Encouragement - Behind - Finding Peace and/or Catching Up

[gratitude]

Thanks everyone! I've taken to not even reading the science sections of the manual for K. That is helping me not feel like we are missing anything.

Thanks for encouraging me. I'm feeling better about it now...and slightly less stressed since we are trying to do less.

That is what I always did! I didn't read MFWK science to keep the stress down. I also let them join in on ADV science instead as they wanted to. They always showed up for the experiments!

If it helps I can not do it all either. When I was doing ADV early on is when I found out that fact. My daily goal is Bible, the 3 Rs, and as much of 'our program' as I can before 3 PM. I completely understand all of those interruptions with young ones! My youngest is 14 mo. or so developmentally and we just do the best we can at this point. Each year my older 3 gain a little more independence and every little bit helps a lot in teaching multiples.

What I can do though is work more on character training, behavior, heart connections, moral choices, and Bible knowledge than I ever could if they were in school. The amazing part is that despite our limitations they are still way ahead academically (we have to test annually, so I do know)! Secret: I only have used MFWK for Bible & phonics since both times I used it I had science & history in the older children's program.

My kids are dressed up as Indians today and I now have a chief, brave, and squaw for children with a bedroom that became a long house! See ADV goes on a year later.

Keep up the great work Heather! You are one of my inspirations with all of your young ones and all that you get done with them. Isn't God's strength amazing that He gives to help us do this very challenging job?

Blessings,
Carin

[TriciaMR]

We seem to get behind every week. I am teaching K and ECC. The older two have chorus and violin on Wednesday mornings and one Friday per month we have a homeschool group. Another Friday is field trip day. That said, 2 weeks per month we can lose 2 days per week. Then, if someone is sick or something else comes up (life happens), our schedule is a wreck. My son has a lot of evaluations and therapies that we are adding to the mix. Also, my oldest has sensory processing disorder that requires me to add breaks throughout her day and requires me to spend extra time keeping her on task and focused. We frequently skip art projects/music/cooking and have barely touched Rosetta Stone. We miss Spelling oftentimes and get behind in read alouds.

I feel like we are either skipping too much or smooshing too much together to keep up. What do you do when you get behind? I know that as a homeschooler, my schedule is just that...mine... and I don't answer to anyone but the box checker/type A person in me is going crazy! We are loving the programs so much but I worry that we are not getting what we should out of them. We are either rushing through or skipping things. The girls love music and I think it is important to include the music group in their school experience. It doesn't really take a lot of time. The problem is getting back in the school mode once we get home. The homeschool group is also a great opportunity for the kids so dropping that is not really an option either.

What do you do when you fall behind? This sounds silly, but it drives me batty when my grid boxes don't match up with the days of the week. I know that is silly, but hey, it's me. I won't even mention what my house looks like! Yikes! Any advice or encouragement?

Lori,

I'm a box checker, but since I need our light days to be on Wednesday, I have Monday in the TM be real life Thursday, Tuesday in the TM be real life Friday, etc. So, it is okay to not have those days line up. Really. And {hugs} on that as you work to overcome.

One thing I have done that has helped is move important stuff (like spelling) that gets skipped to first thing in the day. I know, I'm a pagan for not doing Bible-time first, but it has really helped our days to do our spelling rotation first, and then Bible.

The other thing that has helped, is I do Monday and Tuesday's geography on Monday. Then I do Monday and Tuesday's science on Tuesday. Then Wednesday and Thursday's geography on Wednesday, and Wednesday and Thursday's science on Thursday. This way I don't feel rushed to get to the "other" subject and we can spend the time we need on the subject at hand.

Really, you're not doing too bad. We started August 5th and are in Week 12 in ECC. We've had at least one camping trip in there.

Another thing I have done (shhh, don't tell ) is have days where we dump the 3R's and just get caught up on ECC stuff. Then the next day, we just pick up on the next lesson in the 3Rs. We also often save crafts and cooking projects for Saturdays (which was hard during baseball season, but right now, Saturdays are more open for us), which frees us up not to worry about it.

[kw4blessings]

Hi Lori,
Hugs. I feel your pain on wanting to check all the boxes and be on the right day of the week. This is a big struggle for me as well! It sounds like our families are in a similar place with the curriculum, except we're doing Adv and K. We're beginning week 10 of Adv and just started unit 7 for K, and we began Aug. 5th as well! We find ourselves "behind" almost every week because it seems like if we leave the house for any reason during the day (ie grocery shopping, art class, etc.) we don't get everything done. My oldest also has some issues (undiagnosed, so I can't name them....sometimes I wish we had a name!!) that make school work difficult. One day we're doing great and flying through work, the next she's in tears. Sigh..

