Tag Archives: notebooking

Sometimes Unconventional Learning Works Best

What do I mean by unconventional?  I mean anything other than textbooks. Most of us were brought up to believe that the only way to teach is with a textbook that you assign to the student, they study it and then they take a test to see how much they’ve learned.

But is this the way we learn as adults? Not me. When I’m interested in learning about a new topic the first thing I do is go to the library and find out what books they have on the subject. Now I know, some of you are already thinking that I’m behind the times. Many of you would be quick to point out that the Internet is a far better resource than the public library. Call me old-fashioned, I am a reader and would rather have a book in my hands than stare at a screen. But since you brought up the Internet, there are lots of ways to gain information there too!

Some homeschoolers are uneasy with a truly unschooling method. This is where you allow the student to completely control their learning environment and the topics they choose to explore.  I am not necessarily saying that to go unconventional, you have to go completely unschooled. There are many degrees of learning between conventional schooling and unschooling.

I’ve collected a selection of resources that might help you feel more comfortable with a less structured learning model.

Carschooling – when you have to spend a lot of time in your vehicle and can’t seem to get any schoolwork done, here are some ideas to make the time profitable.

 

 

Project Based Learning – Choosing projects that help your child explore their interests in depth. The possibilities are endless. What is your child interested in?

Notebooking – Creating notebooks to collect information as the student learns about a topic.

 

There is also a website called, “Lifestyle of Learning Association of Christian Home Educators” (LOLACHE). The founder is Marilyn Howshall. I read several of her books on homeschooling about 20 years ago. If you can find them, they are very helpful for a more relaxed homeschool experience. They are out of print but if you go to Marilyn Howshall on Amazon you can see what is available used. I bought the 4 book set.

Delight Directed Homeschooling – a method of learning that follows the child’s interests but is more structured than unschooling.

There are also many classes that you can sign up for at your local library or community center. Check for co-ops in your area for group experiences for your students too.

50 States Notebook

notebookingIf you are familiar with the concept of notebooking, you will enjoy this website full of ideas for creating a notebook of the 50 states.  If you have never considered doing notebooks with your students, this topic lends itself very well to learning the ropes.

By doing one state at a time, you can easily get into a rhythm of working on it a little at a time. Here are some possible plans.

              • You can work as fast or as slow as you want. You could do one state every couple of days for the entire school year and get a simple overview of each state.
              • You could stretch it out and do one state a week and cover everything in two years. Perhaps pulling in a little history in the process.
              • You could also allow several weeks to each state and use it for geography and regional studies for all of your middle school years.
              • If you wanted to work with several students who are in different grades you could start the oldest one and when the next one is ready, have them work on each new state together until the oldest one is done and then complete the states the younger ones haven’t done yet. You could probably work with students from grades 5-9 at the same time, just requiring a little more effort from the older ones.

There are many subjects that work quite well for notebooking. Try the 50 states and then go on to other topics. Soon your students will have a collection of their learning adventures to share with others.

Here are a few other resources that might help.

The Homeschool History Notebooking Journal

Notebooking: For Homeschooling, A Beginners Guide

Exploring the 50 States Notebook Journal