s/o Should school be fun??

[creekmom]

I read the post by the mom who was discouraged bc she felt that the only fun her dc had was when school was over. Not long ago, I was feeling the same way. When I brought this up to a friend, she said, "You know, I think kids who have "fun" at school are at a real disadvantage when it comes to learning. Teachers in ps are trained to make a game out of learning bc so many kids just don't have the attention span to learn when they just have to listen and think! Once they hit middle school and high school and learning is no longer a song and dance, a lot of kids have a real problem focusing and learning."

 

I wanted to bring this up bc I think a lot of us compare our kids' education to the ps education and feel that even though our kids are learning just as much (usually more), they are somehow missing out on a lot of the fun. I don't worry about it anymore. We do games occasionally, but most of the time, learning is just...learning. My hope is that they'll be better off in the long run. :001_smile:

Edited January 6, 2011 by creekmom

[Snickerdoodle]

I don't try to make school work fun. Work is work. Deal.

 

Like I've said before: I'm such a fun mom. ;)

[Laura Corin]

I think it is good to have fun elements, but it doesn't have to be all fun. Most of our fun was relational: family jokes and giggles, rather than fun curriculum.

 

Laura

[tonersl]

Thank you for this reminder. I am constantly comparing and struggling with the fact that our school day is not "fun." My husband always says, "it's not supposed to be fun. It is school!" I completely agree but some days, when greeted with yet another frown and scowl, I just want it to be FUN and for me not to have to be the heavy hand, enforcing the learning. Why are we so hard on ourselves?

 

Thank you again,

Shannon in NC

[LisaKinVA]

In a word, no.

 

Now, this varies by degrees... My Ker shouldn't be crying every time I reach for a certain book (this usually means something is wrong with the curriculum/approach around here); and my 11yo shouldn't feel like he's "dumb" because of a book.

 

But, let's face it... penmanship is work (my 4yo dd enjoys it, so it's not as much work as it is for my 7yo ds). Math is work... reading a book to study is work. There may be more or less enjoyable elements about each thing, but it is still something they have to do. Kind of like a job. There are things about my job (when I had one) that I enjoyed, and there were things I didn't.

[Gratia271]

School is their vocation. It is not intended to entertain them but rather to improve them. I strive to make the school day pleasant for my children, but a large part of their enjoyment/lack thereof in the learning process is a function of their attitudes.

[Princess Peach]

Yes, I agree. I'm always repeating the same thing to my kids: You don't have to like it, you just have to do it. Do they honestly think I enjoy scrubbing the toilet?! Some things simply need to be done and it's not always fun.

[5LittleMonkeys]

I think it is good to have fun elements, but it doesn't have to be all fun. Most of our fun was relational: family jokes and giggles, rather than fun curriculum.

 

Laura

 

:iagree:completely. I struggled with this too a while back. In fact I think I even posted about it. We don't have fun curriculum. Honestly, I've looked at some and even tried some and it wears me out. And when I have tried it my dc ask to just get it done so they can go do their own thing. This is especially true of my older dc. We would rather have fun playing Aggravation, Uno or playing together on the Kinect.:tongue_smilie:

[creekmom]

Yes, I agree. I'm always repeating the same thing to my kids: You don't have to like it, you just have to do it. Do they honestly think I enjoy scrubbing the toilet?! Some things simply need to be done and it's not always fun.

 

I had a similar response to my ds7 yesterday who didn't want to write out the dictation for spelling. I said, "Do you think I wanted to change your poopy diapers 6 years ago??? Do you think I wanted to get up in the middle of the night 4 times to feed you? What if I decided I was only going to do the things I wanted to do?! Life is full of things we must do but don't want to do." He stopped complaining about writing his dictation sentences after that. :D

[TXMary2]

I don't think it always has to be fun. Fun is a bonus and around here we get fun when we behave during the not so fun stuff that must be done. Fun usually entails a lot of prep and organization by me, which means we may get fun once a week or every other week. Of course, fun is relative depending on the kid. :)

[In the Rain]

You don't have to like it, you just have to do it. Do they honestly think I enjoy scrubbing the toilet?! Some things simply need to be done and it's not always fun.

