When I first started homeschooling in 1998, I felt like I needed to be stern not fun. I wanted my kids to be learning all they could. There was no time for fun and games. We only had so many hours in a day and I was determined to fit all the learning I could into each of those minutes. Well, as you can imagine, school was not a fun time for my kids. As a matter of fact, I am sure they felt like they were pinned down for 8 hours a day with no time for play. THAT HAD TO CHANGE!
One day I looked at some photos I had taken of my children during school time. They were not happy. I missed seeing those smiles that they had before school got in the way. I had to make some adjustments. There had to be time for FUN! I began researching and found that kids learn much better when they are allowed to have plenty of time for play. I had to add some time for fun during our school day. It didn't take long for those smiles to return. They no longer dreaded school time. We could learn and have fun too.
Here are some ways I added fun to our days:
- We would have Bible challenges to see who could answer the most questions about our lesson first.
- We would play games... lots and lots of learning games. They have so many that teach math, phonics, geography and spelling.
- We would go outside for class. The fresh air and impromptu races would make them happy. They never knew what would be happening next and loved it.
- We loved to take nature walks. Instead of learning about God's creation from a book, we took long hikes and found that we would learn more from experiencing God's wonderful world instead of just looking at facts in a book.
- We would take surprise field trips. Heading to a museum or park for the day sure made learning more exciting for them.
- We would take days where we would learn tasks like sewing, cooking, mechanics, and much more. It was great!
These are just a few of the many ideas we implemented and school became something the kids looked forward to. They were thrilled to be learning. I was happy that they were enjoying life.
How do you fit fun into your school schedule? I would love to hear ideas from you 😊
Would you like to read some great blogs from homeschooling families just like you and I? Head on over to these wonderful blogs and see what they are doing in their homeschools.
Jennifer @ Dear Homeschooler
Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory
Kellyann @ Walking Home ...
Kimberley @ Vintage Blue Suitcase
Kristen @ A Mom's Quest to Teach
Kym @ Homeschool Coffee Break
Laura @ Four Little Penguins
Linda @ Apron Strings & other things
We would love for you to join us for this blog hop!!
Great ideas! We love taking nature walks.
ReplyDeleteLearning life skills is such a great idea to change things up and have fun.
ReplyDeleteGetting out and about does break up the normal of every day. Great ideas here!
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