[Tea] How much do I cater to my child to get them to “do school”?

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Cincinnati, September 21, 2024

Hi Friend,

Some homeschool parents wonder: "How much do I cater to my child to get them to 'do school'?"

Brave Writer says: Completely!

Tea with Julie

The easiest (and best!) way to dive into home education is through whatever attracts your kids right now.

For instance, if your children are obsessed with Nerf guns, follow your kids into that passion. But, as Maria Montessori says, “Follow as his leader.”

Like this:

Ponder aloud: “I wonder how the trigger launches the Nerf dart.”
Ask: “How far do you think the gun will shoot? Let’s shoot and compare to your guess.”
Notice: “This dart feels light. What would happen if we made it heavier? Would it go farther or a shorter distance?”
Comment: “I want to run while shooting and see if that makes the dart go farther!”
Read: Grab the box and read the materials. Look up unknown terms. Google the company that makes them.
Research: Who came up with Nerf? What does the name mean?

Have Big Jui cy Conversations. Allow anything to teach everything and everything to teach anything.

Tune in to your child.

It's okay for parents to value education in its traditional sense (that body of information both practical and cultural that we want our kids to know). But, sometimes in the zeal we have to make that connection happen, we trample our children's spirits or constrict their education to what we love and override their subjective experience entirely.

We miss chances to accomplish both at once, or to manage the way we teach so that it capitalizes on that practical, natural enthusiasm for new ideas and experiences your kids express every day in their ordinary lives.

By tuning in to your young person, you will be given the awareness you need. This is a moment by moment kind of parenting—not a “plan” for X child. Somestimes if feels:

nurturing to have someone else plan a lesson,
liberating to be free to pursue whatever it is that fascinates,
wonderful to join a class under the leadership of an expert.

Learning is all around you. As Ferris Bueller says, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

Be brave! You can do it.

Warmly,

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