Homeschooling going to shit - a support thread

[Brokenchair1]

Schoolmum WhatsApp group rapidly filling with messages about people doing the Joe Wicks live PE, photos of kids sitting at desks dressed and working, mum's joking about how lovely it is to home school.

Meanwhile in the broken household....single mum here, I have a Skype meeting at 1 I need to prep for, DD 7 currently refusing to do anything and keeps sitting on me saying she wants to play. 3 months of this 😭

Anyone else where homeschooling isn't filled with colourful timetables and colour coded snack trays...join here for support and commiseration.

DD's teacher has sent tomorrow's lesson plan, she has to go outside and hug 10 trees...

Meanwhile as photos of children doing Joe Wicks full my feed, I've completely lost it with DD who has caused Carnage in the sitting room with toys, refuses to do work, refuses to listen and is playing dance monkey on repeat on Alexa :(

My DS is quite academic, not in the sense that he's top of the class in everything but in the sense that despite being 12 he actually still enjoys learning and there are very few subjects which don't interest him. This has helped in the learning at home stakes, as he's not kicking up too much of a fuss about getting down to work. I think it helps that I'm working from home so he see's me settle down to work as well.

HOWEVER, every time I answer a question,, or check the answers for anything, make a correction or interact with him in any way, even if it is him having a question or not understanding what the worksheet wants him to do he has turned into the rudest little shit. I absolutely lost it with him this morning. I don't know how this is the same child who the teachers all gush about at parents evening when he's so helpful, kind and lovely, becuase to me he's a gobby little prick.

Never mind though I had to go shopping for essentials yesterday so was able to top up the much depleted gin and wine stocks...

DD has been watching hours of tv because DH & I both need to work. She's still reading 3/4 times a week & doing a few pages from her workbooks a day but that's it, she still wants/needs help too. We don't have the time to have a time table & actually stick to it.

Yesterday we played in the garden a lot because it was so nice & DD painted a picture. I couldn't face doing more.

She's been building a lot of Lego, that's got to count towards something surely?!

I cannot handle anymore academia today so......

Making a cake - home economics
Making bath bombs - science
Dancing and trampoline - PE
Snakes and ladders - maths

Monday & Tuesday went quite well, today has just fallen apart! Tried PE with Joe this morning but they were both tired and saying it was too hard. Tried watching Steve Backshall but they lost interest. My yr 5 ds has done the work his teacher has set, but my yr 3 dd's teacher has set soo much it's put me off! I've said to do 5 more mins then they can watch tv/play for the rest of the day!

I have always said the two aspects of parenthood I can't handle would be travelling to a&e with tiny, severed fingers on ice and homeschooling. I am literally waiting now for one of the dc to trap their fingers in the door and then my world of hell will be complete.

What we have achieved is a smidgen of reading (two dc read out loud so while one read there was a constant whine emitting from the other) and later we will play shops with some 1 & 2p pieces.

Eldest dc reckons he needed to work in his bedroom and I can't bring myself to check on him because I suspect he will have fallen asleep. Again. He got into his pj's at 3pm yesterday.

Also, meant to thank you op for this thread. I have found my people and selfishly, your collective suffering is making feel so much better.

During her first online lesson yesterday dd had a mental breakdown and spent the rest of the day sleeping in her room.
Hoping today goes better.

I'm losing my miserable fucking mind. Totally different age kids needing spoon feeding each piece of fucking work.

Massively behind on what the school have sent.

Still trying to manage a high pressure job that carries a significant amount of risk remotely. I'm behind, they are behind. And soon we are going to have to stop just so I can feed them, again.

And I'm at the point now where the squelching noise of them drinking from their cups is making me want to punch myself in the face.

Genuinely think I'm going to have a mental health breakdown trying to cope with this if it lasts any longer.

Dd17 doing lots of work but won’t go in the garden or for a walk, or exercise... worried about vit d etc etc... said she’s staying at her desk/bed until September

Dd16 has been in the garden constantly and running errands for elderly neighbours... she has not been at her desk once, or basically inside the house between the hours of 9am-5pm!

T’is hard work!

