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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Not op, what can working parents with low energy level do at home for a gifted 4th grader & a dyslexia 1st grader? I may have 1 hour energy max./day on weekdays and maybe 2 hours/day  max. for weekends. I am exhausted, so that is the most I could contribute. The gifted child is in CES, but it is still too easy. They have enough outdoor exercise time, and I want to introduce stem (especially science) to the gifted one, and find a fun way to working on phonics and reading with the dyslexia one. [/quote]

I don't have great answers on how to work with your first grader on reading, since I don't have experience with dyslexia. But otherwise I have a few thoughts:

(1) [b]You can definitely move ahead in math. [/b]IXL has some really good workbooks (like physical ones, not an app). We've been working through the first grade workbook with our advanced kindergartener, and she's catching on pretty quickly to place value. We do a page or two a day, sometimes we don't make much progress because we're all just too tired. This might be a 20- to 30-minute commitment a few days a week.
(2) [b]Reading aloud.[/b] My dad read to me every night (between getting home from work and starting the kitchen cleanup), and it really helped me develop my listening comprehension and my vocabulary. Yes, fourth graders can read to themselves, but when you read aloud to them it gives them access to materials that are above their reading ability, but consistent with their comprehension level. By fourth grade you can access some pretty cool books, like John Christopher's Tripod Trilogy, Norton Juster's Phantom Tollbooth, etc. And there are so many books that your first grader will love. 
(3) [b]Board games.[/b] There are a number of math board games out there that will help kids increase their processing speed. Sum Swamp is much better for your 1st grader, but there are board games that work on multiplication and division as well, and because it's a game the kids may be much more interested in participating.
(4) [b]History books. [/b]An extension of reading aloud from above--there are some excellent nonfiction books that will help your kids build a foundation to understand history. You could try Joy Hakim's History of US, David MacCaulay's Castle/Cathedral/Pyramid, etc. 
(5) [b]Science.[/b] Most science and engineering requires math skills that kids simply haven't developed yet (you really need at least algebra to do basic physics). So I think that most of elementary school science should be about inspiring kids and getting them excited about doing science. There are tons of experiments you could do together at home that might be fun. Some things I've thought of include planting a bean in a pot on the windowsill and measuring and graphing the height every day, getting an inexpensive microscope and looking at and drawing things like onion plant cells, building some basic electric circuits, etc. There are a lot of books full of home science experiments for kids to try. And again, you can find age-appropriate books in your library about different topics and just read to them. [/quote]

Pp here. Thank you for suggestions. [/quote]

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