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Solutions for Circle Time- What Can the Little Movers and Shakers Do?
By Kendra | September 18, 2008
After the Fall Circle Time post I received several inquiries as to how to keep the under-three crowd busy for all that time:
“I like the idea of doing most subjects during Circle Time, but what do the little ones do during the 2 hours?” -Christy
“…the challenge was how to manage my 4 and 1-year-olds. We don’t have TV, not that I’d stick them in front of endless videos anyway, but I’m just at a loss as how to occupy them, still be present for them, etc. I’d like to include them, but its distracting to the older children.” -Kelly
“I have introduced many of your ideas for our circle time, the only problem is that the attention span of my 2 year old boy is not long enough for my agenda!
I have given him paper to practice cutting with scissors and paper to color on, but he still tires of sitting at the table for more than about 15 minutes.
Should I just reduce my expectations for circle time until he is a little older?” -Jennifer
You all think I have this completely figured out, don’t you? Excuse me while I go laugh for a sec. 
Oh, but that’s right- I write a blog on this subject, with the intent to give you some hope and strategies and ideas for this very situation. So, here we go…
We started our official school year on Monday. I’m not sure what in the world I was thinking, but somewhere in my head I thought that our 18-month-old would be content for at least an hour at the table during Circle Time. About 5 minutes into it, the thought, “Um, Kendra? How long have you been parenting that it didn’t dawn on you that Christian would not be happy for all that time at the kitchen table???” arose. Duh.
Compounding the problem was the fact that I wasn’t planning to have all of our Circle Time at the kitchen table, but was going to move upstairs to the schoolroom. We don’t own a high chair; instead the little guys sit in a chair that attaches to the table. But it doesn’t attach to the schoolroom tables. Duh number two.
After three days of tweaking, scribbling down battle plans, and implementing new ideas, here’s what I’ve come up with:
During the first half hour, Christian can sit at the kitchen table with us. We’ve just finished breakfast and he can be kept busy playing with a bowl and some kitchen tools. He won’t be silent. I repeat, he won’t be silent. Peace with preschoolers does not equal a quiet house, and Christian will make noise, try to frantically sign “please” 53 times during the course of Circle Time- hoping we’ll let him out of his chair- grumble, whine, and even cry. He’s a preschooler! But we forge ahead merrily, reminding him gently and sometimes sternly to wait, play with his toys, and stop fussing. The key to training a little guy to sit happily is to communicate that this is what is required of him. In other words, if we were to heed every complaint and give into every demand, we would effectively be training him that by complaining and demanding, he will get what he wants.
Mighty Joe and Christian, sharing the table seat
During the second half hour, he goes into the playpen and watches a short video in another room, so the video doesn’t distract everyone else. Currently he’s viewing Signing Time.
Playpen Time
Now, the solution to the third half hour came to us today in a moment of God-given inspiration and grace. Our schoolroom is connected to our laundry room, which has doors on either end. We shut the door between the laundry room and the hallway and errected a safety gate between the laundry room and the schoolroom. Voila! The perfect little playroom where he can enjoy our presence but stay contained and happily wander around doing what 18-month-olds do. Today it was yelling at the Wedgets when they wouldn’t stack for him and playing with a box of clothespins.
During the last half hour of Circle Time, big brother takes Christian with him while he gets a morning break from his own studies. He’s 15 and only joins us for the beginning of Circle Time, but 90 minutes later he’s ready for a break himself. He’s been taking Christian outside for walks and has been thinking up other things for the two of them to do together as the days go by.
And there it is- two happy hours filled for one busy 18-month-old boy. Our solutions might not work for you because we live in different houses with different children. But this I know: God is faithful to give you answers, so if you’re wondering how to constructively fill up those hours for your littlest ones, ask for wisdom and He shall give it freely. He promises so.
Topics: Circle Time, Educating at Home, Life with Preschoolers, Training Little Ones | 18 Comments »
September 18th, 2008 at 4:44 am
OK. This is what I LOVE about you…you come up with practical solutions, but in the end what comes through the strongest is your great attitude. Yes, they will be noisy. That’s OK! Yes, they will ask to get down, sometimes not asking very nicely. That’s OK! Yes, you will have a plan and have to rework it several times before it resembles success. That’s OK!
