When you hear the word "homeschooling" what comes to mind? For me, it's a way of education that is tailored to my learning style, suits my curiosities, and allows me to think outside the box from the comfort of my own home.
It's actually incredibly simple to set up a productive learning environment and healthy schedule that will inspire you as a student to take a hands-on approach with school. In this article, I will explain how to set up a quiet place of learning for your child, what habits keep students motivated, and ideas for parents on what you need to support your child's educational journey from home.
First what you'll need is a quiet place for studying. Whether it's in your home office, living room or you have a designated space for schoolwork; you will need a place that is generally quiet enough to encourage focusing, with good lighting, and within easy access of supplies that students will need to study effectively. Ideally, a desk (art tables work too), chair, and a shelving unit to store textbooks, workbooks, stationary, computer, and binders of completed schoolwork.
You'll also need a computer/laptop with Wi-Fi (there's going to be a lot of researching and online presentations).
Tips To Make Learning At Home More Productive:
Cut out distractions of social media & video games. Set small goals like finishing one project, and then rewarding yourself with 10 minutes of free time. Break it up to keep the cool!
Keeping students involved in extracurriculars and a good schedule will ease any boredom or lack of socialization.
Turn some music on! Whatever makes you feel relaxed (songs without lyrics like classical, jazz, and instrumental versions of your favourite contemporary songs allow you to focus on what you're learning, not the lyrics of the song).
Take some time out to do something for leisure, like: art, music, reading, or sports. This will give you something else to focus on.
Make learning visual and interactive! Visit some of my website resources and video resources to make learning more understandable and fun.
Let the student pick what they want to do. (Still follow the curriculum, just let the student pick what questions they respond to, as long as they're getting a comprehensive understanding of all key curricular outcomes). For example, if you're assigned with an English Language Arts project for writing a news script for a story you read, use iMovie or Final Cut Pro to turn the script into an actual newscast skit.
Brainstorm! If you're having trouble coming up with some original ideas for your assignment, or you're stuck on a math problem; talk to your parents (parents: make sure you make the time to help your kids solve their problems), siblings, teachers, and most of all: research, research, research! You'll figure it out!
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