Our Homeschool Part 1
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| A very regular occurrence in our house. Our next door neighbor joins in the fun. |
So what does our homeschool look like? I am a big fan of keeping it simple. In my opinion, learning should never be a burden. That's not to say that some days, we don't just have to do stuff we'd rather not, because we do and that's life. What I mean is that we're not going to spend the whole day with our heads bent over worksheets, feeling the pressure of a looming deadline, learning by rote so we can pass a test and then forget it all. (Which pretty much sums up my entire education from Kindergarten through College, by the way.) One way our family avoids viewing learning as a burden rather than a privilege is by abandoning checklists and timelines and allowing ourselves to learn at our own pace, not according to a calendar. And I say "we" because I'm very much involved in the learning process too. I need the "easy does it" approach just as much as my girls do.
If I feel pressure to get a list done by May, I'll turn into a crazy woman. I just know that about myself. That's why I consider us year-round learners. We'll take breaks from our more formal learning when we need it but for the most part, we'll just keep trucking along, moving forward, doing a bit each day. And really, our homeschool structure is so simple that it's not a big deal to fit it into the day. Even on really busy days there is time to do what we always do. There is no checklist and while we're learning all day long, we're not actually sitting down for any lessons for more than an hour each day - and usually, it's far less than that. We just have some books we're moving through at our own pace - which thus far has been fairly accelerated, much to my surprise. (More on those books later.)
We study what interests us - not what somebody says we should be studying. And actually, because of that interest-led learning, the girls pick up and retain more information at a faster speed than they would if I was spoon feeding them (or cramming it down their throats). We read...a lot - silly books, serious books, funny books, short books, picture books, long books, books on tape, encyclopedias, poetry, the Bible, historical accounts on cd, magazines, you name it. We learn things as we live. Fractions while cooking, language while playing with neighbors, biology while helping Daddy move and replant banana plants, geography as we talk about the where our friends are from, history as we thumb through a book about castles. Sean and I share little tidbits that excite us about the world around us and we try to draw their attention to certain things they might not have noticed but we don't force them to learn something if it's obvious they don't much care. (Seems like they always care when we show enthusiasm over something, though.)
They have a lifetime to learn the myriad facts and information out there, when and if they are ready. In fact, the history and science curricula I had bought are far better appreciated out on the bookshelf for free perusal than they were when we were sticking to a rigid plan of study. Those books were kept under lock and key - no looking ahead, you know. Then one day I realized we were studying that stuff for me - because I wanted to know it, not because Brooklyn needed it in Second Grade! So, I took the books out and threw them onto the girls' bookshelf. I'm so glad I let it go because Brooklyn is loving those history books. She even spent the better part of this afternoon sharing them with Madison and explaining the pictures.
Well, that's the first part of what turned into a very long post! Better cut it in half so you'll stick with me. Tune in for Part 2 tomorrow to find out what we make sure to do every day and how I ensure that my children don't become total ignoramuses!
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