I love your attitude. You always inspire!
Rachel
September 18th, 2008 at 6:25 am
Ok, I just got a chill of nervousness reading this, lol. I have a baby due in Dec, a 20 month old and a 3 year old! What am I to do with baby once she is past the holding in the sling stage? What do you do with Mighty Joe (Praise the Lord he is well) when Christian has playpen time?
Also, you have a school room as do we. Do you spend alot of time there?
September 18th, 2008 at 7:47 am
Kendra-
Thanks for being real and sharing some practical ideas. I have 2 wiggly preschoolers that have trouble sitting for long periods of time. It is hard to work on training them while teaching the others! I have a 14 yo daughter who is a huge help with the little ones, but has her own studies as well. It is difficult to find a balance, but worth the effort.
Thanks for encouraging us all!
Toni
September 18th, 2008 at 8:16 am
Thank you for taking the time to write these posts…they are helpful to glean ideas from.
I am so glad to see mighty Joe is doing well….He looks great!
God Bless you
September 18th, 2008 at 9:26 am
I have 3 boys ages 12, 7, & 4. I’m now watching two girls ages 13 months & 16 months (although the 13 month old only until December & the 16 month old only 3 days a week). We started watching “the babies” two weeks before we started school so we were able to learn their routines. Then we started school. That’s when I realized I needed to come up with some strategies. Like you mentioned above, I now do similar things with the oldest girl. The youngest is pretty content in the playpen or on my lap. The older girl will happily play in the high chair as long as I keep switching out things for her to play with – about every half hour. So far so good. Thanks for sharing what is working for you.
September 18th, 2008 at 10:03 am
Kendra,
Thanks so much for the suggestions. I also love your great attitude! Your blog has truely inspired me to continue homeschooling. Homeschooing is so much more than just the “studies” and your blog has helped me to focus on why I really want to homeschool.
Also, did you wait to introduce formal math to your older kids until they were in about 3rd-4th grade?
Thanks,
Jennifer
September 18th, 2008 at 10:41 am
thanks so much for reminding me that my little guy (17 months) is still “in training” and to just expect the whining, fussing, ready-to-be-done-with-this-toy stuff and to be ready and willing to teach him through it. He’s just beginning to make the switch from two naps to one, which means he’ll start joining us for the bulk of our school time in the mornings. It’s been two years since I had a tiny preschooler (she’s almost 4 now) and it’s crazy how fast you forget all the work that goes into getting them to a place where they are happy participants in our morning’s work! You’ve starting my wheels turning now as I think up the strategies that will work for us. Thanks again!
September 18th, 2008 at 11:33 am
I am another mom in the trenches! 8 older kids,(one moving out on Sunday, one working with Dad most weekdays), and 2 littles, 3 yr oldgirl and 20 months old boy. Whew! They are wearing me out! My 3 yo is happy to sit at the table and “do school” for as long as she can. But the baby is a handful. He is very obedient, but I thnk maybe I need to pull the playpen back out.
Up to what age have you used a playpen, Kendra?
I’ve never used one at this age, but think maybe I should. At least to get us thru part of the morning.
Any advice?
Dawn
September 18th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Kendra,
Thanks for reminding us how God is faithful to give us answers to the many questions we have about raising up our sweet preschoolers. Their needs change so fast during this season of their lives. Doing Circle Time this Fall, while my youngest is a 6 month old two-nap kid will look very different from how I will do it in a few short months (well, 6 months but they go FAST!!) when he is mobile one year old.
Currently, I do our Circle Time (with my almost 6 yr old, 4 yr old and 2.5 yr old) at both breakfast and lunch, reading to the kids while they eat because they are all sitting still and occupied with their food. This isn’t my preferred Circle Time setup but it works for now. I am so thankful for the wealth of wisdom our Father holds for us and so thankful for how freely He gives it.
I love your ideas for Christian! And that picture of Mighty Joe and his big bro is sweet! Look at Mighty Joe’s double chin!
September 18th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
Thanks for your informative posts! This may be too big of a question for now. But since this post was mainly about toddlers, I thought I’d lob in a doozie. My 2nd little boy, now 20 months old, can get very fussy. When he’s fussing because he’s not getting his way, we do the, “Oh, fussy babies have to go sit in their bed.” Then, we put him in his bed and come back to get him telling him he needs to be happy. Do you think that is the right way to handle it or do you have another magic method?
