Thank you so much for sharing your real struggles. Homeschooling is hard when you have kids who need you all the time. I can tell how much you care about your children learning and figuring out what they each need. Hang in there! You're doing great.
7 Yr old twin mom here... It's always nice to hear twin mother's talk of their struggles. The teaching challenges of the same age is very misunderstood, it's a much harder task in my opinion. We did multiple curricula and then settled with Abeka, starting in kindergarten and moving up. I do their schooling together as its much easier, I do a few of the games but mostly just have them answer one-by-one too. If it ever gets too much, I did find the arithmetic videos are amazing! (All of them are for that fact!). The videos follow along with the lesson plans but have tons of games and movement to keep them "focused", so if you want to mix and match on different days it's very intuitive to do so. Math has been a challenge too as we are now in 3rd grade, we found a mixture of the videos and TGTB musical multiplication songs worked great at memorizing those fact families. Additionally, we skip the test day homework sheets and save those for "summer school".
Thank you, Angie, for sharing and for this raw review. ❤ I've been a homeschool mom of 3 for a year now. I found this video to be most helpful as I am still trying to navigate teaching 3 grades, how to let it go, if needed, and how to pause when it doesn't seem to work. Your videos are so refreshing as they are always great reminders of the joys and challenges of taking on the hardest jobs we'll ever love: Mama + Educator. You're doing great! Thank you for sharing your journey.
I have the same troubles with my 2nd grader. Doing lessons in my bedroom with the door shut has really helped my daughter as well. And I have to teach Saxon to my kids-NTML didn’t work for them. However, I do like that it does the grading for me. Thanks for sharing!
Great job with your daughter. She needs the candle and separate spot to really get a grasp on concepts.. the candle probably calms her down and makes her feel like she has something special.. whatever it takes to get a solid math foundation 😊
I can 100% relate to a lot of what you’re saying. I feel like we’ve mirrored your path in a lot of ways. I have a 4th grader I’ve used LOE with but she has struggled with math. We started with Singapore, but had similar issues you had, then jumped around with different maths. I know you said you’re not looking to switch math, but just wanted to share that we found Beast Academy and it has been a game changer. It has short video lessons, like 3-4 minutes and it really builds critical thinking skills. I think you would love it honestly. I started my daughter on level 1 and she is currently on level 2 as a fourth grader. They say when you finish level 5, you’re ready for pre-algebra or maybe even algebra, but it really takes its time building a math sense and how to approach problems and it has been SO good. The biggest difference is critical thinking is built into every problem which feels so unique. My daughter is still working on addition and subtraction, but I have no reservation because I know it is building such deeper skills. People often say it is only for gifted math students, but I really disagree. We just go through at each child’s pace and only do 20-30 minutes a day. I feel like with your mindset, it might be a lovely program if you ever decide you want to try something else. Many people start it as supplemental which is what I did and then I realized it was more than enough to be the stand alone curriculum. Just some thoughts for you to do with whatever you wish.
I live reading to my kids, but getting books on Libby for us to listen to together has really helped me not feel overwhelmed with getting all my read aloud done. It may be a great way for your twins to listen and play Lego while you work with older kids
I second this!! I highly support relying on audible, Spotify, and/or libby programs for the kids to listen to someone else read the book sometimes. Some books are read on TH-cam, and some are on free podcasts. My daughter and I can often listen together instead of me reading/talking so much of each school day. May God give you wisdom because you need your voice to teach math! 😊😊 I have much compassion for you. Prayers up 🙏🏽
Sending you lots of hugs and good vibes. ❤ We had years of struggling with math with my oldest. He is finally in 8th grade, and we found something that works. But it is so hard when math isn't being easily "caught". Luckily, she has you supporting and cheering her on.
This totally resonated with me today. Felt such similar feelings with 3rd grade math. There is so much pressure homeschooling! It does take a lot of emotional reserve, what a great way to describe it. Helpful video, thanks for sharing!
