Motivation .... and getting it all done?

Early Learning Early Learning General Discussions
1

I am just wondering how one stays motivated to get it all done?

I feel that I do not have enough time to get ‘life’ done in a day. How do you manage to keep your kitchen clean, your laundry done, etc., etc., and teach your baby all the materials (YCBR, LM, LR, music, physical activity)?

I just feel behind in everything and that some of the teaching gets left out because I do not have the energy to prepare and/or show the materials?

Any hints or tips? Thanks.

2

i am not the model citizen when it comes to getting it all done and certainly it is easy for me to say not to put pressure on yourself (since that kinda lets me not feel too guilty either :wink: ) but what i have found that works best for me is are a few of things.

  1. rely on sources… that means this site or others that have things already prepared. i have a wish list of things that i want to get done and i try to keep focused on that but i have often found the material already done and often better than i was thinking or easily manipulated.
  2. keep a flexible schedule (oxymoron? maybe.) i have literally created a time chart of dd’s day and all the things i want and can reasonable get done. each week i have a goals that i focus on (practice dressing, doman words, walking tip toe, learn the letter k, etc). but knowing what fits best in my dd’s day can help decide what gets done when. the flexible part comes when some days i only get 3 things done off the list because of an extra long nap or we go on an outing. knowing nothing will stay smack on track helps relieve some of the panic to get everything done at once.
  3. independent play is VERY important… so are naps/rest times for that matter. that’s when i can focus on getting house work done. also, i’ve found that part of our independent play has often been ‘help mommy’. not that it’s terribly helpful to mommy but dd dusts with me and has her own broom and now has a step stool up to the sink when and will ‘wash dishes’ with me.

also remember that doman’s theory was meant to be done in small bursts multiple times and it was meant to stay fun. your child will follow your lead on how to feel about it so it is important to not give into the pressure. as for motivation… well, your baby’s results will be your motivator. it is incredible (except at 2am when you are trying to sleep) to hear your child say things you never even thought were getting in there! my husband and i are constantly amazed that other children don’t have clear words down and they are older than us! there have been some other great discussions on people’s schedules around here in terms of using all the materials. i can’t tell you where i’ve read them but i think i searched ‘schedules’. i hope that very long winded post helps a little. let xcel become your friend for a little and you’ll find the way (also for housework… it’s maybe a little cheesy but fly lady was the path for me… i swear i was cool at one point in my life!)

3

It’s impossible to do it all. Put emphasis on the learning programs that are important to you. I finally had to decide that reading (English), math, and music were more important for us and our ideas about education than sign language, having many languages, physically superb, or bits of intelligence, or other curriculum presented on this site. Actually, I do music first, then math, then reading. We only do the 3 programs, and we are committed. I won’t go into reasoning but I want my baby’s brain to be shaped a certain way, we are all hear to guide and mold our baby’s brains, there are so many ways and methods to do this and doing all the programs at the same time is very hard. I think many people who are doing a program with the 2nd or 3rd child have it easier because they have practiced. Many people on this board are different in the ways they want their babies educated. I think accept that you can’t do all the programs because you don’t have a household staff and team of nannies to help. The stress is too much and you won’t be able to enjoy time with your child if you are stressed that you have to play videos and plan and do lessons.

4

I don’t get everything done in one day but spread it out during the week i.e. kitchen today, living room tomorrow or LR word flash daily but actual readers every other day or even twice a week. I only wash my laundry on two days in a week (two other days I put it away). There still is consistency even if not everything gets covered in a day. :slight_smile: You gotta do the best you can with the time you have… :slight_smile:

5

what everyone said is so true. some people can’t do everything. i am a single mom, and i am the only one teaching my son. also, i am in college so i can’t do most of the stuff i would like to do with him, but he is 22 months and he is reading many words. at 18 months he can read almost all the words for YBCR and from the free download i had download. i just bought LR so i can get more material without having to worry about making them myself. it is not possible for my son to have reading everyday but i try to do is reading at least 3 times a week more when i can, but i think he is doing fine so far. i am just going to start the physical superb and maths because i have a little more time now. just do the best you can.

