You Shouldn't Teach Your Homeschool Students!

By Author: Cliffton Ford
Total Articles: 4
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As homeschool parents, our goal is NOT to teach. Our goal is for the kids to LEARN. I could have taught my kids "at grade level" and they would have not learned a thing. Instead, I gave them curriculum at their ability level, and then they had to learn something that they didn't already know.

Older teens MUST learn how to teach themselves. If they go to college, they will be expected to learn all the textbook material on their own. College lectures are most often supplemental to the textbook - not identical. If they don't go to college, they will still have to teach themselves some computer skills, or online banking, or how to buy a car - whatever.

In high school, my kids taught themselves pre-Calculus and Calculus. They taught themselves physics. I know they knew the material because I gave them the tests. I didn't know what the calculus symbols meant, but I knew that my kids answers matched the answers on the key. I could have taught them Biology and Chemistry, because I'm an RN and I took plenty of those subjects in college, but they actually taught themselves that as well. It just worked out better for us when ...
... they were teaching themselves, while I just checked up on them from time to time. My younger son taught himself economics, and is now doing graduate level work in the history of economic thought, we've been told by his professor. Much to our surprise, he even taught himself psychology and business law, because he got fabulous grades on the College Level Examination Program - CLEP exams in those subjects. It was a surprise because we didn't even realize he had read a book about those topics!

Here's my point: kids will teach themselves something when they are interested in it. It's fine for kids to do that, and it works out great for kids who are working on an intensely academic, college-prep curriculum not to mention for kids who are in a relaxed homeschool environment.

Many parents are concerned about "getting it all done. " I want to put in a plug for homeschool parents having prayer and quiet time. I found that when I was consistent with those things I could "get it all done" and when I wasn't consistent I got frustrated. Either I was expecting too much, or was frustrated too easily. When I spent time with God, then things went much more smoothly in our homeschool.

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