Are You Feeling Isolated As a Homeschooling Parent?
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September 18, 2023
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Have you heard of Special Interest Units? The phrase may make you wonder, what exactly that could mean? And why would that be important for your child’s education? Using these compact units of learning can make learning fun for our kids. While also helping our children discover their passions and desire to dig deeper on topics that excite them. It’s so important to cultivate their desire to learn when they’re young, and using Special Interest Units can help with that.
Have you ever found a topic that you just couldn’t get enough of? You started digging deeper, doing more research. You became fascinated by this topic and learning about it gave you so much life. You want your child to experience that same passion and hunger for learning, right? So, how? How can we help our kids with digging deeper, learning bigger, and enjoying the process?
Your son just came up to you and told you that he wants to drive a Porsche, and be a millionaire with a fast, fancy boat when he’s older. What’s your initial reaction? To tell him that money doesn’t matter? To explain that we don’t always get what we want in life? Do you immediately think ‘Those are expensive, he could never afford that?’ Or do you say: “Well you’ll have to have a really good job then.” All of these initial thoughts are normal, because you live in a realistic world. Your child however, is living in a bright world where anything is possible. Instead of immediately shutting down his dream, try asking questions instead.
Ask things like: “What colour would your Porsche be?” “How fast would it go?” You can google how fast a Porsche can go together, and then perhaps talk about different speeds, because I guarantee that one day they will be driving and will need to know. “What colour would it be? There’re so many colours, let’s check out the Colours and Light Special interest Unit together to learn more about colours. Maybe we can even pick a colour that isn’t very common, if you like it!” That fast boat that he’s dreaming of, have him draw a picture, and write about where he would travel. Grab a map and explore the oceans with him. Ask him where he’d want to travel to, and what countries he’d like to see with his boat.
You aren’t squashing his dreams, you are helping him cultivate his dreams through joy-filled, education.
There are so many areas of education that can be really dry. Many parents struggle with teaching their children math, not because they don’t know it but because math is one of the more ‘dry subjects’. For some kids, they just love it. For others, it overwhelms them from the boredom of 5+6=11. How can you make learning more fun? Especially with those areas of their education that are beyond boring?
Special Interest Units aren’t just about an interesting topic. They are so much more than that. You can incorporate multiple subject areas under one theme. Math, Writing, Reading, Science, all of these are included in many Special Interest Units. When you mix enjoyable content with basic educational lessons, you have a remedy for a fun and successful learning experience.
The world would be a different place if we all did what we were actually interested in. If we all somehow found a way to make a living off of something that we enjoy. But chances are when you went to school you were taught in a traditional form. You were told to get good grades, do well in areas of education, and forget about your passions. Because “Passion doesn’t pay the bills.”
Associate Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Connecticut, Sally Reis, Ph.D., states that the key to unlocking a child’s potential is finding that child’s interests and helping the child develop them. Did you catch that? The key to them unlocking their potential isn’t by forcing them to get good grades and then being disappointed when they don’t meet our expectations. Rather, the key comes when they love what they’re learning.
How can they discover their interests? Books, watching educational shows, museums, zoos, the outdoors, and Special Interest Units. There truly are so many ways to help your child find their passion for education while you make learning fun.
Every child has a unique learning style, or a way that they learn most effectively. The three different styles: Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic. Which style suits your child the most? Helping your child determine their learning style will be a gift that serves them their entire life.
Don’t become overwhelmed by the idea of ‘how to make learning fun’, ok? There are so many ways to do it. You can start by checking out our Special Interest Units.
Because we love to make learning fun, so we’ve created a whole bunch of awesome Special Interest Units to help your child learn fun new things while squeezing in important education lessons.
Click here to view our Special Interest Units.
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