While Washington fears the heatwave, we are sitting in our house FREEZING! We did turn down the heater a bit. The 650 dollar electric bill last month was kinda scary. So, blankets, hoodies and Uggs are the uniform during the homeschooling day.
I just changed Sophie's math curriculum and it got me thinking. Some newer to homeschooling may feel they need to stick with a particular part of their curriculum or else. Or else what!!??? They happily check off boxes, and their kiddos are accomplishing the tasks, but is it hitting their happiness zone? Is it delighting them to learn this information? Kids remember concepts better when there is something attached to it. It is often that I will run a quick YouTube video to illustrate something that I think will help them remember a new concept. I've shown Schoolhouse Rock to help them learn their multiplication facts, played an actual rain dance song to discuss weather (and we danced too!), and showed parts of movies during history. My brain thinks that EVERYTHING is connected somehow, so it's not difficult for me to think of a random 80's song to illustrate my point about the Russian Czars! Weird, but true...
Of course, no kid LOVES every topic you can throw at them, but, for instance, if they hate math, is there a way to teach it so they are not SO miserable when they sit down to do it? This is when you have to plug into your kids learning styles and interests and do a little research. After a couple years (yes, I said years) of teaching my kids, I was much more aware of their interests and learning styles. I know how to motivate each one and when I've hit the point at which they simply can not hear me any longer. Taking that, along with resources like other mommas, Cathy Duffy's 101 best, Amazon reviews, home-school co-op friends, and the like, I can mold a program to fit each child.
My rule of thumb is that if I am homeschooling them, I can take the time to figure this stuff out and tailor a program that suits each of them. No matter what, DON'T get discouraged and think that you are a failure if you try a bunch of different things and they haven't worked. Ask the Lord, He knows your kid better than you do, and he is faithful to show you the way. Incidentally, He also knows what info your kiddo needs in his/her toolbox for the future. He is faithful!
