Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Activity, Change, Progress

Homeschool Multiple Ages of Children

6 Best Homeschool Hacks Teaching Multi-Aged Children

| 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I have sanity-saving homeschool hacks about how to teach multiple ages. Also, look at my page The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter.

And having specific how-tos is a must. Today, I have rounded up 6 homeschool hacks teaching multi-age children.

6 Homeschool Hacks Teaching Multi-Age Children @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Look at these specific ways to teach multiple ages of homeschooled children.

Tried and Tested Teaching Tips

1. Let the kids take turns reading.

When kids on the same reading level hear each other read, there may not be any motivation to improve.

But when a younger sibling hears an older sibling reading, it’s personal and can inspire an immature reader to keep improving.

And when an older sibling hears a younger sibling reading, it can reinforce key or basic points about an idea or teaching point in a book or story.

Try reading round robin while each child takes a paragraph and it will keep all of your children learning and it’ll add some fun and spice to your day.

2. Listen to a motivating audio reading together.

Have you ever listened to a story told by Jim Weiss?

If not, you may be missing out. Learning while a story is being told or listening to a book being read is an essential skill to lifelong learning.

Interest is a key point in learning to listen and so it’s important to hear stories that your children are all ears to listen to.

Don’t just pick things to listen to willy nilly and don’t underestimate the value of learning how to listen well.

3. Do Map work.

Map work can be done together while each child works on his own skill set.

The key to not becoming completely stressed out is to find one theme or time period for all the kids to work on together.

For example, if you’re studying the American Civil War then choose one or two maps from that same time period.

Older children can locate battle sites within a certain region or choose battle sites by year. Younger children can label the states involved in the war.

When my boys were younger, they also drew animals that lived in a certain area like deer or birds.

A map can be a project when your child goes beyond just labeling.

Drawing in local foods, animals and landmarks also makes it coming alive.

We would spend a few days working on maps for a certain period.

And by keeping the maps all within the same theme or time period, each child would put what piqued his interest about that area.

It was a great learning experience because my kids would learn from each other as child focused on something differently.

It was an enriching experience for all of us.

Too, instead of all the work being on my shoulders, the children learned research skills and were responsible for their own learning.

4. Do ONE lapbook or notebook for ALL of your children.

Don’t think each child has to do a lapbook. Our Civil War lapbook is a joint project.

Each child added pages and the lapbook turned out unique and memorable.

Joint Civil War Lapbook @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

In addition, learning how to collaborate together, especially with a sibling is a lifelong skill.

More Homeschooling Multiple Ages Tips

If a child can’t get along with his brothers and sisters, he will have a hard time transitioning to a career or college which almost always involves collaborating.

5. Memory work.

Learning poetry or memorizing lists is another easy and valuable way to teach multiple ages.

Each child can memorize an amount of lines or words that corresponds with his age.

This is a ton of fun and more than I realized as we did it through the years.

Each child is normally adamant about repeating back his lines correctly and each sibling listening is equally adamant about correcting him if he falters.(wink)

Look at How To Teach Your Homeschooled Children Shakespeare to grab a helpful resource.

6. Virtual field trips.

For the most part, my boys looked forward to field trips because it meant they could see other kids.

And in today’s technology filled world there is no choice to have to attend only a physical location.

Having a choice of attending a virtual field trip without having to leave your home is a wonderful tool we need to embrace.

Virtual field trips that are interactive allows your kids to learn together without the stress of trying to leave the house when you’re zapped of energy or finances.

Look at my post 7 Benefits of Virtual Field Trips that May Change Your Perspective to get some ideas.

Whether you’re using a boxed curriculum or an eclectic curriculum, these 6 teaching shortcuts will keep learning fun and easier.

Also, grab some tips here 5 Days Of The Benefits & Challenges of Teaching Mixed Ages Together and grab my free form on that page for showing you which subjects are best taught together.

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

10 Days Why A Homeschool Mom Is Not Better Than a Public School Mom (but could be). Day 3

| Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

10 Days Why A Homeschool Mom Is Not Better Than a Public School Mom (but could be). Day 3. Promoting Independent Learners is a natural fit in a homeschooling environment @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Rockin’ on in this series, I’m sharing 10 Days Why A Homeschool Mom Is Not Better Than a Public School Mom (but could be) Day 3 – Promoting Independent Learners.

Many parents would agree with me when I say that we normally teach children that independence is earned and not  something kids are instantly entitled to.

However, promoting independent learners and wanting to be independent of parental authority are not the same.

The difference between a homeschooling family and one that doesn’t is that homeschoolers teach their children to be independent learners, not passive recipients.

I’m not saying that public school children don’t learn this, but I am saying that the whole homeschool environment feeds independent learning.

Is Being an Independent Learner Overrated?