 

:lol: I think we are twins! I say this exact thing often to my 9yo dd.

 

Mary, thanks for bringing this up. Sometimes I do feel guilty that school isn't more fun.

 

I don't know how to do a multiple quote- but I have had the same experience as 5littlemonkeys. My kids don't want a "fun curriculum", they want to finish school and keep play separate. Originally I envisioned the whole "learning lifestyle" where education and fun and life flowed together seamlessly. :lol: I was given a dd who started asking in K, "is this for fun or for school?" :glare::lol:

[Lizzie in Ma]

I think it is good to have fun elements, but it doesn't have to be all fun. Most of our fun was relational: family jokes and giggles, rather than fun curriculum.

 

Laura

 

:iagree::iagree:

[Lizzie in Ma]

School is their vocation. It is not intended to entertain them but rather to improve them. I strive to make the school day pleasant for my children, but a large part of their enjoyment/lack thereof in the learning process is a function of their attitudes.

 

Well spoken!!! Awesome. May I quote you?

[blakereese]

In a word, no.

 

Now, this varies by degrees... My Ker shouldn't be crying every time I reach for a certain book (this usually means something is wrong with the curriculum/approach around here); and my 11yo shouldn't feel like he's "dumb" because of a book.

 

But, let's face it... penmanship is work (my 4yo dd enjoys it, so it's not as much work as it is for my 7yo ds). Math is work... reading a book to study is work. There may be more or less enjoyable elements about each thing, but it is still something they have to do. Kind of like a job. There are things about my job (when I had one) that I enjoyed, and there were things I didn't.

 

:iagree:

 

I always tell my DS that right now school is his job. It is something that he has to do. We were talking about how Daddy goes to work each day, and how my job is to stay home and take care of him, his siblings, and the house, etc. He asked me, "How much do you get paid?" :lol::glare: Yeh.

 

Anyway...I think as homeschoolers we want to make things so fun. Maybe to prove to our kids that it is more fun to stay home. Maybe to show the ps kids and parents how fun hs is. Maybe we don't realize that we are doing it, but many of us are trying to find a "fun" way to teach every subject. I do try to be creative with some things, and add in projects or books that I know my son will enjoy. I know that will spark his interest and he always learns more when he loves something. But at the same time he has to write every day even though he hates it. And there will be other things that he will not like that are necessary.

 

Sometimes I just use the ole "life isn't always fun" line. Yeh, just like my parents. :D It is true.

 

Like someone else said, it will get even harder and less fun in middle school, high school and college, so they might as well learn to work hard now. Even if it isn't fun.

[Dawn in OH]

School is their vocation. It is not intended to entertain them but rather to improve them. I strive to make the school day pleasant for my children, but a large part of their enjoyment/lack thereof in the learning process is a function of their attitudes.

:iagree: I try to make it fun when I can, but the reality of it is, for some things, it's just not possible. Their attitude really affects how fun, or not fun, something is.

[RoundAbout]

I don't think it has to be fun, certainly not every single minute, but I don't think having fun hurts either. I think people are assuming that fun=easy. Sometimes doing challenging new things is fun. I spent a week last year trying to snowboard and ended up with aching muscles and a sore bottom, it was a ton of work to try and get my body to do what it needed to do. I had moments of frustration, but I still had fun.

 

I had a ton of fun in elementary school, especially in 5th and 6th grade when I took part in our district's full time gifted program (lots of cool projects and hands on learning). I had no problem transitioning to a rigorous high school curriculum with top grades.

[regentrude]

For my kids, school IS fun - because they think learning is fun. They did not have a lot of fun in public school because they did not learn - despite all the "fun" activities.

We find math fun. We find reading Homeric epics fun. We may not find memorizing French irregular verbs a lot of fun, but it surely is fun to be able to read a fairy tale in French.

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun". I work in a job and love it, I have a lot of fun at my workplace. My husband as well. We are surrounded by people who have fun while they work - because they can follow their passion. I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

[2cents]

I don't try to make school work fun. Work is work. Deal.

