Letting Our Kids Be Kids
If your kids are anything like mine, getting them to sit down and do a worksheet or workbook is torture for them and me too.
It is never fun to force an active kid to sit down and do a worksheet, which makes you wonder why we even do worksheets with our kids. Don’t get me wrong, we do some worksheets and workbooks with our kids, but that isn’t the main part of our curriculum or what we do in our homeschool life.
The key to that last part is “homeschool life”. School doesn’t always need to be done by using worksheets. Some families don’t even use a curriculum while homeschooling. Kids learn so much through playing, adventuring, and just being themselves!
School doesn’t need to be done sitting at a desk. Let school be an adventure!
Think about cooking a meal. Most of the time we follow a recipe. We read the recipe to follow the steps, that’s literacy. We measure the ingredients as we go along, that’s math. We are also learning science and other skills as we go. Think of the hand-eye coordination it takes to scoop and stir.
Head out on a nature walk. Talk about the different plants and trees you see. Keep an eye out for different animals. Our favorite thing to do on nature walks is to bring a journal with us. My kids draw about what they see and my oldest also writes about it too. When you get back home, look up books or videos about what we saw while you were out walking.
When I first started homeschooling, I was afraid my kids would fall behind in school if we weren’t doing “school” all day.
I had to remind myself that even though we might not be sitting at a desk or table all day, that my kids are still learning. If you are worried about this too, try asking yourself the following questions.
Where do my ideas about schooling come from?
Am I trying to “recreate” school at home?
Why am I trying to “challenge” my kids for school?
Can’t school just be fun?
If you are currently trying to “recreate” school at home, I would suggest taking a step back and re-evaluate how you can help your kids learn in a way that is best for them.
The amount of worksheets or even the curriculum you pick won’t change your kid’s ability to learn. All kids learn at different speeds and in different ways. What teachers were doing with your kids at school, might not work at home. It is important to remember that that is ok!
The school system teaches kids all the same way, because that is what works in a school setting. The beauty of home education is being able to follow your kids’ interests and their own ability levels. Follow along with the talents that God has given them and they will thrive!