What I try to do is anticipate the days when we'll have less time. My dd does an art class on Tuesday mornings, so on Monday, we try to do 2 days of spelling, history, etc. in order to make that Tues afternoon go more smoothly/quickly when we get home. We'll often also get schoolwork done on Saturday morning. We often leave music and art out when things are crazy and we need to catch up a bit. I try to have a priority list, mental usually: 1.Bible, 2. Math, 3.History, whatever.

Last year, with 1st grade, we missed a lot of the science. So, during the summer, we did science once a week and tried to do 3 experiments/lessons in a day. That was fun and we still got most of it done. Also, even though it's hard, I'm learning to be a little less "by the book" and relax a little. If we get to the end of the day and everyone can smile and feel like we've accomplished a decent amount, I consider it a win (even if we didn't finish). We may make up the missed stuff, might not. But, the days I try to "ram it all through", the kids are upset, I'm upset, and even though we got it all done, we didn't necessarily learn much

Hope that's a bit helpful....now I need to post it for myself to read everyday when I tend to turn into my Type A mommy self and drive myself and my kids crazy!!

[hsm]

Thanks for the encouragement, ladies. I am glad to hear I am not alone here!

I'm a box checker, but since I need our light days to be on Wednesday, I have Monday in the TM be real life Thursday, Tuesday in the TM be real life Friday, etc. So, it is okay to not have those days line up. Really. And {hugs} on that as you work to overcome.


One thing I have done that has helped is move important stuff (like spelling) that gets skipped to first thing in the day. I know, I'm a pagan for not doing Bible-time first, but it has really helped our days to do our spelling rotation first, and then Bible.

The other thing that has helped, is I do Monday and Tuesday's geography on Monday. Then I do Monday and Tuesday's science on Tuesday. Then Wednesday and Thursday's geography on Wednesday, and Wednesday and Thursday's science on Thursday. This way I don't feel rushed to get to the "other" subject and we can spend the time we need on the subject at hand.

These are all great ideas. I think I could do something similar here. I think I need to move the 3 R's to the beginning of the day, then do science/geography later. Especially since the 3 R's are my dc's least favorite things to do. That might help. Also, if I write in the days at the top with a similar schedule as you, that could help my brain relax a bit also. My light day happens to need to be a Wednesday also (with an occasional Friday).

Another thing I have done (shhh, don't tell ) is have days where we dump the 3R's and just get caught up on ECC stuff. Then the next day, we just pick up on the next lesson in the 3Rs. We also often save crafts and cooking projects for Saturdays (which was hard during baseball season, but right now, Saturdays are more open for us), which frees us up not to worry about it.

Crafts/cooking on weekend may or may not work here just because the weekend always seems to get jammed packed with errands, shopping, cleaning, etc. But, what might work is doing those things on my light day instead. And, I, too, have dumped the 3 R's from time to time to catch up. I hate to admit it, but like I said, sometimes I skip things whether I want to or not.

We find ourselves "behind" almost every week because it seems like if we leave the house for any reason during the day (ie grocery shopping, art class, etc.) we don't get everything done.

My oldest also has some issues (undiagnosed, so I can't name them....sometimes I wish we had a name!!) that make school work difficult. One day we're doing great and flying through work, the next she's in tears. Sigh..

This is exactly what happens here! If we leave for any reason, it is so hard to get everything done or sometimes even a little done. It doesn't help we live a decent drive from anything that would require us to leave the house, so if we have to leave it is generally for a good chunk of the day.We have some diagnosed issues and some undiagnosed that we are in the process of trying to obtain. The process is taking time out of the house. And, the "issues" or diagnoses definitely make school work difficult and can take an emotional toll on mom. I just know that home is where they need to be and I need to lean on the Lord for help on this journey. But, if I could keep us on schedule and check off my boxes like my brain wants me to do, then that would help this mama out

We often leave music and art out when things are crazy and we need to catch up a bit. I try to have a priority list, mental usually: 1.Bible, 2. Math, 3.History, whatever.

It just occurred to me in responding to this is...why am I stressing that we skip music when one of the reasons we lose time during the week is to go to music class?...I think that chorus and violin can count, right? &) Duh! And, art, yes we skip that a lot and I do feel guilty about it because my kids love art. Maybe I will do what you and Tricia both mentioned and try doing some on the weekend.