 

Like I've said before: I'm such a fun mom. ;)

 

:iagree:

[Miss Marple]

School is their vocation. It is not intended to entertain them but rather to improve them. I strive to make the school day pleasant for my children, but a large part of their enjoyment/lack thereof in the learning process is a function of their attitudes.

 

:iagree: Attitude is the most important aspect of enjoying something. I continually tell my kids that school is their job right now. As their boss it's my duty to see that the work is done not to see that they have fun at work. If the two, work and fun, come together it's bonus time :D

[woolybear]

There was a time when I worked hard to include "fun" elements. It was a lot of extra work and in fact, given the choice, my kids would rather have "fun" doing other things. I felt I was adding in things that weren't really necessary, adding to our time and in the end there was no real gain. And a loss to me--time. Many things that we do for learning are inhererantly fun because they are interested in what we are doing. Some things we do are hands on (which is fun to them) because I see the added value in the learning for them.

 

I no longer try to make school fun. It is and it isn't. Just like life.:D

[Cindyz]

The great thing about home schooling is that it gives the kids more time to have fun outside of school. In general, we can complete a lot more learning in a day than regular school so we have more time for extra curricular activities, personal interests, playing, sports, etc.

[blakereese]

For my kids, school IS fun - because they think learning is fun. They did not have a lot of fun in public school because they did not learn - despite all the "fun" activities.

We find math fun. We find reading Homeric epics fun. We may not find memorizing French irregular verbs a lot of fun, but it surely is fun to be able to read a fairy tale in French.

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun". I work in a job and love it, I have a lot of fun at my workplace. My husband as well. We are surrounded by people who have fun while they work - because they can follow their passion. I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

 

I agree with what you are saying.

 

This is exactly what I want for my son...a future job that he loves, to follow his passion. I think most of us see that as a future goal. To get there, he may have to do a few things that are not fun for him. I loved school, loved pretty much every minute of it, but I know that isn't the case for everyone. My son loves most things about school...except for one (very very important) thing. Writing. :001_smile: But once he can do it a little bit better and has some confidence with it, he will be fine. Anyway, he does consider it to be work and not fun. But later on, he will hopefully have the chance to study what he likes and enjoys, and it will lead to a future job that he loves to go to each day. You and your husband are so lucky to have that, it is not as easy these days to find. Especially in this economy. :(

 

This reminds me of DH (who happens to love his job, it is definitely his passion)...he had to take classes in college that he did not like, but needed them to graduate. A couple of humanities and a few science classes (he's a business guy). They were classes that I loved, but he just didn't. It was work and he had to do it.

 

I still think there needs to be an attitude of, "learning is fun" as much as possible, especially for the young ones. But it likely won't be fun all the time. It is just another one of those life lessons, that working hard will bring rewards.

[robsiew]

For the most part, I do believe that school need not be "fun" all the time. And for the most part, we just get our work done here and have fun other ways.

 

However, I am learning that my ds7 has some special issues that make traditional learning difficult for him. In his case, "fun" motivates and engages him. So... for him I'm trying some different things.

 

In the end, really... it's a balance and that balance is different for each family and child. I would say "most" children (3 out of my 4) can suck it up, do what they need to do and go off to have their own fun. But for a small percentage of children (1 out of my 4) I find the need to use a little more "creativity" to engage him in learning. Adaptation is the name of the game I play! :001_smile: However, there are also things that he just "has" to do because... well, there are those things in life!

[mom4him]

I don't have the time to read all of the replies so if this is redundant, please forgive.

I do not believe that school is fun all the time. I do believe that it should be enjoyable though. Example: A couple of years ago I had a LA program that I was doing with my dd. Every day for 30-45 min. she sat and did what I asked/instructed with tears running down her face. She was miserable with this curr. I changed curr. with her, the tears stopped and she began to do good in this area.

I think it would be the unusual child to Love every subject and think they were all fun. When a child or adult for that matter is maxed out and miserable in a curr. I do believe that make learning the material difficult.

[KrissiK]

My kids have fun when they're playing. I do try to make school... challenging but not frustrating, interesting if possible and pleasant. I do not think school should be entertaining.

