I had to post this after watching a YouTube video about a homeschooler's typical day. You know, waking up late in the day and playing "Boggle" for English class? We get up early, but we do still play with blocks and Boggle. Yes, I count that for homeschooling if it's reasonably relevant, though of course that's not all we do for English class. I remember playing Bingo in public school when I was their age as well and can still write a complete sentence. I think younger children get a lot out of these games and are learning to using their eyes to locate and decipher things such as where to put their chips in Bingo or how to find words in Boggle. Here you see Elf and Emperor building with Math-U-See blocks to learn about volume. In the past, I have logged Battleship game hours when we were learning about finding points on a grid (B7, D2, and so on).
I agree that games are a great way to learn. We have a bunch too. It is also great for learning to take turns and other social skills too. You don't get that from worksheets.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like your boys have a lot of fun and learn a lot too.
I'm hoping I get to the point in homeschooling where I can not have to follow instructions Exactly. I'd like to be able to do things more on my own. I'm not there yet though. :)
ReplyDeleteHey you got me thinking now....I am gonna have to get the games out now. I kinda forgot about some learning ones I own.
ReplyDelete(boggle, states sequence, UNO, matching games, just to mention a few.....)
We have a board game called "Allowance" that I've let them use for homeschooling. Life and Monopoly are good too. Kid oriented Scrabble games are fun. Though we've never played it, I'm (brace yourself!) Poker is an excellent methods of teaching them to count and manage resources. And don't forget "Go Fish!" :)
ReplyDeleteI also read somewhere that comic books are also ok for learning how to read.
ReplyDeleteHey I say whatever works. But still have structure. I want to get the kids Bananagram. We play scrabble sometimes for spelling. It expands their view and makes them think. Which is more than I can say for some other institutions.
ReplyDeleteI am thinking they ought to explain that is a typical day in the life of an unschooled student . . . our day looks nothing like the video. And, my day would look nothing like a family that does traditional textbooks. And, their day would look nothing like a unit study family.
ReplyDeleteThus, there is no day for typical homeschoolers . . .
Hey, thanks for the great ideas. I think I'll try that science experiment with the kids today! ;-)
ReplyDeleteThe most shocking thing about the video for me was the wake up time. My kids have all chores done, and are often half way done with school work by that time. We're a house full of early birds!
There are lots of 'games' out there that are educational without the kids even realising it! This is good. The boys looks so happy!
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