The best
homeschooling information
from the friendliest folks in the Rocky Mountain
region!
The Rookie Workshop for New Homeschoolers
Part 5: What Else Counts As Curriculum?
Designing
a Video Game
Can't get them away from video games? Okay then, use
their interest! This online class teaches kids how to
design and modify their own arcade style games. Learn
Graphics Design, Graphics Animation, How To Increase
Difficulty Levels and more. Geared for ages 10+.
Sponsored Links
LEGO
Engineering
Boy, why wasn't this stuff around when I was teaching
my youngest? He would've loved this! An online class of
the popular Elementary Engineering using LEGOs. Once
registered, you will be sent a LEGO kit with over 1,000
very advanced technic pieces. And you keep the kit when
the class is over! The class consists of engineering
theory and instruction plus 6 very complex building
exercises. Serious builders, age 8+.
Time4Learning
Running out of ideas? Kids driving you crazy? Here's a
Distance Learning program that's actually fun! Switch
between learning, music, learning, games, learning,
activities and more learning. All the homeschoolers I
know who tried this (for free, even) had just one
problem: getting their kids to stop!
What
else counts as curriculum?
Everything! Learning is as natural as breathing. It's
all around us, in everything we see and do. Core
curriculum doesn't always come from a textbook, or from
a school. That might sound weird if you're just
starting out, but once you've been homeschooling
awhile, recognizing learning in everyday life will
become second nature. You'll develop a knack of seeing
everything with 'educational eyes'. It just takes some
open mindedness, and a little practice.
For instance, as I mentioned before, you're
homeschooling yourself right now by looking up this
information. And earlier today, you made your mom's
famous chili. Last night you balanced the checkbook.
Or fixed that leaky faucet. Did you learn all that
accounting, culinary arts and plumbing knowledge in
a class complete with a teacher, a syllabus and
midterm exams? Or did you learn them on your own
when the need arose?
The fact is, you've been a homeschooler all your life.
We all have. We just never realized that's what it was
called.
Famous
Homeschoolers
Our
founding fathers, and then some.
Noble Prize Winning
Homeschoolers
You'd think these people would like school.
Artists & Famous Homeschool
Parents
From Leonardo di Vinci to Garth Brooks.
Curriculum
in Everyday Life
You're forever going to the store, aren't you? And I'm
sure you probably take the kids with you. Excellent! A
trip to the store, any store, is a veritable
fountain of curriculum.
Geography
Does your child know how to get to the store? Can she
name the streets you take to get there? How about which
streets run north/south? Which run east/west? Can she
read a map? If not, get one, and show her how. Explain
what the legend (symbols) mean, and then let her decide
your route next time. (You may go the long way 'round
the first few trips. But don't worry. Be happy! She's
learning to problem solve.)
Art
and Math
Can she draw a map of the route? Creating a map is not
only artistic, but it takes math and logic skills to
size the drawing to a piece of paper, sketch in city
streets, determine which way is north, south, east,
west, and decide where to place X for your house and Z
for the store.
How about getting a compass to stick on the dashboard to teach direction? Why does a compass point due north? If you don't know for sure, find out the answer right along with your child. That's what all of us home educators do when we don't know the answer to something.
Science can seem daunting, so if you feel stuck, try this nifty search box. Type in a science term, such as tsunami, virus or DNA, and watch all the resources it brings back! More science ideas can be found here.
History
While you're on the subject, where did compasses originate? Who made them and why? Look at early compasses, like the ones Magellan used. How did people ever find their way with such vague directions? How long would his trip take today? Didn't he use a map? Or did he navigate by the stars in the night sky? Why can we see Venus glow, but not the other planets? And what in heaven's name is a sexton? (Welcome back to Science, mom!)
Consumer Math (it's everywhere you want to be)
You're at the grocery store. Your favorite thing. Yahoo. Mine, too. But, while you're here, give your child specific items to look for. Or, better yet, give him the whole doggone list. You just follow along, pushing the cart and helping him learn the things you all ready know and take for granted: accounting and budgeting, better known as Consumer Math.
Brand A Strawberry Preserves are on sale: 2 jars for $3.99 How much does each jar cost? (division)
Hey, we have a coupon for .25 off. Now how much are those preserves? (subtraction)
Brand B is on sale, 3 for $4.99. How much is that per jar? (division) And do we really have to buy 3 jars to get this price? (logic) And since the 3/for unit price doesn't come out to an even number, what do we round it up to? (division, rounding, decimals, fractions)
Good grief, lettuce is 1.22 per pound. How much does this head weigh? Do you know how to read the scale? (No? Ah-ha, time to learn a new skill.) Now, how much will this head cost? (multiplication, fractions, maybe even decimals, if your store has a digital scale)
Sales tax is 7.75% How much tax will we have to pay on this bag of guinea pig food? (multiplication, decimals, percentages) Is sales tax different from other kinds of taxes? (civics, economics, history, math)
Language Arts (English)
Everything listed above includes Language Arts. Now I know 'Language Arts' sounds like some high-falutin' academic mouthful (and it is) but all it actually is, is:
Reading (reading those street signs, maps, books on compasses, signs in the store, etc.)
Writing (drawing maps, making a grocery list - and even when your kidlet emails a friend to giggle about the word Sexton. Writing is writing is writing! A rose is a rose is a rose. You get the idea.)
Speech (holding a conversation, talking to store clerks, asking the librarian questions, etc.)
Listening/Watching (or Audio/Visual if you prefer). For example, watching movies, playing video games, viewing Flash Animation on a web page, listening to Grandpa explain how he walked to school, in snow, uphill, both ways.
Simply put, Language Arts just means: English. In other words, can your child read, write, talk, look, listen and grasp the meanings? Unless you keep them locked up in the basement, of course they can. There's nothing mysterious about it. The academic world just likes to make it (and all curriculum) sound mysterious.
Grammar, Spelling and Phonics are sub-categories of Language Arts. I have other fun and easy solutions for learning those. Let me know if you're interested in seeing them posted on this site.
Next: Read, Read, Read!
It's one of the best ways to discover what homeschooling's all about. Besides my Rookie Workshop, that is. ;-) And whaddya know - more Language Arts!
Recommended Books: Carschooling by Diane Flynn Keith,
The
Complete Home Learning Source Book by Rebecca
Rupp,
Things
We Wish We'd Known by Bill and Diana
Waring,
Teach
Your Own by John Holt, 
The
Unschooling Handbook: How to Use the Whole World As
Your Child's Classroom by Mary
Griffith.
My Kids' Home School
* Has an excellent student-teacher ratio.
* Provides frequent field trips.
* Provides access to a state-of-the-art computer system.
* Has NO problem with drugs.
* Provides lunch.
* Has flexible hours.
* Has no racial or gender bias.
* Cares unconditionally about every student.
* Does not allow the student to be bored, insulted, ridiculed,
or condemned for being a tiny bit smarter than the other
kids . . . or the teacher.
All this, because there's no place like home.