Your daughter reminds me a bit of mine and something that has helped (especially as we are working with multiplication and bigger numbers) are the mental math strategies. In public school she was doing common core style mental math and now we use math with confidence and she really leans on those strategies a lot. My son prefers the more procedural methods and manipulatives, so I do think it can be a personality thing. Math can be a smidge stressful over here too. Sending you encouragement. It's hard!
Great update! Thank you for sharing. I love that you are so in tune to your children’s individual needs and you give them exactly what they respond to.
Thank you so much for sharing your real struggles! My daughter is eight and she seems to have the same struggles as your daughter..i feel like i have to tell her to focus so much!! so glad im not alone:)
Math has been a big struggle with one of mine as well. I can relate to all that you said. Your daughter has a great mom that keeps fighting for the best option for her!
Hoping for a good turnout with the changes you’ve made for your daughter and her math. ❤ I’ve been there with language arts for my daughter and finally, as of September we’re settled and things are going well. There were a lot of tears on my part until I found want worked because I felt like a failure. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
We pause a lot to work on mastery …. Which makes me so insecure as a public school kid / now a homeschool mom 😭. I keep reminding myself that we are offering a private tutoring/ private school experience and there is no rush. But the struggle seasons are hard! Sending hugs and goodness your way!
Most of my kids have needed to practice multiplication facts separate from their other math work. It does help so much in that age range to have the facts memorized! I also have a huge range of how independent they are. Some of my kids needed me to sit with them pretty much the entire time they were working at that age, including assignments. Others just needed me to teach, and some were able to jump in themselves and ask me or an older sibling for help if they got stuck without teaching from me most days (6 of my kids are grade 5 and older, so I have had a big variety of personalities and abilities). Good luck! I know how exhausting and time consuming it is to teach so many lessons each day.
As to your daughter’s math, I can totally relate. Math and spelling are my son’s two toughest subjects, but math requires so much more time and energy, so it has been the trickier subject to navigate. This year (5th grade) we are having our best math year yet thanks to two things. 1) I pulled him back about 1/2 a year and 2) I have implemented a lot of mental math. My son has struggled with his math facts (he’s finally getting them) and with focus. Pulling him back has given him the time to fully grasp certain concepts and to feel successful and “smart” and the mental math has been huge for both building confidence and ability. When we were really struggling I had to think about what my main goal for him in math was and I realized it was confidence and the ability to do math mentally to avoid the stress that comes from being able to come up with the answer when playing a game or paying someone. And after listening to some interviews with Kate Snow (author of Math With Confidence) I knew that pulling him back a little would help with that goal as well.
I love the desk in your room candle time math idea. I have twin boys who just turned 7 and they are so loud, wild and distracting sometimes. Although so is our 15 month old. 😅 My daughter struggles with math too. We have fast facts practice charts (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) that they are suppose to see what we can get done in 3 mins. She doesn't do well with them but if we let her say them out loud she does it much better. My husband thought of that for some reason 👍. The drill team sounds cool! It's definitely hard figuring out all the struggles. Homeschooling 4 kids sometimes feels so mentally draining... but worth it! 😊 In our homeschool we have a 6th grade daughter, 5th grade son and 1st grade twins. Some days are amazing and others are soo hard. It's a roller coaster.
October was the exact for me 😵💫😵💫 thank you for sharing all these feelings. I felt like giving up this October for homeschooling like I was hitting a wall
Remember when teachers said we wouldn’t have calculators in our pockets 😂 it’s ok to slow down in math some kids just aren’t going to have STEM careers and that’s ok! It’s even obvious with some of my kids at that young age. Relationships and confidence are more important than memorizing or grade levels ❤
My daughter is 9 and she would give a lot of push back and would do anything to avoid it, but she loves to talk and tell stories so I got right brain addition and subtraction as well as multiplication and division and it’s been night and day - she knows all her facts now
I have watched your channel somewhat sporadically and did not realize you're in Colorado! We just moved to Colorado. My oldest is about to be 5, so we haven't done an official curriculum yet, but I am in search of one. From what I understand, Colorado seems to look down on homeschooling. I'm not sure if you've done a video on how you comply with Colorado Homeschooling laws, but now that I know you're in Colorado, I will for sure be updating myself on ALL of your videos!
