I feel sorry for my husband who had to listen to me whimper
and whine.
This morning the power was on. I went through the house and
plugged the fridge and freezers back in. All of our ice has turned into messy
puddles. Despite my fears, nothing caught on fire through the night and while
today’s humidity levels are off the chart, we have our trusty fan back.
We have also started
school full force. The little bit we did on DAY 2 was deemed unsuccessful and
Abe and I decided the kids needed a week to settle in properly. This morning I
talked with the kids and we made the joint (and mommy guided) decision to start
school. I have been busy writing up charts and organizing lessons. Isaiah and
Thaddaeus completed two subjects and have been forced to take a recess so Adam
and Carol can continue in peace. Carolanne is breezing through her work and
concentrating beautifully. I am beginning to understand the only complaint Adam
brought home from his teachers in Public school. Blank stares and off the
subject conversation rule his mind. We are going to work on staying focused.
Any ideas on how to keep the busy mind of a seven year old trained on the task
at hand? I am trying to keep his lessons short-spending no more than twenty
minutes on each topic...
I struggle every day to keep my kids focused on the task at hand. I've learned to adapt to their learning styles. I have one child who needs to be drawing or doing something with his hands while he listens. So any time I am needing to actively teach or read to him, I make sure he has a pencil and paper. His listening and sitting still is so much better when his hands are busy. I have another child who has a very competitive spirit. So if I set a timer for him and challenge him to finish in the allotted time, he will almost always hunker down and race the clock. And I have yet another child who daydreams and sings and plays and does anything she can OTHER than the task at hand. I haven't figured out yet how to help her focus, but hopefully soon! Good luck. :)
ReplyDeleteMaybe learning songs will help the day dreamer. :)I had one girl in a remedial Math class I taught and she could only remember what I could somehow rhyme and put into song. Like Tom Lehrer's Song of the Elements. (LOVE that guy!)
ReplyDeleteAdam, it turns out is a competitive guy! Your racing the clock idea worked wonders for his math this morning! Thanks for taking the time to write. Im sure YOU understand how lonely it can be!