Why does it even matter? It’s important to teach our children that learning is their responsibility. Each child is unique and deserves more than a cookie cutter education.

When a child is an active partner in his education and not a passive standbyer, his whole attitude changes because he realizes he has a huge say and sway in what and how he learns.

Too, here is another fine difference between a homeschooling and non-homeschooling family. A non-homeschooling family can nurture an independent learner, but a homeschooling family not only nurtures, but promotes it.

When a child is not in a class of 30 kids, he learns that he needs to be the one asking questions about what he is learning. His creative thoughts are mustered up from the curriculum or material that he is learning and not from a kid that is his own age.

He realizes that he needs to learn to effectively manage his time. When a child learns for intrinsic value and not because of a grade or for a test or to perform for peers, he is motivated.

The learning environment at home should not mimic the environment at school. They are two completely different environments.

Taking this one step further, think about the environment in college or in a workplace. Both of these environments call for a self-motivated individual and our children are adults in training.

It doesn’t mean that we have to step back and let kids teach themselves because it’s our job to guide them.

However, guiding and force feeding them following a set of standards based for the majority of people are two completely different concepts.

Homeschooling is about appreciating the unique differences of each child and being willing to part with what we have whether it’s curriculum or our view to advance the way each child learns.

Being comfortable in what we are teaching our kids is not always a good thing.

We don’t want to do what is comfortable for us or familiar to us if it’s not working for our child.

Promoting independence starts with home, which is our environment and then it creeps forward to allowing our children to learn in the way that best fits them. Whether that manner is normal to the majority of people is not something we seek acceptance for.

Teaching kids to ask questions, think about what they’re learning, manage their time and to move ahead in their studies gives them a skill set that even adults struggle to have.

How do you teach your kids to be independent learners?

Also, look at my other tips in 10 Days Why A Homeschool Mom Is Not Better Than a Public School Mom (but could be). Day 1 Patience Is not Instantly Bestowed and 10 Days Why A Homeschool Mom Is Not Better Than a Public School Mom (but could be). Day 2 Confidence.

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

 

Save

10 Homeschool Co-op Subjects That Are Better Learned With a Group

| 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

10 Homeschool Co-op Subjects That Are Better Learned With a Group @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Homeschool co-ops may not be a good fit for some homeschoolers. And though I feel co-ops can be an ill fit when they are ran more like private schools than a homeschool meet up, there are 10 homeschool co-ops subjects that are better learned with a group.

Look at these 10 things, which are more fun to learn with other homeschoolers.

One| History Projects.

When we did our history lapbooks in our co-op, the kids couldn’t wait to get together and work on their lapbooks.

Some of the work they did at home, but a lot of it they did together. This helped my boys who were interested in the history topic, may not particularly like putting a lapbook together.

Two| Learning to Dance.

One of our co-ops to learn about Texas we kicked off the school year by hiring a professional square dance caller. Not only did the kids enjoy it, but grandparents and parents could get involved.

It was a fun activity for all ages, from K to gray, and it set the tone for learning about Texas.

Three| Art project.

Art is another activity which is fun by doing it with a group. Whether it was drawing or making a collage, my boys were inspired when they got together with other homeschoolers.

Four| Book Challenge.

A book challenge is one where I wished we would have done. It was on our list to do but we had so many ideas that it was hard to fit it all in.

But presenting the characters of a book, the plot and telling about the author would make for a great group project.

Not only would reluctant readers benefit, but advanced readers would be challenged to find a new genre to get hooked on.

Five| Around the World Geography Project.

Whether you decide to do a dish from around the world geography project or have each family take a country and present facts about it like we did, this was so much more fun when we did it as a group.

Six| Learning a Foreign Language.

When the kids were little I wasn’t sure if a group sitting was the best way to get an introduction to Spanish. I was proved wrong.

Not only was the homeschool teacher exceptional that taught the class, but she made learning come alive as the kids worked together on presenting a simple play as they learned new words and phrases.

Learning a foreign language was not only natural, but exciting to learn in a group setting.

Seven| Host a Critter Show and Tell.

Just like anything in homeschooling, some of the best things I learned were stumbled upon.

For example, we started off one co-op learning about reptiles and amphibians and realized that having a bring your critter to show and tell about it was the perfect ending to the co-op.

Exciting or Exhausting When Meeting with a Homeschool Co-op?

Looking back now and because the kids were young, it would have been the perfect topic for the whole co-op. Make learning relevant by tying it to a child’s pet. Learning about critters is the perfect activity in a group.

Too, the other kids got to experience a variety of pets from different families.

Eight| Writing Classes.

If your child loathes writing, then a class with other students can sometimes be the best way to inspire him. This is especially advantageous for a kid that is in high school and struggles with writing.

A group setting can be the perfect prod a child needs to bring his writing up to par.

