Wails, whines, and why’s coming from our children all happen at some point when homeschooling. But, how do you look past the behavior and continue with school?

Talk to your child about their behavior.
Is the work too hard? Is there something s/he is not understanding? Is s/he tired? Or, has this behavior worked before and you have stopped the lesson to maintain peace? (This happened in our school.)

Take steps to correct the behavior.
If the material is too difficult then go back to a previous lesson that your daughter/son understood and build from there. This will help them to feel successful and more willing to move ahead when the material is more challenging.

Is your child staying up too late? Try changing the bedtime routine, have quiet activities in the evening and turn off all electronic devices 60 minutes before bedtime. If you keep late evening hours then start school later in the day.

Has less desirable behavior given your daughter/son the desired outcome of stopping the lesson for the day? Wearing the ‘ol mom down was something I had to determine that I would not let happen as often as possible. Although, it certainly did happen at times. I found out that if that happened too often it became an established habit that was hard to break. I would tell the boys that the work was still going to be there, regardless if they did it that day or the next, or the next… I would have them do at least a little of it and we would tackle more of it the next day. I like to think of it as eating peas.lol I detest them, but I know they are good for me, so I figured out that if I put a bunch of them on a fork, grab a glass of water, shove the peas in my mouth and swallow them like pills, I have “eaten” them.

Let your child know you are partners in homeschooling.
You are both learning, you are both tackling hard things. You might not like teaching Social Studies, but you are going to because it is part of the Ohio homeschool requirements. Our attitudes, as teachers toward schoolwork and routines, help set the atmosphere of our school.

Celebrate the victories!
Doing things that are hard deserve recognition. Call attention to good behavior and perseverance. If it was especially hard, then give a sticker, ten minutes of extra time for games, whatever you feel would be appropriate. Let your child see that you appreciate their effort.

Have a great week! ~Lisa~