[patchfire]

I don't think school should be "fun" in the sense Western society uses the word. I think it should be satisfying to learn new things. I think there should be genuine pleasure when a child masters material, or has a new understanding a subject. I think happiness can be found in work well-done. But, no, I don't think it should be fun.

 

I was recently reading Barzun's House of Intellect (which I highly recommend, along with his Begin Here; I can't wait to get my hands on more of his work) and I wrote down several quotes, but this was one of my favorites: "The business of learning must above all others be represented in its true guise as difficult, as demanding effort." Learning isn't easy, and too often, fun is equated only with something that is easy or requires no effort. School should be not easy, requiring little to no effort.

[WTMCassandra]

I am another vote for balance. Remember also that having fun with something also arises from proficiency. GETTING proficient can be grueling, but once proficiency is reached, it does become fun. I spent a long time (esp. with DD) and many tears on getting my children reading and keeping them reading and getting them proficient. But now I have serious readers who self-describe as loving to read. Now they are having fun with it.

 

They fought and fought me on handwriting for years but loved getting a compliment from their science teacher (I outsourced science this year) this week on handwriting that I forced them to do neatly on an assignment.

 

I could go on and on. They fought me in learning math facts but now are having fun using them in real-life situations such as model rocket tracking.

 

I think it's easier to make content subjects "fun" in those early grades where we are doing the hard work of acquiring skills. My children say that history is their favorite subject, even though I'm not a "fun, project mom." I mostly read aloud to them, and then started assigning reading independently as appropriate. They groan about doing logic, but I do it aloud with them (no writing required) and then they love find fallacies in everyday life.

 

Their idea of fun changes with age, proficiency, and time. I have to stay constant in my goals whether they find something fun or not, but if they are truly miserable, I usually re-evaluate to see if there is a different way to meet my goal.

[justamouse]

I try to make the act of learning enjoyable--which, is different than school being fun. I want them to be delighted in learning. If I accomplish nothing and they love learning-I'm good with that.

 

And I don't expect it to be easy, but even as an adult I enjoy the challenge of learning something different and that's what I want for them. That hard work and perseverance applied to a challenge doesn't have to = drudgery. You can be passionate and persevere through a challenge and love every minute of it.

 

And I would never make the work harder because I thought it was too easy or they weren't working hard enough, either. Some things come more easily than others. If they are miserable I do reassess. Sometimes you have to cash in the chips and make them memorize/do rote work, but that is the foundation that everyone needs and I think has more to do with maturity than anything. But when they hate something, I don't make them trudge though it. If one of my kids hated art-hated the act of drawing (which I think is important to learning perspective) I *would* find another way to teach that. If they hated reading--and I've had some of them--I let them loose. I let them read what they want for a long, long time--my only requirement being that thye read. And I have turned over many stones to find what those childreen loved to read--but then I found it and let them go because the act of reading and learning to love to read is so important that to kill it with what they felt was drudgery was too dangerous. Eventually you can gently turn them to deeper works, but only if the act itself is enjoyable.

Edited January 6, 2011 by justamouse

[5Wizards]

For my kids, school IS fun - because they think learning is fun.

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun". because they can follow their passion. I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

 

:iagree:

[CarrieF]

School is their vocation. It is not intended to entertain them but rather to improve them. I strive to make the school day pleasant for my children, but a large part of their enjoyment/lack thereof in the learning process is a function of their attitudes.

Wonderful thoughts and very encouraging! Thank you - I especially needed this after the day we had yesterday - WOW. :001_smile:

[MorganClassicalPrep]

I don't think school has to be fun in the sense that we are always playing games, laughing, etc.

BUT. I DO strive to create an environment that encourages DD to enjoy learning. One of the main reasons I am homeschooling is because I want her to love to learn. Of course sometimes there are subjects/activities that have to get done and she doesn't enjoy doing them, but for the most part she still enjoys learning new things.

[scrapbabe]

For my kids, school IS fun - because they think learning is fun. They did not have a lot of fun in public school because they did not learn - despite all the "fun" activities.

We find math fun. We find reading Homeric epics fun. We may not find memorizing French irregular verbs a lot of fun, but it surely is fun to be able to read a fairy tale in French.