Cover or umbrella schools are popular here in CO. Otherwise, I don’t think it’s all that bad. We use Poudre River School, but there are others. CHEC is another that comes to mind. You might consider joining HSLDA. They have your back regardless of where you live. They also let you know about upcoming legislation issues that might impact homeschooling, regardless of the state. I’ve talked to them before regarding using public education funded “co-ops”, and found them very helpful.
I always love your videos. I love how you talk everything over and let us into your thought process. It is always so relatable! You are so in tune with your kids. I’m sure you will find the right solution so everyone can survive. My one thought to try to help, have you looked into Kate Snow’s math facts that stick? Take a few weeks for hands on math and games to learn the math facts and then back to your regular curriculum? Maybe she just needs to work on it in a different style for something to click. My local library has them so I was able to read through it. We took a break from our curriculum and did the addition one and it was an amazing change. And then we ditched our old curriculum completely and switched to math with confidence. Haha. A lot more work but fits his learning style best.
❤️sending hugs! Our daughters sound so similar when it comes to math! So I understand the feeling! Hang in there! It sounds like you’re doing all the right things!
I just wanted to mention because I don't see it talked about anywhere, singapore math has an all online curriculum called esingapore. I ordered the book curriculum last year and was overwhelmed by all the pieces and then discovered the online curriculum and it's made life so much easier! It only goes up to grade 5 but wanted to put it out there if anyone is still trying to find the right fit for their kiddo ❤
I read aloud the first little house book to my daughter last year for kindergarten. This year she can read so she's currently going thru book #3 which is Little House on the Prairies. We're holding off on #2 Farmer Boy as that one can be read out of order since it doesn't quite follow the family.
I’d start little house closer to the end of the year. She was born just after the Civil War. Then split the books into early next year or over the summer. Most of the time frame is mid to late 19th century. That way you won’t confuse your kids with time periods. All “old” things start to seem the same. Making the mental connections with the appropriate history helps. Level D will only take you just to the cusp of the civil war. I also found that the more recent history at the end of Level E was not covered with the same… objectivity and thoroughness as the history up through WWII was. So we tended to fly through it, even doubling up our days. So that means you *could* pause in the 19th century or during the World Wars to read other things and still have time.
Your daughter sounds similar to my younger daughter, who is currently 7. She's good at math, but boy does she fight doing it. She says she just doesn't like it and has trouble staying on task anyhow. I suspect ADHD like her oldest brother. I like your idea of making math a special time! My daughter loves girly stuff and being treated special, so that might really help. We're taking a break from homeschooling for a bit, but plan to return to it when we can work out the logistics of childcare. I have 9yo b/g twins, 7yo b/g twins, almost 6yo b/b twins, and an almost 3yo boy.
We use Math Mammoth, and my 4th grader hit the multiplication review before it introduced multidigit multiplication, and it was a crash and burn 😅 So we are doing the multiplication facts that stick from Kate Snow to just slow it all down, and review those basic facts. Basically, I feel you! And it takes a lot out of you to figure all this out! Especially all the added stuff when you have 4 kids to deal with! (Same situation here!)
I was wondering the same after listening! My 5 yo daughter is so similar, and she is in the diagnosis process for ADHD! Having the diagnosis really has helped me understand her brain. We’ve been working with occupational to therapy and it’s really helped.
![ปฏิเสธไม่ไหว (Crush on you) - LIPTA feat. No One Else [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NBw1jF342vw/mqdefault.jpg)
I know you said you like Saxon but my motto is “if it makes both of us cry, then it needs to change”.
Thank you so much for sharing your real struggles. Homeschooling is hard when you have kids who need you all the time. I can tell how much you care about your children learning and figuring out what they each need. Hang in there! You're doing great.
