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TryingMyBest
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| Posted: Jan 01 2014 at 3:07pm | IP Logged
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Since my daughter has moved into the "why" pre-school phase, it's obvious how little I know about certain subjects. For example, science. I never liked it in school and just about everything I learned was quickly forgotten after the courses were over. Yesterday DD asked about dinosaurs because she saw a sign with a dinosaur. I tried to explain to her about fossils and how we will see a real dinosaur when we go to the museum soon. I realized that I couldn't explain anything about fossils since I hardly know anything about them myself.
I also know very little about birds or plants.
Obviously as we get to these subjects when I'm teaching her I can plan out in advance to get a little bit ahead of her but I'd like to know more since you can never predict what questions your child might have.
How can I become more educated about these subjects in a general way? In particular, my weak areas are anything related to science There are gaps in other subjects as well. DH and I watched Lincoln last night and despite always doing well in history we had no idea who most of the people were. We got out my iPad and looked people up as they were introduced.
I think years of working in corporate America has made me stupid and probably sucked a lot of important information right out of my head.
Jenn
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guitarnan
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| Posted: Jan 01 2014 at 4:32pm | IP Logged
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This is going to sound really silly, but bear with me. Go to the library and get children's books and read them with your daughter. You can learn together. After that, you'll enjoy your field trips so much more, and so will she.
This is much easier and more fun than trying to guess which subjects will interest her during the elementary school years.
Here's an example:
My daughter got into birds when she was 6 or 7, and I found coloring pages online to print out for her. We got videos from the library and a field guide for Christmas. By the end of that school year, she had a bulletin board filled with beautiful birds, all colored by her, and we were all avid birdwatchers. We did the Great Backyard Bird Count, got a feeder, etc. - we spread all of this out over the school year, and that was most of her science work. I never knew how to identify birds until she got interested in them!
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JodieLyn
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Yes, you will never know enough.. but children's books are such an excellent starting point. These Let's Read and Find Out Science books have been recommended here.
Also, instead of getting bogged down in particulars.. tell what you know. Your daughter saw a sign with a dinosaur.. you can tell her they lived a long time ago and there aren't any now and when they died they left their bones behind and that's how we know about them. You don't have to go into what a fossil is or how it's made or any of that.
Also, it's ok to sometimes turn the question around and ask her what she thinks like... "mommy how does a bird fly?" and you can say something like "that's a very good question, how do you think they fly?" or you can also say "oh that's a great question, we should put it on our list for books to get from the library. Doesn't that bird look beautiful while it's flying."
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All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
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Becky Parker
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| Posted: Jan 02 2014 at 6:27am | IP Logged
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JodieLyn wrote:
| you can also say "oh that's a great question, we should put it on our list for books to get from the library. Doesn't that bird look beautiful while it's flying." |
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Yes, this! I think reading the books together and learning with your children is a beautiful way to find out more about certain subjects. And, admitting you don't know but helping dc see HOW they can find out, with you right there beside them, is a lesson that will serve them the rest of their lives!
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Becky
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SallyT
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| Posted: Jan 02 2014 at 3:20pm | IP Logged
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All of these answers are so great. I totally concur that children's books are great sources of information. I've learned all kinds of things through learning *with* my children. One of my go-to answers is, "You know, I don't really know the answer to X. Why don't we look it up/google it/read and find out?"
This response has a twofold purpose: 1) it gets the question answered for both of you, and 2) it's the beginning of modeling a lifelong skill, that of research. Think of that old give a man a fish/teach a man to fish adage -- as a homeschooling parent, with your child alongside you so much of the time, you have the opportunity to model what to do when you don't know, which may in the end be far more fruitful in ways you couldn't anticipate than just knowing the answer on the front end. Say you go to read about fossils . . . what other interesting sidelines might you find on the way?
Eventually, once she can read well, you may find that your child outstrips you -- instead of asking for answers, she'll be going, "Did you know X? Well, I found out . . . " That's a lot of fun, and as an instinctive activity, it sure stands people in good stead in college, as we have discovered.
Sally
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momtomany
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One of the best kept secrets about homeschooling, how much fun it is to learn and relearn along with your children! When your children see you researching topics, they will get a great example of life-long learning.
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Mary Ann in PA
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Angie Mc
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| Posted: Jan 08 2014 at 12:33pm | IP Logged
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guitarnan wrote:
This is going to sound really silly, but bear with me. Go to the library and get children's books and read them with your daughter. You can learn together. After that, you'll enjoy your field trips so much more, and so will she.
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And...
momtomany wrote:
| One of the best kept secrets about homeschooling, how much fun it is to learn and relearn along with your children! When your children see you researching topics, they will get a great example of life-long learning. |
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Hi Mary Ann! Staying warm?!
Love,
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Angie Mc
Maimeo to Henry! Dave's wife, mom to Mrs. Devin+Michael Pope, Aiden 20,Ian 17,John Paul 11,Catherine (heaven 6/07)
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Educating Mom?