Nine| Photography Classes.

When the boys were little we would go to another homeschool mom’s house to learn basic photography. I can’t imagine my boys learning this by sitting in a class.

Showing up at different hours each time we went, the boys learned about lighting tips during the day and evening and techniques for taking pictures. Of course taking pictures of each other was a big hit.

Ten| Learning to Cook.

Many homeschoolers in one of the groups we were in got together frequently to teach their kids how to cook. My boys were real young then.

At the time I remember being impressed because one of the high school boys was the one that was leading the co-op.

He had a natural talent for cooking and many years later, I learned he went on to be a professional chef.

From humble homeschool co-ops, kids can find a life time profession or just be propelled outside of their comfort zone for learning.

What co-op topics do you find learned best in a homeschool co-op setting?

If you are looking on tips for starting a co-op, then check out my series on Homeschool Co-ops.

Hugs and love ya,

Signature T

Have you seen this book that I co-authored?

The Big Book of Homeschool Ideas vol 1

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

 

Homeschool Co-ops Turned Private Schools

| 16 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Homeschool Co-ops Turned Private School @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Newer homeschool families seem to now outnumber those of us that have homeschooled for 10 years or more. That is a good trend.

What is the Offspring of Two Types of School?

However, there is another shift or trend that has gained momentum and that is hybrid homeschool co-ops, which are popping up and growing in popularity. Have homeschool co-ops turned private schools?

Using the term hybrid homeschool co-op reminds me of the fact that homeschool co-ops (if you can call them that now) are taking what has worked for homeschooling for years and morphing them into mini private schools.

Back 10 or more years ago, the line between a homeschool co-op and a mini private school was clearly defined.

Too, it is important that new homeschool families don’t bring with them their ideas of what they think homeschool co-ops should be.

Embracing homeschooling is about valuing the principles of education that have not just worked for years for homeschoolers, but that breeds creative and independent learners. That sets us apart from a public school robot like mentality.

Look at my article, The Great Homeschool Hoax – Public School At Home, which helps to separate the two very different educational approaches.


Are homeschool co-ops really changing because of the times or because more and more families do not understand the roots of homeschool co-ops? Are homeschool co-ops really not for some families because they have only experienced a hybrid homeschool co-op? I don’t know.

What I do know is that there are foundational pegs that are inextricably linked to homeschool co-ops and the successful co-ops may have a bit more guidelines because they can grow quicker, but co-ops never took the place of home.

There are fundamental facts, which are the live blood of any healthy co-op and they are important to understand as the homeschool movement should always improve without compromising the most sacred and essential elements.

Look at these 5 points that are worth taking note of when measuring your homeschool co-op.

1.Enrichment is Essential.

Homeschool co-ops have always been about enrichment, making friends and otherwise learning subjects that may not be easy to learn at home or that may have gotten monotonous. Enrichment looks different for each family.

For example, families that cover the basics or 3 r’s may look for ways to expand how they learn science, art, geography and history with others.

Other families have children that struggle with writing or math and a homeschool co-op class can shore up the weakness of a child.

2.Multi-level vs. Split level classes.

Another negative feature that has cropped up in the last ten years is only offering split level classes.

Not only do split level classes stress a family with multiple children who may want to attend co-op classes, which may be on different days, but it separates siblings.

Homeschool co-ops are flexible enough that as their core group of kids grow older, leaders adjust to suit the needs of teens like preparing them for adulthood, but it has never been the only criteria.

Are the ways of the one room school house to be abandoned now because homeschool co-ops want to group kids by grade level?

3.Model curriculum (or is that one size fits all).

Isn’t a model curriculum used by a homeschool co-op from year to year with the same age group the very reason most of us left a pubic or private school setting?

Why trade what we left behind for a smaller group setting?

Curriculum is suppose to help each child grow at their unique pace and not in sync with a one size fits all mentality.

4.High Cost.

Homeschool co-ops have been an extension of parenting and a community spirit has existed in homeschool co-ops.

They were not a way to add extra income or substitute for a one family income.

However, a lot of homeschool families are a one income family and keeping costs down, but the fun factor high has always been the standard for price setting.

While it can cost for a place to hold the co-op and materials fee exist, and members should rightly pay to cover those expenses, leaders of the past have tried to keep the classes affordable.

5.Small Group Can Equal More Wow.

The other way to measure a co-op is by how large it is. Homeschool co-ops normally grow fast if they are successful and the members’ needs are being met. Word spreads fast among eager homeschoolers.

However, in the beginning, homeschoolers of the past have also joined homeschool co-ops so that their children have friends. Keeping a homeschool co-op small allows kids to have time to make friends.

Parents wanted like-minded friends as well. So big does not necessarily mean better.

