This series of posts addresses the rationale behind my Homeschool How-To course How to Make Learning Meaningful, Memorable, and FUN! . . . coming in September. The first Homeschool How-To course How to Teach the Way Your Child Learns is available NOW! 🙂
One of the things I most dreaded hearing at the start of each school year was, “I don’t remember.”
After summer vacation, Christmas break, or even over a weekend, children seem to forget so much of what we’ve tried to teach them.
That begs the question: If they don’t retain the information, did they ever really learn it in the first place? (And that sometimes made me want to throw up my hands and ask, “Why am I even doing this?!?)
There’s a better way…
Benjamin Franklin said this:
It’s true, isn’t it?
Where did you learn more–in school? Or in “the School of Hard Knocks” since you got out?
We learn best from our own experiences.
Textbooks tell us what someone else thinks we ought to know based on their goals and experiences.
Real life teaches us what we need to know based on our own goals and experiences.
Textbooks present us with knowledge in theory.
Real life gives us knowledge in practice.
The old adage got it right: Experience is the best teacher. (That’s why it’s an old adage, right?)
The wonderful thing about homeschooling is that it gives you the chance to guide your children through their earliest experiences and adventures. That way, hopefully, we can soften some of the “hard knocks” before they leave the security of home. Not all. Failure and consequences can be very instructive. But home can provide a great safety net, fall-back plan, and cheering section. 😉
Involve your children in their own learning through practical experiences…and throw in a few wild adventures whenever possible.
