To schedule school holidays like a school day

[TAMumof3]

Am finding school holidays with 3 children really difficult.

I just don't seem to know what to do with them.

I'm a Teaching Assistant during term time and can only think to schedule their time like a school day - have just informed them that after on-line German practise this morning we'll be having PE by jogging along the roman road at eh back of our house.

I thought this was a nice plan but children very unmotivated, 12year old playing computer game, 10 year old setting tanks up all over kitchen floor and 8 year old listening to audio book.
I can't seem to get any of them up and on the go.

Try this, it's fun!

Cambridge latin? Caecilius est pater, Metella (?) est mater, Cerberus est canis, Flavia est ancilla. What was the son called, something like Quintus?

Presumeably it's changed in the 31 years since it was my school textbook though!

Fab! Thank you. We have the Mimimus book 1 and an Usborne beginner book to try at some point but I think something computer based will help too

Presumeably it's changed in the 31 years since it was my school textbook though!

I doubt it. Aren't they based on a real Pompeii family? The Latin hasn't changed; nor the history.

DS does 10 min literacy practise every day - because he's a lazy bugger at school

The others are lazing about being kids - sometimes they go and play with friends or swimming - sometimes they watch film and veg - sometimes they play cricket in the garden or wallboard the dog!

Kids love down time

How sickening to have to do lessons during the hols! (RIP Enid Blyton)

I would've loved to have done a Latin course at age 10. But I was an odd child!
I would let your DC chill, with no enforced activities, but I would try and get them out of the house every day, even if only for a short while, to get some fresh air. I would also encourage reading every day, fun books that they have chosen themselves. Would the younger two consider doing the Reading Challenge at your local library? Your oldest is probably too old for that, but could go with you and still choose something to read.

I was going to say yanbu because I do this a bit but mine are much, much younger and need structure. I don't think that I will be still doing so much in eight years time, eek.

If they are happily occupied why don't you do something that you want to do, read, craft, garden. You are on holiday too

Op I'm a TA too (was a teacher) and I kind of understand your concern....but I have to agree with pps : I think that children need a mixture in the holiday....

• some chill time (we watch tv till late breakfast at 9/10am and from 430 onwards),
• some stimulation (museum day, city visit, library reading challenge, bouts in for a walk)
• some quiet outside time- currently sat lazing in park with cuppa and they're playing
• some quiet time inside (playing alone, digging out and using old forgotten toys) I tell mine to keep themselves busy and after initial moans they do.

I'm going to tackle some seriously needed deep cleaning jobs (oven, wash skirting) that gets done once a year! And some chill time for ME as frankly I work like the clappers all year.

Please don't feel guilty about relaxing. It's important they get a bit bored and learn to entertain themselves!

enjoy the rest of your hols!

Mine are 7 and 10 btw.

Kids do need to learn things, obviously ... but one of the things they need to learn is how to occupy their own time without being ushered off to clubs and activities every single day and being given a timetable to keep to.

All the most creative and inventive things my brother and I did during the school holidays arose from us being bored. We did get taken for the odd day/afternoon out and my mum would sometimes suggest something for us as a vague idea, but it wasn't usually anything massively structured or that required loads of supervision.

If we hadn't been left to our own devices I'm pretty sure we'd never have rigged up a homemade zip-wire in the garden for Action Man out of string we found in the shed (which also taught us that friction generates heats and that Action Man's gripping hands will burn off if you slide them down a very long piece of string at great speed ) sawed up our duplicate plastic zoo animals into pieces and then glued the wrong bits back together with Airfix glue to make strange hybrid monsters, or devised a frankly batshit board game involving Matchbox cars and loosely based on the plot of the film Herbie Goes Bananas. I also used to get through about six library books a week.

Don't know where you are in Wilts, but how about Stonehenge (if you have E Heritage membership), Salisbury Cathedral, Old Sarum and a day in the New Forest (if you want to keep the jogging up)?

All of historical benefit, but can be combined with cake....

My kids like to not have a schedule in the hols.

When they were younger, they were wonderful at building rocket ships out of boxes and playing outside with neighbour kids. They also spent hours and hours on screens.

They actually learned a lot from unsupervised play outside (how to deal with conflict, how to make sure things are fair, how to negotiate etc. I am not being precious, I don't think, but imo kids that age learn a lot from unsupervised play. Mine became very good at conflict resolution, without help of adults. That's been great for me too , they also learned how to play with younger kids, or kids with SN, good skills imo.

So I tend to recommend a hands off approach, with a few things up your sleeve for when they (or you) are really bored.
(They may want to learn to cook. Or bake.)

There is so much non-academic stuff to learn for kids!

My kids like a bit of structure, but during the holidays they get that through sports clubs - mornings spent doing swimming/tennis/football etc. They're only reception/Y1 but I can't ever imagine it being chemistry, latin and german!

We had a lovely moment last Sunday when after a few hectic weeks of fitting in clubs and childcare (and work for us) and seeing friends, and doing lots of things, we had a chilled day on the beach (we live by the sea) and as DH was unloading the car he left the radio on so the DCs just had a disco on the driveway at 5 in the afternoon. It was like they had flicked a switch and finally properly decompressed from school. Took a couple of weeks though.

Structure their days around fun.

My oldest dd has just turned 9 and she is behind in everything at school except her science. I find it so hard to get her to sit and read, or spell or to practice her times tables. She is the type of child who needs to be on the go all the time.

So I compromise!

I allow her to play and chill first thing in the morning and about 10 she wants to go on the computer or out with her friends. So I tell her she can do all those things if she does an hour of work. And she agrees - most of the time. If she is in a disagreeable mood I tell her she can't do those things till her work is done. The choice is hers. I also have a 6 year old ds. He isn't falling behind in anything at school, but I still get him to sit down as well because my dd would wonder why her and not him.

I think compromising with the children might be your best bet. Don't take the fun out of their day, but also keep a little learning in there as well. I hope this has helped a little.