I've been faced with the challenge of keeping Junior J occupied ever since he decided to drop his afternoon nap. I used to settle both boys down for a nap at the same time, however, now I have to ensure Junior J doesn't disturb Lil J while I nurse him.
Thus far, I've more or less managed to keep the big boy busy for almost an hour or so while I settle Lil J (and sometimes catch 40 winks myself, thanks to preggie tiredness!). This is our regular "set-up" these days:
:: An episode of Magic School Bus on the laptop. He loves watching this and I figured 25 minutes of screen time a day would be ok, considering he doesn't get any other gadget or screen time.
:: His art journal (just one of those freebie notebooks) and some stickers, or some pasting activities.
:: Some materials to draw with. I try to rotate these with different types of markers etc.
:: A snack, usually something with dairy (eg. yoghurt) since he's started refusing to drink milk.
:: A letter. This one's a long story, so I'll leave it for another post. In short, its just one of the ways to encourage him to attempt to read.
Some days he decides to barge in when he's done with the snack and TV, but usually Lil J's asleep by then. I'm hoping to add more activities into the mix. Its a little tricky since he's quite choosy about what he is willing to do when he's on his own (no writing or worksheets for this boy!). Any suggestions?
How about setting aside some play dough and get him to scrulpt different dinosaurs out? Or perhaps a bath station to clean his beloved toys?
ReplyDeleteHey Jus, Poppy is also not taking afternoon naps so I feel ya pain, sista, I do! She likes mazes so I used to print out a few for her. Or do those count as "worksheets"? She used to be crazy over this book (http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Eye-Find%3A-Picture-Puzzle-Klutz-Press/9781591745730) so would be happy to chill with it for a while.
ReplyDeleteShe likes reading so that's what she does these days. And drawings. How about a couple of cars on the play mat? We have one of those road map mats from IKEA. Or build train tracks?
I'm usually in the room with the baby for about half an hour, and tell Poppy that I will be right out and then we can do _____ (activity) together. she can only only only go into the room if it is an emergency (like a fire or if someone tries to break into the house; if she needs to drink water from her bottle that is next to her, it is NOT an emergency) and thankfully she is now totally ok with that.
wow your boy is very independent! great ideas especially about the rotating of art supplies i'm constantly trying to find stuff to entertain my girl and she loves Barney/Dora/Peppa TV best... )=
ReplyDeleteNoah loves The Magic Schoolbus cartoons too! I must admit I use the TV most frequently when I need Noey to sit put while I do something with Naomi, like put her down for a nap. The other thing he loves to do is play with water. I give him tubs of coloured water (dyed with food colouring) and a handful of syringes and scoops, and that keeps him occupied for quite a while.
ReplyDeleteOur kids are the same age and I'm also preggie with #3. #2 & I need our daily afternoon nap but #1 may or may not. Previously he dropped his nap and I did activities with him. But with pregnancy, I need the nap, so I brought him back to the nap routine again.
ReplyDeleteI block that time out as nap/rest time and he must either sleep or rest quietly. Sometimes he sleeps; sometimes he doesn't. When he doesn't sleep, he has learnt to roll around on the bed or meddle with his blankets, etc. till time's up. If he disturbs others who are resting, I'll invite him to the next room (our schoolroom) to do quiet activities by himself and he can return only when he has calmed down. He likes to stay together in a room, so this method works.
you're good at controlling TV/gadget time! so far, the safest place i can keep my son at is in front of the tv when i need to bathe/clean my daughter.
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