Homeschooling Independent Learners
Independent Learners … it’s what most of us strive for in the homeschooling of our children.
Having kids who can read, decipher and then apply new information without us holding their hand through it all is a valuable skill.
I am lucky to have independent learners. Even the youngest who requires my help to read instructions is quick to go off on her own once she knows what she needs to do.
Having kids who will go off on their own to learn, gives me a bit more time to do other things. I am able to tend to chores, scheduling, writing, planning lessons, workout, etc.
But here’s the thing…
While it is all good to foster independence in our children, we need to be mindful that we do not take advantage of our independent learners.
As much as they need the room to grow and learn, they also need mom and dad to be involved. Even if you just sit with them as they read instructions and ask if they understand. Or watch them do a few Math questions and ask them to show you how to do it.
Teaching new information back to you is one of the best ways to make subject material stick!
A few points I notice in our home:
Staying Involved:
- Shows we are interested and we care.
- Keeps them accountable.
- Helps their confidence.
- Offers kids a chance to talk about what they are learning, and even teach us.
- You might notice where you can offer a tip.
- Provides us an opportunity to draw even more information out of them by asking questions.
- Gives us a chance to stay in tune to how or what kind of learner they are.
- We will know when they are ready for a bigger push into more complex study, OR when they might need to pull back and re-work something.
- Everyone loves to share new and exciting things. Just because it might be basic for you doesn’t mean it is for your kids. It is so good for them to share their new knowledge with someone.
- We might learn something new….believe me it has happened.
- Learning to be and becoming a self-sufficient learner sets you up to becoming a life-long learner!
- Having someone in your corner just feels good. Be there to celebrate their new discoveries, their pride in a project, and even their excitement as they bring cool creepy crawlies into your house. 😉
I love chatting with other parents, so here is my question to you…
What are some activities your Independent Learner likes to have you around for?
Click here to link to my HSI Coffee Break video about Independent Learners.
My daughter does a lot of independent learning with Time4Learning. I love that she enjoys learning with T4L and that she can work at her own pace, especially since she is at a lower level in math than in Language Arts. So she gets to repeat the math lessons as often as necessary. But like you said, it’s also important to work with her, especially in the weaker areas, like math. I mean, that’s why we homeschool, right? It’s good that she’s learning to work independently, because it’s what we strive for as they get into the high school years. When I’ve looked at her progress report or when she calls me over to ask me about something she’s not understanding, I can find other ways to help her understand concepts.
Same with my older kids. My oldest son likes to work independently, but I’ll often have him explain something he’s read in his apologia book to make sure he is really grasping what he’s reading. You mentioned on #10, we might learn something new. I never thought of it, but yes, it’s true. I’m going to be doing this with my older son more. I love the Apologia books, but don’t get to read the unit he’s on as regularly as I’d like. I’m going to start having him tell me what he’s learned more often. I’m sure I’ll learn something new, and I’m sure he’ll learn more by having to explain it to me. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Janet,
Sounds like you have some great discussions in your home!
I am happy to hear you enjoyed this post!
One of the things my oldest likes to have me involved in is math. He just feels like he needs the extra help to make sure he does everything right. My youngest kind of likes having me involved with everything. He just doesn’t think he can do it yet on his own. And one thing that we all three are involved in together is science experiments. Be it experiments from my oldest’s Apologia Biology, or just some fun experiment kit we may have picked up from somewhere.
Science experiments are a great way to have everyone be together and learn from one another! Keep having fun!
I really enjoyed this article, as my children are moving into more independent learning style the tips at the end were greatly appreciated. I really like the reminder that staying involved remind the child they have someone on their side, it is always good to know you are not alone. Thank you for sharing!