Tag: Teaching

Curriculum is the vehicle; learning is the destination

Posted on by Suki

The #1 most common question I get from new homeschoolers is, “What curriculum should I use?” This is an understandable question: there’s a lot of focus on curriculum in schools, and an implication that good curriculum is the end-goal.

In homeschooling, however, it is clear that a well-educated child is the end-goal. And it occurred to me that if learning is the goal, then curriculum is a vehicle. Just like we can get to the store by driving, walking, biking, or perhaps taking public transit, there are many ways to get to learning.

Life is like walking toward learning

Right from the beginning, our children are learning. Babies show through eye movement that they are learning every second that they are awake. The world is their curriculum.

As children grow, play becomes their curriculum. We give them blocks and they learn about geometry, gravity, and cause and effect. They climb a tree and learn about the importance of secure footing, fear, and exhilaration. They play with friends and learn social-emotional skills, bartering skills, and the strength of community.

Learning vehicles can take us to new places

If we constrained our lives to only visiting places we could walk to, that would be like learning in the world directly surrounding us. It works well for hunter-gatherer societies, but not so great when you need to attain certain skills to succeed in our society and in a career.

The curriculum we choose is simply a different learning vehicle. Maybe it can take us places further in our community—that’s “car curriculum.” Maybe it can take us to faraway places very unlike our everyday life—that’s “airplane curriculum” Or maybe it can rocket us to a new plane of existence by giving us insights we never would have discovered on our own.

The destination never changes

But no matter what curriculum you use, the destination is the same. We want our kids to learn. So does it really matter which curriculum you use? It can, but I can assure you that countless homeschoolers have found that a free video they happened upon in the library sparked more learning than the beautifully packaged curriculum they purchased for hundreds of dollars.

Yes, I do appreciate well-written curriculum. I love it when teachers are able to package up their approach in a way that inspires others to try new techniques. I have great respect for the skill it takes to break down concepts and skills into a well-scaffolded structure.

But remember: curriculum is the vehicle. Sure, sometimes it’s nice to get a smooth ride in a limo. But it can be just as fun to go over bumps on a one-speed Schwinn.

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.

Dr. Seuss

Further thoughts:

The value of creative writing: a spoonful of sugar

Posted on by Suki

One of the consistent misunderstandings I see amongst parents, other teachers, and even students themselves is how working on creative writing skills translates to improved skills in “serious” or academic writing. Most people seem to consider creative writing “extra-curricular” and therefore not academically important.

However, research has proven many benefits of “extracurricular” study, such as the link between musical study and improved math skills. Similarly, creative writing embeds important skill-building exercises like the medicine in Mary Poppins’s “spoonful of sugar.” Here are some of those lessons.

1. Any writing is good writing

Writing is a ‘practice.’ No matter what the task, whether it’s texting with friends or writing a poem, using words develops the brain just like lifting weights develops muscles. Exercise is a great metaphor because it’s something that many people detest just the way people detest writing. The common advice you see about getting more exercise applies to writing: find a way to make it social, do it in a location that you enjoy, chart your progress, reward yourself.

Creative writing is something that is attractive to many kids in part because of its social character. No one is going to want to read your book report on “Little House on the Prairie” (apologies to my third-grade teacher), but there’s an audience for your Pokemon fan fiction or your poem about autumn. And creative writing shows progress in a pleasurable way. My students have chosen to write everything from an encyclopedic description of sports cars to a NaNoWriMo dystopian novel.

2. Creative writing uses the same skills as academic writing

Good creative writing features specific, appropriate word choice. Good academic writing features specific, appropriate word choice.

Good creative writing features strong, varied sentences, clearly written. Good academic writing features strong, varied sentences, clearly written.

Good creative writing is well-organized and offers the right amount of information to lead the reader through a story. Good academic writing is well-organized and offers the right amount of information to lead the reader through an argument.

