unSocialized Educated at Home; Engaging the World

1896 Newsies 

Not likely to be part of a standard curriculum, these not so ordinary topics could be developed into great unit studies or be used for reports (written research reports or essays, speeches, or visual presentations like PowerPoints or videos).

Some starting points: 

Sufferin’ Succotash: Who are the voices behind the most well-known cartoon characters of the past and today? Starting with Walt Disney, this voice-over chart gives you the rundown. What a cool way to earn a living.

Fashion Fun A – Z: Unit study ideas for incorporating and practicing research and presentation skills while studying the world of fashion.  Some of the suggestions include: researching relaxing clothes from the 1800s to now and do a presentation;  list 20 words that are used only in the fashion industry and their meanings;  follow clothes through the retail process, from design to factory to store racks.  

SimpsonsMath: This site uses episodes from The Simpsons to help students understand math concepts. According to the site, "The Simpsons contains over a hundred instances of mathematics ranging from arithmetic to geometry to calculus, many designed to expose and poke fun at innumeracy."

The site includes an extensive guide to the math and mathematicians referenced on The Simpsons, a page highlighting the mathematical backgrounds of many of the show's writers, and activity sheets with math activities correlated to specific episodes.

Evolution of NYC:  See the city develop in pictures and etchings from the 1400s to the 1900s. At this site, you can also watch a short video on the history of NYC; take a look back at 100 years of lunching in the city; and view artwork created by an NYC artist who uses Metrocards as her medium. (These are pretty amazing). 

How New Words Are Added to the English Language: This interesting article outlines the different ways words become part of the English language. Some are borrowed from other languages, some are truncated to form new words, others are fused together, etc. 

History of Marketing: This is a detailed timeline infographic featuring the history of marketing from 1450 to 2012. Lots of information here on how the emergence of new technology has affected marketing. May be a useful starting point for a report on a particular era, or to take a small chunk of information and create one's own graphic.

Haunted History of 7 American Landmarks: A roundup of ghost stories relating to well-known landmarks, including specters roaming the Smithsonian Institution; sightings of apparitions at the Hollywood sign; and a phantom ship passing beneath the Golden Gate.

I read an interesting article debunking three commonly held beliefs (referred to as "neuromyths") about how people think and learn. The first is that we use only 10% of our brains. (Lots of jokes here about how most people don’t even use that, etc.) I seem to recall using the statistic in a paper I once wrote for a college psych class. The professor let me know, in no uncertain terms, that the idea was false. I don’t think I believed him. 

The second says that providing an “enriching” environment will give a boost to your baby’s brain. The article says this theory may have come from studies done on rats: those raised in cages with exercise wheels and tunnels “showed better cognitive abilities” than those raised in bare cages. How this applies to humans? Unless you are raised in a closet, or some other unnatural environment (the equivalent of the rat in the amenity-less cage), with regards to amount, most children probably get adequate, if not, too much stimuli --even we unSocialized homeschoolers. As to the quality of the stimuli, well, that’s a whole other matter.

The third so-called “neuromyth” – and this is the one I think home educators have really grasped onto – is that for our children to learn effectively, we must cater to their preferred learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic). This is one of the hallmarks of home education, right? It’s one way we distinguish ourselves from the “one size fits all,” mindless drone model of the public schools. 

Well, when the theory was put to the test, the conclusion was that a student’s preferred method of learning is not necessarily the most effective method. And visual learning seems to be the most effective regardless of a person’s preference. (Read the article and watch the video here). 

I have never really tried to ascertain the types of learners my children are. I don’t know that they would neatly fit into any one category. Nor is one type of learning (listening to an audiobook, for example) going to be effective for every subject, or on any given day.

As many of you have no doubt experienced, when it comes to home education, adaptability, rather than pigeon-holing, is key. I have presented information one way, found that it wasn’t working, and then figured out how to show it in another way until it clicks. There are days when my 10-year-old son doesn’t mind doing his math worksheet, quietly reading on his own, or writing a descriptive paragraph. Other days, it’s all that I can do to get him to settle down and concentrate. Those are the times when a more tactile approach is employed – less bookwork, more activity.

Not  very “scientific” I suppose, but, I have found that the best method on any given day is essentially whatever’s working.

What are your thoughts? Do you homeschool each child according to a particular learning style or method? Have any of you used a learning style assessment tool to deterimine your child's learning style? Post the link.

Here are two sites to learn more about literary devices used in poetry, such as alliteration, assonance, internal rhyme, metaphor and simile, and personification. The sites are interactive, so you can move the mouse over highlighted words to see what devices are being employed. Try it out with these two classic poems: 

• Edgar Allen Poe's The Raven 

• Alfred Noyes' The Highwayman