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun". I work in a job and love it, I have a lot of fun at my workplace. My husband as well. We are surrounded by people who have fun while they work - because they can follow their passion. I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

 

:iagree:

 

 

"

it will get even harder and less fun in middle school, high school and college, so they might as well learn to work hard now. Even if it isn't fun."

 

I think that children should enjoy learning and enjoy being children... simply because they will have to work hard throughout their life, so why do we have to start so soon? I would also hope my kids could choose something that they are passionate about to do as a vocation. It doesn't always happen, but I would hope they would be determined to follow a dream. At the very least if they have their whole life to work hard, let 'em be kids while they can! That doesn't mean no learning, but it certainly doesn't mean "school is their job".

 

But the beauty of homeschooling, is that we all get to choose what works for us. I don't treat school as a job for my kids... but if you do, and it works for you...well more power to ya.

[ChandlerMom]

I try to make the act of learning enjoyable--which, is different than school being fun. I want them to be delighted in learning. If I accomplish nothing and they love learning-I'm good with that.

 

And I don't expect it to be easy, but even as an adult I enjoy the challenge of learning something different and that's what I want for them. That hard work and perseverance applied to a challenge doesn't have to = drudgery. You can be passionate and persevere through a challenge and love every minute of it.

 

And I would never make the work harder because I thought it was too easy or they weren't working hard enough, either. Some things come more easily than others. If they are miserable I do reassess. Sometimes you have to cash in the chips and make them memorize/do rote work, but that is the foundation that everyone needs and I think has more to do with maturity than anything. But when they hate something, I don't make them trudge though it. If one of my kids hated art-hated the act of drawing (which I think is important to learning perspective) I *would* find another way to teach that. If they hated reading--and I've had some of them--I let them loose. I let them read what they want for a long, long time--my only requirement being that thye read. And I have turned over many stones to find what those childreen loved to read--but then I found it and let them go because the act of reading and learning to love to read is so important that to kill it with what they felt was drudgery was too dangerous. Eventually you can gently turn them to deeper works, but only if the act itself is enjoyable.

 

:iagree:

 

If it's not engaging, it's probably not teaching them much either.

 

No, every moment doesn't have to be ponies and ice cream with sprinkles on top fun. But it should be interesting. I carefully sandwich the mundane in between more "fun" aspects, and figure if I can't make it fun, or at least interesting, I need to work harder.

 

As guy I worked with once said that a great job isn't one you wake up excited to be at EVERY day, but one where you are glad to be there mroe days than not. ;) That's a good lesson for kids.

 

So not all fun and games, but enough fun and engaging work that the kids continue to buy-in to their own education. For the effort I get the bonus of no guff from them and overall more effort.

[lovinmomma]

For my kids, school IS fun - because they think learning is fun. They did not have a lot of fun in public school because they did not learn - despite all the "fun" activities.

We find math fun. We find reading Homeric epics fun. We may not find memorizing French irregular verbs a lot of fun, but it surely is fun to be able to read a fairy tale in French.

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun". I work in a job and love it, I have a lot of fun at my workplace. My husband as well. We are surrounded by people who have fun while they work - because they can follow their passion. I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

 

This is good. More important than making every school subject into "fun" is developing a love of learning. I think that school should be fun in terms of their joy of learning.

[lovinmomma]

The great thing about home schooling is that it gives the kids more time to have fun outside of school. In general, we can complete a lot more learning in a day than regular school so we have more time for extra curricular activities, personal interests, playing, sports, etc.

 

:iagree: This is a good point, too!

[Corraleno]

For my kids, school IS fun - because they think learning is fun. They did not have a lot of fun in public school because they did not learn - despite all the "fun" activities.

We find math fun. We find reading Homeric epics fun. We may not find memorizing French irregular verbs a lot of fun, but it surely is fun to be able to read a fairy tale in French.

