Image Credit: Unsplash
Introduction
Homeschooling has been gaining more popularity these days. With the COVID-19 outbreak and often unsafe environments of public schools, many parents are opting for homeschooling.
As more people lean towards homeschooling their kids, they are coming across many issues. But most commonly they are failing to make the learning time fun for their kids.
If you are a parent hopelessly looking for ways to add some fun to your homeschooling experience, or someone looking into it before jumping in head first, you are at the right place.
In this article, we will discuss 5 secrets for adding fun to your homeschooling that is as simple as they are enjoyable. So just keep on reading.
Why You Should Add Fun to your Homeschool
Many parents do not realize that adding fun to their homeschool can vastly improve the way their kids learn. It is not just a gimmick to take their minds off from a difficult math problem. Adding fun to homeschooling will make them eager and enthusiastic to learn.
It will create a long-term effect on your kids in a way that makes them more inclined to new information and more active in your homeschooling efforts.
When you make the daily school activities fun, your kids will learn better, faster, and retain more information. This stimulation can be a great addition for gifted children.
Taking the extra effort to add a little fun and giggles to your regular homeschooling schedule will go a long way to keep your kids focused, happy, and attentive. This especially applies to kids who have been to a public or private school in their early years.
5 Ways to Add Fun to your Homeschool
Now that you know the importance of adding fun to your homeschool while also being relevant, it’s time to brainstorm and put together your very own recipe of fun and creativity to help motivate your kids.
There are numerous ways to do this. From adding fun colored stickers on your kids’ homework to taking them out on a field trip to learn more about plants and nature, there are so many roads you can take.
But today we will suggest 5 tips that you can practice keeping each day fun and playful.
1 – Let Your Kids Choose
Though there are merits and demerits of homeschooling, if you mold it right for your kids, it can bring on a plethora of choices for your kid to learn.
This helps build a curriculum that is catered to your child’s specific needs. If your child is more interested in one particular subject and does better in it, you can introduce fast-paced learning for that one.
If they are having difficulties with a subject, you can slow it down, break down the courses and help them to learn at their own pace. There will be no rush to catch up with the rest of the class.
2 – Make Time for Art
Children will always find ways to incorporate art into their lives. Be it poetry, journaling, doodling, crafts, or painting. These are creative avenues that let your child express themselves to the fullest.
Taking time for fun creative activities will increase their focus and attention. You can even designate a particular day of the week as “art-day”, which can be completely dedicated to arts and games.
Doing fun projects along with schoolwork would build a sense of cooperation and teamwork among siblings and strengthen your connection with your kids without any academic pressure.
As homeschool keeps children away and frees them from peer pressure it also takes away their access to fun group school activities. To cope up with that, arts and crafts can be a great substitute.
3 – Spread Those Wings to Wider Horizons
FIELDWORK!
Yes, that is correct. Learning about different subjects from books is fun and all, but it can never compete with hands-on learning. As your kids move on to advanced topics in their studies, make sure to take them out to do some field activities.
Learning about history and nature from books is not sufficient. In a school, your child will most likely get to learn these matters through practical hands-on experiences.
Even though homeschool is not meant to replicate a public school at home, make sure your child does not miss out on important experiences such as this. Let your children explore.
Field visits will take their mind off of the mendacity of the pen and paper while also giving them a broader perspective about the subjects they are learning every day.
4 – Build on Points of Interests
This one is very easy to do when homeschooling. The personalizing factor of homeschooling is what makes it so great. You can completely focus on the interests of your child as they learn and introduce themselves to topics of their choice.
This makes learning more fun and engaging. For example, if your child has an interest in Harry Potter, you can easily introduce them to other works of fantasy fiction. This will ensure they have a fun time while adding value to their education.
It is always more fun to learn about subjects that naturally interest us. Make time, sit down with your kids, and discuss what they enjoy learning the most. Then incorporate those in your daily curriculum.
5 – Have time for Relaxation
All work and no games do not necessarily bring the best results. A big reason why many parents choose to homeschool their kids is to keep them away from the very dangerously competitive and restricting nature of public schools.
But if you only spend time strictly keeping them glued to the desk, it will not bring them any joy. Make sure to give them breaks when they need it. Have time for relaxation.
Make your schedule flexible enough for your child to learn at ease.
Conclusion
Throughout the years, many parents have chosen to homeschool their kids and have been doing it successfully. It can be stressful and daunting at first, but, like any other endeavor, with time and effort, it will show great results.
Homeschooling can be beneficial both to the children and the whole family when done correctly.
We hope this article helps you in some way to improve your approach to homeschooling and adding fun to your homeschool every single day. Good Luck!