Also, even though it's hard, I'm learning to be a little less "by the book" and relax a little. If we get to the end of the day and everyone can smile and feel like we've accomplished a decent amount, I consider it a win (even if we didn't finish). We may make up the missed stuff, might not. But, the days I try to "ram it all through", the kids are upset, I'm upset, and even though we got it all done, we didn't necessarily learn much

Thanks for this reminder. You are right. Ramming it through with upset kids and mom is not really effective learning. I don't want to take the joy out of their learning. Allowing them to find joy in learning again was one of the reasons we decided to h.s.

[TriciaMR]

I started schooling my only in the middle of K. DS missed out on quite a bit that k year due to minor health issues. I taught previously and that has been the main problem, me not being sure of what we were doing. I never dreamed I would be homeschooling!

Fast Forward----
Now DS is almost 13 (April) and I have been so inconsistent with his schooling, he is probably a year to a year in a half behind in every subject. I feel horrible guilt with all this, so please be kind in your responses. When I look back, I think this is due to ds being the wiggly Willy, sick youngster, and a mom that could not get public school off her brain.I have prayed about this extremely hard and asked God to help us continue to homeschool.

Moving on--
I know DS needs more interesting and creative schoolwork and this seems to be the best thing that I can find. I had ECC on the shelf already from some time ago. I am just unsure about how to plan ds's future years with this. Right now, I plan to school year round and take weeks off when hubby has vacation weeks.

When do I call DS a 7th grader? Do I just work it till the end and then declare him 7 th? So far, we are in the 2 nd week and it's been a breath of fresh air! This is soooo different for me, but I can tell that DS is going to learn more already. If you can help, I would appreciate the advice. Thanks!

homemama

What I might do is make that judgment on is his Math and Language Arts. Where is he in Math? Pre-Algebra is either 7th or 8th grade. In Language Arts - how is his writing, spelling, reading?

So, right now you are saying he is in the middle of his 6th grade year... Call him a 7th grader in the fall when your local school district would start. Even if you are in the middle of ECC, just keep going. I would add in a Progeny Press guide then, and see how he does with that. Then start whichever part of the cycle you want to when you finish ECC. Then, when he is in 9th grade, start AHL.

[homemama]

Thanks Trish!

Right now, I am taking him through math at a whirlwind pace, if that makes sense. I am doing that to find and fix gaps, if you know what I mean? Math has always been his worst subject.

We have used Abeka Lang. in the past, but never was able to finish a book, and I felt he needed more writing practice. We are starting ILL at lesson 175. I thought I'd back up a bit. We started WS 3 and it is o.k. DS hates to write, but can manage to get a paragraph on paper with some corrections needed. We are using SP and in level F. Spelling works so much better using SP! DS loves the short lessons and I usually follow up with cursive writing of the words and ABC order and etc. We are also using Grammar some on the side. DS is able to use BJU 6 the grade reader, but he hates to read because he wants to play video games! I have stopped the games at the moment. I do have him reading Rascal and he says that he likes the book.

Hopefully, that will give a clearer pic of where DS is in his books. I thought about letting DS listen to MOH on CD for ancient times and the skipping over to Exp. to 1850 to use after we finish ECC. Just trying some long term goals and hope for the future! I welcome ideas.

homemama

[TrustingHim]

((HUGS))

Don't be too hard on yourself. We've all been there. Over the years we have had major illnesses in our family, surgeries, and a MAJOR move in April last year that basically took us out of school for the remainder of the year. It will be OK, forget the past, just keep moving forward. Here are my suggestions, just off the top of my head:

1. Consider doing school over the summer. It wouldn't have to be everything, just the basics, math, reading, and anything he's interested in. That way, you won't be pushing so hard this semester that you burn out. Doing two math lessons a day works well from time to time, but you WILL burn out that way, and eventually he'll slow down and only be able to do one lesson a day. And another word of encouragement for math, we all have math gaps. If you get the basics down over the next year and a half, he'll be ready for High School. Many programs have a year that you can do that fills in those gaps.

2. Also, set some little goals. I made the mistake of just plugging away at first, which really discouraged my youngest. When I gave her a calendar of the assignments mapped out and we picked some days off, she took off! She would get up every morning and tackle her schoolwork so she would be able to play all afternoon. Once she saw what the goals were and they were achievable, she was motivated to catch up. That and she wanted to start 5th grade in the 5th grade math book.

