Mama cat won't stay in kitten room

Hi. Our 2 kittens are almost 5 weeks old and have not gotten the hang of using the litter box, so I have decided to keep them in a half bath until they do. The kittens are fine with the scenario, but mama cat is going crazy. She will howl and scratch at the door to be let in and less than 3 minutes later, howl and scratch to be let out. It's making me insane! I tried putting up a baby gate but one kitten climbed over it and the mama tried to jump over with the other.

Should I just make the mama stay in the room with the kittens? They have just started eating kitten food so she still nurses frequently.

Thanks so much. [emoji]128571[/emoji]

Do you have another, larger room where they can be contained? If not, have you also tried a second litter box, nearest the location of the kittens, that only the kittens can access? We had to get creative, and fashion our own kitten box, with a tiny opening that only they could fit through, and after placing them inside the box (top off) and holding their paws and making a scratching motion in the litter, they normally would instinctively go to the bathroom. After that, they got the hang of it very quick.

Just an idea, at 5 weeks, they are still quite the handful, we have 8 kittens right now that are not much older than yours.