The Secret of Teaching with a Toddler in the House

Let’s face it; homeschooling with a toddler around can challenge learning and Mom’s sanity. Little people don’t care much about order, method, or quiet; they want to explore, move around, and touch everything—all perfectly appropriate but completely distracting to your homeschool day. Ginny and Mary Ellen have run this drill thousands of times and have learned how to turn this challenge into an enriching, family-focused triumph for toddler, siblings, and mom. Now, they want to share these nuggets of practical advice with you.  Toddlers Defined Typically, toddlers are children ages one to four who are independently mobile; that is to say, they can toddle around, pulling things down upon their sweet little heads and tossing objects willy-nilly everywhere. This is called independent mobility. Acceptance is Key The key to a peaceful homeschool when you have toddlers is to accept it’s not going to be peaceful. It may be chaotic and messy. There is not much you can do, but here are some suggestions. Recognize their need for attention and independence. Use morning time, before school to focus on the toddlers. Give them a job to do: a small dustpan and broom, a Swiffer, or dishtowels to fold.  Praise their help and efforts. Call them mommy’s big helper.   More ideas on the Podcast. Revolving Kids – The Game for Larger Families Start by giving toddlers something to keep them busy. Then, work with your K-2 students. Their work goes quickly. If toddlers start to drive you up the wall – send in an older child to keep them busy. Rotate older kids in and out to play as they finish their work. This activity is good for the little guys and teaches the older children to be responsible. High-chair-age children can be given colored construction paper, a small plastic cup of water, and a paintbrush and told to paint. Older children can sit in a blow-up kiddie pool. I buy these at the end of the summer for about five dollars. They store easily (just deflate), and the little ones love to sit there and play. Ideas for Young Toddlers A play yard with some toys can be helpful. Some bean bags and a bucket provide lots of fun. Provide a baby doll and two baby wipes. Tell the child to wash the baby. For some reason, this will keep them busy for a really long time. More ideas on the Podcast. Ideas for Older Toddlers Three and four-year-olds can be given a glue stick, ripped-out magazine pictures, and paper and told to make collages. You can promise to mail it to Grandma, so it must be extra beautiful. Playdough is fun. I could always find playdough toys at garage sales and added a few things from around the house: cookie cutters, a small rolling pin, corks, an old butter knife, or a spatula. Build buildings with a pile of mini marshmallows and some uncooked spaghetti or toothpicks. Toddler School - I also found it extremely helpful for older toddlers to have their own school box and work. They could only join us at the table if they would “work” quietly. Use nap times, evenings, and weekends when you have an extra pair of hands. If this is a possibility, consider hiring help. BONUS: Accept that somedays none of this works, not much work will get done, and that’s ok.