Homeschool Revelations - Boys learn differently than girls.
March 10, 2008
Ok, so maybe this is one of those “Duh…” moments, but this weekend I had a revelation. I’m homeschooling my two youngest boys for preschool, and last week was a struggle. I couldn’t get either of them to pay attention to me or complete the simplest task. Instead, the Spaz Twins were bent on destroying every last one of their Mama’s nerves!
So we took Thursday and Friday off, figuring maybe they just needed a break. Well, the good news is, they both survived. I did not beat them senseless. But clearly, less structure in the day was not the answer! In fact, when I set them down on Friday afternoon and announced “Ok boys, we’re making brownies” their behavior improved instantly - they paid attention to my instructions, they concentrated on counting and measuring…suddenly I had my boys back!
It was then that it hit me - half the point of homeschooling is that we can give the boys an education that’s perfectly tailored to their learning styles, rather than a one-size-fits-all educational plan!
So I’ve been brainstorming this weekend for ways to teach them that will hold their interest and work with their natural energy, rather than fighting it. Coloring pages and phonics worksheets just aren’t right for these individual boys - so how do I teach them the same concepts? Here’s what I’ve come up with so far - please, leave a comment and throw out your ideas too!
- Find ways to teach them physically. Science and Art are 100% hands-on, and they often spend more time than I expect working on those projects. Find a way to apply what works in Science and Art to Phonics and Math.
- Letter and number hopscotch (jump on the letters in your name, jump on the numbers in order, etc.)
- Letter and number beanbags (use them for sorting, patterns, spelling their names, doing simple addition)
- Practice making letters and shapes in flour and/or sand
- Maybe concentrate on just one subject per day? Math Mondays, Art Tuesdays, Science Wednesdays, Phonics Thursdays, etc.?
- Mix up activities - don’t do patterns three days in a row, or they’ll get bored.
- Add in some really active gross motor skills activities to burn off some energy.
Posted by Tricia @ 10:55 am in Homeschooling