Good creative writing makes the writer’s world come alive in the reader’s brain. Good academic writing makes the writer’s argument come alive in the reader’s brain.

But while many students resist “working” on their writing, they are very open to developing their creative writing skills.

3. Creative writing opens the door

Pretty much every reluctant writer I’ve ever worked with has come to me after someone has “taught” them to write. Usually that someone thought that kids need to learn to write the way they learn to make a cake: Give them a recipe, tell them to follow the rules, expect them to enjoy the product.

But that’s not how writing works. For most people, writing isn’t inherently pleasurable, and introducing it as a bunch of rules to be followed to produce a bad-tasting result doesn’t work. It’s like asking a kid to make a cake out of overcooked broccoli—why bother following the recipe if no one is going to enjoy the product?

When kids are excited to share their work, that excitement translates to a permanent, solid base of enthusiasm that fuels enthusiasm for future academic writing.

Forget the work—let’s “play”!

Recently, one of my online creative writing students expressed great pleasure at the end of class for having spent an hour “not learning anything.” I let it slide, happy that he couldn’t see me at my desk, laughing at the success of my pedagogic deception. My students are learning—they just don’t know it.

My “Teaching Writing” series:

The value of the personal touch….online!

Posted on by Suki

This photo is of a group of students who met for the first time. They are members of a long-running writing group and it was as if they were old friends…because they are even though they’ve never met IRL.

In my summer off from teaching online at Athena’s, I didn’t stop working. I read books, updated my classrooms, emailed with students and parents, consulted with our wise Athena (a.k.a. Dr. Kirsten), and sat in a circle on a lawn with some of my longtime students.

Wait, don’t I teach online? Isn’t online teaching all about being separated from your students?

Yes! And No!

Teaching is about connecting

One of my most important jobs as an online teacher is finding ways to connect with my students personally even though we are not in the same room, the same state, and even sometimes the same country. It’s a tricky part of online teaching.

This summer I got to see the fruits of my labor when I was hired to speak at a conference that, it turned out, a good number of Athena’s students would attend. I declared a time and place for the meeting and then, well, decided I’d have to wing it.

30-some homeschoolers meet on a lawn…

If I’d been a classroom teacher, I would have had physical memories to draw on: I could have brought familiar items from the classroom or done activities we’d already done together. But what would we do in an outdoor space?

The first challenge was to get everyone to make a circle. School is very good at teaching kids how to form geometric shapes. Homeschool, not so much!

Once we’d done it, though, I felt like we were back in our Blackboard classroom (which had developed ninety-degree weather, well-watered grass, and slices of watermelon being passed out by a parent). All the eager hands; those familiar voices chiming in with their creative, intelligent, and wacky ideas; and the smiles, though this time they were real rather than emojis. 😊

And then we connected

Here I am presenting at the conference.

When I asked the students what they liked about Athena’s, they pointed out everything that we teachers hope to convey: a safe space for all kinds of kids; a place where they could express their ideas; a place where they could explore a wide variety of topics with teachers who love what they teach and other passionate students.

I noticed that Dr. Kirsten had to wipe away tears!

Online education fills a need

The fact is, yes, we teach online. But no, we aren’t disconnected from our students. Online learning will never replace physical get-togethers, but it it fills a need that many students have. Our students feel that they are part of a community of kids and adults who share values and passions.

For me, the experience was one of the most memorable of my teaching career. Nevertheless, I’m happy to be back in our webinar room….though it is BYO sunshine, grass, and yummy watermelon.

Parent workshop: Concentration Time!

Posted on by Suki

“Hello, parents!

Today we are going to start with a concept you may have forgotten from your earlier lives. It’s called concentration.

Can you repeat after me? Con-cen-tra-tion.

The sage on the stage! Listen to me!

This is the action you need to perform in order to achieve focus. Focus is another thing you may have forgotten about. When you were younger, you could focus for hours. Now, each time you wander into a state that approaches focus, someone small starts screaming, asks you to take them out for ice cream, or draws on the walls with permanent marker.

