s/o How did/do you learn how to teach?

[Runningmom80]

I can't remember which thread it was, but there was a comment about "either the curriculum does the teaching or I do," which really resonated with me.  I spent the summer doing online workshops and things to be able to run my home school better, but for some subjects, I need more guidance teaching instead of letting the curriculum teach.

 

 

Please share how you prepare or study how to teach your kids.  What resources have been helpful?  Thank you!

[Jean in Newcastle]

I've been teaching since I was 11 years old.  Really.  For pay.  (Teaching English when you live overseas is sort of like babysitting here.)  I also have my degree in teaching but I do not think that is necessary for teaching in a homeschool.  

 

Teaching in small groups or one on one is kind of like having a conversation.  You are explaining the big idea and then filling in the details.  The details can be filled in by the students through socratic questioning or they can be given to the students and then practiced.  

 

 

 

[Critterfixer]

I just try to work ahead. I figure that if I can figure out what needs to be learned from the material ahead of time, I'll probably be a little better at guiding them through it. It's not so hard since I have two boys in the same grade, though. I try to get material for the next year ahead of time for writing, as an example. They are set to finish CW Homer this year; so my job is to go through CW Maxim for next year. 

In history, my weakest subject, I've simply put myself on their history rotation at a higher reading level. I also have been coming up with my own questions for their textbook, so that means I have to more or less outline the chapter myself before I assign it. That helps me to direct the study a little better.

Same thing for literature, although I've got to admit, I don't always have time to keep up.

I'm nearly done working through the Key to Algebra and will begin Key to Geometry probably around Christmas. I'm trying to get comfortable with both of those areas before I have to teach them in the upcoming years.

 

So basically, my teacher preparation is letting the curriculum teach me first. Then I'm better able to guide, tweak or find another way of imparting the information if need be. When the boys were younger, it was more a matter of reading and finding interesting things to read. The above things I'm doing are how I'm dealing with middle school years. I think that it would be overkill for younger kids. I think your best "teacher's training" at that time would be just getting to know your youngsters and building good relationships with them. I haven't got the foggiest what I'll be working on during high school. :laugh:

[regentrude]

I will get flamed for this, but I firmly stand by my opinion: I can only teach a subject in which I have subject expertise. I can facilitate the learning of a subject in which I do not possess the expertise and make sure my kids learn it - but I cannot actually teach it. Teaching, to me, requires structuring the material in a way that is logical and makes sense pedagogically, creating  of selecting assignments that illustrate precisely the concept I wish to illustrate, discussing and answering questions, designing or selecting assessments that test exactly what I consider the learning objectives.

I possess this knowledge in certain areas and lack it in others.

I teach for a living and learned to teach by teaching. Acquiring thorough subject expertise came beforehand.

Homeschooling is very different. I have learned to facilitate learning in subjects where I lack the expertise myself, by using materials and bringing experts into our homeschool (for example via textbooks or Great Courses lectures). That's probably what you mean by "letting the curriculum teach". If I wanted to be a competent teacher of such material, as opposed to a facilitator, I would first have to immerse myself in the subject and try to gain a thorough understanding, at a level beyond the one at which I am aiming to teach.

[HomeAgain]

I will get flamed for this, but I firmly stand by my opinion: I can only teach a subject in which I have subject expertise. I can facilitate the learning of a subject in which I do not possess the expertise and make sure my kids learn it - but I cannot actually teach it. Teaching, to me, requires structuring the material in a way that is logical and makes sense pedagogically, creating  of selecting assignments that illustrate precisely the concept I wish to illustrate, discussing and answering questions, designing or selecting assessments that test exactly what I consider the learning objectives.

I possess this knowledge in certain areas and lack it in others.

I teach for a living and learned to teach by teaching. Acquiring thorough subject expertise came beforehand.

Homeschooling is very different. I have learned to facilitate learning in subjects where I lack the expertise myself, by using materials and bringing experts into our homeschool (for example via textbooks or Great Courses lectures). That's probably what you mean by "letting the curriculum teach". If I wanted to be a competent teacher of such material, as opposed to a facilitator, I would first have to immerse myself in the subject and try to gain a thorough understanding, at a level beyond the one at which I am aiming to teach.

 

Yes, this.  I facilitate.  In that, the book Teach Like A Champion has some great ideas to help students retain information, setting the tone for the day, and keeping it from feeling like drudgery. 

 

Mostly, though, I just think about the material.  Am I excited or curious about it?  Why or why not?  How can I help my child be curious about it, too, and want to know the information?  I seek out resources that will help me do that, and when I can't, I build my own plan of attack.

[Runningmom80]

Any resources? I'm thinking along the lines of "Teaching the Classics."

[lllll]

nm

[enchantedhome]

I was going to post this exact question, so thanks for doing it!

 

I feel very much like I'm scrambling every day to keep one kiddo occupied while I teach the other (for subjects where they are doing separate work), and I can tell I get frustrated when one of them is confused by a lesson. Not my best teaching, and I'd love to improve in those areas.

 

All ears for this conversation!

[Jean in Newcastle]

I was going to post this exact question, so thanks for doing it!

