Archive for October, 2009
Giving the gift of learning
For many homeschoolers, learning is an integral part of their life, their everyday routine. Every day there is learning whether it be in the classroom, on a field trip or running errands.
It is important to encourage learning. An easy way to do this is giving educational gifts. A book, a game, a science kit or even a craft kit all have the potential to inspire learning in children. Don’t forget educational video games too – fun and learning together! Inspire learning not only in your own children, but other children to whom you give gifts.
After a night of trick or treating and a belly full of candy, getting children to concentrate on school work can be a challenge. The trick is to incorporate Halloween into the lessons!
A bag of Halloween candy is a great math manipulative. It can be used for counting, sorting, graphing and more. Even the wrappers can be used for collage art! A health lesson on the good and bad of sugar is another great way to incorporate treats into the lesson plan. Keep out those costumes and use them to act out plays, fairy tales or other stories that has the character in it. Kids will study topics they are interested in so find a thematic unit on Halloween, ghosts, bats or other spooky themes. Bringing Halloween into the lesson plan will take the trickiness out of teaching over-excited children!
Scary movies, suspenseful novels – we all love a good scare. But sometimes, the pictures in picture books are too scary for children to enjoy reading the book. The wicked stepmother in Snow White can make you shudder, the flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz can make you scream.
If you want your children to read these stories, help take the fear out of them. Download the book and offer them just the text. Go chapter by chapter and after each chapter is read, have them draw a picture. By the end you have a fully illustrated version of the story, all drawn by your child. It is a great keepsake, and a great way to make the characters easier to handle!
So what makes home-schoolers qualified to teach our children? Well, obviously we can’t know everything, but we can look it up and learn it along with them, relegate to a professional or provide instructional video to teach the lesson.
Many times, the tip for teaching a subject that is not familiar is to read ahead. Staying a chapter or two ahead of your student will allow you to help them learn and answer their questions. Field trips can also be used in place of a lesson that you may not know as much about. Let the experts help you! Instructional DVDs can also be helpful. A DVD that teaches French can be a useful resource for parent teachers that haven’t any French background. The key to teaching what you don’t know is to know where to get help!
Sometimes school work can be boring. If a child is not enjoying the subject or is struggling with the lesson it can be hard to teach them.
Theme units are a great way to beat the boredom. Pick a theme your child enjoys and develop it into a lesson plan. Or find a theme unit that already exists and use it. Because theme units encompass cross-curricular activities all geared to that specific theme, your child can get a well-rounded lesson on something they enjoy. It is amazing how keen they will be to do their school work when pirates or princesses are involved!
Although a homeschool environment is different from a classroom it is important to have a separate place designated for learning in your home. A specific room or place in the house helps children feel the separation of home and school. A quiet area away from tv, video games, toys and other distractions will create a learning environment that children can concentrate in.
A separate workspace for each child helps them learn that their work is important. Decorate the walls with their artwork, learning posters and other inspiring decorations. A bookshelf to keep all their resources on is also good, so that they are kept separate and accessible. It is important that a homeschool setting creates a learning environment that benefits the child!