Many questions....

[Tsutsie]

I have always bought our curriculum. Sonlight, Bookshark, Pandia Press, MBtP, TOG, Biblioplan, you name it, I have it! The more subject areas they fit into a neat little schedule, the better. 

 

It is NEVER worked for us. It never takes me more than a few days to start changing, adding, customizing, etc. After 2 or 3 weeks, what we are doing does not even remotely resemble the original. 

 

I keep in searching for the PERFECT curriculum. Well, 6 years on in our journey, and I have come to realize that it probably does not exist. Yes, it really took me that long to figure it out. 

 

My son just turned 11 and has matured so much over the last year or 2. He now drives himself to find information on what he is interested in. (Mostly youtube videos.) He will take some tentative initiative in doing something with the information he has learned and will search out related fields. 

 

How do I dump all the pre-packaged curriculum and let him follow his own interests? Do I still require a certain standard of output, if at all? I don't really want him to sit and watch youtube videos all day - how do I guide him in using other source material too without interfering to much?

 

Is there still some hard subjects that I should require? How do I make sure that he builds a strong, stable foundation for what is to come? When should I require more formal courses? 

 

For what it's worth: He just finished AoPS Intro to Algebra and Apologia Physical Science (Blêgh!). He reads easily but does not enjoy reading fiction (he does like listening to audio books.) He is doing very well with Latin, and he does not want to change anything about that. He likes history but does not LOVE it as he does science (especially physics, chemistry and astronomy).

 

Before his latest developmental leap, he would happily jump from one topic to another as per my silly schedules. Now he complains that he needs more time to research a topic and understand it better. He DETESTS work he deems useless or senseless. If he knows something, he wants to move on. Should I require him to pause and do some work? For example, this week, in his co-op class, he had to read a paragraph (5 - 7 sentences) of the 3 major types of chemical bonds. Summarize it in 3 sentences each, and move on. This drove him absolutely crazy as he was not done with the topic and did not have nearly enough information to understand it as deeply as he wanted. He then had to fill in the blanks, watch a couple of videos on "how big is an atom" and made a lapbook. This is for a gr. 9 science class.

 

How do I support this kid? If you have a child like this, how do their days look? What is your roll?

 

I'll stop now. Enough questions already!

 

Thank you for your help!

 

[Arcadia]

For example, this week, in his co-op class, he had to read a paragraph (5 - 7 sentences) of the 3 major types of chemical bonds. Summarize it in 3 sentences each, and move on. This drove him absolutely crazy as he was not done with the topic and did not have nearly enough information to understand it as deeply as he wanted.

 

How do I support this kid? If you have a child like this, how do their days look?

What my DS11 did for chemical bonding for his 5/6th grade homeschool class in 2014 was to supplement with crash course videos and reading up multiple books at the library including the textbooks by Zumdahl and by Brown. We also have the MolyMod kit.

What we like about my boys homeschool science class is that the teacher divides the homework into core and enrichment. The core is to be understood, the enrichment is for kids to learn more and go deeper.

 

My DS11 is pretty much independent. He decide how he want to fulfil my requirements but I do set a baseline. He needs to do

 

writing - outsource as hubby and I can proofread but can't teach. Kid diagram sentences better than us.

Language other than english - he is sticking with german

Math - he is sticking with aops for now

Science - he does all three because he does not like one science per year

Music - he pick cello from young but we didn't get him a teacher until last year, our fault

Art - whatever he pick

 

We school year round so history and art is done in summer because art is done in summer classes. As such we can spread work out without worrying.

 

DS11 (night owl) typical weekday is

 

Breakfast

Bookwork (10am) - he double check deadlines and tackles what is due soon

Snack

Bookwork - all other assignments

Lunch (1pm)

Bookwork

Playtime (3pm) - park followed by library for leisure reading

Dinner

Free time - read up on anything he wants

Bedtime (usually 11pm)

 

During bookwork time he also reads deeper on whatever the homework is covering using books and internet. Just that it is deeper on topic while free time is free choice of topic.

 

ETA:

DS11 turns 11 in December and has always plan his own day. DS10 also a December baby is Mr Tag-a-long and doesn't like planning. DS10 would follow a plan just not do the planning.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Arcadia

[Tsutsie]

Arcadia, when you say "bookwork," what does that refer to?

How much of it is required and prescribed by you or your co-op?

[Arcadia]

Arcadia, when you say "bookwork," what does that refer to?

How much of it is required and prescribed by you or your co-op?

I don't prescribe any work because he already has a decent amount prescribed by outside classes.

 

Prescribed - all outsourced class assignments, includes assigned cello practice pieces.

 

Voluntary - all extras that he gives himself for example doing Alcumus for math, playing movie soundtrack by ear on his cello, physics experiments that he thought of himself but relates to the current topic.

 

Usually the prescribed work is done by lunch unless he woke up just before noon.

 

I guess I use bookwork to mean anything academic related to current coursework. While non-bookwork would be the out of scope stuff even if it could be academic like using Lego for architecture or learning programming on the laptop and on his graphing calculator.

 

ETA:

Both my boys test well on those standardized tests so that helps placate worried in-laws and parents about our child led approach. My in-laws and parents are from the textbook generation with firm lesson plans.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Arcadia

[chocolate-chip chooky]

Tsutsie, a lot of what you've said sounds very familiar.

Although we've never used much open-and-go curricula, my daughter (9) must be a similar style learner to your son.

 

I think that a lot of our anxieties as homeschooling parents come down to 'are we doing enough?' and 'are we leaving any gaps?' and of course 'am I completely messing up my child?'

 

For a lot of people, it seems that keeping homeschooling looking a bit like school work helps ease these concerns. Worksheets, prescribed readings, working from textbooks, open-and-go curricula etc. And if these types of activities suit the child, that's super. In fact, I'm a tad envious.

 

My daughter just does not respond well to 'schoolish' activities. She HATES having to do things that don't have true relevance or true purpose and she DETESTS unnecessary repetition. And I get that. But it can make it hard to feel confident that you're ticking all the boxes.

 

A huge part of our homeschooling is family culture and family discussion. We naturally model a love of learning and curiosity. So much of our homeschooling philosophy is about nurturing that innate drive to learn. For us, busywork and bookwork just kills that drive.

 

I'm not without my worries though. They plague me. Right now my current BIG concerns are the lack of writing that is happening and the fact that my daughter gets no experience in taking exams or needing to adhere to due dates. She's 9. She has time. But what if I'm establishing habits that are hard to break when she's older?

 

I don't think there are any easy answers to our concerns. Homeschooling isn't easy. Parenting isn't easy. I think our biggest tools should be humour and adaptability. Remind me of that next time I post about a BIG worry :)

[Carol in Cal.]

The way I learn things right now is to ask about them, investigate them online, read about them, and try to find an expert to talk with about them.

Those are great learning techniques for the humanities.

 

However, science requires all of that plus being able to apply the knowledge to calculations, which needs practice.  And math is mostly calculations, which also needs practice.  You can understand science very well in the sense of 'being able to follow the logic' of it without knowing science well at all, because you haven't learned it enough to apply it or practiced applying it enough to be facile at that.  So although I think that encouraging your son to study on his own has considerable merit, it's important to continue to assess whether he is really learning science and math, particularly, or not.