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun". I work in a job and love it, I have a lot of fun at my workplace. My husband as well. We are surrounded by people who have fun while they work - because they can follow their passion. I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

:iagree:

I think some people assume that making school "fun" means using easy curricula and adding lots of meaningless/fluff activities, but for me it's the opposite — we skip the busy work and worksheets and instead use materials that are both rigorous and inherently fun and engaging. We use MCT for language arts, which involves cuddling up on the sofa reading and making up silly sentences, and we throw in some MadLibs for extra giggles. Science is very hands-on and full of experiments and field trips and documentaries. History is living books and documentaries and Teaching Co courses and interest-led projects. We do Spanish with Discovery Streaming. We go on nature walks and do nature journaling as well as lots of art projects at home. Math, which is not DS's favorite subject, gets livened up a bit with Zome Geometry and books like Murderous Maths. We use Type to Learn software for typing (it's set up like a game where the kids are secret agents) and for handwriting they use colored fountain pens and I print out custom practice pages with interesting copywork. Of course this is more work than using a boxed curriculum, but it's also the whole reason I homeschool — to instill a life-long love of learning and help my kids find their passions.

 

Jackie

[lovinmomma]

I still think there needs to be an attitude of, "learning is fun" as much as possible, especially for the young ones. But it likely won't be fun all the time. It is just another one of those life lessons, that working hard will bring rewards.

 

Forgive me, I'm just thinking out loud here. We do have/will have (when my children are older) a couple of things that have to be done. We are CMish so the lessons will be short, but I will still ask for a time commitment from them of an hour or whatever.

 

However, I've been thinking about what children "have to do". Honestly, what do any of us HAVE to do? Sure, there are consequenses that happen naturally if we don't do something, but does that make us have to do something? Or does it just mean that we will face the consequenses of a particular choice? Life is full of choices.

 

For example, do we really HAVE to do math (in our family that is a yes :D)? No, we don't HAVE to do math but the result of not doing math is having to go to a community college and take some corrective classes, or having to work at a job that doesn't require college or math.

 

I don't know. I'm just thinking outloud here. That whole "you can lead a horse to water" thing.

[lovinmomma]

:iagree:

I think some people assume that making school "fun" means using easy curricula and adding lots of meaningless/fluff activities, but for me it's the opposite — we skip the busy work and worksheets and instead use materials that are both rigorous and inherently fun and engaging. We use MCT for language arts, which involves cuddling up on the sofa reading and making up silly sentences, and we throw in some MadLibs for extra giggles. Science is very hands-on and full of experiments and field trips and documentaries. History is living books and documentaries and Teaching Co courses and interest-led projects. We do Spanish with Discovery Streaming. We go on nature walks and do nature journaling as well as lots of art projects at home. Math, which is not DS's favorite subject, gets livened up a bit with Zome Geometry and books like Murderous Maths. We use Type to Learn software for typing (it's set up like a game where the kids are secret agents) and for handwriting they use colored fountain pens and I print out custom practice pages with interesting copywork. Of course this is more work than using a boxed curriculum, but it's also the whole reason I homeschool — to instill a life-long love of learning and help my kids find their passions.

 

Jackie

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree: Fabulous post!

[Cherryanne]

I would prefer my children to develop an attitude like this - instead of viewing work as something unpleasant and fun as its opposite.

 

This does not mean that every single task at schoolwork or job is joyful, but it is a general attitude.

 

:iagree:

[silliness7]

If one likes to learn and likes to read then school can be "fun" or at least enjoyable and satsifying.

 

My goal is to get my dc to like to learn and to like to read. I do that by working with each one individually to make sure they have the skills to read, skills to understand what they read, and skills to respond to what they read, also math skills.

 

I think learning is hard work and that it should be. I also think if you have the skills to DO it that even though it is hard it does not have to be frustrating and then hated.

 

I also think that the hard work necessary for students to put forth in order to succeed in school is character building of the highest kind.

 

I also think being able to make connections between subjects is crucial in learning being enjoyable and not just a pointless waste of time or a means to an end (good job, scholarship, etc.) I think homeschooling is perfectly situated for this because I am teaching every subject. So it's easy and natural for me to model this for my dc. I can point out a difficult spelling word in a passage we're reading or point out the science in a history reading or the theology in a novel. My dc find it quite fun when they make connections all on their own and rush to tell me. They are proud and I am proud for them.