6

Hi Khatty,

I feel like you sometimes. It is not easy to do all and that is why is important to decide what you think is the best at this moment for your child (ex. a happy mom).
I am doing YBCR, using LR, LM and I just added BST and ST. But we don’t always get everything done and sometimes we have to stop a program for a week for different reasons. But as soon as we can, we try again to get back to a routine. Start with one program first and get a routine and when you feel you have extra time for something else start adding new programs. For ex. I play YBCR during breakfast and lunch (she is very active and otherwise she won’t watch it) Flashcards and books before nap or bedtime.
My motivation is seeing her grow happy.

7

i know exactly what u guys are saying!

it gets tough especially when i am under the weather or just have too much to do.

my previous schedule had reading maths grossmotor skills development running for an hour french generalknowledge arabic finmotorskills writing skills islamic studies ball skills etc

today i have decided to change my schedule.

i now have 2 schedules.

  1. is important. these are my priorities. they include maths reading languages phonics and general knowledge.

  2. includes the rest of the stuff thats fine if i dont complete. like running and ball skills writing etc.

now i dont feel overwhelmed

8

I also often feel overwhelmed. What works for me is to write a list of everything I want to do for only one day - it helps to only see one day at a time - the stuff I need to do for that week is in my head, but I don’t need to worry about going to the doctor on Friday if it is only Tuesday.

Then I look at the list as individual items rather than as a whole list.
It might look somethings like this:

Show Laurana a reading sentence
Wash the dishes
Put a load of laundry in the machine

The younger my child is the more I need to shorten how much time each item takes. When she is older I may have: do a load of laundry and that would include washing and hanging on the line, bringing in and ironing or folding away. For now, just getting it in the machine is an achievement - hanging it on the line is a bonus :slight_smile:

Then I try to do one of the things on the list that can be done quickly and feel like I have accomplished something. Laurana does help with a lot - she has a stool to watch me wash the dishes, she’ll sometimes “help” vacuum - it means the chores take longer but a lot of teaching can go into these sessions too and I have noticed her coming out with words I never knew she knew just because she happened to be helping do the dishes or set the table.

9

this homeschooling mom teaches her kids that are a touch older but her ideas may help. i find a lot of inspiration from here and maybe her forms from her recent post may help you focus some of your goals?? at least when it come to the learning question. we don’t need the assessment part at the ages of our children but maybe there is something there that will trigger you to find your way?
http://1plus1plus1equals1.blogspot.com/2009/06/new-tot-school-forms.html

10

i too am very overwhelmed that i have not started anything yet - am still gathering materials slowly due to the fact that my husband does not support me on this and i have an 8 month old baby and a 3 year old. thank you for all your encouraging messages.

11

My husband did not totally come around until he saw his 2 year old cousin reading from the YBCR videos. I would buy cheaper videos, but YBCR package was too expensive to him. If you can, ask other parents around you if they are using the video, a lot of people actually are, and if he sees a child actually reading I bet you anything he will at least seriously consider it. If only because when you actually see it it is very exciting and not freaky at all, especially if you know the child, and he may just not want other people’s children to be ahead of his own.

12

tips and hints on

manage to keep your kitchen clean, your laundry done, etc., etc.,
- www.flylady.com (FLY means "finally loving youself) lol

13

What is BST and ST

14

BST - Baby Signing Time
ST - Signing Time

15

Yeah, it is indeed difficult to do a job, take care of the baby and household, and teach him to read/do math. Sometimes, I feel I don’t do justice to either. Even if i manage to get him in front of the computer, he is easily distracted and wants to pull down the monitor and play with the keyboard. Sometimes I feel so overwhelmed and totally out of charge that I don’t feel like doing the program for a couple of days. But once again, seeing so many people talking about consistency, I try to do my best and keep the programs on track. And motivation…I do get that from my husband, a lot of self motivation by reading Brillkids and similar sites, and of course, watching a lot of youtube videos of babies reading and doing similar amazing things…that keeps me going…

16

Quester, I am having the same problem with my dauther when I play LM on the computer, she gets distracted very easily. I am having more luck with LR but that one I only play it once a day and with not structure.

BST- Baby Signint Time
ST- Signing Time