Children are self-motivated learners as seen in their relentless determination to walk and then to talk.  But not all children thrive within the competitive pressures of an academic school program.  Homeschooling can be a significant way to allow children a focus that is outside of the box.

Homeschool parents need to think hard about focus when developing programs for their child.  Your homeschool child’s school day is not organized around what other children are ready to learn.  A patient parent may be willing to wait for sound and letter instruction if the child appears to need more time.  The focus that comes about by experiencing Art or Music at a higher level may be just the tool needed to drive a child’s interests to learn reading.

However, parents need to look at their own skills and predispositions in allowing their children to self-choose areas of interest.  A homeschool child may not be ready for reading skills at age 5, but it would be unfortunate if a child was unable to read by age 8 because parents were waiting for the child to show a genuine interest.   At times, interests are not known until they are triggered.

Just because a child is not interested in math skills does not mean that they should not be taught.   With the right kind of focus, math skills can become an area of intense interest for a child.  This is the challenge of teaching and the blessing of homeschooling in which the focus can be on one child and that child’s readiness to learn.  If it is not now, homeschool parents have the option to wait until a future date.   Homeschool parents also have the option of creating new connections for learning that will help make the interest more compelling.

The sooner a child learns that the issue at hand is focus- not math or reading or social studies or art- the sooner the child learns that the issue is less about the content and more about the internal fortitude to focus on the topic at hand.  You want your child to feel that anything can be focused on, and that the issue will be in which area the child can deliver the most passion.

But homeschool parents should never assume that interests get developed without a focus.  A child may have little interest in math until the child is focused on the inner workings of a bank or a self-run business.  So, use the bank or the self-run business.   With the right kind of balance, homeschooling can become the most effective tool a parent has to generate interest and passion.

And never be afraid to introduce content to your child that appears to be too demanding.  Rocket science is not rocket science in the hands of a capable teacher.  It is rockets and explosions and outer space and planets- topics that any six year old would potentially find compelling.  Today’s reflection on rocket science explosions might be the trigger that leads to a lifetime focus on physics and real rocket science.

Next: How Homeschool Families Might Implement a Trait for Success- Courage

From our first posting: 

“As parents and teachers, we need to reclaim our traditional role as influencers of our children – not by shouting louder than the influencers our children discover online, but by stressing ideas that are more important than fancy shoes and snappy TikTok tunes. We need to emphasize traits that everyone agrees children will honor.  We need to convince our children that the people who are most important to them have a better understanding of what it takes to be successful in life.”

 #charactereducation #successtraits #parentingtips #homeschooling #teachertips