One thing that struck me as I prepared my workshop for this past weekend's retreat was the way most homeschoolers train their children to be followers. Most of us desire our children to be leaders as adults, but the way we school our children so they will follow.
What do I mean by this? When I give my children a list of assignments, they "follow" me by completing these assignments. They do not take the lead in their education when they do this. If we want our children to become leaders, we need to give them opportunities to lead in their education. One way you can do this is to allow your children to choose what they want to study. When they make this choice, they are "leading" in their education, taking ownership of what they study.
Does that mean you allow them to choose everything they study? The answer for me is "no". There are still concepts and subject areas that Steve & I want them to study. This past spring we told my older ones what they were required to continue studying.. Gileskirk Humanities with George Grant and their writing class through Zarafa Tutorials. You might notice this did not include math. Oh no, you might say. Well, my 9th grader continued to study Algebra. She saw importance for herself in continuing this study. Do you think she is learning more as she studies Algebra? I believe she is because she knows we are not making her study this. It is her choice.
How will you homeschool this coming year? Will you allow your children to "lead" in their studies or "follow" you (and do the minimum required)?
If you want to read more about this idea, consider reading Thomas Jefferson Education or listening to some of their CDs.
Kerry
Thomas Jefferson Education
Leadership Education
No comments:
Post a Comment