I like to give my kids choices. Sometimes the choices aren't what they would like, but they do get to choose. Giving children choices gives them a feeling of control in their lives. Children need to learn how to make choices when they are young. They need to know that their opinion matters.
This is so true in school work. There are few places where children are programmed as much as they are in brick and mortar schools. Teacher can't really give children choices about the work that they are going to do. When you have 30 some odd kids to tend to it is just not feasible. You can't just let them choose what they want to learn. This is an unfortunate condition of brick and mortar schools.
With home learning you have a lot more freedom to follow your child. To see where their passions truly lie. Kids are generally full of wonder and want to know more about their environment. Allowing them to have choices allow them to feel like they can control their own life. They have the ability to grow where they want to grow.
Now in our family there are a few things that I feel must be covered, basic math, reading and writing. I give choices in these area of what to do. We try and make it fun, we play games for math, because generally I find math boring and worksheets me me want to go to sleep. Why would I ask my son to do something that I would never do if I had the choice. Though I do leave the option there for him, some days he does it for fun. We write as a family and we read as a family. We really try to keep things less stressful.
This year I am really focusing on enjoying learning. Part of enjoying learning is finding passion. Finding passion is a lot easier when you can choose. We don't do book work everyday or even every week, but we learn all the time.
If you give your child the option to choose to learn about what interests them and how it interests them, you might be very surprised but what they will do.
