By now, for those of you who have been following my blog, and those that know me, it is no secret that we tend toward a more child-led, natural, and gentle approach to homeschooling. Some may call us "relaxed homeschoolers," but I assure you it sure doesn't feel relaxing! At any rate, it is a smooth and gentle environment (and from the kids perspective, it is relaxing) for learning to happen in each day.
I am currently reading two books on the matter. Those of you that know me also know that I tend to "read" many parenting/breastfeeding/birth/education books all at once. Presently, and surprisingly, it is only 2, and they both happen to be education books: Better Late than Early, by the Moores, and Educating the WholeHearted Child, by Sally Clarkson (please note: this link is for the latest edition, while the copy I will reference, which I purchased on consignment is the 2nd edition).
Of course, I have to put in a plug for my all-time favorite early childhood book, Learning all the Time, by John Holt, which consequently I seem to have misplaced...maybe I lent it to someone?
Before I dive into some snapshots of the books, a disclaimer (as usual): your style of homeschooling (or not homeschooling) is unique and personal. What I am about to share is not a judgment or reflection on anyone else's choices. Rather, I seek to share some text that we find particularly and personally enlightening and that resonate with our unique family. Maybe you'll like what I'm about to share, maybe you won't. At any rate, we all entitled to selecting the method we want (and most importantly, that which we discern is God's will).
In Better Late than Early, the Moores present a philosophy well supported by sound research. Their bottom line claim is that no child is truly ready for academic work until age 8. Are you shocked? I was, too, at first, until I saw that they are not recommending that parents "do nothing" until that time. Rather, they outline how very essential it is for children to be close to their parents (ideally at home) with as much freedom to pursue their curiosities as possible, without sacrificing the formation of good habit (ie: the importance of chores and reasonable responsibilities at each age) and virtuous obedience to the parents.
On page 21: Without professional training, simply by being herself, a concerned, loving mother usually can do more for her normal child than a teacher can. Parents should, of course, be willing to learn new ideas. But a mother need not be a trained teacher, nor does she need to teach in any formal way. By using the framework of everyday home activities in a practical way, she can help her child learn as much as possible about the things around him.
This is exactly what reading John Holt's Learning all the Time helped us to see early on in our parenting (eager parents we were, we read that book when our oldest was just 6 months old). Reading that and having the amazing example of my dear cousin (sister, friend) and how she was with her own children...seeing the value of learning in everyday circumstances, and seizing opportunities.
I particularly like the quote above, though, for the reason that it addresses the concerns of many critics of homeschooling that argue that a mother should be required by law to be a licensed teacher in order to homeschool her own children: a criticism, unfounded in any sound research, that makes my blood boil within my veins when its said to my face (I am working at a more level headed, virtuous response to such comments).
In chapter 7, the Moores lay out the time line by which children develop their senses (particularly sight and sound) and brain functioning. They assure parents not to worry if their child, at a young age, seems to lag "behind" others his age. All children develop differently. They say:
If a child is required to develop basic skills in reading, writing, arithmatic and language arts before the various functions of the brain balance out, he often will give the impression that he is retarded or mentally disabled. Such "learning disabilities" frequently disappear with thoughtful parenting, when the child is withdrawn from kindgarden or primary school and given freedom from studies for another year or two. But if he is kept at these learning tasks before he is ready for them, he may develop any one of the many problems associated with learning failure. Some of these problems are as simple as hesitation, confusion of words or reversal of letters; some may be more complex nervous disorders, such as stuttering, stammering or severe psychological disturbances.
And this:
We must realize that the child who is required to learn things before he is ready may quickly tire of them. Or he may become anxiety-ridden and so frustrated that he will not try at all.
An interesting point to ponder. Ask any child that goes to school and they view learning as a drag. In fact, I do know homeschoolers in the same situation. Its all in how you do it, I think. Basically, the "smart" ones are bored, and the "slower" ones have anxiety at trying to meet someone else's standards of excellence.
So when do neurological abilities usually balance out in early development? The Moores cite research that these abilities mature rapidly between ages of 5 and 7, and reach a point of efficiency in functioning at age 10 or 11. They conclude: At this age, the various aspects of a child's development have reached a level of maturity and integration that make learning relatively easy.
So if a child doesn't start school until age 8, won't they be behind? On the contrary, they do not suggest that a child at age 8 enter into the first grade. They are suggesting that a majority (if not all) of the material taught in conventional schools (and homeschool curriculums) can be learned faster and more easily at a later age (8) with less risk to the child's emotional and mental health, and that such children are statistically proven to be better adjusted and more successful learners by ages 8-12 than those put in school early on (many children now are thrust into formal learning at age 3, or younger!).
The 2nd half of the book is spent laying out suggestions that are appropriate to a child's development (in regards to learning and their abilities) at each stage. However, they include a chapter on infancy that is appauling, so readers beware. The rest of the book is so well-founded with good research, but then they throw in unfounded claims about infancy that make no sense. For example, they claim the importance of a child developing trust and attachment with the parent, but then recommend that a parent tie a babies arms down and leave them in their crib to cry, lest you would surely raise a spoiled child (in fact, they guarantee the child will be spoiled). Yikes. At the beginning of the book, they encourage anyone who finds opposing research to anything that they present to send it to them. Do I have opposing evidence to that? Boy, do I ever. They will be getting a big packet from me. Maybe I should send them my own kids as evidence against their claim? Okay, maybe not...but the packet, yet.
I say this not to take away from the rest of the book because the rest of it really is based on solid research! I would recommend the book, excluding that chapter, to anyone.