 

I feel very much like I'm scrambling every day to keep one kiddo occupied while I teach the other (for subjects where they are doing separate work), and I can tell I get frustrated when one of them is confused by a lesson. Not my best teaching, and I'd love to improve in those areas.

 

All ears for this conversation!

I think I was fortunate in a way because I went to a one-room schoolhouse for my elementary years.  I homeschooled elementary similarly.  I tried to schedule in such a way that we alternated difficult subjects that needed me with ones that could be done at least semi-independently.  And I also combined when I could.  For those times when they had a question I told them to either put a star next to the problem they were having problems with and go on to the next problem or we had some quiet reading to do if they couldn't go on at all.  If this came up all the time with the same subject, I might try to schedule some review work while I worked with one child and then do the actual lesson with me individually.  It is really hard though when kids are young and all need you.  

[creekland]

Part of teaching is pure instinct for me.  From as young an age as I can remember I was training our dogs, then horses/ponies, and even cats.  I could never understand why anyone would pay to have others train their critters for them - or why anyone needed to read a book or attend a seminar, etc.

 

It's not all that different with people.  Each species is different, of course, one has to know how/what they think and be able to communicate with them in ways they understand, but once you know that, teaching is just sharing information (vs training which is teaching behavior).

 

As Regentrude mentioned, learning the info comes separately and before if one is to do it well.  It also includes using the info to convey info the best.

 

I'm at a strange place for me in that I'll be teaching a class for the next 10 weeks where I'll freely admit that I don't know the majority of the info today.  I don't like that spot.  I'll be cramming to learn it as best I can, then conveying that info as best I can (not worried about that part), but there's no way I'll be as good at teaching that class as the regular teacher who has used the info in the field prior to teaching.  The only reason I'm in that spot is because I'm assured there is no one better for the job.  Then too, there are two other classes I'm teaching where I do know the bulk of the info quite well - and others coming in likely wouldn't.

 

There are two parts to teaching.  Truly knowing the info and conveying the info in ways others can understand.  One can be good at either one and not so good at the other.  The best teachers are good at both.  It's the second part that comes instinctively for me.

[Free]

I'm reading through "Make It Stick" right now. It is not a teaching book, but rather a book on how to learn so that the brain can retain information. I think it is a must read for homeschoolers/ teachers.

[Sahamamama]

When I was 12 or 13, I started helping out in a children's class at church. By age 14, I had my own little class (4 & 5 year olds), which I built up to about 30 students. We just kept moving up together, so I had that same group of children to teach for a few years. I taught children's church for about 10 years.

 

As the years went by, no matter where I lived, I seemed to naturally end up with either a small group of children to teach and/or a few children to tutor. Parents were comfortable with me, and children who felt like failures in school found a safe, nurturing place to succeed as we worked together to lay a good foundation. These experiences were good training ground for homeschooling, since they were not classroom teaching, but were more one-on-one or small group tutoring situations. I learned during this time to begin at the point where the child would be able to move beyond discouragement and into steady progress (had several tutorees who had to move past "I'm stupid" or "I can't" and find the courage to learn). I realized the value of showing children how to look back and see their growth over time.

 

Lately, I feel the biggest factor in how I teach is pondering who my children are, along with the fact that we are a family before we are a school. As I consider each child individually, how we function as a learning group, how my twins interact/compare/compete, what my oldest may need next (guinea pig child), the resources we have available to us, and the Mother-Daughter relationships that we are creating, the path for how (and how much) to teach and/or facilitate becomes clearer.

 

I am an expert on my children. ;)

[luuknam]

In elementary school, I was in a 1st/2nd grade class, and then a 3rd/4th grade class, and then a 4th/5th/6th grade class. I often would pay attention to the teacher when the teacher was teaching the grade(s) I was not in. If I was in the lower grade, I might learn some new content. If I was in the higher grade, I'd learn some about how the teacher was teaching. Heck, being a student you do see how teachers are teaching, but if you're paying a lot of attention to the content you may not pick up as much about the teaching part.

 

Also, when in 3rd or 4th grade we got a classmate from Sri Lanka who didn't speak Dutch, I was selected by the teacher to help her learn, so I got to do trial-and-error there. And in 5th grade the teacher often made me help other students figure out math problems (without giving them the answers). I also helped my mom figure out calculus when my mom went back to high school when I was in 10th grade. And in my year as an exchange student in Thailand I volunteered to teach a bit in a couple of elementary schools... in the first school, the teacher basically said "hey, cool, I get a day off!" and just left, so that called for some quick improvisation and trial-and-error, lol.

 

Oh, and my mom says that when I was little I liked to play school with my brother or cousins. And as a teenager I always read the education section of the Saturday newspaper. And I've read a zillion books and websites about education.

 

But really, for the most part, trial-and-error.

[Julie of KY]

I can only teach math and science. I can facilitate the rest. I pay others to teach writing and occasionally other things.

 

I feel like much of what I do is learn alongside my kids and "teach" them how to learn, how to ask questions and find answers. We learn together. I'm happy with the results of this style of teaching so far. :)