September 19th, 2008 at 5:43 am
To entertain little ones (2-3yrs) during school, we do Preschool Tray Time. They sit at the big table with us with a cafeteria tray in front of them. I put an egg timer beside their tray and set it for 15 minutes. I have a tub of School-only toys: playdough, Lite Brite, stacking cubes, magnet toys, lacing cards, dry lima beans in a bowl, paint books (the kind where you just add water and the paint is already on the paper), washable markers and paper, etc…….basically all the toys they need supervision to play with. I put one toy on their tray and they get to use it for 15 minutes. When the timer dings, we put it away and get a new one out. This keeps their attention remarkably well while the rest of us do school. The cafeteria tray has a “lip” around it to keep things from rolling off the table and is practically indestructible. Some days for something a little different we’ll all do Tray Time. I put four trays on the table—one on each side. All the kids jump in and pick a spot. I place one activity on each tray (mom picks, no fussing) and set the 15 minute timer. When it dings, everyone hops up and moves to the next chair for 15 minutes. We cycle around the table. Sometimes I’ll change out the toys after one circle round. We turn on music cds and sing while we play. This works great for us!
September 19th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Okay, this post was super helpful. I’ve been suffering under the delusion that because my house is NOISY, it cannot be peaceful. Thank you!
As, always, you are a blessing.
Thanks!
Annie
September 19th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Okay, this is hugely helpful in explaining how to handle the first 2 hours of school. My question is – IN THE AFTERNOON – when the little ones need naps (and sometimes mom does too!) what do the older kids do? I can’t imagine how I’m going to recreate music, and library and recess if we should try homeschooling in the future, when I am confined to my house during that all important nap time! My 2 little ones will need afternoon naps for a few more years, but I don’t want my older child to fall behind in the process. Thanks so much for your help and insight!
September 20th, 2008 at 8:29 pm
Thank you so much for great ideas, once again. I have been struggling with our almost three year old (our others are 12, 6, 9, and one more on the way in a few weeks). I needed the reminder that an hour is a little long for him to sit at the table and study Bible/History, and that maybe I need to not get so frustrated
.
September 21st, 2008 at 3:23 am
Thanks Kendra! This is such a timely post. Although I am not officially schooling the kids yet (they are 4.5, 2.5, 1.5 and 4 months) these ideas have sparked my creativity. I can see how I can impliment this type of structure now and how helpful it will be once I begin ’structured schooling’. I also love Adriel Brown’s idea. I think my kids would love that…and so would I! I also thank you for the reminder that a “peace with preschoolers does not equal a quiet house”. I shouldn’t need reminding with 4 under 5, but I at this time in my life I do need it! LOL We do have ‘loud time’ twice a day for about 15 minutes (that’s about all I can handle!) when the kids can be as loud as they like with the percussion instruments or other such things. We also have ‘quiet time’ when the youngest ones nap and the oldest has books, puzzles or even a sleep if he needs it. During this time there is no talking to Mummy unless a quiet Mummy-and-son activity has been planned. That way I can refresh for the rest of the day. Sorry for the long comment, and once again, thank you so much!
September 22nd, 2008 at 6:22 am
Love the encouragement of this discussion. I am dealing with a 16 month old who just dropped the morning nap, leaving me with 2 cranky hours to occupy during our prime school time.
We’ve used playpen time, tray time, and block-baby-in-the-livingroom-with-chairs time :0) all with great success these past couple weeks. It is great to remember that kids are noisy, and babies squeal, but life goes on.
Blessings,
K
September 22nd, 2008 at 6:26 am
Oh–for Christina–
I’ve purchased lots of books on cd–narnia, j park, radio theatre, etc. and the big kids get quiet time where they each go to a room alone and “listen, play and read” with their cd player, stack of books, and tub of legos or projects. They are refreshed by the alone time (which we all need when there are so many of us) and the little ones can sleep. After about 2 hrs. I get everyone up and we finish the day…
February 25th, 2009 at 1:28 am
I have added your sage observation : “Peace with preschoolers does not equal a quiet house.” to my inspirational sayings file. I am going to put that little reminder on a wall somewhere!