Oh, you remember? Only vaguely? Well, that’s good enough.

OK, so let’s start. Here’s how we achieve concentration.

First, take a deep breath and let it out slowly. No, Mina, do not check your Smartwatch™. Howard, are you breathing shallowly? Wait, you’re hyperventilating? Here’s a paper bag. Don’t mind the peanut butter smears. I hope you’re not allergic.

Back to concentration. When we concentrate, we focus on the task at hand and we don’t think about what might be happening in the next room. Even though we hear a sound that resembles the sound of a rock hitting the Steinway passed down to us by our grandmother, we look carefully at our computer screen at the text that is in front of us. We are going to achieve concentration and actually read and absorb this text.

What’s that, Jen? You say you haven’t actually read your way through an entire screen of text since the day you were reading Proust on your iPad and you went into labor? Proust….hm….I have a vague memory of what that is. I don’t think it involves children, though, so my brain seems to have erased it.

Never fear, you will forget many, many more things in your lifetime than you will remember! You will become at peace with that. However, right now, we must concentrate.

This block of text on the website in front of you describes a class you are considering for your oldest child. It contains the answers to every question ever asked by every parent, which is why it is so long and detailed. Parents ask a lot of questions.

Now, please focus and read the page. Then we will discuss and see how much of the information you have retained and understood.

No, Mina, you may not step out to call your ten-year-old. What were you thinking, leaving a ten-year-old in charge of your six-year-old ADHD ODD OCD twins? Didn’t you imagine the headline, “Mom Takes Care of Own Needs and Tragedy Strikes Household”? How are you ever going to be nominated for Homemaker of the Year if you run about taking care of yourself?

Put your head between your knees, Howard. It will be fine.

Yes, Carol? The text on the screen is blurry? You haven’t seen an ophthalmologist since you were twenty-two? Perhaps you are becoming far-sighted. I’d lend you my reading glasses but I believe my six-year-old borrowed them to start fires in the front yard.

OK, everyone, I notice that you are whispering amongst yourselves rather than concentrating. Remember, repeat after me: Con-cen-tra-tion. It’s what we are here to do. I not only teach your children; I also model perfect parenting and adult life for you. You see, I have four children and here I am, dressed impeccably, my hair done, wearing makeup, and projecting a calm, cool demeanor.

You would never know that I was late getting out of the house this morning because my child and my cat were both projectile vomiting on the carpet. You would never know that my husband told me last night that I seem like a stranger to him, and I responded by asking him if he could work at home in the morning because the plumber was coming to fix the dishwasher that had exploded and ruined the kitchen floor and I have to run children to four different appointments at the same time. I also asked him which model of dishwasher he thought was best, because I hadn’t bought one in the last month because I was torn between the one that saves more water and the one that uses less electricity. You would never know that our dishwasher was broken because in order to compensate I used only disposable dishware and then because I felt guilty about making so much garbage, I have been sneaking out nightly at 2 a.m. to put them in my neighbor’s can. Which reminds me that I really enjoying accompanying my second-grader on the tour of our local recycling facility. I set an alarm on my Smartwatch™ for 2 a.m. every night, on buzz so it doesn’t wake up my husband. Did I tell you that I used to teach at a university? Did you know that I used to remember all the important dates in American and British history? You know, I wonder whether my husband paid the babysitter when he got home. I hope he got home. The babysitter needs to get to her doctor’s appointment on time. I worry about her. She’s got so much going on in her life, I wonder how she can handle it. Last night I did a bunch of research for her on migraines. Did you know that—

What’s that, Mina? Your house is on fire? But wait, did you read the page? I still need to ask you the questions! I have them all written down! I spent two hours last night when everyone else was sleeping working on this presentation, and goddammit, I want you all to do what you’re supposed to do. Someone in my life needs to do what she’s supposed to do, and it’s not going to be me! Read that page and concentrate now. It’s my way or the highway, folks. You’ll never learn to concentrate if you don’t just Do What I Say…

…Where did Howard go? Oh, you all have to go so soon? Really we were just getting started.