7 Yr old twin mom here... It's always nice to hear twin mother's talk of their struggles. The teaching challenges of the same age is very misunderstood, it's a much harder task in my opinion. We did multiple curricula and then settled with Abeka, starting in kindergarten and moving up. I do their schooling together as its much easier, I do a few of the games but mostly just have them answer one-by-one too. If it ever gets too much, I did find the arithmetic videos are amazing! (All of them are for that fact!). The videos follow along with the lesson plans but have tons of games and movement to keep them "focused", so if you want to mix and match on different days it's very intuitive to do so. Math has been a challenge too as we are now in 3rd grade, we found a mixture of the videos and TGTB musical multiplication songs worked great at memorizing those fact families. Additionally, we skip the test day homework sheets and save those for "summer school".
Glad I'm not the only one ... homeschooling twins has a unique set of challenges!
The Witch of Blackbird Pond is such a great book!
Thank you, Angie, for sharing and for this raw review. ❤ I've been a homeschool mom of 3 for a year now. I found this video to be most helpful as I am still trying to navigate teaching 3 grades, how to let it go, if needed, and how to pause when it doesn't seem to work. Your videos are so refreshing as they are always great reminders of the joys and challenges of taking on the hardest jobs we'll ever love: Mama + Educator. You're doing great! Thank you for sharing your journey.
I have the same troubles with my 2nd grader. Doing lessons in my bedroom with the door shut has really helped my daughter as well. And I have to teach Saxon to my kids-NTML didn’t work for them. However, I do like that it does the grading for me. Thanks for sharing!
Great job with your daughter. She needs the candle and separate spot to really get a grasp on concepts.. the candle probably calms her down and makes her feel like she has something special.. whatever it takes to get a solid math foundation 😊
I can 100% relate to a lot of what you’re saying. I feel like we’ve mirrored your path in a lot of ways. I have a 4th grader I’ve used LOE with but she has struggled with math. We started with Singapore, but had similar issues you had, then jumped around with different maths. I know you said you’re not looking to switch math, but just wanted to share that we found Beast Academy and it has been a game changer. It has short video lessons, like 3-4 minutes and it really builds critical thinking skills. I think you would love it honestly. I started my daughter on level 1 and she is currently on level 2 as a fourth grader. They say when you finish level 5, you’re ready for pre-algebra or maybe even algebra, but it really takes its time building a math sense and how to approach problems and it has been SO good. The biggest difference is critical thinking is built into every problem which feels so unique. My daughter is still working on addition and subtraction, but I have no reservation because I know it is building such deeper skills. People often say it is only for gifted math students, but I really disagree. We just go through at each child’s pace and only do 20-30 minutes a day. I feel like with your mindset, it might be a lovely program if you ever decide you want to try something else. Many people start it as supplemental which is what I did and then I realized it was more than enough to be the stand alone curriculum. Just some thoughts for you to do with whatever you wish.
I live reading to my kids, but getting books on Libby for us to listen to together has really helped me not feel overwhelmed with getting all my read aloud done. It may be a great way for your twins to listen and play Lego while you work with older kids
I second this!! I highly support relying on audible, Spotify, and/or libby programs for the kids to listen to someone else read the book sometimes. Some books are read on TH-cam, and some are on free podcasts. My daughter and I can often listen together instead of me reading/talking so much of each school day. May God give you wisdom because you need your voice to teach math! 😊😊 I have much compassion for you. Prayers up 🙏🏽
Sending you lots of hugs and good vibes. ❤ We had years of struggling with math with my oldest. He is finally in 8th grade, and we found something that works. But it is so hard when math isn't being easily "caught". Luckily, she has you supporting and cheering her on.
This totally resonated with me today. Felt such similar feelings with 3rd grade math. There is so much pressure homeschooling! It does take a lot of emotional reserve, what a great way to describe it. Helpful video, thanks for sharing!
Such an highly relatable video. Thank you for showcasing the highs and lows. So real. Truly appreciate you on TH-cam!
Your daughter reminds me a bit of mine and something that has helped (especially as we are working with multiplication and bigger numbers) are the mental math strategies. In public school she was doing common core style mental math and now we use math with confidence and she really leans on those strategies a lot. My son prefers the more procedural methods and manipulatives, so I do think it can be a personality thing. Math can be a smidge stressful over here too. Sending you encouragement. It's hard!
