When you homeschool the idea of learning gaps can be intimidating. What if I miss a significant body of knowledge? Will my kids suffer because I fail to teach them {fill in the blank} ? Will the gaps in their learning hold them back in life? The idea that learning gaps are detrimental is a myth. If you use delight-directed learning or unit studies, gaps in learning may be more prominent because you aren’t following a scope and sequence. Should you worry? NO! Your kids WILL survive and in the long run will be better learners.
Here’s why…
First of all, we all have gaps. There isn’t a single person in this world that knows everything. For example, I went to three different high schools because we were an Army family. The constant moving created a plethora of gaps in my knowledge. I never read To Kill a Mockingbird in high school. I knew little of the World Wars. I struggle through my math classes. However, I survived. Think about your own experiences? Were there major gaps in what you learned in school? Have they been a detriment to you? Do you still have gaps in your knowledge of the world? The gaps never held me back. I have a feeling they probably didn’t hold you back either. When you came to something you didn’t know you learned about it so you could move forward. It’s what I did. When your children encounter their own gaps how do you want them to react? By getting frustrated? By giving up? No, you will want them to be problem solvers and work to learn what they need to know. Delightful learning teaches those skills.
Delight-directed learning makes children life-long learners. Because you allow them to learn about the things that interest them you keep their love of learning alive. “Delightful” learning {and unit studies} add depth to your child’s knowledge. Traditional learning is all about width. You end up with a child who knows a little about a lot of topics. They have head knowledge, but in the process tend to lose their love of learning. When you “go deep” with delight-directed learning you create a different type of learner…one who can’t seem to get enough. Will they have gaps? Sure, but those gaps can be overcome easily throughout life. For example, I finally did read To Kill a Mockingbird in my thirties. Since then I have read it two more times and have taught the novel to my oldest son and will soon teach it again to my youngest. I married a man who is fascinated with history and especially WWII. And yes, I now know a ton about the World Wars thanks to him. The gaps didn’t hold me back. They just create more opportunities for deep learning. Isn’t that what we want in the long run? Life-long learners who actually retain a deep knowledge of all they study.
Delight-directed learning makes children teachers! One of the most beneficial aspects of delightful learning is letting your child fill in YOUR gaps! Let me give you this example. Last year my youngest son was studying geography and earth science. At one point he came to me and said he wanted to really study Socotra. Ever heard of it? I hadn’t. It turns out that Socotra is a four-island archipelago near Yemen with unique plants and animals. After my son did his research he then taught me about this area of the world. I re-learned the geography of the area around Yemen. I learned new words like “endemic”. I became familiar with Dragon’s Blood trees. He became my teacher. One of the aspects of learning is that when you teach someone else what you have learned you solidify the knowledge. The irony? Learning happens best when we have to teach what we learn! I have seen this phenomenon time and again. When we teach others we learn along with them. Delight-directed learning gives a child the opportunity to teach others and in turn, master the material.
This school year why not try delightful learning? You may be surprised at what you and your child learn! To help you on the journey towards delight-directed learning, Marcy has created Delightful Planning: A Unit Study Planner for Every Homeschool. This is an excellent resource to help you get started on teaching your kids to love learning! I love all the planning sheets and resources she provides. Her planner will walk you through all you need to create “delightful” learning in your home.
Debbie lives in central Alaska with her husband and two teen boys. She loves to read, write, and spend time with loved ones. She homeschools her sons and runs an in-home business offering Spanish lessons to other homeschoolers. She blogs about faith at The Architect and the Artist and about teaching Spanish at Debbie’s Spanish Learning.
