There has to be some order to home schooling; after all, it is still school,
and you want to make sure that your children are learning. However, base the
way that you present new information and introduce academic concepts on your
child, not necessarily on tradition. For example, math concepts are explained
in different forms, such as word problems, and step-by-step instructions in
textbooks. However, you may want to use pictures, or have your child draw the
problem out in order to figure out the answer.
For Language Arts, you may ant to have your child record him/herself
reciting grammatical rules, so that they will remember what they hear. Once you
know what motivates your child to learn and which tools will help him or her to
effectively retain information, you can feel confident that your teaching is
definitely paying off.
You should also plan to take field trips as often as you can. Visit museums
to learn more about famous artists and literary figures, or go to the park to
learn more about plants and the ecosystem. Smaller children will also enjoy
going to places like the local fire station, police station, or even the
grocery store to learn more about the different roles each person in the
community plays, as well as how grown-ups use math, English, and science in
their daily lives. You can also have your children document the events of the
day with pictures and written descriptions to make sure that the lesson was
learned.
Since technology has been introduced to all aspects of education, you can
use this to your advantage, even if you’re home schooling. Use the internet as
much as you can to find information on every subject, as well as excerpts from
famous works of literature and instructions for science and reading projects.
Many teaching or educational websites will also provide links to other great
academic sources, as well as books that you may be able to purchase online to
use in your daily curriculum.
You will also be able to print out pages of lesson plans or certain chapters
from books you may want to use, and this won’t cost you anything extra. Using
the computer has become a regular part of the school day in both public and
parochial schools, so using this resource at home will help to make sure your
children are aware of current learning tools and objectives. If you want a
particular textbook or teacher resource book, there are a number of websites
that specialize in selling both new and used textbooks at discount prices.
Check out sites like www.amazon.com and www.directtextbook.com to find out
how you can purchase some of the same books that students are using in
classrooms; you may even find books that you think may be better for your
child’s learning experience that may not have been previously recommended for
your son or daughter’s grade level. Remember, you can home school at the pace
that is best for your child, so if you find that he or she is more advanced,
you can purchase textbooks as you see fit.
Depending on your budget, you may still want to have a pretty extensive
library in your home for convenience, and to show your child that education
should be as close to them as possible. Whether your library consists of a few
shelves of books in your living room, or you have a whole room to devote to
books and academics, the main objective is to make sure that your son or
daughter has everything they need to receive the best education at home.