Is a co-op trying to grow “chain stores”, uhmmm I meant co-ops, or have parents united together to use their collective experiences to enrich their children?

What is the Purpose of Homeschooling?

When a homeschool co-op steps over to invade the time spent at home, and every class is taught by somebody else, then why are you homeschooling?

Though a small private school can be a fit for some families, a majority of the teaching is taken out of your hands and placed in the hands of a “professional”. That is very opposite of what is homeschooling

Homeschool co-ops should enhance and improve your homeschool journey, but when a homeschool co-op meets 3 and 4 times a week, time at home learning together is diminished.

And lastly, a homeschool co-op should fill a need you have and each co-op should be weighed against that.

If you want to get a bird’s eye view of the differences in how terms are used in the homeschool world look at Homeschool Co-ops, Support Groups and Regional Groups. How Does It All Fit?

Do you find that your homeschool co-op is taking over your homeschool journey and life or enhancing it?

Hugs and love ya,

Tina Signature 2015c

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

3 Common Missteps in Teaching Multi-Level Children (And How to Fix Them)

| 5 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

3 Common Missteps in Teaching Multi-Level Children (And How to Fix Them) @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Teaching multi-level children is a necessary skill that emerges quickly when homeschooling and all the focus on homeschool curriculum can pale in comparison with homeschooling multiple ages of children.

Problem: Keeping ALL subjects separate.

Fix: This seems like a pretty easy problem to figure out, but when you have high school children and preschoolers it can be perplexing.

Should you or should you not keep kids on separate subjects is not as easy to figure out.

The secret here is to follow the scope and sequence of your older children because credits do matter in high school. It is easier, also, to plan down a grade than plan up a grade.

In other words, planning for lower grades is always easier than trying to take a lesson plan and increase the level of it for an older or high school student.

3 Common Missteps in Teaching Multi-Level Children

Using your high school students history or science curriculum, plan activities for the lower grades by changing written assignments to coloring, essays to word search, and memorizing vocabulary to match the word and definition.

Too, my younger sons were always entertained when my oldest son did his hands-on activities. Also, let your high schooler do his hands-on activity and add in another easy hands-on activity for your younger children.

Where possible, teach history, science, Bible, art and geography together.

Problem: One child needs more attention than the rest of your children.

Fix. By adding in my suggestion above, you have already freed up some time.

However, there are many times that one or more of my children needed my attention at the same time.

Dividing my time between my children equally was stressful until I figured out a few key ways of how to manage the time.

The basic rule of thumb is to start with the youngest learner first or the special needs child.

They do not have the attention span of your older children.

Your older children understand that they will get their turn soon, but it is hard to capture the teaching moment again with the youngest learner.

Teach your children that sometimes their day will not go as planned.

In other words, there will be times that you will just need to stop and switch your day.

Some of your children will need to work on subjects they can work on independently or even use digital devices when necessary.

The key is to be prepared for the interruption. This is not an if, but a when one or more of your children will need you.

Avoid the stress by having a backup plan now.

Digital and interactive content play a vital part now in learning.

Beating Homeschool Burnout

Be sure you have a plethora of resources to reach for in case you need them and to not lose control of your teaching day, but to switch it around temporarily.

Look at my article, Digital Homeschool Curriculum – Big Ol’ List to grab some backup when needed.

Plan prudently.

This means when assigning subjects during the day, try to plan the day so that no more than a few of your children are doing subjects at the same time that they find challenging.

For example, I knew that when I had to teach my younger two boys to read, I gave them my time in the morning. At that same time, my oldest son was working on math, a subject he excelled at.

By planning my day where each son’s subject that he struggle in was spread out, I minimized the stress of

Problem: Comparing children and their work.

Fix: Another roadblock to look for when teaching your children together is to avoid comparing children.

Though it is good that the oldest set of children model for the younger set, sometimes the plan backfires.

What I mean by this is that normally the younger child or to the child with special needs feels less inadequate in his school because he is always looking at the work of an older student.

This can really dampen the love of learning by a younger learner when he feels that he is constantly be comparing to his older student.


Not that we would do this on purpose, but because of the constant interaction, a younger learner may feel that his work is always of less value.

What I did to avoid this constantly was that I would dismiss my older son occasionally and especially if I felt the younger boys feeling a bit inadequate.

We spent a lot of time together, but at times it was okay for my older son to go to his room to do some of his work while I worked with the younger two boys.

The benefits of the one-room school house have always far outweighed any possible negatives because the kids can learn from one another.

Don’t let a few missteps in teaching multi-level children prevent you from treasuring one of the most unique ways to teach your children – altogether is superior.

Hugs and love ya,

Tina Signature 2015c

Check out my other tips!

From Homeschooling One to Multiple Ages – Then Back to One

5 Days of the Benefits and Challenges of Teaching Mixed Ages Together