 

I tried to learn the countries of Africa myself by playing 10 days in Africa. I love that game. It is very fun to play. But I am not much closer to learning my African countries than I was before I had invested hours playing the game. So I think games can be useful, but I also think they are very inefficient ways to learn things. Probably if I had spent a week getting the countries into my short term memory and then using the game as a fun natural review that would work just fine and be more fun than getting out a blank map and quizzing myself. The only difference is I can quiz on a blank map in 60 sec. or spend 20 min. going a round of the game. If time is not a factor then go for the game. It's a fun way to "use" the information so you don't "lose" it. But if time is a factor than the 60 min. drill is the way to go.

[Cherryanne]

Fun=stimulating. When school is not fun, it's not stimulating or it's not as stimulating as the preferred alternative. So, yes, I think school should be fun, not be a chore. It should be a stimulating learning experience. I went as far as I did in my own education because it was a stimulating experience, not because I wanted a prize in return for slogging through.

 

:iagree:Well said!

[lovinmomma]

I tried to learn the countries of Africa myself by playing 10 days in Africa. I love that game. It is very fun to play. But I am not much closer to learning my African countries than I was before I had invested hours playing the game. So I think games can be useful, but I also think they are very inefficient ways to learn things. Probably if I had spent a week getting the countries into my short term memory and then using the game as a fun natural review that would work just fine and be more fun than getting out a blank map and quizzing myself. The only difference is I can quiz on a blank map in 60 sec. or spend 20 min. going a round of the game. If time is not a factor then go for the game. It's a fun way to "use" the information so you don't "lose" it. But if time is a factor than the 60 min. drill is the way to go.

 

I agree about games. However, I think this is a perfect example of loving something and it having purpose and relevancy to your life. A few years ago I didn't know ANY countries in Africa, but since then I have fallen in love with Africa and now I could name ummm...a lot of them. Why? Because it relates to my life. Because it is important to my life. Because I love it.

 

I'm probably not making sense to anyone here, but it's good for me to talk about this stuff. :001_huh:

[lovinmomma]

Fun=stimulating. When school is not fun, it's not stimulating or it's not as stimulating as the preferred alternative. So, yes, I think school should be fun, not be a chore. It should be a stimulating learning experience. I went as far as I did in my own education because it was a stimulating experience, not because I wanted a prize in return for slogging through.

 

Yes, stimulating school content is important. :iagree:

[RootAnn]

I just read an essay from the 50s that touched on this topic. Apparently, it was the brainchild of John Dewey that school should be fun. The essay was about how Dewey was definitely very influential but not necessarily very positive/ helpful when looking back.

 

I try to make things fun when it will help them to learn something better. We do fun things, but they are usually extras (cooking, games) on top of our normal workload or to supplement our regular curriculum/learning.

[JoyfulMama]

My older brother is a brilliant man, but he makes some of the dumbest choices. :glare:

When he was in school (all levels) he learned what he could get away with not doing. He didn't want to do "boring" work, so he didn't. His grades were horrible, but his test scores were off the charts. He got into a top university. There, too, he did work that he found enjoyable and interesting and challenging. Other work he did what he "had" to.

He has a $$$$$$$$$$$ job, when he works. His one boss years ago knew he was not challenged with the projects their company was working on, and he acknowledged my brother needed something else. Their relationship has continued to be well because of that. He worked for another company for a while, and then was contracted for specific projects rather than FT, so that he could continue to be challenged and work only on projects he deemed were worthy of his time. His time as a contracted employee was up, and he was forced to work FT for them again. Well, doing that has caused him to burn some bridges, and he is now working PT for them, as he doesn't want to work on projects that aren't interesting to him. He's happy though, as that means he doesn't have to work in an office building, and can flit around the world at will. :glare: He's lucky I love him, as many days I just want to strangle him.:lol:

 

So, yes, I agree, sometimes you need to just focus to get things done.

[blakereese]

Forgive me, I'm just thinking out loud here. We do have/will have (when my children are older) a couple of things that have to be done. We are CMish so the lessons will be short, but I will still ask for a time commitment from them of an hour or whatever.