Oh, OK, bye Carol. Thanks for coming.”

Parents these days. I just don’t understand what’s wrong with them. If only they’d listen to me, I’d show them the way….

Healthy writing habits for children

Posted on by Suki

This is the first of a sequence of pieces about teaching writing to children in the homeschool environment.

My “Teaching Writing” series in order:

Click here to access all my articles about teaching writing.

One of the hardest things for homeschoolers to work on is writing. We all carry baggage from our own education that colors how we see the writing process. There’s always that nagging voice that says that if we don’t subject our kids to something similar, we will fail to teach our kids to write well.

I have homeschooled two kids, one of them a natural writer, the other reluctant. I also teach kids writing at Athena’s Advanced Academy, and my students come in all flavors. Starting with my own kids, and now even more with my online students, I have rejected the traditional approach to teaching writing. In this post, I will discuss writing strategies for younger (pre-teen) children.

handwritingpenThe tradition: Focus on shortcomings, follow rules

Traditional writing instruction teaches that writing follows rules, and that the teacher’s job is to show students where their writing fails. Students are forced to write:

  1. for no purpose
  2. non-creatively
  3. about subjects they have no interest in
  4. without an audience

Then teachers look at the product, point out what’s wrong, and tell the students to do it again. The result is bad writing, and kids who hate writing so much they will only produce it under duress.

The new approach: Follow passions, focus on the positive

notebookWhen I started homeschooling, I took cues from homeschoolers and from special education teachers. Homeschoolers said that integrating learning into life made for deeper, more meaningful work. Special education teachers, faced with kids who have such severe shortcomings, have to focus on their students’ abilities, whatever they are.

I came across the writing of Patricia Zaballos, who blogs extensively about teaching writing and also wrote a handbook on teaching writing. The crux of her approach is, like special education teachers, to focus on the positive.

My approach to teaching writing is an about-face from the traditional. My students write:

  1. with a clear purpose
  2. creatively
  3. only about their interests
  4. for an audience of fellow students or a general audience on the web

I am there to guide and nurture them, but instead of focusing on their shortcomings, I encourage what’s good about their writing.

Why focus on the positive?

Everyone who has ever had their writing critiqued in a traditional way carries psychological scar tissue that colors their writing. Writing, though necessary in business and academics, is an art. It comes from someplace more personal than the answer to a long division problem or remembering the cause of World War I. To be told that one’s writing is “wrong” is painful and results in negative feelings about writing.

When critiques focus on the positive, students are encouraged to do more of whatever is good in their writing. They are energized by success to find more success.

What if there is no positive?

Sometimes it’s very, very hard to find something good to say about student writing. But it’s worth delving as deep as possible to find encouragement. One student of mine was a very reluctant, poor writer. I had to struggle to find something good to say, but I pointed out that some sentences made me want to know more about what was happening. He responded by developing those sentences into full paragraphs. His writing blossomed. Within a month he was producing writing levels above his original pieces, and I could help him continue to improve by finding new positive points to encourage.

How will students fix the problems if we don’t point them out?

notebookThis is where it’s hard for me to shed the baggage of my own education. I had learned that no one will learn how to write a good paragraph unless we point out that they write bad ones. However, the reverse is actually true. In order to encourage positive development, I point out the very best a writer has produced (even when it’s quite poor). The writer works from her own level to build on her own successes.

I don’t completely ignore lessons in grammar, spelling, and writing structure. But in my classes, I separate these issues from the writing itself. It’s much more fun for students to savage a pretend piece of bad writing generated by me than their own work, which comes from their own souls.

What about preparing for college?

Once students are preparing to write for college or work, they need a different approach: Click here to read “Approaching Formal Writing”

My “Teaching Writing” series:

Now available