Anyway, back on track...and on to Educating the WholeHearted Child by Sally Clarkson. As with most things, take what works for you and leave the rest. The following excerpts resonate with me:
(From page 2)
Your home can and should be a warm, vibrant place where your children love to learn as freely and as naturally as they love to play. In fact, education should be a natural activity of every Christian home...For many homeschooling families, though, the tyranny of textbooks and the rigid rule of school have stolen the joy of homeschooling. The freedom that home schooling should bring is held captive by the impersonal formality and constant demands of structured curricula. Families with the right intentions become enslaved to the wrong educational methods- methods designed for human institutions, not for the home. (bold print mine for emphasis).
I think this is an important point. Structured programs of "learning" are truly designed for classrooms with an average 30:1 student-teacher ratio. They need a structure, they need a system, and for them, it works (at least they claim it does). But some companies have caught on to the fact that there is big money in designing and pushing boxed curriculums on homeschooling families, often times resulting in a parent feeling less than capable to design their own. I speak somewhat from experience here, as I was homeschooled from 3-8th grade. I was the oldest child, and in the 80s there was not as much support for homeschoolers, so trying a boxed curriculum made sense to my parents, and they did...for a couple years, until my mom ventured into the unknown: designing her own "curriculum" year by year. I was on both sides of the spectrum: boxed curriculum, to relaxed, uniquely chosen collections of "subjects" and activities put together by my mom each semester. The latter did me better service, and I remember those years fondly.
My personal experience aside, I think that when discerning if a boxed curriculum/program is right for a family, it would do one good to weigh heavily the basic fact that it is a money-making institution- out to make money off of making parents feel they can't do it (can't successfully homeschool) without their programs. And if you do subscribe to a program or method, hopefully you can meet the challenge (and it is a challenge) of fitting the curriculum TO the child, instead of forcing the child to fit the program. That is my unprofessional, yet apparently research based opinion that Sally Clarkson echoes in her book (and I would consider her a professional).
She adds:
That was briefly our experience, too, until we realized that textbooks and formal curricula were artificial means of education. Rather than unleashing potential,they held it back. For us as parents, they created a false security that we were doing enough, and a false confidence that our children were really learning. For our children, they created a false dependency on formal methods of learning, and a false distinction between learning and living. We began to see how conventional classroom curricula diluted the wonder and joy of real learning, and turned it into a tedious and burdensome task unrelated to real life at home...On the other hand, our children naturally loved reading and being read to, talking about their own insights and ideas, learning through real life, and having time to explore and learn on their own. We knew instinctively this was how God intended our children to live and learn. It was the liberation of learning in our home!
Sally proceeds in her book to describe various methods of homeschooling, and the "pros" to each approach (oddly, she does not list the "cons"- perhaps she is being charitable? Or trying to focus on the positive and let families decide for themselves?). Its the best summary of the various philosophies that I've seen yet. Then, the meat of the book, is focused on the development of virtue and gifts in your child/ren. She talks about forming their "heart." Education at the heart is, after all, what matters the most, I would argue. After all, if the heart is in the right place, the mind follows, right? I think so. And she presents the best place for any heart to be: Christ, and her book is laced with beautiful quotes from scripture.
She also gives good guidelines for how to discern the proper use of curricula, practical guidelines for how to set up your home as a learning environment, and tips for how to teach to your child's own learning style.
Her approach is a whole-child, whole-hearted approach, and is very Christian. It is largely based on the Charlotte Mason approach of living books, and the formation of habit in children. I am enlightened by her ideas and suggestions and look forward to gathering more ideas from her! She reminds me a great deal of my other favorite book by Elizabeth Foss, "Real Learning: Education in the Heart of the Home." In fact, if you find any of this appealing, I highly recommend her blog. It was there that I first heard of Sally Clarkson's book. Truly, it is so much more than an "education" blog- it is about faith, family, mothering, homeschooling, living, serving and loving.
Since we're on this topic, I also wanted to share that I scored big time at our local homeschool-supply consignment store. I purchased cuisenaire rods (and activity books to match), hundreds boards, counting bears, some "living books" (quality literature to read to my children), some pre-K and K games (such as "how to tell time" and "alphabet bingo") to go in Luce's "Discovery Box". I'll add these to the other supplies and hands-on activities that we passed on to me from my mom. My plan is to, 3 days a week, set aside just 1 hour (including time for reading and exploring books together) to pull out the special activity blanket, pull some of these things out, and all have fun. I also created a "word box" in which Bella can write and file (alphabetically) all the words that she can read, and remember. That's about the extent of "phonics" we'll do this year. She's doing far better with this, and on her own, than when I attempted a more structured approach to forcing her to learn how to read. I did purchase phonogram cards with spelling rules at the store as well, but those will be put up for the time being. I have learned, seen, and am learning that when a child says she is "ready" to learn how to read, it doesn't really mean she is "ready" (in the sense of a sit-down and learn it until you like it approach). Sally and the Moores, in both of their prospective books, agree and make it vividly clear that children are not ready for sit-down academic "work" at the age of 5 and 6 (when most schools are teaching reading). Nor are they ready for the discipline of forced "learning" time (quoted since I have doubts that any real learning happens when it is forced against one's will...most certainly at that age).
Well, enough from the opinion portion of my brain. Now you know what I've been feeding on the last couple weeks!
Here are some quick links to the books I mentioned today:
Learning all the Time
Educating the WholeHearted Child
Better Late than Early
Real Learning: Education in the Heart of my Home
Another post to come later with some money-saving secrets (that aren't really that secret, I'm just that slow!).
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