DD9 with SEN locked herself in her room for days, I get that she's scared and I'm doing my best. Older DD13 stoically ploughing through but that is just who she is. The other boys are dipping in and out but just keeping sane is my mantra which is hard given DD9s struggles.

Day three completed - I was saving this thread as my reward (G&T will come later)
I had a few important VCs this morning so left DS largely to his devices - he did his reading, some drawing and then was helped with Maths. After lunch we checked the portal for all subjects to make sure we are really done - and the bloody French teacher generated another worksheet!!!!

I was SO tempted to use my newly acquired knowledge of F-off in French

All done now and DS officially on holidays until 22nd April - so now I only need to worry about limiting his screen time!

Good luck and loads of energy to those who still keep going for another week!

I'm a secondary school teacher and I'm being reminded daily why I chose to teach teenagers and not 6 year olds! My DD is totally unmotivated and seems to have no desire to learn anything. Which is, frankly, depressing.

And I'm getting such mixed messages from the groups I'm on and the articles I'm reading - on one hand it's all 'structure is the key, we finished the Iliad yesterday' and on the other it's 'this is a tough time, let them chill, enjoy family time, they'll remember it with joy, we've been in our PJs eating crisps since Saturday'. Which is all good but I now feel guilty whatever I do, be it strict tiger homeschooler or chilled out earth mother.

So, yeah, OP, I feel your pain

travelling to a&e with tiny, severed fingers on ice :o at least that would be over in a day! Homeschooling hell just goes on and on...

I also knew it was something I never wanted to do, and when DD asked me about it (pre-pandemic) having heard about it from someone, she herself opined that I'd be terrible at it - thanks DD. I'm a massive introvert and get stressed with constant company, never mind having to try and make them do worksheets into the bargain.

I'm very lucky that my ex is also WFH and can have the kids a couple of days a week. But of course, he's been doing it so much better than me ... 😐

@mrsbobdylan Misery loves company!

We've just been for a walk and looked for rainbows so that's maths sorted. I've just allowed DD to cut the hair off a Lottie doll her grandma gave her. It's unusual circumstances and I'm choosing the path of least resistance. I'll tuck it off as Art.

I'm having a lie down now but managed an hour work today.

*tick

The first two and a half years of my school life were disrupted by the war ........ doodlebugs, rockets, evacuation, school bombed. But we all caught up eventually without any access to the internet. Let your primary school children enjoy the weather while it lasts, ensure they have access to lots of different books and TV aimed at children. Doesn't matter if they get bored with 'nothing to do', they'll find something. I remember I spent hours looking through my father's huge atlas.

Well they are on their "fun" screen time now. I now know it's not the homeschooling (of which I'm not really doing if I'm honest, DD seems motivated and DS, well he's doing the odd bit) which will be the end of me. It's the endless round of sodding meals. No sooner have you cleaned up one then it's time to think of the next one. I miss standing over the sink and eating a packet of crisps

Ds has somehow managed to acquire an infection in one of his toes so we've just had a strange video call with the dr. I'm going to have to leave the house for a 2nd time this week to pick up his antibiotics now! We haven't done that badly today tbh; we've had some work time this morning with maths, handwriting, writing and science, all done in half hour blocks with breaks in between. This aft they've been colouring in rainbows for the windows. Only a couple of strops so I'm closing that as a success!

Classing not closing!

Yes @Okki, it's the meals and constant requests for food and snacks that's doing my crust in too. I keep telling them that we have limited access to limited food and can't just eat mindlessly like there's a neverending supply of it but it doesn't seem to be sinking in: on Saturday that managed to use 2 pints of milk just for their breakfasts and can we hell get any more. They've been having dry cereal since yesterday as a result.

Anyone with a nearly 7 year old that seems to be eating you out of house and home??? Literally we sit and do a little work then he wanders off to eat??!?? I meant wtf?? He can't do this at school????

Meanwhile ds2 is like, can I go play now.........

We have soooo much work to do tomorrow

@Racheyg we've been playing snakes & ladders a lot too

They're about to start a puzzle. Charm of novelty. I'm about to start getting dinner. Accompanied by a hefty gin or likewise.

Have a good evening all