 

However, I've been thinking about what children "have to do". Honestly, what do any of us HAVE to do? Sure, there are consequenses that happen naturally if we don't do something, but does that make us have to do something? Or does it just mean that we will face the consequenses of a particular choice? Life is full of choices.

 

For example, do we really HAVE to do math (in our family that is a yes :D)? No, we don't HAVE to do math but the result of not doing math is having to go to a community college and take some corrective classes, or having to work at a job that doesn't require college or math.

 

I don't know. I'm just thinking outloud here. That whole "you can lead a horse to water" thing.

 

I guess there are a lot of things that we don't HAVE to do.

 

What I am trying to do for my kids is to make choices for them (because really, they aren't old enough to make all of the choices and understand the consequences of those choices) that will influence their education in the best ways possible. I want them to love to read and to learn, to be able to do it in an environment that is safe and loving, and to be able to learn at their pace or what they are interested in at the moment. Etc. I could go on and on with thoughts on this. :)

 

And I guess to get specific, yes they (my kids) have to learn math. And a lot of other things. This is per the state requirements and all that. But I can teach it however I like, and at whatever speed necessary. But I do have a list of things that are required, and that is why I would refer to it as their "job". I don't mean for a job to sound negative, but I guess many people take it that way. My husband loves his job and I honestly do most days ;) so I guess I didn't consider that it would put a negative spin on it. It is just one of those things my kids "have" to do each day, like brush their teeth, eat dinner, etc. Of course they don't HAVE to, but it makes life easier, makes them happy and/or healthy, and fulfills a need.

 

BUT a typical day here is what my son would describe as "fun". I am pretty laid back actually, and would probably be more on the unschooling side of things if I thought I could pull it off. ;) Especially in the younger years, kids learn so much by just living their lives and interacting with the world. I do get what you are saying with the leading the horse to water...I do like to sort of set a path for my kids with a subject and just see where it takes us. Or have discussions leading to more specific/thoughts ideas...to see if they can get there on their own. If that makes sense. But then there is something like writing, which was my example of something that is not fun at our house at the moment. I will have him write when he doesn't want to, and maybe he doesn't have to, but I feel like he needs to do it to become proficient (my goal). It is just something that he is struggling with a little bit, but I think it is getting better. Of course he would love to be out playing instead, and once he is finished writing a little bit, out he goes. :) "School" is just a couple of hours around here, if that.

 

Anyway, I went on and on there for a minute, but it is an interesting topic. I see the many sides of the conversation, and it has made me think about things in a different way. Which is always good. :D

[lovinmomma]

Anyway, I went on and on there for a minute, but it is an interesting topic. I see the many sides of the conversation, and it has made me think about things in a different way. Which is always good. :D

 

Great post. This (above) is what I'm getting at. I enjoy the discussion. ;)

[FairProspects]

Remember also that having fun with something also arises from proficiency. GETTING proficient can be grueling, but once proficiency is reached, it does become fun.

 

They fought me in learning math facts but now are having fun using them in real-life situations such as model rocket tracking.

 

 

:iagree:completely with this. Skills can easily become fun once they are applied to an area one is interested in, however learning the skill takes real work that is usually NOT fun.

 

As an adult I learned how to sew and I hated sewing a seam and then picking out stitches and re-sewing it to get it right. I thought I would never sew for pleasure, only for mending. However, now that I am proficient at sewing, I love it! I'm sure it will be the same for ds with learning to read. He doesn't like it now, but when he can read what he wants about science I know he will enjoy it.

 

I don't think we can minimize how difficult it can be to learn basic skills though, or how un-fun that process is.

[blakereese]

I don't think we can minimize how difficult it can be to learn basic skills though, or how un-fun that process is.

 

Yes! That! :001_smile:

 

There are some basic skills that really are very necessary, but can be hard to learn. And for some children, not fun at all. But they are the foundation to years and years of FUN learning.

 

Great way to put that into words, I just couldn't do it. :)

[stripe]

I do not see a contradiction between "work" and "fun".

And I do not feel the need to make every educational undertaking un-fun or dreadful.

 

It can be fun for some people to recite the multiplication table. Some people like conducting experiments. And so on. What a dreadful thing it would be to try to purge the natural joy and delight of learning from a child.