When my husband home schools everything gets messed up. He does nothing like I would teach it. He doesn’t keep track of which spelling words the kids have gotten right. He takes 3 hours to teach math. If I let him teach science, not only does he completely stray away from what the kids are supposed to be studying, they may end up in a completely different world.
Case in point, we had the kids experiment with things that float. I know of no better place to do this but in the bathtub. (I feel like I must state that we don’t have a yard so a little pool is not an option.) I’m thinking the kids will make a few small boats (small being one of the operative words here) out of a few different materials and then chart what floats and what doesn‘t. What ensued can only be described as a an all out, all weekend long adventure. . .
In order to understand the grand boat experiment–you have to understand 5 year olds first. 5 year olds are famous for being in the “why” stage. My husband is famous for answering. While the rest of us adults simply answer with, “Stop asking me why,” or “I don’t know,” or even better, “what do you think,” my husband actually answers each and every why. All the time.
So when my 5 year old asked why one material would float and another wouldn’t my husband answered with complicated explanations about how in order for something to float the material has to be less dense than water. Then he had to explain what it meant to be dense (as in a material–not a person). Which then led to an experiment about how to make water more dense so things would float better. (If you don’t know the answer: salt water is more dense than plain water, and thus anything will float in salty water if the water is salty enough.) Which somehow led to an explanation of how submarines manage to submerge and emerge. Which then led to history–what types of boats different cultures used when traveling by boat was the only way to get around. This then led to an expedition to the library to answer more why’s about famous explorers and how the earth is not flat. Are you getting the picture here? My simple bathtub experiment that would’ve taken me 30 minutes to teach. . .took up a whole weekend.
Yes, my husband definitely messes everything up. He makes it so the kids naturally ask questions and want to learn more. He goes off on tangents that cause my children to think critically, analyze information, and make connections between various subjects. He probably is the single reason that my son knows about inertia and trajectory and bioluminescence.
I am of course being sarcastic. I am so blessed to have a spouse that not only willingly and enthusiastically helps with home schooling, but also does it in such a way that the kids want learn. Of course there is a place for spelling tests, and record keeping, and schedules but let’s not extinguish our children’s natural desire to want to learn by being rigid. If you are like me, you can learn a lot from my husband:
* Always answer why with a complete and thorough explanation. Do so, despite what may or may not be in your lesson plan book.
* Always teach your children as if there is not one single thing in life that could possibly be more important at that time.
* Most importantly, always, always take advantage of the sponge like nature of a curious child.
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