3. Take it one week at a time. I think my biggest mistake is looking at the big picture too much. Obviously, we have goals we need to meet each year and, going forward, for high school, but sometimes it's best to look at each week and say, "What are our goals for this week?" That way, when illness, field trips, or other bumps in the roads happen, you won't feel like your whole year is spiraling out of control.

((HUGS)) again. Like I said, we've all been there and many women on this board have similar stories of how they adjusted school to fit family situations. Hang in there!
Blessings!
Dorinda

[davidmendez5]

I feel the way you did so much to the point of putting them in public school. Biggest mistake ever but at least I have the courage to homeschool again and not feel like I am always behind the public school system. I spoke with David at My Father's World and he really gave me insight and clarity. I think it would be so encouraging for you to talk with him. David P., not David the founder.

When we go back to Mfw in the Fall I am not going to give an ounce of thought to where they are compared to their peers and their current grade level. We will pursue mastery and the time it takes, will be in God's hands. We will also go through the summer. I felt condemned for so long!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We really need each other to build each other up. Otherwise, we will believe the lies. Lesson learned.
Filitsa

[homemama]

Thanks Dorinda and Filitsa for the great encouragement. I have read this board so many times and always feel encouraged! I don't have much time to type, but I am praying about this. I do feel that we've made the right choice with MFW. At the moment. I'm going to keep doing what works and that's what we are using at the moment. Hubby says to keep moving on, so that's what we are doing.

I so appreciate the encouragement, as I have really needed that. Yes, Filitsa, I have considered public school for DS, but I know in my heart that it is not the wisest choice for DS.
Thanks again!

homemama

[betancourt6]

Homemama,

I feel what you are feeling, sister in Christ! I have been back and forth for the past 3 years on certain subjects and feel like we've missed out on several things. We began with RtR (4th & 7th grades) and AHL (9h grade) in July, then decided to try something else that "seemed" like it would work better for our family. Three curricula later, we are coming back to MFW, thankfully. I share this with you to give you encouragement. I believe that to a certain degree, we all want to try something different in educating our children because we truly love them and want the best for them. At the end of the day, what we need to realize is that the Lord is guiding us, no matter how we feel about it or feel like we're lacking. Your child(ren) are already blessed because they are home with you, and you will give them your best. God honors that! Like the other precious families mentioned in their posts above (with some fantastic suggestions, I might add!), don't worry about where you are in the cycle of learning. Just pick up and start today (well, Monday would probably work better, lol). We are doing the same thing, and I'm going to stop beating myself up for it! Be encouraged and know that you will receive direction from our precious Father in heaven. The wonderful families on this board have been such a blessing to me as well, so keep it coming!

Blessings, Jackie in TN

[homemama]

It's taken me awhile to get back to this, but Thanks! I really appreciate all the help and support. You all are so right!

homemama

[DS4home]

Hello all. I need some encouragement and advice.

We started out with energy and strength, and I love the CTG study. But then I got completely derailed when I had a miscarriage shortly after starting. I thought I'd get back on track quickly, but I found myself just doing the bare minimum of schoolwork with Gail... spelling, math, language arts, reading, Bible here and there but not doing the activities and experiments that make school enjoyable... we're really just getting by and it is setting a bad precedent for my 4th grader.

It didn't help that we took a short vacation right after the miscarriage, and I have been teaching In church and had duties as a deacon's wife and such, but homeschooling has added a whole huge layer of responsibility and I can't just gradually heal the way I would have in the past. My TM is only marked up to the beginning of week 3!

Gail enjoys that school has been "short" because the weather is fantastic and she plays outdoors all day long, but she has missed our fun times together doing activities. She doesn't know how much I've skipped but she senses that this year has been different. We are right on schedule for math, language arts and spelling. But everything else is weeks behind. Any advice on how to "catch up" without just piling it all on to my poor daughter so that she takes the consequences of my inaction?

Thanks for listening and for any advice you can give me.

Here is what I'm thinking, you are right where you need to be for now!

It sounds like you are on track with math and language arts.

If you are feeling ready to add in MFW, then I would suggest picking up the TM and start right where you left off. Look at week 3 if that is where you left off and begin working through the week. Doing all the activities, notebooking, read alouds, Bible, history, that are scheduled for that week. There is no need to try to catch up right now. Give yourself some time to get back into the groove of a fuller school day.

Once that is established again and you are feeling on top of it, you may find places to condense or you may not! And that is OK! Maybe you'll have to rethink your planned vacation days off around holidays and such, but you don't have to. It really is going to be OK. Just keep moving forward and it'll work itself out.

Blessings,
Dawn

[TriciaMR]

You know what I might do? I might take a week off the three R's and do a week of Bible, History, and Science.