Great update! Thank you for sharing. I love that you are so in tune to your children’s individual needs and you give them exactly what they respond to.
Thank you so much for sharing your real struggles! My daughter is eight and she seems to have the same struggles as your daughter..i feel like i have to tell her to focus so much!! so glad im not alone:)
The Witch of Blackbird Pond is my most favorite book ever. I just reread it last week. ❤
Math has been a big struggle with one of mine as well. I can relate to all that you said. Your daughter has a great mom that keeps fighting for the best option for her!
I’ve been crying these same tears lately. Solidarity!
I'm right here with you :)
The amazing thing about homeschool is that we can sit on concepts that need extra practice! Changing her environment is amazing!
Hoping for a good turnout with the changes you’ve made for your daughter and her math. ❤ I’ve been there with language arts for my daughter and finally, as of September we’re settled and things are going well. There were a lot of tears on my part until I found want worked because I felt like a failure. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
We pause a lot to work on mastery …. Which makes me so insecure as a public school kid / now a homeschool mom 😭. I keep reminding myself that we are offering a private tutoring/ private school experience and there is no rush. But the struggle seasons are hard! Sending hugs and goodness your way!
Most of my kids have needed to practice multiplication facts separate from their other math work. It does help so much in that age range to have the facts memorized! I also have a huge range of how independent they are. Some of my kids needed me to sit with them pretty much the entire time they were working at that age, including assignments. Others just needed me to teach, and some were able to jump in themselves and ask me or an older sibling for help if they got stuck without teaching from me most days (6 of my kids are grade 5 and older, so I have had a big variety of personalities and abilities). Good luck! I know how exhausting and time consuming it is to teach so many lessons each day.
Rightstart math and beast math both seem like good options to look into.😊
As to your daughter’s math, I can totally relate. Math and spelling are my son’s two toughest subjects, but math requires so much more time and energy, so it has been the trickier subject to navigate. This year (5th grade) we are having our best math year yet thanks to two things. 1) I pulled him back about 1/2 a year and 2) I have implemented a lot of mental math. My son has struggled with his math facts (he’s finally getting them) and with focus. Pulling him back has given him the time to fully grasp certain concepts and to feel successful and “smart” and the mental math has been huge for both building confidence and ability. When we were really struggling I had to think about what my main goal for him in math was and I realized it was confidence and the ability to do math mentally to avoid the stress that comes from being able to come up with the answer when playing a game or paying someone. And after listening to some interviews with Kate Snow (author of Math With Confidence) I knew that pulling him back a little would help with that goal as well.
I love the desk in your room candle time math idea.
I have twin boys who just turned 7 and they are so loud, wild and distracting sometimes. Although so is our 15 month old. 😅
My daughter struggles with math too. We have fast facts practice charts (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) that they are suppose to see what we can get done in 3 mins. She doesn't do well with them but if we let her say them out loud she does it much better. My husband thought of that for some reason 👍.
The drill team sounds cool!
It's definitely hard figuring out all the struggles. Homeschooling 4 kids sometimes feels so mentally draining... but worth it! 😊 In our homeschool we have a 6th grade daughter, 5th grade son and 1st grade twins. Some days are amazing and others are soo hard. It's a roller coaster.
October was the exact for me 😵💫😵💫 thank you for sharing all these feelings. I felt like giving up this October for homeschooling like I was hitting a wall
Remember when teachers said we wouldn’t have calculators in our pockets 😂 it’s ok to slow down in math some kids just aren’t going to have STEM careers and that’s ok! It’s even obvious with some of my kids at that young age. Relationships and confidence are more important than memorizing or grade levels ❤
My daughter is 9 and she would give a lot of push back and would do anything to avoid it, but she loves to talk and tell stories so I got right brain addition and subtraction as well as multiplication and division and it’s been night and day - she knows all her facts now
Hoping for a good turnout with the changes you’ve made for your daughter and her math. ❤
I have watched your channel somewhat sporadically and did not realize you're in Colorado! We just moved to Colorado. My oldest is about to be 5, so we haven't done an official curriculum yet, but I am in search of one. From what I understand, Colorado seems to look down on homeschooling. I'm not sure if you've done a video on how you comply with Colorado Homeschooling laws, but now that I know you're in Colorado, I will for sure be updating myself on ALL of your videos!
