Are your school memories flashbacks of cramming names, dates, people, places, and formulas just so you could do well on an assignment or test?
Did school ever make you feel bored or like you were “not good” at a particular subject?
Same here. I was a student who was made to feel like I wasn’t good at math or art. And even though, I could easily memorize historical facts or solve problems with a given formula, I was trained to focus on getting the highest grade.
But, I didn’t understand the why behind what I was doing. I stayed within the set boundaries of whatever we were studying. Exploring or investigating ideas, questions, or topics that were personally interesting or rewarding did nothing to affect the letters that appeared on my report card so they seemed unimportant.
If you feel the same and you want a more hands-on, joyful, and authentic learning experience for your child, you’re in the right place!
After a traditional childhood education experience, I spent 15 years teaching without textbooks in progressive elementary classrooms.
And while I always worked my hardest to help my students grow as people and learners, along the way my students and the progressive environments I was in “unschooled” me.
I saw first-hand that how you learn is so much more important than what you learn.
Hi there, and thanks for reading House Full of Learning. I’m Jackie, a former 3rd grader who completely refused to subtract. I’m also a 2nd and 3rd-grade teacher who loved to empower my students with an understanding of subtraction so they could choose the strategy that was right for them. I’m a former 6th grader who competed for the highest Social Studies class average, yet can’t remember any of the units I studied. But I’m also a teacher who valued out-of-the-classroom experiences, authentic historic literature, and hands-on projects to help my students walk in the shoes of those people they were studying from long ago.
My goal here is to help kids and parents, whether enrolled in school or homeschooled, feel energized by the learning process and motivated to explore their ideas and curiosity.
Rather than cramming for a test or reading textbook units that only scratch the topic’s surface, let your child’s questions and interests lead to experiences that will deepen their understanding. Not only does this make your child an active participant in their own learning, but it inevitably leads to a child (and future adult) who are independent thinkers that love to learn!
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