[Mom2theteam]

Shawna, I will pray for you and your family.

I like the idea of taking a week off the 3 R's to catch up on the other stuff, but I also agree you could just start where you are. In any case, you are going great. You have to take time to grieve and heal. That is normal and completely acceptable. Big, big hugs!!!

[tiffanys]

Just wanted to say I'm sorry. I am not on the boards often, but last year when we were starting Adventures, I was following along with your ECC fun with your daughter. What a great year, and what a blessed girl to have you!

Skipping the 3Rs sounds like fun and have some intensive history & science. =)

Or just jump in where you are. Are you trying to race the calendar and finish by a certain date? If not, just pick up where you left off. Of course, we had a major move in the middle of our school year last year and I did NOT heed my own advice, but instead crammed everything in at the end so we could have a full summer. I would NOT recommend that. Either make your peace with going a tad bit into the summer months, or weed out a couple of things from CTG to slim it down just a bit till you are back on track.

Don't rush through it and burn yourself out. You won't enjoy it.

Praying for you and your loss.

[MelissaB]

Hi, Shawna ~

{hugs} I've been reading your posts for several years now. You are a diligent homeschooling Mom, and Gail is very blessed.

I love Dawn's and the others' advice to start where you left off. Concerning the activities or feasts you may have missed, Shawna, I would put the ones I really wanted to do on my "Summer Activities List," and do them then. {It will provide a great "review." }

Start fresh - right where you are. Please don't regret those missed activities; At Gail's age, playing outside is an important educational activity, too.

And know that you are doing a great job!

Prayers & hugs to you ~
melissa

[rawbanana]

I've been feeling a little in over my head the last year.

This fall I will be homeschooling 10th, 9th, 7th, 6th, 3rd and I have an almost 2 yr old. My older 2 will still require a good bit of my time, especially with math and science (will be finishing up biology with my oldest-she is VERY behind in it, and will start Physical with my 9th grader-we tried to start it at the beginning of 8th grade and it was clear that she was NOT ready for it).
I will have to spend a good deal of time with my 6th grader too as she really struggles in math and needs me with her a good deal of the time, especially when we're working on corrections. she needs direction with language arts a lot as well.
My 7th grader does PRETTY well on her own but will need time with me as she is starting General Science this year.
My 3rd needs me pretty much the whole time as well as needs lots of help with math and lots of direction in language arts.
THEN there is my almost 2 yr old who is very loud and very needy of our time, especially mine.
AAAANNNNDDDD on top of all that, I STILL need to make time to do 'together' school. We are doing Rome to Reformation this year.
AND I still haven't even gotten 1/2 way thru Science in the Beginning from Creation to Greeks (we just finished up the rest of it about a 2 weeks ago.

I'm feeling like I'm not going to have enough time in the day to get everything done and make sure I can work with everyone. I feel like the work load is going to be so HEAVY this year.
My younger 2 are both about a year behind, maybe a bit more, in math and I'm feeling like I need to spend extra time with them to help them get caught up....

*sigh*

Any advice for me??

[TriciaMR]

This fall I will be homeschooling 10th, 9th, 7th, 6th, 3rd and I have an almost 2 yr old.

My older 2 will still require a good bit of my time, especially with math and science (will be finishing up biology with my oldest-she is VERY behind in it, and will start Physical with my 9th grader-we tried to start it at the beginning of 8th grade and it was clear that she was NOT ready for it).

My 7th grader does PRETTY well on her own but will need time with me as she is starting General Science this year.

My younger 2 are both about a year behind, maybe a bit more, in math and I'm feeling like I need to spend extra time with them to help them get caught up.... My 6th grader really struggles in math and needs me with her a good deal of the time, especially when we're working on corrections. she needs direction with language arts a lot as well. My 3rd needs me pretty much the whole time as well as needs lots of help with math and lots of direction in language arts.

THEN there is my almost 2 yr old who is very loud and very needy of our time, especially mine.

I still haven't even gotten 1/2 way thru Science in the Beginning from Creation to Greeks (we just finished up the rest of it about a 2 weeks ago.

AND I STILL need to make time to do 'together' school. We are doing Rome to Reformation this year.

I'm feeling like I'm not going to have enough time in the day to get everything done and make sure I can work with everyone. I feel like the work load is going to be so HEAVY this year. *sigh* Any advice for me??

{Hugs}

My advice is prayer. Pray for yourself and wisdom, but also pray for your kids to be able to step up and handle a little more "independence" as needed.