Cover or umbrella schools are popular here in CO. Otherwise, I don’t think it’s all that bad. We use Poudre River School, but there are others. CHEC is another that comes to mind. You might consider joining HSLDA. They have your back regardless of where you live. They also let you know about upcoming legislation issues that might impact homeschooling, regardless of the state. I’ve talked to them before regarding using public education funded “co-ops”, and found them very helpful.
I always love your videos. I love how you talk everything over and let us into your thought process. It is always so relatable!
You are so in tune with your kids. I’m sure you will find the right solution so everyone can survive. My one thought to try to help, have you looked into Kate Snow’s math facts that stick? Take a few weeks for hands on math and games to learn the math facts and then back to your regular curriculum? Maybe she just needs to work on it in a different style for something to click. My local library has them so I was able to read through it. We took a break from our curriculum and did the addition one and it was an amazing change. And then we ditched our old curriculum completely and switched to math with confidence. Haha. A lot more work but fits his learning style best.
So glad it was helpful!
❤️sending hugs! Our daughters sound so similar when it comes to math! So I understand the feeling! Hang in there! It sounds like you’re doing all the right things!
I just wanted to mention because I don't see it talked about anywhere, singapore math has an all online curriculum called esingapore. I ordered the book curriculum last year and was overwhelmed by all the pieces and then discovered the online curriculum and it's made life so much easier! It only goes up to grade 5 but wanted to put it out there if anyone is still trying to find the right fit for their kiddo ❤
I read aloud the first little house book to my daughter last year for kindergarten. This year she can read so she's currently going thru book #3 which is Little House on the Prairies. We're holding off on #2 Farmer Boy as that one can be read out of order since it doesn't quite follow the family.
I’d start little house closer to the end of the year. She was born just after the Civil War. Then split the books into early next year or over the summer. Most of the time frame is mid to late 19th century. That way you won’t confuse your kids with time periods. All “old” things start to seem the same. Making the mental connections with the appropriate history helps. Level D will only take you just to the cusp of the civil war.
I also found that the more recent history at the end of Level E was not covered with the same… objectivity and thoroughness as the history up through WWII was. So we tended to fly through it, even doubling up our days. So that means you *could* pause in the 19th century or during the World Wars to read other things and still have time.
THANK YOU! That is super helpful - I don't want to confuse their concept of the time periods :)
Hang in there....all will be well. One day at a time, you will figure this out and she will be fine.
Your daughter sounds similar to my younger daughter, who is currently 7. She's good at math, but boy does she fight doing it. She says she just doesn't like it and has trouble staying on task anyhow. I suspect ADHD like her oldest brother.
I like your idea of making math a special time! My daughter loves girly stuff and being treated special, so that might really help.
We're taking a break from homeschooling for a bit, but plan to return to it when we can work out the logistics of childcare. I have 9yo b/g twins, 7yo b/g twins, almost 6yo b/b twins, and an almost 3yo boy.
We use Math Mammoth, and my 4th grader hit the multiplication review before it introduced multidigit multiplication, and it was a crash and burn 😅
So we are doing the multiplication facts that stick from Kate Snow to just slow it all down, and review those basic facts.
Basically, I feel you! And it takes a lot out of you to figure all this out! Especially all the added stuff when you have 4 kids to deal with! (Same situation here!)
We read a different biography on Pasture-- and it was fabulous for us too!
I was totally mis pronouncing Pasteur 🤦🏼♀️
You will get to more State memorization in year two of US History. You’ll still have to do state capitals on your own.
I don’t want to put a label on your daughter, but have you considered if your daughter has ADHD? It can be really hard to recognize in girls.
I was wondering the same after listening! My 5 yo daughter is so similar, and she is in the diagnosis process for ADHD! Having the diagnosis really has helped me understand her brain. We’ve been working with occupational to therapy and it’s really helped.
I also had the same thought.