For parents who have had to shift their children from regular school to homeschool for some reason, it can be a difficult transition if one is not prepared for it. Especially if the reason for homeschooling is something like a sports injury or a move out of the country which keeps the child away from an environment that they actually enjoy. Here are some tips and tricks to help with the shift.
Remember it’s not school, but homeschool
The homeschool classroom does not need to run in the same manner as a regular school classroom does. There is a difference. Allow your homeschool student to see that difference and appreciate it. Don’t simply try to recreate a regular classroom environment at home.
Instead, every once in a while do something alien to a regular school. Ditch the textbooks and watch a movie about the historical event that they need to study about. Make the science experiment come alive in the kitchen instead of simply reading about it. Keep the experience interesting and demanding of the homeschool student.
Allow your children to learn as they want to
With a nod to unschooling, make sure that you are not superimposing the academic year’s syllabus to the exclusion of all else for your homeschool students. Yes, the recommended reading is required, but it is also necessary for your child to feed his creativity and imagination.
If there is a topic that particularly interests your child, let him run with it and explore all that he can about it. Support this interest in learning about something new by bringing in new reference material. Ask your child about transferring the learning into a practical day to day solution.
Observe your child before establishing a new routine
If you have always had to battle with your child to wake him up and get ready in time for morning school, you may now switch things around with your new homeschool student. Pick the hours when your child is most productive. If this means studying in the afternoon, so be it.
There’s some activity that your child may be interested in such as solving puzzles or doing gymnastics, maybe even dramatics. Encourage the child to include these interests in the new routine being established.