Check out Virtual Homeschool Group. They have free, At-Your-Own-Pace classes for most of Saxon math and Apologia Sciences. It might be just what you need. They also have live classes (also free), but those are currently filling up fast.

[Julie in MN]

Aw, Anna, hugs to you. You're doing a mountainous job over there!

When I read your post, it's sounding like science is your main obstacle. And while I think the science sequence is important for several reasons, including learning to study, I don't think it's so important that it should cause your household to collapse I might set new goals in that department such as spending one year on each child's science skills before graduation.

You could still do science but perhaps just focus on a student or 2, with the others mostly doing reading and summarizing this year, or doing experiments on Saturdays. Or, join the VirtualHomeschoolGroup online, which Trish mentioned; they do quizzes online and you can just watch the labs. I wouldn't do those types of things every year, but it sounds like you need to breathe.

Another possibility would be to have some of your students do science with another homeschool family. I searched out lab partners during some years and that provided a little more motivation to my students.

I wouldn't skimp on math time, as that is really the essence of a lot of upper science. My sons have had friends who didn't have the "math muscles" they needed in college, even though they were great at science. (The other area I wouldn't skimp on is giving feedback on writing. Every career requires good communication skills, I think. If you don't have time, then I would seek out another adult.)

Also, I was thinking one of your high schoolers could earn an elective credit in childcare by teaching Preschool to your little one once she turns 2, first thing in the morning.

[Poohbee]

Oh, I hate to think of you being so overwhelmed and almost dreading the school year before it begins. You do have quite a load and a lot on your plate. Hang in there! This, too, shall pass. It is only a season.

Perhaps give yourself grace and give up the idea that your kids are behind. Who says they're behind? Behind whom or what? Your school is your school. My oldest dd will be in 10th this year. She started General Science at the beginning of 7th grade, and it took her a bit longer than a full school year. We finished the last four modules in 8th and then started Physical Science. She didn't finish Physical until toward the end of 9th. I don't worry about that, though, because in our state, the kids take Physical in 9th in PS, so my dd is right on track with the PS kids. For 10th grade, my dd wanted to study astronomy, and she won't get to biology until 11th. My oldest may not even study chemistry, and I'm okay with that, because it is my school, and I'm trusting the Lord to lead and guide us. If your oldest finishes biology this year, she could start her next science, whatever that may be, and she would still have time to complete chemistry and physics, if that is what you want her to do.

For science, I would recommend, as Tricia did, that you try to foster more independence in your kids, just to help you out more. I believe Apologia has the books on MP3 or as audiobooks so that your kids could listen and follow along, if that would help them at all. For both General and Physical, I ordered the notebooking journal published by Apologia for my daughter. It helped her learn what to focus on when taking notes, and she learned how to write a great lab report. So, she would read the chapter and take notes in the notebooking journal completely on her own. She did her own experiments and wrote her lab reports. Occasionally, her younger sister and I would watch her labs and serve as lab partners when needed. My dd filled out the study guide in the notebooking journal, and I corrected it and gave her feedback, even providing the right answers when she had them wrong. She studied the study guide, using her younger sister as a study partner, before taking the test. Perhaps if your kids were able to do more on their own, it would take the pressure off you a bit. The audio and notebooking journal might help with that.

For the math with your younger two, I had a similar situation with my middle daughter. She wasn't quite a year behind, but she was behind where I watned her to be. There are ways to catch up a bit. You don't have to do every assignment, especially all of the Practice assignments and reviews. After teaching a new lesson, if your child has done the workbook and seems like they have the concept down pretty well, then you could possibly skip the Practice assignments, especially when there are 2 of them. Or perhaps just do half of the problems on the practice to gauge the child's learning. I'm referring to Singapore, but it is true with any math curriculum you are using. Just make sure that if anything else gets cut out of your day, be sure you spend some time working on math to keep that moving along and to keep the skills fresh. I know that for my daughters, they both really dislike math, so they would rather have me cut that out if we are having a rough day. Once in awhile, I give them a day off from math, but I try to stay consistent and make sure we do math everyday, or it is too easy to fall behind and forget what they've learned.

Well, Anna, I hope I've helped a little bit. Most of all, give yourself grace. Your kids are not behind. They're right where they need to be at this time. Just take them where they are and move forward. Try not to lose the joy of teaching your kids at home and learning with them. Don't give up the "fun" stuff because you feel you don't have time because you think they're behind. Just tackle each day as it comes, and pray! A lot! for God's guidance and peace. He is faithful!